Martin Frobisher Biography

Quick Facts

NAME: Martin Frobisher
OCCUPATION: Explorer
BIRTH DATE: c. 1535
DEATH DATE: November 15, 1594
PLACE OF BIRTH: Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom
PLACE OF DEATH: Plymouth, England, United Kingdom
AKA: Sir Martin Frobisher
AKA: Martin Frobisher

Best Known For

English explorer Martin Frobisher is best known for his attempts to discover a Northwest Passage and his voyages to Labrador and Frobisher Bay in Canada.

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Martin Frobisher

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Martin Frobisher. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 02:24, May 23, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/martin-frobisher-20978133.

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Martin Frobisher. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/martin-frobisher-20978133. Accessed May 23, 2013.

She sent Frobisher back for a third voyage, this time on a much larger expedition, with 15 vessels and the necessities for establishing a 100-man colony. Frobisher set sail on June 3, 1578, and landed at Frobisher Bay in early July. He and his men failed to establish a settlement as a result of dissension and discontent, so they all returned to England with 1,350 tons of ore. Upon their return, it was discovered that the ore was actually iron pyrite and therefore worthless,

although it was eventually used for road metaling. Because the ores proved valueless, Frobisher's financing collapsed and he was forced to seek other employment.

Battles and Death

In 1585, Frobisher returned to the seas as the vice admiral of Sir Francis Drake's expedition to the West Indies. Three years later he fought for the English against the Spanish Armada and was knighted for his efforts. In the six years that followed, Frobisher headed several English squadrons, including one that attempted to intercept Spanish treasure ships in the Azores. During a scuffle with Spanish forces in November 1594 during the Siege of Fort Crozon, Frobisher was shot. He died several days later, on November 15, in Plymouth, England.