Francis Drake’s Plate
English seaman Francis Drake landed on the west coast of North America in 1579. A contemporary aboard his ship wrote that Drake left behind a plate to commemorate the event, and to claim the region in the name of Queen Elizabeth. It was long theorized that Drake must have landed in California. In the early twentieth century, however, scholarly research supported the contention that Drake had probably landed further up the coast, somewhere in the Northwest. Historian and University of California Professor Herbert Eugene Bolton, a huge Drake fan, was wedded to the notion that the famous seadog had landed in California. His deep conviction proved costly, when he let it override reasonable skepticism.
A brass plate was discovered in 1936, that read: “BEE IT KNOWNE VNTO ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS. IVNE. 17. 1579. BY THE GRACE OF GOD AND IN THE NAME OF HERR MAIESTY QVEEN ELIZABETH OF ENGLAND AND HERR SVCCESSORS FOREVER, I TAKE POSSESSION OF THIS KINGDOME WHOSE KING AND PEOPLE FREELY RESIGNE THEIR RIGHT AND TITLE IN THE WHOLE LAND VNTO HERR MAIESTIEES KEEPING. NOW NAMED BY ME AND TO BEE KNOWNE V(N) TO ALL MEN AS NOVA ALBION. G. FRANCIS DRAKE“. It was taken to Professor Bolton, who was thrilled that evidence of Drake’s landing in California had finally been found. The plate became a sensation. Copies were sold as souvenirs, presented to Queen Elizabeth II, and its photos appeared in textbooks. Unfortunately, as seen below, the plate was a fake – a practical joke that got out of hand.
