Henry Timberlake (merchant adventurer) facts for kids
Henry Timberlake (born 1570, died 1625) was an English merchant. He was part of a special trading group called the Company of Merchant Adventurers of London. This group helped merchants trade goods in different countries.
Timberlake became well-known for his exciting travels. In 1601, he journeyed through North Africa, Egypt, and Jerusalem. He wrote a book about these adventures in 1603. His travel stories were very popular in England. They were printed many times.
Later, Timberlake traveled to the English colonies in America. He bought land in Virginia and Bermuda. He then returned to England. Henry Timberlake passed away in 1625.
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Early Life and Exciting Journeys
Henry Timberlake was born in England in 1570. He became a merchant, which means he bought and sold goods. He earned enough money to join the Company of Merchant Adventurers of London. This was a trading guild, like a club for merchants. He joined before 1601.
Timberlake bought and prepared merchant ships. He used them to trade with merchants in North Africa and Egypt. In 1601, he sailed into the Mediterranean on his ship, the Trojan. He picked up Muslim travelers in Algiers. They were going to Mecca and Tunis.
Timberlake and his helper, Waldred, moved their goods to travel by land to the River Nile. Then they put the goods on a boat to sail downriver to Cairo. He could not sell his goods there. So, Timberlake decided to go on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Another Englishman, John Burrell, joined him.
This journey was very dangerous for pilgrims. Travelers often faced attacks from bandits on the roads. Also, Jerusalem was ruled by the Islamic Ottomans. When Timberlake reached Jerusalem, he made a mistake. At the Jaffa Gate, he said he was a Protestant and an Englishman. The Ottoman leaders arrested him. They thought he was a spy. They had never heard of England or Queen Elizabeth.
Luckily, a Moroccan man helped Timberlake. This man had been a passenger on the Trojan. He spoke to the local leader, called a Pasha. He helped Timberlake get released from jail. The Moroccan man saved Timberlake's life again. This happened when Bedouins attacked them. They were riding camels from Gaza back to Cairo. The Bedouins wanted to sell them into slavery. But the Moroccan man scared them away. Timberlake and his friend escaped safely.
His Popular Travel Book
After his adventures, Henry Timberlake returned to England. He wrote a long letter about his travels to his friends in London. This letter was published in 1603. Its title was A True and Strange Discourse on the Travailes of Two English Pilgrims.
The book was very popular with the English public. It was printed many times. Timberlake wrote in a very lively way. One special part of his book was about his friendship with the unnamed Muslim man from Fes. Timberlake wrote in great detail how this man helped him. He even saved his life twice.
Timberlake's book gives us a clear look into the history of Palestine. It also shows what life was like for Christians there under Ottoman rule. The local Pasha made Timberlake stay in a Franciscan hospice. Timberlake showed some respect for the Catholic friars in his book. They washed his feet as a welcome. He had worried about being forced to attend a Catholic mass, but this did not happen. Some people in England were suspicious of Timberlake. This was because he wrote positively about Catholics and Muslims. An unflattering caricature of him was even printed in another version of his book.
Later Adventures in America
Timberlake's travel book was his only writing project. But he kept working as a merchant. He later joined the joint-stock Virginia Company. This company was created to start colonies in North America.
He sailed to the young Virginia Colony. There, he bought land in a place called Smith's Hundred. Timberlake also sailed to the English colony of Bermuda. He bought land there too. He rented his properties to farmers. Or he hired people to manage the land for him. These properties were used to grow valuable cash crops.
Family and Legacy
After his time in America, Timberlake returned to England. He died in September 1625. This happened in Titchfield, near Fareham, Hampshire. He was buried in the church in Titchfield.
Henry Timberlake had a wife and family in England. One of his grandsons was also named Henry Timberlake. This grandson later moved from England to Newport, Rhode Island.
Another of Timberlake's sons, Francis, moved to Virginia. He might have traveled there with his father and stayed. Francis married in Virginia. His son, also named Henry Timberlake, was born there around 1730 or 1735. This younger Henry Timberlake joined the army. He also became known for making maps. He is famous for his Timberlake Expedition in 1761-1762. He traveled to the Overhill Cherokee people, in what is now Tennessee. He carefully wrote down details about their villages and culture.
