Richard Chancellor | |
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 Chancellor's reception in Moscow, as depicted in theIllustrated Chronicle of Ivan the Terrible | |
| Born | c. 1521 |
| Died | 10 November 1556 |
Richard Chancellor (c. 1521 –10 November 1556) was an English explorer andnavigator; the first to penetrate to theWhite Sea and establishrelations with theTsardom of Russia.
Chancellor, a native of Bristol, was brought up in the household ofSir Henry Sidney, an influential English gentleman. In 1550 Chancellor sailed as an apprentice pilot to the eastern Mediterranean in the barkAucher commanded by Roger Bodenham.[1][2] He acquired additional geographical and maritime proficiency from the explorerSebastian Cabot and thegeographerJohn Dee. Cabot had always been interested in making a voyage to Asia through theArctic, and for this purpose an association of London merchants chartered theCompany of Merchant Adventurers in 1552–1553, with theDuke of Northumberland as principal patron. They hoped not only to discover anorth-east passage but also to find a market for English woolen cloth.[3]
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SirHugh Willoughby was given three ships for the search, and Chancellor went as chief navigator and second-in-command. Their orders from Cabot included behaving peaceably towards any people they met and keeping a regular journal. According toDavid Howarth contrary winds delayed the expedition seriously but they eventually arrived off theNorth Cape as autumn set in, and were separated by a violent storm; Willoughby, with two ships, sailed east and discoveredNovaya Zemlya but died during the winter with all his men on theKola Peninsula some distance east ofMurmansk. The bodies and journals were discovered by Russian fisherman in the spring. Meanwhile, Chancellor noted and named the North Cape and with his shipEdward Bonaventure called at the Norwegian port ofVardø, the last town in Scandinavia before the inhospitable arctic coast of Russia; here they met Scottish fishermen who warned them of the dangers ahead. However continuing eastwards they found the entrance to the White Sea and after obtaining directions from local people dropped anchor at the mouth of the Dvina River, where the port ofArchangel now stands.[4]
When TsarIvan the Terrible heard of Chancellor's arrival, he immediately invited the exotic guest to visit Moscow for an audience at the royal court. Chancellor made the journey of over 600 miles (over 1000 kilometres) to Moscow byhorse-drawn sleigh through snow and ice-covered country. He found Moscow large (much larger than London) and primitively built, most houses being constructed of wood. However, the palace of the tsar was very luxurious, as were the dinners he offered Chancellor.[5]The tsar was pleased to open the seatrading routes with England and other countries, as Russia did not yet have a connection with theBaltic Sea at the time and the entire area was contested by the neighbouring powers of thePolish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and theSwedish Empire. In addition, theHanseatic League had a monopoly on the trade between Russia andCentral and Western Europe. Chancellor was no less optimistic, finding a good market for his English wool, and receiving furs and other Russian goods in return. The Tsar gave him letters for England inviting English traders and promising trade privileges.
When Chancellor returned to England in the summer of 1554, King Edward was dead, and his successor,Mary, had executed Northumberland for attempting to placeLady Jane Grey on the throne. No stigma attached to Chancellor, and theMuscovy Company, as the association was now called, sent him again to the White Sea in 1555. On this voyage he learned what had happened to Willoughby, recovered his papers, and found out about the discovery of Novaya Zemlya. Chancellor spent the summer of 1555 dealing with the tsar, organising trade, and trying to learn how China might be reached by the northern route.[1][3]
In July 1556 Chancellor departed for home, taking with him the first Russian ambassador to England, Osip Nepeya. The fleet consisted of four ships, thePhilip and Mary, theEdward Bonadventure and Willoughby's relaunched ships, theBona Confidentia and theBona Esperanza. Along the coast of Norway the weather turned bad and the fleet sought shelter inTrondheim. TheBona Esperanza sank and theBona Confidentia appeared to enter the fjord but was never heard of again. Only thePhilip and Mary successfully wintered in Trondheim and arrived in London in April 1557. TheEdward Bonadventure did not attempt to enter the fjord, instead they reached the Scottish coast and were driven ashore by a storm at Pitsligo nearAberdeen on 10 November 1556. Most of the crew, including Chancellor, lost their lives. Only the Russian envoy and a few others survived and reached London the following year.[1][3]
Chancellor appears as a major character in the novelThe Ringed Castle (1971), fifth of the six novels in Dorothy Dunnett's historical fiction series, TheLymond Chronicles.
helen wright great white north.
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