Sir Walter Ralegh and the Quest for El Dorado

by Marc Aronson

In this extraordinarily well researched and insightful biography, Marc Aronson explores the amazing accomplishments and dismal failures of one of the most flamboyant figures of the Elizabethan age. Best remembered for laying his coat in a muddy puddle so that Queen Elizabeth I could walk across it, Sir Walter Ralegh committed himself to pleasing his monarch and obtaining power in her court. He heroically risked his life in battle time and again, chasing after glory to win her favor. His notoriously ill-fated quest for the mythological golden city of El Dorado was perhaps his grandest attempt, but it also was his undoing, and Ralegh ultimately paid for his mistakes with his life. Despite his shortcomings, he was not only charismatic and brave, he was brilliant as well, and his contributions to the New World and to western culture as a whole were vast and enduring. MAPS, ENDNOTES and BIBLIOGRAPHY, TIMELINE, INDEX.

Genres: Biography, History, Nonfiction, Juvenile, Adventure

222 pages, Hardcover

First published April 17, 2000

About the author

Aronson has won many awards for his books for young readers and has a doctorate in American history. His lectures cover educational topics such as mysteries and controversies in American history, teenagers and their reading, the literary passions of boys, and always leave audiences asking for more.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/marcar...

Reviews

[Josiah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nonfiction rarely won Newbery awards in the twentieth century, dating back to the prize's 1922 inception. Then the Robert F. Sibert Medal for informational children's books was introduced in 2001, and nonfiction suddenly had a more attainable annual prize. The inaugural Medal went to Marc Aronson's Sir Walter Ralegh and the Quest for El Dorado, a time period seldom written of for younger readers: the romance and political posturing of Queen Elizabeth the I's court; the era of the conquistador who roamed the Old and New Worlds for action and adventure, certain he was on the brink of discovering riches beyond imagination; and ambitious, scholarly men applying their minds to the practical and philosophical conundrums of the day. The Elizabethan era was war and reason, frustration and enlightenment, pretense and a passion for legacy that spread the names of explorers to every corner of the globe. Marc Aronson invests every bit of his own energy into relaying Sir Walter Ralegh's life story with as much immediacy as if he'd lived yesterday, connecting the age we live in with that of a man whose adventures will likely never be surpassed. Welcome to the odyssey of the last great European explorer.

Sir Walter Ralegh wasn't born to prominence. His family tree was replete with notables, but their fortunes had declined by the time Walter was born circa 1554. His father was a farmer in Devon, England, considered hick country, but young Walter wasn't content to be a commoner. Through intellect and temerity he rose in Queen Elizabeth's favor, and could almost aspire to be more than a friend to her. Ralegh wasn't liked in the queen's court—her other advisers despised his proud affect and poise—but they could do nothing to unseat him from privilege. Ralegh leveraged his position to finance land investments in Ireland, where his personal history of violent conquest began. When success buoyed Ralegh higher in the queen's esteem, he gathered a fleet of ships to stake a colony on North America's Eastern Seaboard, where the virgin land promised prosperity to anyone who survived to plant a settlement and not be driven off by natives. But the wealth he envisioned creating here seemed puny compared to stories of the southern continent. Rumor had it that a city of gold existed in South America's jungles beyond the Orinoco River, a place of extravagance beyond anything dreamed of in the Old World. Ralegh wished to conquer this city and pump its wealth back to England. Such a find would make him the most popular man in Europe and the clear choice for Queen Elizabeth's hand in marriage. Ralegh had to find the legendary city of El Dorado.

"For who so reaps renown above the rest,
With heaps of hate, shall surely be oppressed."

—Ralegh's poetry, P. 51 of Sir Walter Ralegh and the Quest for El Dorado

The culture of the monarchy was not on his side. A farmer's son ascending to the royal court was seen as vulgar, but Ralegh held his own, thanks to his sharp wits and myriad talents ranging from war strategy to poetry. Other candidates to wed Queen Elizabeth allied against Ralegh, to disgrace him in her court. While adventuring overseas, Ralegh had to be careful his enemies didn't take advantage. After years spent waiting for the fabled Virgin Queen, Ralegh realized she would never take on the political entanglements of marriage, certainly not to a commoner, and he sought comfort in less audacious female company. The scandal when Ralegh's relationship with Elizabeth Throckmorton became public irreparably harmed his position before the queen. How could her roguish admirer abandon the monarch for a common lady? Ralegh's land holdings throughout Europe were jeopardized, all the wealth he had accrued at the queen's pleasure. His personal titles were at risk, as were his New World projects. How could a man born in poverty have seriously aspired to win the heart of the world's greatest queen?

Banishment would not be Ralegh's reward for serving Queen Elizabeth, at least not yet. But she held him at a distance, unlike times gone by when she insisted he stay close to home. Ralegh took to the seas in search of El Dorado; a kingdom of pure gold would return him to the queen's good graces, making up for his lack of royal blood with wealth exceeding that of any European monarch. Spain, England's political and religious rival, made voyaging difficult. The Protestant English empire and Spain's Catholic regime constantly fought, filling the seas with murdering pirates who pillaged any ship originating from a country not their own. England worried that Spain might start a war; the Spanish monarchy was richer than England's, and could afford global military conquest. But Ralegh had never been averse to risk. Landing in South America, he and his crew hunted for the city of gold, told by natives they questioned that it "wasn't far" or was "just beyond the horizon." Ralegh trudged right through America's real riches, unspoiled land stretching thousands of miles, in search of a legendary city that could only have been worth a small fraction of the natural land's value. He returned to England ready to launch an all-out mission to the New World to locate El Dorado, but things had changed since he last set foot on the motherland.

No longer a ravishing young lady, Queen Elizabeth's position was imperiled by monarchs in other lands wishing to rule England. James VI of Scotland was first on that list, and had a legitimate claim to the throne. Elizabeth was loved by the people and used her goodwill to stave off insurrection until she died in 1603, but England was not the stable monarchy it had been with Elizabeth in her prime, and a deadly game of thrones was set in motion when she passed away. Ralegh was one of many in her court who had positioned himself not to lose the queen's favor, but also to ally with James when he would one day take the crown. Sir Robert Cecil was another, a secret enemy of Ralegh's who spoke ill of him to people in authority. Staying alive after King James's coronation was a challenge for Ralegh: the monarch had him charged with treason and subjected to an abusive show trial as warning to others the king saw as political threats. Ralegh had no chance of exoneration, but as he'd often done in his overseas escapades, he fearlessly turned the tables on his persecutors. With faultless reasoning he poked holes in the case against him, aligning his cause with that of the people. England was not supposed to be a dictatorship where the defendant's politics mattered more in a trial than guilt or innocence. Ralegh battled valiantly to clear his name of the mud slung at it by men who loathed him, but it was too late to escape the king's ire. One last grand adventure was still to come for Ralegh, an adventure poisoned by a treacherous and tragic end, and then one of the most spectacular adventurers to ever trot the globe was gone. What a rich legacy he bequeathed his intellectual and cultural descendants.

"Even such is time, which takes in trust
Our youth, our joys, and all we have,
And pays us but with age, and dust;
Who in the dark and silent grave
When we have wandered all our ways
Shuts up the story of our days.
And from which earth and grave and dust,
The Lord will raise me up I trust."

—Ralegh's poetry, P. 184 of Sir Walter Ralegh and the Quest for El Dorado

There's more to talk and think about in this book than I could squeeze into a review. Sir Walter Ralegh's life will resonate with anyone who's had big ideas and a burning desire to carry them out, only to have their hard work go awry tantalizingly close to the end goal. This pattern marked Ralegh's entire life. Marc Aronson frames it for us early on. "This was like so much of Ralegh's life: Chasing after glory, he plunged into a great adventure and came hauntingly close to dazzling success, only to have to flee for his life. In the end, he had nothing but courage, faith, and good sense, qualities that carried him through to the next impossible challenge." How cruel it is when validation is so near, that which one dreamed of coming close enough to touch, and it disappears in a cloud of smoke. Perhaps you'd never had a chance at all. Only a man of Ralegh's character could have borne the disappointment so gamely.

Ralegh took stunning risks in battle, bluffing stout opposition into surrendering their swords through nothing but his potent demeanor, and he owed this to his pragmatic view of life and death. "Seeing terrible carnage up close did not scare Ralegh at all. Rather, it made him all the more headstrong. If we are going to die anyway, he believed, why be cautious? Why not risk all now, at this moment, in this adventure? And because Ralegh showed no fear, he often won battles against tremendous odds, starting with his quest for the queen's favor." Why play the game of life timidly when all you have are plastic tokens you'll lose when the game is over? Why not put every iota of passion into the ends you would pursue, and see what rewards await a dauntless heart? This philosophy served Ralegh exquisitely, and can do the same for us. But Ralegh wasn't without fear, which he allowed Queen Elizabeth to see early in his ascendancy when he made it known to her that he wished to win her love. Ralegh scratched a message to Elizabeth on a windowpane: "Fain would I climb, yet fear I to fall." She responded with a scratched sentence of her own: "If thy heart fail thee, climb not at all." However an attempted courtship by Ralegh might end, a faint heart had no chance of winning the resplendent young queen. Elizabeth was inviting him to join the competition, but cautioning him that it wouldn't be easy. Residing in her court meant matching wits with some of the brightest noble minds in Europe. If Ralegh let his guard down, he would fall out of contention for the queen's affections.

Detractors were many for the son of a farmer risen to the queen's entourage, but Ralegh never suffered backbiting demurely. He had a message for cowards who slandered his good name. "If any man accuseth me to my face, I will answer him with my mouth; but my tail is good enough to return an answer to such who traduceth [slanders] me behind my back." Ralegh wisely distinguished one kind of aggressor from another: an earnest challenge requires rebuttal, but gutless sniping by those who hide behind anonymity doesn't deserve the dignity of a response. Ralegh's commentary on the matter remains relevant four hundred years after his death, and will never cease to be insightful advice.

Most of Sir Walter Ralegh and the Quest for El Dorado is exciting, but it amps up to new levels when his treason trial commences. Ralegh seems past his productive years as courtier and explorer, and the trial looks like the sad end of his career. Actually, he was on the verge of arguably his most magnificent triumph. Marc Aronson sets the stage: "Some trials are much more than tests of guilt or innocence, for in the judgment of one person's fate they dramatize the choices and challenges every human being faces." Ralegh's trial would call into question whether legal proceedings in England were free of the crown's undue influence. Cornered by hateful foes, guaranteed a sentence of execution regardless what happened at trial, Ralegh demonstrated his intrepid spirit that won so many fantastic victories, calmly refuting the prosecutor's rhetoric. "If you proceed to condemn me by bare inferences, without an oath...without witness, upon paper accusations, you try me by the Spanish inquisition." Aronson comments: "How brilliant, for instead of being tainted by association with the enemy, Ralegh made everyone in court see that the English government was acting like the worst of the Spanish. Now he was the victim, not the villain, and everyone could identify with him." Innocent until proven guilty was not the era's legal standard, but Ralegh pushed his point until it became clear no other standard was acceptable. "I will...expect nothing of you but what reason, religion, and conscience ask for every man: only this let me say to every one of you in particular;—remember what St. Augustine saith, 'So judge as if you were about to be judged yourself, for in the end there is but one Judge and one Tribunal for all men.' Before that Tribunal both you and I must stand. Now if you yourselves would like to be hazarded in your lives...your lands, goods, and all you have confiscated, your wives, children and servants left crying to the world...without the open testimony of a single witness, then so judge me as you would yourselves be judged!" This stirring argument forced jurors to consider how they would wish to be treated in Ralegh's place. It cast the proceeding in a new light, and a citizenry of any era eager to mete out punishment regardless of facts would do well to reflect on Ralegh's speech. He even influenced his prosecutor, Sir Edward Coke. "Through his words and his courage, Sir Walter Ralegh had saved his own life and given himself hope for the future. Coke later had his own falling-out with James and, in his highly influential law books, defended the very rights Ralegh had spoken for in court. It is not far-fetched to say that Ralegh so challenged the treason laws of his time that our rights are protected to this day." Everyone who later benefited from a fair trial would owe Ralegh some appreciation. It was one of many triumphs he scored against overwhelming odds.

It's a shame that Ralegh is thought of only as a colonialist. He was an elite writer in the era of Christopher Marlowe and William Shakespeare, a time when soldiers of fortune were celebrated for their artistic contributions. The extreme highs and lows of Ralegh's life fueled his writing to be better than it could have been without that range of human experience. "There was a repeated pattern in Ralegh's life. He would try some bold action, such as spreading his cape before the queen or sending a colony to North America or sailing in search of El Dorado. Though always full of promise, the effort would not quite work out as he hoped. Then he, or a close friend, would write about it. Each time, a bold act became eloquent prose. On paper, after the fact, he transformed passion, hope, even despair, into enduring literature." Just as Ralegh made the best of being imprisoned in the Tower of London, living a vibrant life of family togetherness and artistic fulfillment locked within stone walls, he turned his sorrows into words that speak to people of every generation. What is great literature but the alchemy of raw emotion into the gold of timeless insight and wisdom? There had never been a literal El Dorado for Ralegh to find, but he created an intellectual counterpart that dwarfed the value of a physical El Dorado. Would we care today if Ralegh had extracted mounds of gold from South America? Instead, he left the world an inheritance of immeasurably greater worth. "It took a man of Ralegh's great spirit to seek paradise and to fail. Though his life was at times brutal, was often frustrating, and ended with tragedy, he left behind an important legacy. He was the bridge between the Old World and the New. In his words and his deeds he pointed the way to the land across the seas. If he never found his El Dorado, his writings described the force of his yearning for that conquest and the counterforce of the beauty of the new land. Perhaps it is fitting that he never succeeded in creating a settlement here, for he was poised precisely between one world and the other." Ralegh was something like Moses, fated not to set foot in the Promised Land, but a person who influenced human culture forever. "Yet in another way he had already crossed over. Ralegh's constant striving to rise in a rigid society made him a terror in Ireland and a patron in North America. For every dark trait of his that people disliked, there was a strength to admire. It is this flawed humanity that makes him appealing. He was no saint and no devil. The massacre he led and the tolerance he supported, his calculations at court and his deep disdain for society's lies, his searching questions and profound faith—in all these contradictions he was our true ancestor, the first modern man." Those tempted to dismiss Ralegh as a colonial imperialist do so in ignorance of their own shortcomings. Every one of us is a tangle of darkness and light, marred by flaws but possessed of virtue. Judging a man by the standards of an era he didn't live in exchanges the multifaceted truth of who he was for a one-dimensional lie. Only when we accept people for the totality of who they are can we begin to understand them, and learn the lessons of their life and times.

I love Sir Walter Ralegh and the Quest for El Dorado. Marc Aronson's exposition is as smart as the members of Queen Elizabeth's court, as sophisticated as any juvenile nonfiction I've read, yet suitable to be understood by kids. Aronson's wisdom weds Ralegh's for a manuscript deep in meaning, all while bringing the Elizabethan era to irresistible life. I don't imagine there was a more deserving recipient of the first Sibert Medal; in fact, I may have given this book a Newbery Honor for 2001. I'd rate Sir Walter Ralegh and the Quest for El Dorado three and a half stars. There's much to learn from it, and I hope to return for another read. I look forward to that day.

[Preetam Chatterjee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Raleigh, a famed member of the court of Queen Elizabeth I, was a true Renaissance man who wrote history and poems, was a decorated sailor and dedicated voyager and settler.

He fell out of favour with the Queen when he clandestinely married one of her maids in 1592: he was even imprisoned in the Tower of London for a time.

He talked his way out of the Tower, however, and convinced the Queen to allow him to mount an expedition to the New World to conquer El Dorado before the Spanish found it. Never one to miss the chance to out-do the Spanish, the Queen agreed to send Raleigh on his quest.

Raleigh and his brother John Gilbert rounded up investors, soldiers, ships, and supplies: on February 6, 1595, they set out from England with five small ships. His expedition was an act of open hostility to Spain, which jealously guarded its New World possessions.

They reached the Island of Trinidad, where they cautiously checked out the Spanish forces. The Englishmen attacked and captured the town of San Jose. They took an important prisoner on the raid: Antonio de Berrio, a high-ranking Spaniard who had spent years searching for El Dorado himself. Berrio told Raliegh what he knew about Manoa and El Dorado, trying to discourage the Englishman from continuing on his quest, but his warnings were in vain.

Written by Marc Aronson, this excellent biography skillfully portrays the successes and failures of the momentous life of a man with prodigious talent.

Sir Walter Raleigh is noted in legend for laying down his cape to cover a mud puddle for the monarch. Sir Walter “Ralegh”—as scholars say is the proper spelling of his name—was a kind of Renaissance man who rose from humble beginnings to enjoy great wealth and influence.

The book shows, how, soldier, courtier, explorer, poet, writer, and friend to many of the most important people of his day, Raleigh helped crush the Irish rebellion, wrote a book of world history, conducted raids on Spanish ships, and was finally undone by his ill-fated expeditions to South America in search of the mythic treasure of El Dorado

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written and I enjoyed the historical accounts of Elizabeth's courts. Nicely aided by maps and pictures, without relying on them too heavily.

[Mitchell Friedman · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first winner of the Sibert Award back in 2001. This one required an Interlibrary Loan, though nearby from Lewis and Clark College. For much of this book, it was not about the Quest for El Dorado. Except maybe in the metaphorical sense that the rise of England was also the looking for riches to fund the rise of England. Much of the book really wasn't about Walter Ralegh, instead it was of the time and exploration mostly of the new world, and of the court of Elizabeth. A bit torturous to read at times, this is definitely just about all text and at the older end of the Sibert range. But it did get there with Walter Ralegh and showed him to be a compelling figure of whom I knew very little. 3.5 of 5

[Sandra Strange · Rating 4 out of 5]

This biography is a bit misleading looking: short, with illustrations and a popular format. It looks like it is written for young adults, but the treatment is adult with thoughtful assessment of the man and his life achievements and failures, the parts of his personality that are Elizabethan, and the parts that seem much more modern in attitudes and values. This man lead an adventurous life of exploration and political achievements. The biography not only casts light on his life, but also spotlights Elizabeth I and the men surrounding her--not always such flattering lights, either. Well worth reading.

[Brooke Henry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Are you looking for a book in the genre of biography? Sir Walter Ralegh and the Quest for El Dorado is an award-winning book of the Robert F. Sibert award that takes readers on the journey through Sir Walter Ralegh's adventurous life. This book is a quest tale that informs readers of the history and adventures of Sir Walter Ralegh during the Elizabethan Era in his quest to find the city of El Dorado. It is an engaging read exploring themes of courage, ambition, and human curiosity. I would rate it 4 stars.

[Gabriel Weaver · Rating 1 out of 5]

I respect the research done, but man . . . this was not a book for me. I found myself forcing myself to finish the book and I didn't really care to slow down to process everything. It was rather comprehensive and often overwhelmingly so.

[Dan Para · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short, but large, hardback book with very large print. Interesting summary of Ralegh’s life and ambition. Seems a bit truncated. But I enjoyed the short ride.

[Katy Lovejoy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Never was much interested in el Dorado, not even the animated movie!

[Abby Johnson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read for my Sibert class.

[Melanie Abril · Rating 4 out of 5]

Marc Aronson goes into the life of the infamous Sir Walter Ralegh of the Elizabethan Age through this thoroughly researched biography. Most kids just know the name Sir Walter Ralegh from their history textbooks only repeated once or twice when discussing the Spanish Armada or the Lost Colony in the New World or maybe even for his quest to El Dorado, this portrait reveals this historical figure in a new and exciting way that goes above and beyond the simple textbook definition. In only 186 pages, Aronson tells the story of what he calls the wonderful, dark hero in drawings from the 1500s, photos as the places are today, portraits of well-known historical figures involved in Ralegh's quest and so much more. Old English maps as well as Ralegh's own writing can also be found in the pages of this biography showing the dedication and determination of Aronson to tell the story of the mysterious and historical figure, Sir Walter Ralegh.

This text in particular is better suited for older children ages 12 and up who have an interest in history/adventure.

[Adriel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was very surprised at the author's ability to deal with some heavy historical realities gracefully and without throwing blame at just one group of people. He deftly placed Sir Walter in a historical context that did not excuse him or his peers from their incredibly violent treatment of other people, but it did allow him to be a sympathetic character with a cultural context that allowed for the decisions made to massacre the Irish or try to steal gold from the Native people of South America. Very well constructed and written.

[Sandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very interesting book that put the pieces from this period of history together so that we could see how they actually fit. Normally in school colonization is taught as a part of American history and Elizabeth I is world/European history, but the two are expertly drawn together in this book through the life of Sir Walter Ralegh. A really nice timeline at the end further draws everything together and adds the dates that are often missing from the narrative to important events.

[Susanne E · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm not a big fan of the "romantic hero" or "tragic hero" or any other heroic type, which is how Ralegh is presented here, and I didn't really like how much Aronson pushed the boundaries of biography - there were entire chapters that barely mentioned Ralegh because they were filling in the context of Protestants vs. Catholics or the first English colonization attempts in the Outer Banks.

[Tim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite a fascinating tale of this European adventurer. A quintessential man of the age - ruthless, acquisitive, biased, yet brilliant. Another book that adds to the dark side of the age of European exploitation.

And then to find out it was written for the youth market!

[marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although I had some trouble getting into it, I enjoyed this book much more than I thought I would. I never would have though I would enjoy something so . . . historical.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

My notes say it was very good and very readable history. My memory says.....?????? Hmmm. May have to re-read

[Shanna Alpers]

One sentence review: How could Ralegh and the other "explorers" be so stupid?