Professional Documents
Culture Documents
JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted
digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about
JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.
Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at
http://about.jstor.org/terms
Margarita de Orellana is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Artes de
Mxico
This content downloaded from 158.251.246.65 on Wed, 21 Jun 2017 21:54:23 UTC
All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms
PIRACY IN THE PACIFIC
by Marita Martnez del Ro de Redo
Just as for the Romans the Mediterranean was
their Mare Nostrum, so the Pacific in the 16th and
17th centuries was a Spanish sea. By the middle of
the 16th century four separate expiditions had
crossed it from east to west and Legaspi and Urda
neta had established the definite route to the Orient,
a route which for an uninterrupted two hundred and
fifty years was followed by the galleons which took
the legendary name of Naos de China (or de Manila,
which was the terminus of the annual trip from Aca
pulco).
The raids of pirate ships under English, French
and Dutch captains in the Spanish sea have left their
traces on the Pacific coastan English cannon
marked with the crown of Edward the Confessor left
on a lonely beach, searches for buried pirate treas
ures which continue to this day, names of beaches
with piratical names such as El Corsario or Pichilin
gue. This last name has a quaint origin: "speak in
English" the arrogant pirates commanded the
frightened natives, which was corrupted into "pich
ilingue" as a synonym for pirate. There is a strong
afternoon breeze which blows in Lower California valuable charts and as Hakluyt records, "we found
called Corumwell which was used by the pirate a ship with a cargo of linen and fine plates of white
Cromwell to attack by suprise the shipping anchored
earth from China and a great quantity of silks, all of
in the bay of La Paz. These and many other details
which we took" in addition to "a gold falcon and a
are enduring reminders left by pirates on the Pacific
great emerald" which was worn by a Spanish gentle
coast. man. As he refitted in Guatulco bay on the coast
of Oaxaca the rumor spread that "el Draque" was
The galleons which at first sailed at their pleasure
sailing for Acapulco where a galleon was being
"as if they were in the river at Seville" soon became
more wary as the English began to find their loaded
wayfor the Manila trip. Viceroy Enrique de Al
into the Pacific. The first proposal for suchmanza
an inwas alarmed and sent two hundred soldiers
cursion was made to Henry VIII in 1540 but downit wasfrom Mexico City with orders to pursue the
Englishmen
not until 1578 that the first foreigner, no less than but Drake gave up his plan to attack
Sir Francis Drake whom the Spaniards of Newthe Spain
galleon and after sailing past the harbor mouth
and the Caribbean called "Draque", sailed the continued
South on toward California. When the Spaniards
Sea. In his ship, The Golden Hind, he proposed to out to hunt him down he was already beyond
sailed
their reach and heading for the Moluccas. He seem
find those lands which Marco Polo had mistakenly
called Beach and which were probably a part ed of to
theconsider that his score with Spain was settled.
Malay peninsula. Drake's voyage, which lastedDrake's
three booty was unsuccessfully claimed from
years, had the approval of Queen Elizabeth whoQueenhadElizabeth by Bernardino de Mendoza, the
issued him letters of marque. But Drake, who in his
raids in the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico had
already seized a great amount of booty, was not
aware of the existence of the Manila galleons which
had been established a few years previously to bring
the riches of the Orient to America. His objective
was the gold of the Peruvian mines and he set his
course for the coasts of Peru. The success of his
encounter and the capture of the Cacafuego which Galen espaol armado para defen
was loaded with cordage and provisions for the derse del ataque de los piratas.
Spanish galleon armed to protect itself
Manila galleon waiting at Acapulco encouraged him from the attacks of the pirates.
to take the Nuestra Seora de la Concepcin which
was sailing from Acapulco to Panama with goods Barcos piratas ingleses.British pirate
brought by the previous Manila galleon. He obtained ships.
62
This content downloaded from 158.251.246.65 on Wed, 21 Jun 2017 21:54:23 UTC
All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms
Spanish ambassador. In 1588 after having been greatest prize was the capture of the Manila galleon
knighted by the queen for his exploits Sir Francis Santa Ana off the tip of the peninsula of Lower
Drage took additional revenge on the Spaniards California. The Santa Ana had no cannon and de
when with his swift ships and superb seamanship fended herself with such obsolete and ineffective
and the aid of the weather he participated in the weapons as lances and javelins and even stones which
defeat of the Invincible Armada whose heavy ships were thrown at her better armed toes. The booty con
were loaded with Spanish soldiers for the invasion sisted of one hundred and twenty-two thousand pe
of England. sos in gold and silks, damask, pearls and good
The ships which Drake had seized were not prop- wine and victuals worth two
erly Manila galleons or "China ships." In the two the capture Cavendish put a
hundred and fifty years of sailing this route the and ninety Spanish prisoner
Spaniards only lost four galleons to the English. The them food and weapons for d
first was the Santa Ana which fell into the hands dians. The famous navigato
of Cavendish in 1587. Thomas Cavendish was a was among the unhappy Spa
young man of twenty-two at the English court who skill they managed to salvage
decided to follow Drake's example and seek glory been set afire and abandoned
on the sea. Queen Elizabeth encouraged this form put out the flames and with grea
of warfare in which privately outfitted ships raided ship and sailed her to Acapulc
Spanish commerce and gave an important part of cruising in which he circumn
the booty to the Crown. Cavendish financed his entered Plymouth harbor in
cruise by mortgaging his lands and persuading his under sails of blue damask
friends to invest in the enterprise for a share in the celebrate the occasion.
profits. In this way he outfitted three small ships. Sir Richard Hawkins, son of
With this modest fleet he followed Drake's route, Hawkins (or "Haquines"
entering the Pacific by the Straits of Magellan and chronicles and the trial by
sailed up the west coast of South America attacking sailors he put ashore near
shipping and burning towns, as he himself declared, sailed the Pacific. His ship
and taking "great amounts of treasure". But his iards off the coast of Peru.
\
fesfei/l. ik*;i
7*
/
sea
63
This content downloaded from 158.251.246.65 on Wed, 21 Jun 2017 21:54:23 UTC
All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms
HL
tt
This content downloaded from 158.251.246.65 on Wed, 21 Jun 2017 21:54:23 UTC
All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms