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| Henry Hudson |
In the first decade of 17th
century, Henry Hudson worked for several merchantmen companies, both in England
and in Holland. His goal was to find the northern route to the Spicerie Islands
in the South Pacific.
He worked for the Muscovy
Company, East India Company, and the Dutch East India Company (VOC). These
companies pooled their resources, made their captains sign extensive contracts,
gave them long lists of rules and regulations, then sent them on their way to
find the easiest, fastest passage to spice ports of call.
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| Henry's search for the NW Passage |
The route south through the
Cape of Good Hope was fraught with danger, i.e., weeks of calm, scurvy, the
bloody flux, pirates. Once into the Cape, there were added dangers of rogue
waves that came from out of nowhere, swamping and sinking a ship to the depths.
If it weren't for the ice
that filled the northern regions, that route would be far easier to navigate. When
men sailed north toward Greenland or west to Newfoundland, these intrepid
explorers found a vast ocean so crowded with fish, they leaped into their boats
rather than be netted. They brought home stories of ling cod, and whale
meat/lard. Fishermen sent their ships to these waters, and the English dinner
table began to find new foods that delighted the palate.
When Hudson worked for the
Muscovy Company, he failed to find the Northwest Passage, but alerted his
employers of a place where one could catch many whales. The Dutch East India
Company had so many failures, when they heard of Hudson, they enlisted his
services.
Hudson was certain the
passage could be found and promised better things. All their
previous captains could not find the passage, and the directors wanted to know
how he would go about it.
Henry replied that he
followed Petrus Plancius' theory. Plancius was one of the founders and
cartographer of the VOC, so the directors nodded their approval. When Hudson
offered this concurrent theory, Plancius was still alive. He could be consulted
for authenticity.
The theory was of a
temperate, open sea in the North Pole not covered with ice. What Hudson
professed was a mild climate above '74 degrees latitude - the point at which
the Dutch ships had always found their path blocked by ice'. Hudson not only
affirmed to have seen this, he raised the stakes higher by adding the depth of
the sea was so great at this point, the swells could never freeze. In this ice-free
area, Hudson declared to have seen a new land with many animals, sweet grasses
wherein the animals grazed. It was a veritable paradise.
Hudson further added if he
could go above '83 degrees latitude', he would sail west to the Pacific then
south into the warmer seas of the East Indies. VOC demanded more proof, so
Hudson sent for Petrus Plancius. The gentleman, an astronomer and clergyman,
nodded his concurrence on Hudson's every point. He added the sun's long days
and white nights during the summer kept the waters warm enough so that ice
would not form. As a result, Henry was given the opportunity to seek a northern
route to the South Seas.
Once aboard ship, Hudson
disregarded all instructions by the VOC. He used his own maps and went
northwest through bad weather. Finding the way too difficult, Hudson tootled
south. He expected to find a waterway along the American coast he could travel
to the Pacific. He did not find it, but did find a land rich in fisheries and
game, trees so big they would make excellent ships.
Hudson had found Manhattan
Island. The VOC was not impressed but other merchants were, which started the
colonization of that area.
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| A Doomed Henry Hudson |
In 1610, this time financed
by the English merchants, Hudson tried again. He found his way into what is now
the Hudson Bay. The seas were filled with ice. His crew turned surly, and one
night mutinied. They grabbed hold of Henry Hudson and a few faithful crewmen,
put them in a small boat without food, water, or warm clothing, and sent them
adrift.
Henry Hudson disappeared into the night, never to be seen
again.
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Many thanks to the following bibliography:
Nathaniel's Nutmeg by Giles Milton, and Wikipedia (Hudson, Petrus Plancius)
Map of Hudson Bay is licensed
under the Creative
Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported
license.
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