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The English – and later the British – spent hundreds of years trying to locate and then navigate through the almost mythical North-West Passage. Several large-scale expeditions, including those of Martin Frobisher, Henry Hudson and John Franklin, came up against an all-too familiar obstacle – the immovable ice.

In the end, Amundsen succeeded by taking a path that few of the English had considered – he spent time learning the habits and skills of the Inuit, who had survived in the harsh Arctic climate for many hundreds of years. The Norwegian survived two winters in the frozen north, with plenty of assistance from the Netsilik Inuit.

Amundsen would later use those same skills to beat the British to the South Pole, too.

Image: Painting of HMS Terror in the Arctic Regions, by William Smyth, 1837.

You can read a brief history of the search for the North-West Passage here.

Frobisher originally took Kalicho as a hostage after five Englishmen who had disappeared in the same area the previous winter. The English also took an unrelated Inuit woman and her infant, who they named Arnaq and Nutaaq.

When an attempt to exchange the three Inuit for the missing Englishmen failed, they were taken back to England.

The Inuit became minor celebrities after landing at the port of Bristol. Portraits of Kalicho and Arnaq were presented to Queen Elizabeth I and hung in Hampton Court Palace.

Frobisher hoped to train Kalicho as an interpreter to help on later voyages. Unfortunately, Kalicho passed away in Bristol on 8 November 1577. A postmortem suggested that the Inuit man had died due to complications of a rib injury, likely sustained in his capture at Baffin Bay.

The image above was drawn by John White, who later helped to establish the English colony of Roanoke in North America.

EDIT: When I say 'picked up', I should have written 'kidnapped' or at least 'captured', given that Kalicho was taken from his homeland and spirited away in violent circumstances.

The elephant became something of a celebrity during his stay in Rome – the image above shows a depiction of Hanno drawn by the artist Raphael, while he also had several encounters with the Medici.

When Hanno died in 1516, the pope was said to be besides himself with grief.

Full story on Age of Exploration Patreon page (free access): https://www.patreon.com/posts/present-fit-for-157548241

They are both Vendel rings and are thought to have been used in some kind of ceremonial ritual.

More info: https://thevikingherald.com/article/2-500-year-old-bronze-age-neck-rings-discovered-in-marby-sweden/1386

The colony in the Strait of Magellan, however, was a disaster. The settlers were unable to plant food in the southern reaches of South America, and soon begin to starve. When the English privateer Thomas Cavendish arrived at the site in 1587, three years after its foundation, there were only 30 people left from the original party of 300. He renamed it Port Famine.

Sarmiento, on the other hand, was captured by Walter Raleigh near the Azores and imprisoned in England. When he finally made it back to Spain four years on, the colony was no more.

The coin was located using a 16th-century map of the settlement found in the Bibliothèque de l’Institut de France in Paris. It was in the exact spot that had been described by Sarmiento de Gamboa and marked on the map.

You can read an interview with the historian Soledad González Díaz, one of the leaders of the investigations, here.

Image: Foundation coin found at Port Famine. Credit: Richard Bezzaza

The Havmanden was bound for the Danish colony of St Thomas in the Caribbean.

After killing the officers, the mutineers took over the vessel and sailed back to Scandinavia, where they hit some rocks just off the Swedish coast. The mutineers survived but were immediately arrested and sent to Copenhagen, where they were executed for their crimes.

The wreck was found in 1993. Now, researchers from the Danish National Museum are looking to find out more about the people on board the vessel and also what happened in the aftermath of the mutiny.

Full story here: https://theageofexploration.com/havmanden-mutiny-new-investigation-of-most-violent-mutiny-in-danish-history/

Victims of the mutiny included the captain, Jan Blom, and Jørgen Iversen Dyppel, who had governed the colony for 18 years and was travelling back there to help restore order after a period of unrest.

The ship was carrying around 100 convicts, who were to settle in the Caribbean. However, both the convicts and crew members were upset with their treatment on the voyage and rose up against the officers. Captain Blom was shot, while most of the rest of the officers were simply thrown overboard.

Danish researchers are now investigating the wreck of the ship, which lies close to Gothenberg in the Swedish Peninsula.

You can more about the research efforts and the mutiny here

Image: A depiction of the conspiracy by Christian Bogø printed in the magazine Vikingen in 1924

Had to share this - they are calling it the "Rold Treasure".

Story: https://thevikingherald.com/article/quite-extraordinary-six-solid-gold-viking-age-rings-found-in-denmark/1382

Researchers from the University of Waterloo in Canada have compared DNA samples from skeletons found in the Arctic with known descendants of Franklin expedition crew members. Matches to four of the bodies have been found, including that of Harry Peglar, a petty officer who left a wallet full of personal documents.

Full story: https://theageofexploration.com/genetic-mapping-unmasks-four-victims-of-the-ill-fated-franklin-voyage/

Image: Excavating one of the skeletons found in the Arctic, University of Waterloo

Manuel I, the Portuguese king, had originally appointed da Cunha to be Viceroy of Portuguese India. When da Cunha contracted an eye infection in 1504, he lost his sight and could not travel.

Yet in 1506, as da Cunha's sight began to gradually improve, Manuel instead made him commander of a 22-ship fleet that would be sent to take control of Red Sea shipping.

On the way, da Cunha - or a member of his crew - spotted a tiny island in the South Atlantic. The island was recorded and named after the commander, though the ships did not stop there.

When they finally reached the Red Sea, da Cunha's fleet took control of the island of Socotra, using it to strangle the gateway to the Red Sea.

Sometime after his return to Portugal, it is thought that de Cunha lost his sight completely. Nevertheless, he remained a faithful servant of the crown, even later travelling to Rome to present the Pope with the gift of an elephant.

The island, now known in English under its anglicised name, Tristan da Cunha, is considered by many to be the most remote island in the world.

Images: Tristan da Cunha today; only known painting of Tristão da Cunha

Full story: https://theageofexploration.com/tristao-da-cunha-how-a-half-blind-commander-discovered-the-worlds-remotest-island/

The incident occurred after the local leader, Mahine, had asked to receive the animals as a gift, but was refused.

The first goat went missing the next morning. Cook demanded its return, but to no avail. When a second goat also disappeared, Cook became furious and marched on the chief's village on the far side of the island.

The locals refused again to return the animals, so Cook ordered his men to burn down the village and a number of war canoes.

Over the next two days, the two goats reappeared in the English camp. Cook placed them on board and sailed away.

Images: A painting by John Cleveley of Cook's ships in Moorea alongside local vessels.

Full story: https://theageofexploration.com/moorea-when-captain-cook-torched-a-village-for-a-goat/

During his 1577-1580 circumnavigation of the world, Drake had wreaked havoc with Spanish shipping and its colonies in the New World, plundering a fortune in gold and silver. Distressed, the Spanish Crown sent a fleet to the tip of South America to keep an eye on the shipping lanes and unwanted intruders.

The initial expedition was a major one, with 23 ships and nearly 3,000 people. Thanks to a series of shipwrecks, desertions and storms, however, only 300 to 400 settlers ever arrived at their destination.

Unfortunately, the extreme southern part of Patagonia was bitterly cold and extremely inhospitable. Led by Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa, the settlers soon established a church and a town, Rey Don Felipe, but could not cope with the harsh conditions.

When an English navigator, Thomas Cavendish, landed at the settlement three years later, all but a handful of survivors had perished due to starvation or frozen to death. Cavendish renamed the harbour Port Famine. Although he did take one man with him, a pilot, the Englishman left the rest of the Spaniards to their fate.

Images: The port area today, ruins of the church built by the settlers in 1584

Other gruesome stories from the Age of Exploration: https://theageofexploration.com/101-grisly-ways-to-die-in-the-age-of-exploration/

Cook landed at the mouth of Endeavour River on 17 June 1770 after crashing into the Great Barrier Reef. Cook and his crew spent the next 48 days repairing their ship, exploring the local area and interacting with the indigenous population, the Guugu Yimithir.

The Cooktown Discovery Festival celebrates this history with two reenactments. The first sees a Guugu Yimithir elder offer a broken spear to Cook as a symbol of peace, while the second features the landing of Cook's ship at the mouth of the river.

Image: English sailor and and the Guugu Yimithirr at the festival.

Full article: https://theageofexploration.com/cooktown-discovery-festival-fireworks-on-the-endeavour-river/

The Calusa Indians are thought to have first inhabited South-West Florida in around 100 CE. They built a sophisticated fishing-based culture and were known as the “Shell Indians” for their use of shells in tools and building work. 

One Spanish shipwreck survivor, Hernando de Escalante Fontaneda, lived with the Calusa for 17 years and later wrote an account of his time there.

The Calusa were fiercely independent and well-organised, and successfully resisted Spanish intervention for more than two centuries. In the early 1700s, however, many died from infectious diseases and slaving raids after the outbreak of war between Spain and England. In the 1760s, most of the surviving Calusa were forcibly evacuated to Cuba.

Story taken from American Colonies: The Settling of North America by Alan Taylor.

Image: Painting of Calusa Indians at Useppa Island.

Prince Henry was appointed the Administrator General of the Order of Christ in 1420. He would spend the next four decades years funding a series of expeditions round the coast of Africa and into the unknown Atlantic Ocean.

Success was all: commandeers who failed to break new ground would immediately lose funding. Those who sailed farther than their predecessors would be rewarding with more ships and more money.

Henry, his cartographers and his sea captains would go on to establish new trade routes, discover new islands and lands.

He also helped to establish the basis for the transatlantic slave trade – Henry’s captains began capturing Africans in the 1440s, with the prince taking 20% of the profits.

Image: Excerpt of painting attributed to 15th century Portuguese artists Nuno Gonçalves, possibly of Prince Henry

Related article: https://theageofexploration.com/ten-major-figures-of-the-age-of-exploration/

Cornelis de Houtman had been charged with heading an expedition to further improve trade routes to the East for the Netherlands. Unfortunately, the captain became embroiled in a dispute with the Sultan of Aceh, who was reportedly incensed at the Dutchman’s arrogant demeanour.

The tension escalated into an armed conflict on the Dutch ships. As the Dutch crew members fought the Inning Balee army - a navy composed of widows of fallen warriors - Malahayati reportedly stabbed de Houtman with a rencong, a traditional Acehnese dagger, killing him instantly.