Martin Frobisher

Sir Martin Frobisher was a famous English sea captain and privateer.

He lived during the sixteenth century and spent much of his life on the ocean. Frobisher was born around 1535 or 1536 in Yorkshire, England. His father was a merchant named Bernard Frobisher. After his father died, his uncle helped care for the family. As a young man, Frobisher moved to London to live with a relative named Sir John York. This move helped him find new opportunities in the world of trade and sailing.

Frobisher learned a lot about the sea through many difficult trips. In 1553, he joined an expedition to West Africa. This trip was very hard because a disease spread through the crew. Many men died, and only 40 of the original 140 sailors returned home. Frobisher survived this event, and people said he had a very strong body. In 1554, he joined another trip to the Gold Coast. During this voyage, he even acted as a hostage to help with trade deals. He was later held in a castle in Portugal for about nine months.

Later in his life, Frobisher worked as a privateer. A privateer is a person who is allowed to take riches from other ships. He often targeted French ships to gain wealth. This work sometimes led to trouble with the law. He was arrested and sent to prison several times. In 1563, he was held because his ship took goods from a Spanish vessel. He was also arrested in 1569 after seizing ships that were not supposed to be attacked. Eventually, leaders like William Cecil helped him return to service.

Frobisher is most famous for searching for the North-west Passage. This was a sea path through the north that might lead to the East Indies. In 1576, he led his first big trip to find this route. He had help from the Muscovy Company to get three ships. These ships were named the Gabriel and the Michael. Queen Elizabeth I even watched them leave from Greenwich Palace.

During his travels, he reached lands near present-day Canada. He likely saw Resolution Island and explored Frobisher Bay.

On his second voyage, Frobisher made a big mistake about a discovery. He found rocks that he believed were made of gold. He brought 1,350 tons of this ore back to England. At first, people thought the rocks were worth a profit. They spent a long time trying to melt the rocks down. Later, they realized the ore was actually just worthless rock called hornblende. Even though he did not find gold, his voyages helped people map the cold north. He was also made a knight for his service in 1588.