60 Facts About Walter Raleigh

Sir Walter Raleigh was an English statesman, soldier, writer and explorer.

Walter Raleigh was the younger half-brother of Sir Humphrey Gilbert and a cousin of Sir Richard Grenville.

Walter Raleigh rose rapidly in the favour of Queen Elizabeth I and was knighted in 1585.

Walter Raleigh was granted a royal patent to explore Virginia, paving the way for future English settlements.

In 1594, Raleigh heard of a "City of Gold" in South America and sailed to find it, publishing an exaggerated account of his experiences in a book that contributed to the legend of "El Dorado".

Walter Raleigh returned to England and, to appease the Spanish, he was arrested and executed in 1618.

Walter Raleigh grew up in the house of Hayes Barton, in East Devon.

Walter Raleigh was the youngest of the five sons of Walter Raleigh of Fardel Manor, in South Devon.

Walter Raleigh's family was highly Protestant in religious orientation and had a number of near escapes during the reign of Roman Catholic Queen Mary I of England.

In 1569, Walter Raleigh left for France to serve with the Huguenots in the French religious civil wars.

In 1572, Walter Raleigh was registered as an undergraduate at Oriel College, Oxford, but he left a year later without a degree.

Walter Raleigh proceeded to finish his education in the Inns of Court.

Walter Raleigh's life is uncertain between 1569 and 1575, but in his History of the World he claimed to have been an eyewitness at the Battle of Moncontour in France.

Between 1579 and 1583, Walter Raleigh took part in the suppression of the Desmond Rebellions.

Walter Raleigh was present at the siege of Smerwick, where he led the party that beheaded some 600 Spanish and Italian soldiers.

Walter Raleigh received 40,000 acres upon the seizure and distribution of land following the attainders arising from the rebellion, including the coastal walled town of Youghal and, further up the Blackwater River, the village of Lismore.

Walter Raleigh made the town of Youghal in Ireland his occasional home during his 17 years as an Irish landlord, frequently being domiciled at Killua Castle, Clonmellon, County Westmeath.

In 1602, he sold the lands to Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Cork, who subsequently prospered under kings James I and Charles I Following Raleigh's death, members of his family approached Boyle for compensation on the ground that Raleigh had struck an improvident bargain.

In 1587, Walter Raleigh attempted a second expedition, again establishing a settlement on Roanoke Island.

Walter Raleigh took part in court life and became a favourite of Queen Elizabeth I because of his efforts at increasing the Protestant Church in Ireland.

In 1585, Walter Raleigh was knighted and was appointed warden of the stannaries, that is of the tin mines of Cornwall and Devon, Lord Lieutenant of Cornwall and vice-admiral of the two counties.

Walter Raleigh was a member of parliament for Devonshire in 1585 and 1586.

Walter Raleigh was originally called Ark but became Ark Raleigh, following the convention at the time by which the ship bore the name of her owner.

In 1592, Walter Raleigh was given many rewards by the Queen, including Durham House in the Strand and the estate of Sherborne, Dorset.

Walter Raleigh was appointed Captain of the Yeomen of the Guard.

In 1591, Walter Raleigh secretly married Elizabeth "Bess" Throckmorton.

Walter Raleigh was one of the Queen's ladies-in-waiting, 11 years his junior, and was pregnant at the time.

Walter Raleigh was sent to organise and divide the spoils of the ship.

Walter Raleigh was sent back to the Tower, but by early 1593 had been released and become a member of Parliament.

Walter Raleigh was elected a burgess of Mitchell, Cornwall, in the parliament of 1593.

Walter Raleigh retired to his estate at Sherborne, where he built a new house, completed in 1594, known then as Sherborne Lodge.

Walter Raleigh was elected to Parliament, speaking on religious and naval matters.

Venezuela has gold deposits, but no evidence indicates that Walter Raleigh found any mines.

Walter Raleigh is sometimes said to have discovered Angel Falls, but these claims are considered far-fetched.

In 1596, Walter Raleigh took part in the capture of Cadiz, where he was wounded.

Walter Raleigh served as the rear admiral of the Islands Voyage to the Azores in 1597.

On his return from the Azores, Walter Raleigh helped England defend itself against the major threat of the 3rd Spanish Armada during the autumn of 1597.

Lord Howard of Effingham and Walter Raleigh were able to organise a fleet that resulted in the capture of a Spanish ship in retreat carrying vital information regarding the Spanish plans.

In 1597 Walter Raleigh was chosen as member of parliament for Dorset and in 1601 for Cornwall.

Walter Raleigh was unique in the Elizabethan period in sitting for three counties.

Walter Raleigh's trial has been regularly cited as influential in establishing a common law right to confront accusers in court.

Walter Raleigh wrote not about England, but of the ancient world with a heavy emphasis on geography.

Walter Raleigh's son, Carew, was conceived and born while Raleigh was imprisoned in the Tower.

In 1617, Walter Raleigh was pardoned by the King and granted permission to conduct a second expedition to Venezuela in search of El Dorado.

Walter Raleigh was brought to London from Plymouth by Sir Lewis Stukley, where he passed up numerous opportunities to make an effective escape.

Walter Raleigh's body was to be buried in the local church in Beddington, Surrey, the home of Lady Raleigh, but was finally laid to rest in St Margaret's, Westminster, where his tomb is presently located.

Walter Raleigh's poetry is written in the relatively straightforward, unornamented mode known as the plain style.

Walter Raleigh's writing contains strong personal treatments of themes such as love, loss, beauty, and time.

In poems such as "What is Our Life" and "The Lie", Walter Raleigh expresses a contemptus mundi attitude more characteristic of the Middle Ages than of the dawning era of humanistic optimism.

Walter Raleigh wrote a poetic response to Christopher Marlowe's "The Passionate Shepherd to His Love" of 1592, entitled "The Nymph's Reply to the Shepherd".

Later, George S Caldwell asserted that Raleigh was actually the sole author.

In 2002, Walter Raleigh was featured in the BBC poll of the 100 Greatest Britons.

Mount Gilbert, just to Mount Walter Raleigh's south, was named for his half-brother, Sir Humphrey.

Walter Raleigh has been widely speculated to be responsible for introducing the potato to Europe, and was a key figure in bringing it to Ireland.

However, modern historians dispute this claim, suggesting it would have been impossible for Walter Raleigh to have discovered the potato in the places he visited.

The story of Walter Raleigh's trial is included in John George Phillimore's 1850 book The History and Principles of Evidence, and his commentary on the story is included in many law school textbooks on evidence in common law countries.

Philip Walter Raleigh championed his grandfather's cause, publishing several of his hitherto unpublished papers.

Walter Raleigh had a family of four sons and three daughters.

The third son, Captain-Lieutenant Grenville Walter Raleigh, served in the Duke of Marlborough's army throughout the War of the Spanish Succession and died of fever in 1717, while guarding the prisoners at Chester after the 1715 Jacobite rising.

Walter Raleigh had married and had two sons and a daughter, Mary.