G. A. Henty’s works today remain useful as examples of 19th-century children’s literature for boys of a chauvinistic bent. Overbearingly patriotic, the novels prove bombastic to modern readers. However, in Henty’s day, novels such as Under Drake’s Flag captured the imagination of their young readers.

Under Drake’s Flag features feats by Sir Francis Drake in 16th-century England, opening with his organization while still a captain of an expedition composed of volunteers from Devon County, as it was “ahead of all England in its enterprise and its seamanship.” The promise of treasure and adventure draws young men into a typical quest, where their courage will be tried at a time when peace was upheld with Spain in English waters but not on the Spanish main of the West Indies.

The storm that rises in the first pages symbolizes and foreshadows the conflict the men will face, including one Ned Hearne, nicknamed “the Otter,” who convinces his reluctant schoolmaster father to allow him to join Drake’s group.

Readers learn that the sailors look “upon their mission as a crusade. In those days England had a horror of Popery, and Spain was the mainstay and supporter of this religion.” The sailors regard Spaniards as enemies of their country, church, and humanity. Ned will rescue a young woman, the daughter of a wealthy Spaniard at Nombre de Dios, from drowning as his first “plunder.”

True to the romance tradition, all the adventurers treat her with respect until she can be returned to her father. The captain’s brother, John Drake, is killed in battle, as are many of the crew, and the ship eventually wrecks, casting Ned and a young crewmate named Gerald into the sea. When they swim to shore, they meet up through the coincidence so common to romance with the same young woman, Donna Anna, Ned had previously rescued. She aids the young travelers in gratitude for Ned’s having saved her life.

The plot continues in a predictable manner, with Ned making new friends as he travels to America, eventually returning home victorious to reunite with Drake. Drake is knighted by the queen, becoming Sir Francis Drake, while Queen Elizabeth herself receives Ned and his companions.

The book concludes with the defeat of the Spanish Armada and the aging of Ned, now Sir Edward Hearne and married to Gerald’s sister, and his companions. They regularly gather with their children and grandchildren to celebrate their past victories and tell their tales of conquest.

Categories: British Literature, Children's Literature, Literature, Novel Analysis

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