Fleet of the Third Frobisher Expedition leaving Irish coast.
1578

Watercolor 18" x 29"


The rocks which Martin Frobisher brought back from the first voyage excited so much interest that he was sent back the following year. This time Queen Elizabeth, nine members of the Privy Council, and other “venturers” invested in the voyage, and Frobisher had command of five ships, including the Queens’ ship AYDE. Almost all pretext of searching for a northwest passage was abandoned in favour of the search for gold. They set up camp on Kodlunarn Island in Frobisher bay, and for a month they mined away, loading nearly two hundred tons of oar into the ships. All this oar was carried back to England, and even before it was assayed a third and larger voyage was being planned. This was to be a major enterprize, with the primary objective the colonization and exploitation of “Meta Incognita”, as Queen Elizabeth had named it. The fleet sailed on May 31, 1578, loaded to the gunn’ls with mining equipment and provisions for an arctic winter. They had no idea that while they were away, the ore mined the previous year would turn out to be worthless. The fleet of fifteen ships is still the largest maritime expedition ever mounted to the arctic.