ShmoopTube

Where Monty Python meets your 10th grade teacher.

Search Thousands of Shmoop Videos

John Hawkins 255 Views


Share It!


Description:

John Hawkins was may have been the most interesting man in the world. He doesn’t always hijack ships, but when he does... he prefers for them to be Portuguese.

Language:
English Language

Transcript

00:08

John Hawkins.

00:09

Not everything is black and white. People are not either all good or all bad.

00:16

Want a perfect example? Take John Hawkins.

00:20

Okay, now put him back.

00:23

Depending on who you were and what your dealings were with the guy,

00:26

you might view Hawkins as a heartless villain…

00:29

or as a heroic adventurer.

00:31

Guess you could call him a polarizing figure.

00:34

So who was this dude and what was his deal?

00:38

For starters, Hawkins was the cousin of Sir Francis Drake…

00:41

who was, among other things, a pirate.

00:45

Maybe not the best role model a kid could have.

00:51

In 1561, Hawkins made his first journey to the West Indies.

00:55

Before long, he had hijacked a Portuguese ship, stolen their slaves,

00:58

and then sold them in the Caribbean settlements.

01:01

There must have been something in the Hawkins family genes.

01:04

John was, in fact, the first person to enter England into the Slave Trade.

01:09

Which might look impressive on his resume, depending on whom you ask.

01:14

Hawkins made himself a fortune in the slave business.

01:18

Some of the trading he handled himself, although he also formed an organization of well-to-do

01:22

merchants and traders to conduct some of the transactions for him.

01:26

Not content to simply make things difficult on the enslaved…

01:29

Hawkins decided to give England’s international foes a hard time as well.

01:33

He fought in the Battle of Vera Cruz and Mexico…

01:35

… where his fleet was severely depleted and he lost two ships.

01:39

It’s a major bummer whenever you lose ships because…

01:41

well, there are usually people on them.

01:45

Hawkins quickly bounced back from this bit of embarrassing entanglement,

01:49

and went on to add spy and war hero to his ever-expanding resume.

01:53

We’re surprised he didn’t also add “four years of ballet training at the Joffrey,”

01:57

to impress people. He then became an official Elizabethan Privateer,

02:01

making him a legally approved pirate – just like his good ol’ cousin Drake.

02:06

He was presented with a Letter of Marque, legalizing his

02:08

open raids on Spanish and Portuguese ships.

02:11

Although raids are never quite as much fun

02:13

when you’ve gotten the thumbs up from your government.

02:16

For Hawkins and his fellow pirates, it was all about the booty.

02:19

The quickest and easiest way for England to profit from the New World was not to establish

02:23

its own settlements, but to steal from Spanish gold ships.

02:26

It was kinda like how you convince your little brother to mow the lawn and then swoop in

02:30

and take all the credit.

02:31

Hey, you gotta do what you gotta do.

02:34

But then the hero Hawkins made another appearance.

02:36

He assisted in foiling an assassination attempt on Queen Elizabeth’s life.

02:41

Hawkins was a legit spy… he had stayed under deep cover within the enemy ranks, only revealing

02:46

his true loyalties at the end.

02:49

Things came to a head with the Spanish.

02:52

There was a big sea-battle, from which Hawkins and his men emerged victorious.

03:02

He was knighted for his participation and bravery in the defeat of the Spanish Armada.

03:07

Wealthy merchant. Pirate. Spy. Warrior.

03:11

Hawkins was viewed as a multifaceted hero in England and was rewarded for his contributions…

03:17

… but you might see his actions in a different light if you were a Native African whom he

03:21

sold into slavery…

03:24

… or a Spanish settler or merchant captain who was robbed or killed by him.

Up Next

Why Does the Constitution Still Work for Us?
5721 Views

Ever heard of a "living document"? They eat and breathe just like the rest of us! They even walk around on their own two legs. Okay, fine—maybe t...

Related Videos

The Puritans and the Division of Church and State
1280 Views

If the Puritans had gotten their way, religion would play a much larger role in lawmaking these days. Want to know more? Watch the video for all th...

Shays' Rebellion
6345 Views

What happened between the creation of the Articles of Confederation and the ratification of the current U.S. Constitution? This video analyzes the...

There's More Than One Way to Crack a Modernist Egg
539 Views

The Modernists thought the world had a lot of problems, and they were intent on fixing them—or at least talking about fixing them. Unfortunately,...

Federalism
2532 Views

This video explains Federalism and the quest for a fair balance between state and national power. It covers the progression and compromises of Fede...