In Search of a Kingdom: Francis Drake, Elizabeth I, and the Perilous Birth of the British Empire
- Downloads：6079
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-05-31 08:51:40
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Laurence Bergreen
- ISBN：0062875353
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
In this grand and thrilling narrative， the acclaimed biographer of Magellan and Columbus brings alive the singular life and adventures of Sir Francis Drake， the pirate/explorer/admiral whose mastery of the seas during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I changed the course of history
"FASCINATING。 。。。 Drake’s story is both dramatic and timely。" –New York Times Book Review
Before he was secretly dispatched by Queen Elizabeth to circumnavigate the globe， or was called upon to save England from the Spanish Armada， Francis Drake was perhaps the most wanted–and successful–pirate ever to sail。 Nicknamed "El Draque" by the Spaniards who placed a bounty on his head， the notorious red-haired， hot-tempered Drake pillaged galleons laden with New World gold and silver， stealing a vast fortune for his queen–and himself。 For Elizabeth， Drake made the impossible real， serving as a crucial and brilliantly adaptable instrument of her ambitions to transform England from a third-rate island kingdom into a global imperial power。
In 1580， sailing on Elizabeth's covert orders， Drake became the first captain to circumnavigate the earth successfully。 （Ferdinand Magellan had died in his attempt。） Part exploring expedition， part raiding mission， Drake's audacious around-the-world journey in the Golden Hind reached Patagonia， the Pacific Coast of present-day California and Oregon， the Spice Islands， Java， and Africa。 Almost a decade later， Elizabeth called upon Drake again。 As the devil-may-care vice admiral of the English fleet， Drake dramatically defeated the once-invincible Spanish Armada， spurring the British Empire’s ascent and permanently wounding its greatest rival。
The relationship between Drake and Elizabeth is the missing link in our understanding of the rise of the British Empire， and its importance has not been fully described or appreciated。 Framed around Drake’s key voyages as a window into this crucial moment in British history， In Search of a Kingdom is a rousing adventure narrative entwining epic historical themes with intimate passions。
"FASCINATING。 。。。 Drake’s story is both dramatic and timely。" –New York Times Book Review
Before he was secretly dispatched by Queen Elizabeth to circumnavigate the globe， or was called upon to save England from the Spanish Armada， Francis Drake was perhaps the most wanted–and successful–pirate ever to sail。 Nicknamed "El Draque" by the Spaniards who placed a bounty on his head， the notorious red-haired， hot-tempered Drake pillaged galleons laden with New World gold and silver， stealing a vast fortune for his queen–and himself。 For Elizabeth， Drake made the impossible real， serving as a crucial and brilliantly adaptable instrument of her ambitions to transform England from a third-rate island kingdom into a global imperial power。
In 1580， sailing on Elizabeth's covert orders， Drake became the first captain to circumnavigate the earth successfully。 （Ferdinand Magellan had died in his attempt。） Part exploring expedition， part raiding mission， Drake's audacious around-the-world journey in the Golden Hind reached Patagonia， the Pacific Coast of present-day California and Oregon， the Spice Islands， Java， and Africa。 Almost a decade later， Elizabeth called upon Drake again。 As the devil-may-care vice admiral of the English fleet， Drake dramatically defeated the once-invincible Spanish Armada， spurring the British Empire’s ascent and permanently wounding its greatest rival。
The relationship between Drake and Elizabeth is the missing link in our understanding of the rise of the British Empire， and its importance has not been fully described or appreciated。 Framed around Drake’s key voyages as a window into this crucial moment in British history， In Search of a Kingdom is a rousing adventure narrative entwining epic historical themes with intimate passions。
Reviews
Ricky
，
This makes a nice follow-up to the author’s magnificent （and somewhat better） Over the Edge of the World。 This time he covers Francis Drake’s circumnavigation instead of instead of Magellan’s。 The book is at its strongest with that great adventure with its focus firmly on Francis Drake。 It loses a bit of steam in the later years as the focus switches to England’s battles with the Spanish Armada but it still makes for an interesting read。
Mike M
，
Long winded and very repetitive， the first half is just log entries of drakes travel
Cullen
，
Large sections of this book are horribly written， basically just quotations from journals slapped together with little context or explanation。 The result is tedious， repetitious and confusing。 Altogether a lame effort by the author， his editor and the publisher。 Even the New York Times dropped the ball with its gushing review。 Seems like they reviewed the idea behind the book without actually reading it。 And the idea was good， it's just that the execution was terrible for the most part。 Large sections of this book are horribly written， basically just quotations from journals slapped together with little context or explanation。 The result is tedious， repetitious and confusing。 Altogether a lame effort by the author， his editor and the publisher。 Even the New York Times dropped the ball with its gushing review。 Seems like they reviewed the idea behind the book without actually reading it。 And the idea was good， it's just that the execution was terrible for the most part。 。。。more
Kevin
，
I enjoyed this book as I had very little knowledge about Francis Drake or Elizabeth I。 This book was full of interesting facts。 If you are a hardcore fan of history， this book may be for you too。
Joy
，
I loved "Over the Edge of the World" when I first read it more than 15 years ago and have read all of Bergreen's books since then。 While not all his books have lived up to that standard， this one comes very close。Bergreen is at his best when describing life at sea--- he makes it come alive to a layperson， explaining the technology of the day and painting a vivid picture of the life of seafarers。 This is an engaging and thrilling account of Drake's travels and adventures as well as an insightful I loved "Over the Edge of the World" when I first read it more than 15 years ago and have read all of Bergreen's books since then。 While not all his books have lived up to that standard， this one comes very close。Bergreen is at his best when describing life at sea--- he makes it come alive to a layperson， explaining the technology of the day and painting a vivid picture of the life of seafarers。 This is an engaging and thrilling account of Drake's travels and adventures as well as an insightful peek into Queen Elizabeth I's leadership style。 The book chronicles that pivotal transitional era as Spain declined and England took rose to become a global power。 。。。more
John Sinclair
，
BOOK REVIEW ⭐️⭐️⭐️Elizabeth I features only obliquely here。 This is really the story of pirate-navigator Francis Drake and his circumnavigation of the globe and his incursions against mighty Spain for preeminence on the high seas。 More could probably be said about his journeys， but this was plenty for me。 #bibliophile #book #bookish #booklover #books #books2021 #booksofinstagram #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookstagrammers #bookworm #goodreads #instabook #instabooks #reader #readers #reading #r BOOK REVIEW ⭐️⭐️⭐️Elizabeth I features only obliquely here。 This is really the story of pirate-navigator Francis Drake and his circumnavigation of the globe and his incursions against mighty Spain for preeminence on the high seas。 More could probably be said about his journeys， but this was plenty for me。 #bibliophile #book #bookish #booklover #books #books2021 #booksofinstagram #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookstagrammers #bookworm #goodreads #instabook #instabooks #reader #readers #reading #readingroom #readersofinstagram #bookreview 。。。more
Jim Stennett
，
Two things first off: 1） I loved “Over the Edge of the World。” Excellent book that I couldn’t put down 2） I read this book as an ARC。 I certainly hope the final book was throughly edited before publication， because the ARC was riddled with typos， word processing mistakes and was repetitive to the point of comedy at times。 Some of the anecdotes are told four times！ The author relies far too heavily on lengthy quotations。 Some are a page and a half long in Elizabethan English。 Paraphrase some of t Two things first off: 1） I loved “Over the Edge of the World。” Excellent book that I couldn’t put down 2） I read this book as an ARC。 I certainly hope the final book was throughly edited before publication， because the ARC was riddled with typos， word processing mistakes and was repetitive to the point of comedy at times。 Some of the anecdotes are told four times！ The author relies far too heavily on lengthy quotations。 Some are a page and a half long in Elizabethan English。 Paraphrase some of that stuff， my man。 The text is extremely disorganized especially the second half。 The story of the Armada confused me and I’ve taught classes on it。 Some pretty mundane things are examined in great detail while extremely important moments are just glossed over。 For example， Drake’s controversial actions the night of the Armada battle are dealt with in two sentences and brushed aside。 Ahh， hey， he abandoned the plan， caused the scattering of his squadron and went off on personal pillaging。 Kinda needs some kind of attempt at an explanation。 Not a recommend for the serious student of the age。 A beginner could benefit from the bibliography。 。。。more
Haley
，
I had high hopes for this book， but I found it tedious and repetitious， with occasional bursts of really great writing。 There was a chance to do some really great stuff here but Bergreen failed to follow through。More 2。5 stars than 3。 Full review to come。
Iain Thune
，
Long， tiresome， and with a remarkable talent for repeating itself， this book takes an interesting time in the creation of the British Empire and turns it into a slog。 The worst of it is the repetitiveness。 The amount of times that the same phrase or sentence is used is massive， oftentimes with it being repeated on the same page or even the same paragraph。 There are even times where the same quote is used 3 or 4 times in a chapter！ Another problem is the amount of bouncing in between locations an Long， tiresome， and with a remarkable talent for repeating itself， this book takes an interesting time in the creation of the British Empire and turns it into a slog。 The worst of it is the repetitiveness。 The amount of times that the same phrase or sentence is used is massive， oftentimes with it being repeated on the same page or even the same paragraph。 There are even times where the same quote is used 3 or 4 times in a chapter！ Another problem is the amount of bouncing in between locations and sometimes even times。 While it is often hard to give history context in a linear fashion， Bergreen likes to move around between Francis Drake in the Pacific， Elizabeth in England， and Phillip in Spain， often with no transition or tying bond between the two events。 While the key elements of the story are all there， the order keeps it from being a captive narrative。 I’ve heard people say good things about the author’s other books， but this one made me truly skeptical in trying them out。 。。。more
Stephen Chase
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 The best of Sir Francis Drake & Queen Elizabeth I！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！
John W。
，
An excellent study of Sir Francis Drake his circumnavigation of the world and the importance of the treasure he acquired in this voyage。 This allowed Queen Elizabeth to avoid a disastrous marriage which meant that it saved her throne。 Then he defeated the Spanish Armada spurring the British Empire's ascent。 An excellent study of Sir Francis Drake his circumnavigation of the world and the importance of the treasure he acquired in this voyage。 This allowed Queen Elizabeth to avoid a disastrous marriage which meant that it saved her throne。 Then he defeated the Spanish Armada spurring the British Empire's ascent。 。。。more
David Burris
，
An excellent book。 Teaching us about England ruled by Elizabeth and the great piracy of Francis Drake。
Jean-Paul Adriaansen
，
History at his best。This is not only the amazing story of Francis Drake but also the story of how Queen Elizabeth I， “illegitimate” child of Henry VIII， steered impoverished England out of the claws of France and Spain and founded a new world empire。Very interesting and “easy” read。
Camille Pum
，
I won this book in the giveaway。 I am a huge fan of historical fiction and was excited to get a chance to read In Search of a Kingdom。 Laurence Bergreen is a fantastic writer that will pull any interested reader deeper into the story than they would have believed possible。
Brent
，