Discovering America Podcast

The fire in the eyes of Sir Francis Drake was not dead; he knew Spain was planning to attack England, but when? The Queen wanted a defensive war well; Francis wasn't a defensive type of guy. He wanted to destroy the Spanish armada once and for all. The fight would come to England and in the age of sails sometimes it came down to the temperament of Mother Nature. "Hold on tight mates, here comes another gale!"

Francis Drake had the abilities to have men flock to his side; they knew action was in their future. He also had the tactics to wage destruction to those who fought against him upon the high seas and had strategies to conquer coastal settlements. Francis was a thorn in the side of King Phillip; these next few assaults would only further his irritation.

While Queen Elizabeth was busy figuring out if a war with Spanish was emanate, Francis slipped away on a mission of his own. The sailors on board were told they were bound for Alexandra but, after a wrong turn, they must have realized this trip was headed for more interesting waters. Francis Drake and his ships would load up on Spanish treasures. This was not all, second on the agenda was a trip around the world. Come one come all! Who is ready for a terror trip through the Magellan straits?

England and Spain are in the middle of deciding whether to go to war or not. Drake had other plans so he slipped down to the Spanish Main to help himself to the treasures sitting in their storehouses. The ex-Spanish African slaves, the Cimarrones or Maroons as called by the sailors would go along with Drake's schemes. Shipping was not what it used to be; now there was Drake and company. The ships dragging from the weight of their cargo arrived back at England. Only to find out that Spain had a price on his head, time to lay low. To Ireland I go. No ship was safe with Francis Drake at the helm.

This episode mixes in the history of the unsettled affairs in Europe and how a very famous pirate or should I say privateer got involved. Francis Drake is just getting his feet wet with the fight against the Spanish control of the wealth coming out of the Indies and beyond.

Winter was coming on, the temperature was dropping and many of the men were sick. Admiral Gomez on the Santo Tomas was instructed to head home with letters, journals and charts and give an account to the viceroy what they had discovered. Unfortunately that's not all, the ship would carry home. The ship would be loaded with the sickest of men. Scurvy had taken over the ships. Later on, a storm would separate the San Diego and the Tres Reyes. The San Diego and Vizcaino's crew would soon turn around while; the Tres Reyes would continue sailing north a little longer. All three ships made it home but, many of the sailors did not. Remind me to take along barrels of limes and apples for our next voyage.

This is a special edition of the Discovering America podcast, an interview with author Maggie Espinosa where she explains her extraordinary journey walking to 21 Spanish Missions in the Southern California region.

The three ships, Santo Tomas, San Diego and the Tres Reyes would continue exploring and mapping the California coast in search of that perfect port to be used by the Spanish ships as a stopping point on the Philippine trade route. Most of the time the natives were very friendly towards the strangers but, then again this wasn't the first time the Europeans had visited these shores. Juan Cabrillo had made his way up this coast and then there is the ship wreck of San Agustin which left some unfortunate soles somewhere along this coast. Yep, I think San Diego bay will be a great place to watch the sun set.

The Spanish discovered an ocean route from the west coast of North America and took control of the Philippines. Now the west coast was the target of the other European nations. It would best to secure a port, a harbor, anyplace as a safe haven for the incoming Spanish galleons. Cabrillo had explored the western coast but that was several years ago. Spain sends another group of ships to search out and map the coast to find that safe haven. Sebastian Vizcaino takes on that challenge, a good choice he had been a trader for several years between Mexico and the Orient and was lucky enough to be on a Galleon when it was plundered by Cavendish. California here we come!

Coming back from the east and finding San Juan almost deserted, this was very disheartening for Onate. With the help of Saldivar after talking to the king, the settlement was revived. Now it was time for Onate to venture towards the sea. His group would experience the great Colorado and visit many of the people who lived among its banks, well at least one side of it. After the men smelled the sea breeze, they retraced their steps back to New Mexico, all accounted for sir!