The First Thanksgiving, September 3, 1578
The First Thanksgiving (Sept. 3, 1578)
The shortest distance to Cathay1
(Land of riches: silks, teas, and spices)
Lay to the north of the South Sea.2
Didn’t Barlow3 tell the king
It was reserved for England?
The routes around the capes4
Were through long and treacherous waters
Hampered by Portuguese carracks
And Spanish galleons.
The tidal rip5 observed by the captain
Undermines the sailors’ quest
To seek the Northwest Passage
Of Meta Incognita6 through Mistaken Strait.7
Storms and ice floes plagued the mariners’
Return voyage to Frobisher Strait,8
And they suffered the loss of the Dennis,9
Whose supplies are needed to establish a settlement.
Aboard the Ayde,10 Frobisher11 and his crew gathered
In silent prayer as the chaplain12 chanted Te Deum13
In public rejoicing, thanking the Lord
For safe sailing and their arrival in the New World.
The Eucharist14 is observed in the New World,
Followed by a meal of salt beef, peas, and biscuits,
Where shared dreams get lost in Arctic squalls
And preparations are made for the journey homeward.
***
Notes:
1 Cathay: Cathay was the name used by the early European explorers for China.
2 South Sea (Pacific Ocean): In 1513, Spanish explorer Vasco Balboa (1475–1519) named the entire present-day Pacific Ocean Mar del Sur (the great Southern Sea). The current name is derived from Ferdinand Magellan’s use of Mar Pacifico (peaceful sea) during his voyage of circumnavigating the world in 1521.
3 Roger Barlow (1483–1553): Roger Barlow was a British merchant who sailed with Sebastian Cabot (son of John Cabot) in 1526 to South America. In 1542, he presented a cosmography entitled “Briefe Summe of Geographie” (c. 1540–1541), which included an account of his travels, to King Henry VIII (1491–1547) of England. Barlow believed that England should explore and establish a trade route to the Orient via a northwest passage.
“…the shortest route, the northern, has been reserved by Divine Providence for England.”
4 Trade Routes to the Orient: The trade routes to the Orient consisted of:
i) east around the Cape of Good Hope of Africa and across the Indian Ocean to the East Indies and China, or
ii) west around the Cape of the Virgins and then through the Strait of Magellan and across the Pacific Ocean to the East Indies and China, or
iii) around Cape Horn of South America and across the Pacific Ocean to the East Indies and China.
5 Riptide: A riptide is a strong current of water flowing out of a bay, estuary, or lagoon through the inlet opening during an ebb tide (the period between high and low tide when water flows away from the shore).
6 Meta Incognita (Latin): On his first voyage to the New World in search of the Northwest Passage in 1576, Martin Frobisher discovered and claimed these lands and beyond, off the Labrador coast and southern part of Baffin Island, for England and named them Elizabeth’s Foreland after Queen Elizabeth I, who reigned over England from 1558 to 1603. Queen Elizabeth I (1533–1603) later renamed the territory Meta Incognita, which means Unknown Shore.
7 Mistaken Strait: Mistaken Strait was the name given to present-day Hudson Strait by Martin Frobisher, who at first believed that it was the entrance to the Northwest Passage but, with further exploration, realized it was not.
8 Frobisher Strait: Frobisher Strait was discovered by Martin Frobisher on his first voyage in search of the Northwest Passage to Cathay in 1576; who mistakenly thought it was a strait that could be and/or lead to the Northwest Passage. It wasn’t until 1861 that it was discovered to be a bay of Baffin Island and was renamed Frobisher Bay in his honour.
9 Dennis: The Dennis was a 100-ton supply barque and one of fifteen ships in Frobisher’s fleet on his third voyage to the New World in 1578. The fleet ran into foul weather and ice floes in Hudson Strait, and the Dennis sank. Frobisher had been instructed to establish a settlement in the New World by Queen Elizabeth I, and with the loss of the supply barque further added to the discouragement and the eventual discontinuation of building a settlement on Baffin Island.
10 Ayde: The Ayde was the name of the flagship commanded by Captain Martin Frobisher.
11 Martin Frobisher (1535–1594): Martin Frobisher was a licensed pirate turned captain who led three expeditions (between 1576 and 1578) to the New World in search of gold and the Northwest Passage to the Far East. Sir Martin Frobisher was knighted in 1585 for his valour during the Anglo-Spanish War (1585 to 1604) between England and Spain. Martin Frobisher’s expeditions in search of the Northwest Passage:
i) First expedition: June 7, 1576–October 9, 1576,
ii) Second expedition: May 27, 1577–September 17, 1577,
iii) Third expedition: June 3, 1578–October 2, 1578.
12 Chaplain Robert Wolfall (c. 1544/45–1610): Robert Wolfall was a British Anglican chaplain who conducted the first Anglican Eucharist in Canadian territory aboard the ship Ayde in Frobisher Strait on September 3, 1578, during the third Frobisher expedition commissioned by Queen Elizabeth I of England.
13 Te Deum (aka Te Deum laudamus): “Te Deum laudamus” is a Latin hymn meaning “Thee, O God, we praise.”
14 Eucharist: The Eucharist is a Christian ceremony commemorating the Last Supper of Jesus Christ and His disciples. Various Christian denominations have different theologies and practices.
15 Thanksgiving Day, Canada: In Canada, Thanksgiving Day is celebrated on the second Monday in October.
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