Born out of the sea 400 million years ago Drake’s Island has been a place of pilgrimage, a refuge, a fort, a prison, an observatory and an adventure centre. The fortifications have defended Plymouth from the time of the Spanish Armada to the World Wars. It has been the starting point for the voyages of discovery of some of the greatest of our explorers, Drake, Cook and Darwin. Still a place of mystery and rumour follow in the footsteps of Drake discovering Drake’s Island and the lives of those that lived there.
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THE 1880’S, SMEATON’S TOWER AND DRAKE’S STATUE ARE ERECTED ON THE HOE, HMS HOWE REPLACES THE IMPREGNABLE AND THE ROUTLEDGE FAMILY SUFFERS TRAGEDY
THE INTERNATIONAL SITUATION IN 1881 Colonel Urabi’s Revolt in Egypt. Britain was mainly involved in colonial conflicts...
THE 1870’S, THE ROUTLEDGE FAMILY EXPANDS ALONGSIDE THE THREE TOWNS AND THERE IS A MUTINY ON DRAKE’S ISLAND
The next census in 1871 coincided with the formation of Germany as a country with Kaiser Wilhelm I as Emperor. The...
1861 to 1871 The Routledges, The Palmerston Forts and a Massive Hoax on the Hoe
Just before the 1861 Census was taken on 7th April 1861 modern Italy came into being as most of the independent states...