On September 26, 1580, Frances Drake completed his circumnavigation of the world sailing into Plymouth aboard the Golden Hind. An excerpt from the article:
"This route took the Golden Hind across the open Pacific Ocean, past the north coast of Australia and onto Indonesia and the Spice Islands, where he uploaded six tons of cloves, themselves worth their weight in gold at that time. From there the Golden Hind proceeded south-west past India, Madagascar and around the African continent via the Cape of Good Hope.
Arriving Home
Long given up for dead, the Plymouth residents were amazed to see Drake and the small ship return into Plymouth Harbour in September 1580. Once Drake had been reassured that Queen Elizabeth I was still alive, he landed the Golden Hind full of treasure and jewels, at nearby Saltash, and in the process became one of the most famous men in the world. The total value of the items on board was 160,000 Elizabethan pounds, or almost half a billion pounds in today's money."