Some Early Reactions to the Three Voyages of Martin Frobisher: the Conflict between Humanists and Protestants

Some Early Reactions to the Three Voyages of Martin Frobisher: the Conflict between Humanists and Protestants Reactions to Martin Frobisher's three voyages of 1576-8 in search of the north-west passage reveal much about different world-views amongst the Elizabethans, particularly since those reactions were out of all proportion to the facts. The courage of the attempts to reach Cathay overshadowed the gradual degeneration of the voyages into a fruidess treasure-hunt; Frobisher went on to enjoy a European reputation as an arctic explorer, chiefly through Latin and vernacular translations of Dionyse Settie's True Reporte of the second voyage. Setde, Thomas Ellis, the reticent Christopher Hall and the more informative George Best, glossed over the deficiencies of Frobisher's leadership, and thus contributed to the heroic character immortalised by Richard Hakluyt in his Principall Navigations.* Subsequent attempts at more objective assessments depend heavily upon these sources, and have accepted their justifications of the voyages as an addition to national glory and human knowledge. Litde is known of other speculations about the north west passage at that time, or of the immediate discussion of the voyages amongst the educated. Even less is known about the reactions of the common people to Frobisher's discoveries. Some information about all of these different responses, however, can be found in William Harrison's 'Great English Chronology', an unpublished universal history being written contemporaneously with the voyages. Harrison's response also reveals that devout Protestants could differ profoundly from the promoters of and participants in the voyages; they suspected their motives and could not accept their justifications. This contrast reflects some of the conflicting lines of thought within the Elizabethan intellectual millieu, where the emerging implications of Renaissance humanism increasingly seemed at odds with the social teachings of the Reformers. WUtiam Harrison (1535-93) was a Londoner and from 1559 an Essex pastor, best known for his Description ofEngland pubtished in Holinshead's Chronicles in 1577 and 1587. The Description revealed Elizabethan England to its ! D Settle, A true reporte of the laste voyage into the west and northwest regions, Henrie Middleton, London, 1577, published in French in 1578, Latin and German 1580, Itatian 1582; T. Ellis, A true report of the late voyages of discoverie, for thefindingof a passage to Cathaya by the northweast, Henry Bynnyman, London, 1578; R. Hakluyt The principall navigations, voiages and discoveries of the English nation, George Bishop and Ralf Newberie, London, 1589, printed Christopher Hall's account of the first voyage (pp. 615-22), reprinted Settle on the second (pp. 630-5). Edward Sellman's account of the third voyage in B.L M S Harley 167, ff. 166r-180v is more candid about Frobisher's failings. 150 GJR. Parry inhabitants, although much of its geographical information derived from John Leyland's 'Itinerary', since Harrison personally saw litde of the England that he described.2 In fact, he devoted most time and energy apart from his pastoral duties to compiling his 'Great English Chronology', which was a vast universal history organised with minute chronological care.3 A typicaUy eclectic product of Elizabethan scholarship, the 'Chronology' recorded information on a huge range of contemporary concerns, including America, all presented within Harrison's personal version of a providential historical interpretation which in general oudine was shared by other English and European Protestants. That interpretation shows him to have been a fundamentalist Protestant who differed from presbyterians only in his clearer appreciation of the evangeUcal failings of Englishmen, which vitiated any immediate hope of restoring the apostolic presbyterian system.4 His fundamentalist viewpoint coloured his interpretation of the Frobisher voyages. Although Harrison particularly stressed the religious implications of his historical interpretation for Englishmen, because 'I regard not gredy to dele in thantiquities of forren nations', he did not consider England to be the Elect Nation, and in fact his writings reveal his previous interest in America and the rest of the world.5 In the 'Chronology' a lengthy, familiar attack on Spanish atrocities committed upon the Indians cited Girolamo Benzoni's Novae novi orbis historiae and Peter Martyr Anglcrius' Decades of the New World. H e used both authorities repeatedly, and quoted from Marco Antonio Pigafetta's treatise, published...