Drake is a name for an English navigator and pirate who ravaged the coasts of New Spain, for a dragon of about two hundred years, and for a patron invoked “in his triple aspect”. Whether these are one entity, three aspects of one, or three beings sharing a name is not established.
| Type | Character |
| Also called | Francis Drake; Draco Drake |
| Spanish entry | Drake |
The pirate
Drake, also called “Francis Drake” and “Draco Drake”, is an English navigator and pirate, a declared enemy of New Spain. With special ships he “destroyed part of the coast”, ravaging California and Cartagena. His loot was gold from Peru, stolen “from the Spaniards” and counted in millions of ducats. His raids were acts of war against the Spanish Crown in America. His appearance is not described.
“The name appeared again and took interest in this area again”: whether he is alive, someone else bears his name, or something else has returned is not established.
Patron and dragon
A devotee calls him “my patron, the lord of Drake” and invokes him “in his triple aspect”. He is also called a “discoverer, inventor” who “has disturbed” territories, and is the subject of literary epics. He is mentioned in connection with a green dragon; a dragon called Draco Drake, “perhaps 200 years” old, bears his name. An alliance with the green dragon is only inferred from context.
Conflicting accounts
- One account dates the attack on the coasts “about 70 years ago”; another, the bombardment of the region “fifty years ago”. These may be two raids or one dated differently.
- A marginal note observes that if the current year is 1666, “70 years ago” is 1596, the year other chronicles give for the historical Drake’s death.
Open questions
- What are the patron’s three aspects, and who venerates him?
- What made his ships “special” (material, size, number, armament)?
- Where did the Peruvian gold end up?