‘Portrait of Sir John Hawkins, (1532 – 95)’

This is a painting by an unknown artist of Sir John Hawkins, the man who made one of the first English slaving voyage to Africa in 1562, raiding villages to capture Africans. Hawkins was born in Plymouth in 1532, and was a cousin of Sir Francis Drake. Hawkins was also a privateer, attacking Spanish ships. He was knighted by Elizabeth I in 1588 for his part in defeating the Spanish Armada.