robisher's Arctic
expeditions have long been accounted an historical dead-end. Yet
there were a number of respects in which they were significant for
the future of North America, Britain, and Nunavut.
They mark a beginning for the English preoccupation with finding a
northwest passage, which led to the discovery and exploitation of the
Hudson Bay area. Even as Frobisher's mission was being diverted from
exploration into mining,
Francis Drake was being
allowed to see if he could find the Pacific end of such a passage. The
passage proved
an
elusive goal for centuries, drawing explorers, traders,
and eventually settlers, northward and westward. The beginning made by
Frobisher was the foundation of the British crown's claim to the region - a
claim in the late nineteenth century (by then with more substance
attached) transferred to Canada. Even though Frobisher's claim to
Meta Incognita, on behalf of his queen, was not followed by
occupation, it gave English explorers a theoretical stake in the area
and may be perceived as leading to the future integration of the
Arctic regions with Canada.
From the perspective of the history of exploration, the
1576 voyage represented a courageous attempt to
go beyond the boundaries of the world (as known to Europeans), with
minimal knowledge of what might be encountered. Without detailed charts or
the ability to measure latitude, the three expeditions managed to make their
way through mist and tempests, rip-tides and powerful currents, and above
all the ice-laden waters, in ships not built for such extreme conditions.
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During the 1576 visit of the Gabriel to Frobisher Bay, the
ship's boat prepares to carry five sailors
ashore.
Watercolour by Gordon Miller
© 1999
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By contrast, the 1578 voyage was part of a larger
industrial enterprise, which also produced the most extensive
smelting works built in England up to that
time. It was a very challenging undertaking to organize, outfit, and hold
together the largest fleet to visit the Baffin
waters until the twentieth century; yet this fleet achieved a
landfall of pin-point accuracy on the far side of the Atlantic.
Furthermore, both the second and third voyages achieved their goals
(excepting colonization) in terms of transporting hundreds
of men to undertake mining operations in a hostile environment and
to bring back huge quantities of ore - it was not their fault that
the ore proved worthless.
Under such hazardous and difficult conditions, the relatively low
loss of ships and life was in itself an extraordinary feat.
More important, the Arctic expeditions contributed to the process,
which only really began in the 1550s, of transforming England into
a maritime nation capable of challenging the previous Iberian
superiority in maritime technology and expertise. English masters
and mariners obtained new experiences and rigorous training in
unfamiliar waters, along with greater self-confidence in their
ability to challenge maritime achievements of sailors of other
nations. Many of the seamen tested in these ventures went on to
man or even command the Queen's ships in later missions.
The expeditions even resulted in the first exclusively English
contribution to the science of navigation: measurements taken to
document magnetic
variation of the compass allowed demonstration of the inequality of
such variations.
These voyages demonstrated the capacity and ambition of the
Elizabethan regime to become a player in the field of maritime
exploration. This included the possession of theoretical
(geographic) knowledge and practical (navigation)
knowledge, the ability to construct sturdy ships, to plan for
the provisioning of lengthy expeditions, and planning for
colonization in distant locations. Much was learned from the
1576-78 expeditions in these regards, both from their achievements
and their failures.
The expeditions also offered new contributions to
the cartography of that part of the world. However, the Privy Council -
not wishing that this knowledge fall into the hands of rival nations -
either restricted the circulation of maps produced as an outcome of the
expeditions, or required their editing or simplification before
being made public. This, together with mistakes in integrating the
new information with established cartographical orthodoxy, resulted
in the correct location of the Frobisher sites being forgotten.
Perhaps above all, the Frobisher voyages - which deposited in North
America the oldest archaeological remains
of the English-speaking peoples - signalled England's awakening interest
in empire. The colonization initiative may have been a false start, but it
was nonetheless a start. It gave impetus to future proposals for
settlement along Atlantic shores.
In the Frobisher expeditions we catch a glimpse of the future
synergy of maritime navigation, expanding intellectual horizons,
colonial ambition, and industrial enterprise - a harmony between
political and economic goals - that were one day to form the
foundations of a British Empire. It is therefore not too much to
conclude that:
"in the broader sweep of history the Frobisher
expeditions may be seen as an episode of considerable significance,
regardless of their clear failure in terms of their immediate
objectives."
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T.H.B. Symons, Meta Incognita: A Discourse
of Discovery, p.xxxiii
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Portions of glazed stove tile. This tile must have come from a type of
German stove brought to Kodlunarn Island in order to provide heat for
the planned wintering-over.
Photograph: Steven Darby
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For the Inuit who inhabited the region visited by Frobisher, the
significance of his voyages was also to prove far-reaching. They drew
the attention of the English to that area, illustrated the disregard
with which indigenous rights in the land would be treated by future
explorers, and provided an initial infusion of foreign commodities -
materials such as tile and metal - whose possible effects in
reshaping Inuit economy and society are still being studied. The
course of history of the Inuit as much as that of the English had
taken a new turning, although neither people realized it in 1578.
Further reading:
Exploration
of the Northwest Passage
http://collections.ic.gc.ca/arctic/explore/intro.htm
"All is not gold
that glistereth": Frobisher's fool's errand to the Arctic
http://www.mercatormag.com/301_glitter.html
Arctic
Heroes. Chapter II: An Arctic Gold Fever
http://www.canadiana.org/cgi-bin/ECO/mtq?id=840101ca67&display;=16818+0018
Frozen Assets
http://home.eznet.net/~dminor/O%26E9804.html
Martin
Frobisher's Gold Mine (video)
http://cmm.onf.ca/E/titleinfo/index.epl?id=29758&expr;=${martin}%20AND%20${frobisher}&
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