Title: How did

Raleigh plan the

Virginia
Expedition?
1. I can recall information about
Francis Drake’s circumnavigation.
2. I can explain Raleigh’s preparations
for the Virginia Expedition.
3. I can evaluate why the expedition
would be important for Britain.
1. Give one invention that allowed Elizabethan explorers to
navigate the seas.

2. Give one reason why Drake wanted to circumnavigate the

globe.

3. Who did Drake execute on his voyage and why?

4. In June 1579, Drake landed on in North America (California

today). What did he name this area?

5. How many ships did Drake return to England with?

We know that there was a dramatic increase
in the amount of exploration during the
Elizabethan era. Many new places and
goods were found before being brought
back to England.
However, once some places had
been discovered by European
explorers, there was a push to
‘colonise’ these places and set up
a ‘colony’.

Colonising is different to exploring:

Colonising means sending people to
another part of the world to live and Virginia
stay there – not return.

Colonising also means taking

control of the new land and the
people that first lived there.

Colonising then meant sending

goods, food or resources home to
England from the colony and
encouraging others to move there too.
 Who was Walter Raleigh?
• Walter Raleigh was born into a rich land owning
family.

• He is well known for making tobacco very fashionable

in Europe.

• Elizabeth was desperate to colonise North America and

gave him a grant to help him do this. In 1584, he
persuaded Elizabeth to agree to an exploration of the
coast of North America.

• He promised to name colony he founded Virginia in

her honour – ‘the Virgin Queen.’

• But she did not allow Raleigh to go to America

himself, she saw him as too important for her war with
Spain.

• Instead, he made 3 vital contributions. Money,

How did Raleigh plan for the expedition?
Task: Using both information pages,
complete the gap fill and stick it into
your books.

Challenge: Study p. 2
of the info and who
went on the journey.
Give 2 advantages to
having these people and
find 1 disadvantage
with the group.
 Planning the Expeditions to Virginia

In _________, Sir ________________ Raleigh was given a grant from Elizabeth I to _______________ and colonise the lands in North
________________. Because of previous failures, Raleigh needed to raise huge _____________ of money and to __________________ potential English
_______________ to leave their homes and settle in the New ______________. The Indians there were known as the ____________________ people.

Explore / convince / America / Walter / colonists / 1584 / world / Algonquian

The Planning Begins - Use info sheet p.1 to complete these questions.

• Manteo and Wanchese were helpful because: ___________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• What did the scouting party realise about the Algonquian people? ___________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• Give two reasons Raleigh believed the colony would be profitable:

1. ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• Give an example of something Raleigh promised the settlers:

________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• Give an example of something Elizabeth gave to help Raleigh’s expedition:

_____________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Organising the Virginia Project – Use info sheet p.2.

In the end, ______ colonists, almost all men, were signed up for the expedition. Many were attracted to the prospect of making a f_____________ while
some were convinced by Elizabeth’s support. Many were also encouraged by the good men appointed to lead them, such as Richard ________________,
who was expedition commander and an excellent s________________. Also, ___________ Lane as
governor of Virginia, who was an expert at f_______ building and being a hardened soldier. There were ______ ships, the largest of which was The
T________. However, Raleigh was _______ allowed to lead the colonists himself because Elizabeth did not want to lose her f______________ and
believed he was needed to ______________ England from enemies. The expedition left on ________________1585.
What did Raleigh need for the expedition?
1. People Raleigh 2. Supplies Raleigh 3. Timing of the 4. Type of ships 5. Leaders of the
needs needs voyage needed Voyage?
1. 300 colonists with 2. Richard Grenville 3. Soldiers for 4. Weapons for 5. Ralph Lane will be
a variety of skills as the expedition protection. Especially protection. my Governor in
including protestant commander. He was if the Spanish are Virginia as he is great
clergy. very experienced. near. at Fort building and a
tough soldier.
6. Raleigh sent 5 7. Salt for preserving 8. Enough food for 9. Enough food for 10. Hunters (with their
ships. One contained food such as meat. Virginia until we can the trip across the dogs) and fishermen.
beer, vegetables, wine harvest crops. Atlantic.
and grain for bread.
11. Seeds for planting 12. Well-armed ships 13. Mixture of 14. They must reach 15. Farming equipment
crops so they had in case of a Spanish farmers, blacksmiths, Virginia in time to for use in Virginia.
enough food to eat. or pirate attack. stone masons, grow crops for the
weavers and first harvest.
carpenters.
16. They must set sail 17. Animals will be 18. Thomas Harriot 19. Enough ships 20. Aim to set off on
during the warmer needed for eating, will be the translator that are big enough April 9th 1585.
seasons to reach hunting and breeding. and mapper. He to carry all the
Virginia in warm learned from Manteo colonists and
weather. and Wanchese. supplies.
Challenge: What dangers do you think they will come across and why?
Why would the expeditions be important?
Virginia would It would take a
provide a base to bigger slice of
attack Spanish the Slave
colonies. Trade.

Undermining Spain It would turn the

natives away from
the Spanish and
It would lay the they would support
foundations of the the English.
British Empire!
Why would the expeditions be important?

Increased profits
from the Slave
Trade.

Economic Benefits The New World

Controlling Virginia
would give would give
resources like England new
fruits, spices and markets to sell
tobacco. their goods.
Describe two features of Walter Raleigh’s preparation for the
Virginia expedition. (4 marks)

One feature of Raleigh’s preparation is…

For example…

A second feature is…

For example…
Title: Whydid the
colonisation of
Virginia fail?
1. I can describe what happened
during the expeditions.
2. I can explain why the attempt to
colonise America failed.
3. I can evaluate the most
important reason for England’s
failure to colonise America.
1. Why did Elizabeth not want Raleigh to go on the voyage?

2. Who were the three leaders sent?

3. How many colonists did Raleigh need?

4. What kind of supplies did they did?

5. The ships left England on 9th April 1585. What was the problem
with this?
 What happened to the expeditions?
Task: Using the
info sheet,
complete the
following sentences
using full details.
The 1585 Voyage:
• In 1585, 108 male settlers…
• The first problem was that Grenville’s ship…
• Ralph Lane began building…
• The natives became hostile because…
• The colonists abandoned Roanoke Island in June 1586
because…
• Francis Drake arrived at the colony and…
 What happened to the expeditions?

The 1587 Voyage:

• Realising his mistake, Raleigh recruited settler families instead
of…
• The expedition was led by John White who had…
• The trip landed too far south because…
• When they arrived, they were too late to…
• White returned to England, but couldn't get ships because…
• When White returned in 1590, he found that…
• Roanoke is known as the ‘Lost Colony’, and historians believe the
colonists encountered…

A. The voyage / food`
1. There were too many craftsmen but
not enough farmers.
5. The colonists left England too late in
the year and did not arrive in Virginia in
time to plant the crops they needed to be
able to feed themselves over the winter
months. This left them having to rely on
the food of the native Americans in order
to survive. At first the Native American
people were generous but then felt that
they were being taken advantage of. This
made the relationship between the two
groups difficult.
9. Many of the colonists were ill on the
journey. With little medical knowledge,
morale became low even before they
reached Virginia.
13. Bakers, weavers and brewers didn’t
have the raw materials. Not enough stone
for the stonemasons, so they couldn’t
build a strong fort.
Why did the attempted Colonisation of Virginia fail?
B. Inexperience
2. One of the ships called The Tiger was
damaged and flooded on the voyage.
This ship contained most of the voyages’
food stores as well as some important
seeds for planting in Virginia.
6. Having native support from Manteo
and Wanchese helped relations with the
Algonquian people, but the local Chief
Wingina was unpredictable and
suspicious of the English.
10. The natives set out to fight against
the colonists. The colonists found out
about this planned attack and prepared to
fight back. With better weapons and
armour, the English colonists killed
many of the Roanoke as well as their
tribal chief. However, there were also
many deaths amongst the English
colonists.
14. The soldiers were there to defend the
colony but did not have skills to farm the
land and were ill-disciplined.
C. Lack of cooperation
3. The colonists found it difficult to cope
with the hot and humid climate as well
as the mosquitos which were
everywhere.
7. The colonists could not work well
together. The richer ‘gentlemen’ were
not prepared to do any hard physical
work and expected the poorer classes to
do it for them. The ‘poorer’ farmers
refused to work for the richer colonists
as they had agreed to travel to North
America for their own land not work on
someone else’s land.
11. The gunpowder was spoilt on the
journey so hunters found it hard to shoot
deer and birds. English fishing
techniques didn’t work in shallow waters
of Roanoke Island.
15. Many had come in search of getting
rich quickly but were not prepared to
put the hard ground work in. Some
were not cut out for the difficult life of
setting up a colony.
D. Native American resistance
4. The food on board the ships rotted too
quickly because it was too hot and
humid, and so resulted in the colonists
being too weak and sick.
8. The Roanoke people feared the
English. They believed the colonists had
strange supernatural powers to kill them.
For example, when the colonists left their
settlement, many of the Roanoke people
died. We now know that this was due to
the English diseases that had been
brought over that the Roanoke people
were not protected from. However, the
Roanoke people did not know this and so
feared the English.
12. In reality, the belief that Virginia was
a ‘paradise’ was not true. The colonists
felt that they had been lied to by people
such as Walter Raleigh who ‘sold’ them
the idea of colonising Virginia. For
example, they were promised exotic
foods, in actual fact they were forced to
search for nuts and berries to eat in
order to survive.
16. The richer colonists simply believed
that the Native American Indians would
be willing to do all the hard physical
work for them. This was not the case as
it was difficult to form friendly
relationships with the natives. The Native
American people were more hostile
towards the English colonists than they
had been led to believe.
But on the plus side…
… the attempts to colonise served as a template for future
settlements, including that at Jamestown in 1607, which
worked. By the end of the 1600’s, 13 colonies, each with
their own system of government, had been established
along the eastern seaboard of the New World.
 Explain why the attempts to colonise Virginia in the 1580’s
failed. (1 paragraph = 4 marks)

One reason why the attempts to colonise

Virginia in the 1580’s failed was…

For example… (2/3 pieces of evidence.)

This meant that… This led to… As a result…

1. Give one invention that allowed Elizabethan explorers to navigate 1. Give one invention that allowed Elizabethan explorers to navigate
the seas. the seas.

2. Give one reason why Drake wanted to circumnavigate the globe. 2. Give one reason why Drake wanted to circumnavigate the globe.

3. Who did Drake execute on his voyage and why? 3. Who did Drake execute on his voyage and why?

4. In June 1579, Drake landed on in North America (California 4. In June 1579, Drake landed on in North America (California
today). What did he name this area? today). What did he name this area?

5. How many ships did Drake return to England with? 5. How many ships did Drake return to England with?

1. Give one invention that allowed Elizabethan explorers to navigate 1. Give one invention that allowed Elizabethan explorers to navigate
the seas. the seas.

2. Give one reason why Drake wanted to circumnavigate the globe. 2. Give one reason why Drake wanted to circumnavigate the globe.

3. Who did Drake execute on his voyage and why? 3. Who did Drake execute on his voyage and why?

4. In June 1579, Drake landed on in North America (California 4. In June 1579, Drake landed on in North America (California
today). What did he name this area? today). What did he name this area?

5. How many ships did Drake return to England with? 5. How many ships did Drake return to England with?
 Planning the Expeditions to Virginia

In _________, Sir ________________ Raleigh was given a grant from Elizabeth I to _______________ and colonise the lands in North
________________. Because of previous failures, Raleigh needed to raise huge _____________ of money and to __________________ potential English
_______________ to leave their homes and settle in the New ______________. The Indians there were known as the ____________________ people.

Explore / convince / America / Walter / colonists / 1584 / world / Algonquian

The Planning Begins - Use info sheet p.1 to complete these questions.

• Manteo and Wanchese were helpful because: ___________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• What did the scouting party realise about the Algonquian people? ___________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• Give two reasons Raleigh believed the colony would be profitable:

1. ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• Give an example of something Raleigh promised the settlers:

________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

• Give an example of something Elizabeth gave to help Raleigh’s expedition:

_____________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Organising the Virginia Project – Use info sheet p.2.

In the end, ______ colonists, almost all men, were signed up for the expedition. Many were attracted to the prospect of making a f_____________ while
some were convinced by Elizabeth’s support. Many were also encouraged by the good men appointed to lead them, such as Richard ________________,
who was expedition commander and an excellent s________________. Also, ___________ Lane as
governor of Virginia, who was an expert at f_______ building and being a hardened soldier. There were ______ ships, the largest of which was The
T________. However, Raleigh was _______ allowed to lead the colonists himself because Elizabeth did not want to lose her f______________ and
believed he was needed to ______________ England from enemies. The expedition left on ________________1585.

1. People Raleigh needs
1. 300 colonists with a variety of
skills including protestant clergy.
6. Raleigh sent 5 ships. One
contained beer, vegetables, wine and
grain for bread.
11. Seeds for planting crops so they
had enough food to eat.
16. They must set sail during the
warmer seasons to reach Virginia in
warm weather.
Challenge: What dangers do you think they will come across and why?
1. People Raleigh needs
1. 300 colonists with a variety of
skills including protestant clergy.
6. Raleigh sent 5 ships. One
contained beer, vegetables, wine and
grain for bread.
11. Seeds for planting crops so they
had enough food to eat.
16. They must set sail during the
warmer seasons to reach Virginia in
warm weather.
Challenge: What dangers do you think they will come across and why?
What did Raleigh need for the expedition?
2. Supplies Raleigh needs
2. Richard Grenville as the
expedition commander. He was very
experienced.
7. Salt for preserving food such as
meat.
12. Well-armed ships in case of a
Spanish or pirate attack.
17. Animals will be needed for
eating, hunting and breeding.
What did Raleigh need for the expedition?
2. Supplies Raleigh needs
2. Richard Grenville as the
expedition commander. He was very
experienced.
7. Salt for preserving food such as
meat.
12. Well-armed ships in case of a
Spanish or pirate attack.
17. Animals will be needed for
eating, hunting and breeding.
3. Timing of the voyage
3. Soldiers for protection. Especially
if the Spanish are near.
8. Enough food for Virginia until we
can harvest crops.
13. Mixture of farmers, blacksmiths,
stone masons, weavers and
carpenters.
18. Thomas Harriot will be the
translator and mapper. He learned
from Manteo and Wanchese.
3. Timing of the voyage
3. Soldiers for protection. Especially
if the Spanish are near.
8. Enough food for Virginia until we
can harvest crops.
13. Mixture of farmers, blacksmiths,
stone masons, weavers and
carpenters.
18. Thomas Harriot will be the
translator and mapper. He learned
from Manteo and Wanchese.
4. Type of ships needed
4. Weapons for protection.
9. Enough food for the trip across
the Atlantic.
14. They must reach Virginia in
time to grow crops for the first
harvest.
19. Enough ships that are big
enough to carry all the colonists
and supplies.
4. Type of ships needed
4. Weapons for protection.
9. Enough food for the trip across
the Atlantic.
14. They must reach Virginia in
time to grow crops for the first
harvest.
19. Enough ships that are big
enough to carry all the colonists
and supplies.
5. Leaders of the Voyage?
5. Ralph Lane will be my Governor in
Virginia as he is great at Fort building
and a tough soldier.
10. Hunters (with their dogs) and
fishermen.
15. Farming equipment for use in
Virginia.
20. Aim to set off on April 9th 1585.
5. Leaders of the Voyage?
5. Ralph Lane will be my Governor in
Virginia as he is great at Fort building
and a tough soldier.
10. Hunters (with their dogs) and
fishermen.
15. Farming equipment for use in
Virginia.
20. Aim to set off on April 9th 1585.
What happened to the expeditions?

The 1585 Voyage:

• In 1585, 108 male settlers…
• The first problem was that Grenville’s ship…
• Ralph Lane began building…
• The natives became hostile because…
• The colonists abandoned Roanoke Island in June 1586 because…
• Francis Drake arrived at the colony and…

The 1587 Voyage:

• Realising his mistake, Raleigh recruited settler families instead of…
• The expedition was led by John White who had…
• The trip landed too far south because…
• When they arrived, they were too late to…
• White returned to England, but couldn't get ships because…
• When White returned in 1590, he found that…
• Roanoke is known as the ‘Lost Colony’, and historians believe the colonists
encountered…

What happened to the expeditions?

The 1585 Voyage:

• In 1585, 108 male settlers…
• The first problem was that Grenville’s ship…
• Ralph Lane began building…
• The natives became hostile because…
• The colonists abandoned Roanoke Island in June 1586 because…
• Francis Drake arrived at the colony and…

The 1587 Voyage:

• Realising his mistake, Raleigh recruited settler families instead of…
• The expedition was led by John White who had…
• The trip landed too far south because…
• When they arrived, they were too late to…
• White returned to England, but couldn't get ships because…
• When White returned in 1590, he found that…
• Roanoke is known as the ‘Lost Colony’, and historians believe the colonists
encountered…

A. The voyage / food`
1. There were too many craftsmen but
not enough farmers.
5. The colonists left England too late in
the year and did not arrive in Virginia in
time to plant the crops they needed to be
able to feed themselves over the winter
months. This left them having to rely on
the food of the native Americans in order
to survive. At first the Native American
people were generous but then felt that
they were being taken advantage of. This
made the relationship between the two
groups difficult.
9. Many of the colonists were ill on the
journey. With little medical knowledge,
morale became low even before they
reached Virginia.
13. Bakers, weavers and brewers didn’t
have the raw materials. Not enough stone
for the stonemasons, so they couldn’t
build a strong fort.
Why did the attempted Colonisation of Virginia fail?
B. Inexperience
2. One of the ships called The Tiger was
damaged and flooded on the voyage.
This ship contained most of the voyages’
food stores as well as some important
seeds for planting in Virginia.
6. Having native support from Manteo
and Wanchese helped relations with the
Algonquian people, but the local Chief
Wingina was unpredictable and
suspicious of the English.
10. The natives set out to fight against
the colonists. The colonists found out
about this planned attack and prepared to
fight back. With better weapons and
armour, the English colonists killed
many of the Roanoke as well as their
tribal chief. However, there were also
many deaths amongst the English
colonists.
14. The soldiers were there to defend the
colony but did not have skills to farm the
land and were ill-disciplined.
C. Lack of cooperation
3. The colonists found it difficult to cope
with the hot and humid climate as well
as the mosquitos which were
everywhere.
7. The colonists could not work well
together. The richer ‘gentlemen’ were
not prepared to do any hard physical
work and expected the poorer classes to
do it for them. The ‘poorer’ farmers
refused to work for the richer colonists
as they had agreed to travel to North
America for their own land not work on
someone else’s land.
11. The gunpowder was spoilt on the
journey so hunters found it hard to shoot
deer and birds. English fishing
techniques didn’t work in shallow waters
of Roanoke Island.
15. Many had come in search of getting
rich quickly but were not prepared to
put the hard ground work in. Some
were not cut out for the difficult life of
setting up a colony.
D. Native American resistance
4. The food on board the ships rotted too
quickly because it was too hot and
humid, and so resulted in the colonists
being too weak and sick.
8. The Roanoke people feared the
English. They believed the colonists had
strange supernatural powers to kill them.
For example, when the colonists left their
settlement, many of the Roanoke people
died. We now know that this was due to
the English diseases that had been
brought over that the Roanoke people
were not protected from. However, the
Roanoke people did not know this and so
feared the English.
12. In reality, the belief that Virginia was
a ‘paradise’ was not true. The colonists
felt that they had been lied to by people
such as Walter Raleigh who ‘sold’ them
the idea of colonising Virginia. For
example, they were promised exotic
foods, in actual fact they were forced to
search for nuts and berries to eat in
order to survive.
16. The richer colonists simply believed
that the Native American Indians would
be willing to do all the hard physical
work for them. This was not the case as
it was difficult to form friendly
relationships with the natives. The Native
American people were more hostile
towards the English colonists than they
had been led to believe.