Cartography as a Tool of Colonization: Sir Humphrey Gilbert’s 1583 Voyage to North America

Abstract

An analysis of Sir Humphrey Gilbert’s 1583 expedition to North America, which was England’s first attempt at colonization beyond Britain, shows that the nation’s earliest expansionists perceived the significance of maps in supporting colonization. Gilbert recruited several specialists, including John Dee and Richard Hakluyt, who expended considerable time and resources conducting research for their maps and drawing up plans to survey the colony. A thorough examination of Gilbert’s sea chart and terrestrial maps clarifies how his circle used them to promote the expedition, to guide it to North America, and to assert their control over the territory. Scholars often depict early modern English colonizers as having little interest in cartographic materials, but Gilbert and his supporters proved that maps served a number of vital functions in preparing and executing a colonizing expedition.

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