HAWKINS, William

HAWKINS, William (Hawkyns). 15?? — autumn 1613. British Traveller. Of unknown origin, probably not the same as W.H., the nephew of Sir John H., who in 1582 sailed to the east under Edward Fenton (but only reached Brazil). Our W.H. had been in the East before as he already knew Turkish. He commanded the E.I.C.’s Hector to Surat in 1607, part of the third English expedition. As an envoy of the E.I.C. he visited the court of Agra in 1609-11, accompanied by —> Finch. He became befriended with Jahangir, drank together with the emperor and, instigated by him, married there an Armenian girl, Mariam Khān. Disappointed with the meagre results of his mission he returned from Agra to Surat in November 1611 and in winter accompanied H. Middleton to the Red Sea and Java. From Batavia he set sail for England, visited Cape in April 1613, but died on board before reaching home. His Armenian widow married in 1614 Captain Gabriel Towerson and returned with him to India.

Publications: The Hawkins Voyages, edited by C. Markham. Hakluyt Soc. L. 1878; his reprt already in Purchas 1, book 3, ch. 7 (republ. in Foster 70ff.).

Sources: Foster 1921, 60-121; K. Karttunen, Literature of Travel and Explor. 2, 2003, 542f.; J.K.L[aughton], D.N.B. 25, 1891, 229f.; Oaten 1909, 140-146; Prasad 1980, 82-127; Wikipedia.

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