Amyas Preston (died 1609) was an English privateer of theElizabethan period. His career was largely spent in the Caribbean, as were other more famous corsairs of the age such asFrancis Drake,John Hawkins andWalter Raleigh. He is principally remembered for his participation in theBattle of Gravelines against theSpanish Armada in 1588, as well as thePreston–Somers expedition in 1595.
Little is known about Preston's family and upbringing, but he is believed to have come fromCricket St Thomas inSomerset. In 1581 he married a London widow called Julian Burye.[1] He first saw combat in 1588, during the English victory over the Spanish Armada nearCalais, where he was wounded and gained a certain level of renown for his actions.[2]
In 1595, he took part in thePreston Somers Expedition, co-lead withGeorge Somers, which was initially supposed to join Walter Raleigh'sEl Dorado Expedition. After failing to meet with Raleigh atTrinidad, the expedition ventured on its own along the coast of SpanishVenezuela Province, capturing first the fort ofLa Guaira and later the colonial city of Caracas.[3][4]
After the Spanish failed to pay their ransom, Preston and Somers order the pillaging and torching of the city, and went on to captureCoro. They finished the expedition with a brief incursion into theSpanish West Indies, but cut short any future actions following a bout of dysentery among the crew which saw 80 mean death and a plummeting morale. They returned to safe ports in English-held water viaJamaica and theCayman Islands. They later met and joined Raleigh's flotilla and sailed back to England via Newfoundland.[3]
In the following years Preston undertook a number of smaller, often financially unsuccessful, expeditions such as theCapture of Cádiz and an expedition to theAzores known as theIslands Voyage. For his bravery during the fighting for Cádiz he was knighted by eitherRobert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex orCharles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham, the expedition's two commanders. Around 1601 he had a falling out with Raleigh, tensions reaching the point where Preston challenged Raleigh to a duel, but the two later reconciled.[1][2] Preston was vice-admiral as part of the blockade ofKinsale when theSpanish made landfall there in 1601. The latter surrendered after theBattle of Kinsale.
In 1603, he was appointed quartermaster of theTower of London, a position he held until his death in 1609. Shortly before his death he also held a position on the council for theVirginia Company.[1][2]
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