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| Henry Hudson | |
|---|---|
| (1565? – 1611) | |
"No portrait of Hudson is known to be in existence. What has passed with the uncritical for his portrait — a dapper-looking man wearing a ruffed collar — frequently has been, and continues to be, reproduced. Who that man was is unknown. That he was not Hudson is certain." - Thomas A. Janvier, biographer of Henry Hudson. The illustration featured here comes from the (presumably uncritical) Cyclopaedia of Universal History, 1885 |
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| Allegiance | English |
Henry Hudson (1570 – 1611) was an English sea explorer and navigator in the early 17th century.
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Hudson was born in London, England. He is presumed to have died in 1611 in Hudson Bay, Canada, after he was set adrift with his son and seven others by his crewmen, following a mutiny.
Little is known of Hudson's early life. He is thought to have spent many years at sea, beginning as a cabin boy at 16 and gradually working his way up to ship's captain.
In 1607, the Muscovy Company of England hired Hudson to find the Northeast Passage to China. It was thought at the time that, because the sun shone for three months in the northern latitudes, the ice would melt and a ship could travel across the top of the world to the Spice Islands. The English were battling the Dutch and Spanish for Northeast Passage routes. Hudson traveled to just 577 nautical miles (1,069 km) south of the North Pole and it is claimed by Thomas Edge (who was often inaccurate) that Hudson discovered what is now known as Jan Mayen island — although there is no cartographical or written proof of this discovery[1] — before turning around and returning home in September. Hudson visited Spitsbergen — the first Englishman to do so. In 1608, Hudson made a second attempt, trying to go across the top of Russia. He made it to Novaya Zemlya but was forced to turn back.
In 1609, Hudson was chosen by the Dutch East India Company to find an easterly passage to Asia. He was told to sail around the Arctic Ocean north of Russia, into the Pacific and so to the Far East. Hudson could not complete his intended route due to the ice that had plagued his previous voyages, and those of many others before him.
Having heard rumors by way of Jamestown and John Smith, he and his crew decided to try to seek out a Southwest Passage through North America. After crossing the Atlantic Ocean, his vessel, the Halve Maen (Half Moon), sailed around briefly in the Chesapeake Bay and entered Delaware Bay on August 28. Hudson concluded that these waterways did not lead to the Pacific. He then moved into New York Harbor and proceeded up what is today the Hudson River. He made it as far as Albany, New York, where the river narrows, before he was forced to turn around, realizing that this was not the Southwest Passage. In fact, no Southwest Passage to the Pacific existed north of the Strait of Magellan until one was created by the construction of the Panama Canal between 1903 and 1914. The Native Americans, who relayed the information to John Smith, were likely referring to what are known today as the Great Lakes.
Along the way, Hudson traded with several native tribes, obtaining shells, beads and furs. His voyage established Dutch claims to the region and the fur trade that prospered there. New Amsterdam in Manhattan became the capital of New Netherland in 1625. On his return trip to Amsterdam, he stopped in Dartmouth, England and was detained by authorities there, who wanted access to his log. He managed to pass the log to the Dutch ambassador to England who sent it, along with his report, to Amsterdam [2].
In 1610, Hudson managed to get backing for yet another voyage, this time under the English flag. The funding came from the Virginia Company and the British East India Company. At the helm of his new ship, the Discovery, he stayed to the north (some claim he deliberately stayed too far south on his Dutch-funded voyage), reaching Iceland on May 11, the south of Greenland on June 4, and then rounding the southern tip of Greenland. 
Excitement was very high due to the expectation that the ship had finally found the Northwest Passage through the continent. On June 25, the explorers reached the Hudson Strait at the northern tip of Labrador. Following the southern coast of the strait on August 2, the ship entered Hudson Bay. Hudson spent the following months mapping and exploring its eastern shores. In November however, the ship became trapped in the ice in James Bay, and the crew moved ashore for the winter.
When the ice cleared in the spring of 1611, Hudson planned to continue exploring but his crew wanted to return home. Matters came to a head and the crew mutinied in June 1611. They set Hudson, his teenage son John, and eight crewmen - either sick and infirm, or loyal to Hudson - adrift in a small open boat. According to Abacuck Prickett's journal, the castaways were provided with powder and shot, some pikes, an iron pot, some meal, and other miscellaneous items, as well as clothing. However Prickett's journal is disingenous, favoring the point of view of the mutineers, who knew they would be tried in England. Some argue that the abandoned men were provided with nothing and expected to die. The small boat kept pace with the Discovery for some time as the abandoned men rowed towards her but eventually Discovery's sails were let loose. Hudson was never seen again.
Only eight of the thirteen mutinous crewmen survived to return to Europe, and although arrested, none were ever punished for the mutiny and Hudson's death. One theory holds that they were considered valuable as sources of information, having travelled to the New World.[3] Henry Hudson has landmarks named after him, including Hudson Bay, Hudson Strait, Hudson County, New Jersey, Hudson, NY, Hudson Valley and the Hudson River.