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John Hawkins

Type Figure Region England Time 1532–1595 Also known as John Hawkins、Sir John Hawkins、John Hawkyns

John Hawkins (1532—1595) was an English navigator, slave trader, and naval admiral from a Plymouth shipowning family.…

Timeline

  1. 1532–1563Plymouth · DevonBorn into a Plymouth shipowning family, he inherited the family's maritime trade network; in 1562—1563 he led a fleet to West Africa to capture slaves and transport them to the West Indies for sale, setting a precedent for England's systematic participation in the Atlantic triangular trade.
  2. 1564–1568Veracruz · Gulf of MexicoIn 1564 he again sailed to West Africa and the Caribbean to expand the scale of the slave trade; in 1567 he led a third expedition, including young captains such as Drake, attempting to trade with the Spanish colonial authorities at San Juan de Ulúa in the Gulf of Mexico. After an ambush the fleet was nearly destroyed, and Hawkins and Drake barely survived.
  3. 1569–1570London · MiddlesexAfter the disaster at San Juan de Ulúa he gained the protection of Elizabeth I, and between 1569 and 1570 he entered the royal navy system, participating in fleet refitting and diplomatic escort duties toward France, gradually transforming from a merchant captain into a core admiral of the kingdom's sea power.

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