Sir Walter Ralegh's Discoverie of GuianaSir Walter Ralegh's account of his 1595 expedition to the Orinoco in search of the fabled empire of El Dorado was an immediate publishing success and is one of the most important pieces of Elizabethan travel literature. This edition presents, on facing pages, the annotated texts of a previously unpublished copy of Ralegh's fair manuscript draft of The Discoverie of the Large, Rich, and Bewtifvl Empyre of Gviana and the subsequent printed versions, and demonstrates very clearly how Sir Robert Cecil and Ralegh's few other serious backers induced the reluctant author to alter his manuscript for publication. Lively tales of Amazon women, drinking bouts and swash-buckling adventures, which would have fascinated armchair travellers, were firmly deleted. The focus of his appeal to investors was shifted from an ephemeral golden empire to actual gold mines to which, as his manuscript shows, he had originally paid little attention and for which he had very little evidence. In effect Ralegh was forced to develop a strategy to mediate between what he believed to exist and what he actually found, between his dreams of what he might accomplish and the real obstacles which faced him in the field, between his creative, imaginative response to his recent journey and the need to present it in such a way as to encourage others to undertake another such journey with him. The materials collected in the appendices indicate that while men like John Ley were immediately inspired to explore Guiana, bringing back fabulous tales of monstrous peoples, Ralegh lost interest until he saw a chance to free himself from imprisonment in the Tower by inventing stories of Orinoco gold mines which he had never mentioned in either the draft or the published version of The Discoverie. |
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Page lviii
... miles to the east of the confluence of the Caroní . Topiawari's current settlement , Orocotoa , lay some fourteen miles inland and on each occasion the old chief had walked that distance to the ' Port of Morekito ' to meet with the ...
... miles to the east of the confluence of the Caroní . Topiawari's current settlement , Orocotoa , lay some fourteen miles inland and on each occasion the old chief had walked that distance to the ' Port of Morekito ' to meet with the ...
Page 69
... miles brode , which may be from his out fall into the sea 700. or 800. miles.2 This Prouince of Amapaia is a verie low and a ma- rish ground neere the riuer , and by reason of the red water which issueth out in small branches thorow the ...
... miles brode , which may be from his out fall into the sea 700. or 800. miles.2 This Prouince of Amapaia is a verie low and a ma- rish ground neere the riuer , and by reason of the red water which issueth out in small branches thorow the ...
Page 130
... miles in length , and 6 miles in bredth , the great body of the river runing on the other side of this Iland : Beyond that middle branch there is also another Iland in the river called Iwana , which is twise as bigg as the Isle of Wight ...
... miles in length , and 6 miles in bredth , the great body of the river runing on the other side of this Iland : Beyond that middle branch there is also another Iland in the river called Iwana , which is twise as bigg as the Isle of Wight ...
Contents
Maps and Illustrations | ix |
Of the Voyage for Guiana | xxxv |
The Background to the Spanish Searches for El Dorado | xliii |
Copyright | |
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Common terms and phrases
Amapaia Amazones ancor Arawak barge Berreo borderers braunches brought cacique called Canoas Captaine capten Carapana Caroní Cassique coast countrey Cumaná daie Discoverie diuers Dorado El Dorado Emeria Empire of Guiana England English entred Epuremei euery expedition farre galley gold Guiana Guianians hath haue Ibid Iland Indians indigenous inhabited inserted in STC Keymis king land letters Lord Lordship Lorimer Majesty Manoa manuscript Margarita miles Morekito Morequito mountaines nations neere Nueuo numbers Omitted from STC Orenoke Orenoque Orenoqueponi Orinoco delta ouer Oyapoc Pedro Peru Popham port printed province Queen Raley reyno rich riuer river ryver Schomburgk sent shalbe shipp ships Sir Robert Cecil Sir Walter Ralegh sonne Spain Spaniards Spanish Spayne stones substituted in STC thence thereof told Topiawari towne trade Trinedado Trinidad tyme unto uppon victuall voyage vpon West Indies Whitehead wold yere