Henry Hudson was born in London, England in 1565 and is believed to have become a cabin boy in his mid-teens. The product of a wealthy family he was well educated and spent much of his life at sea beginning with several voyages to India on behalf of English merchants. He married a woman named Katherine and had three sons, John, Richard and Oliver.
Muscovy Company
The English were not the only ones looking for shorter routes to the Orient. In 1607 the Russian Muscovy Company sent Hudson with a crew on ten men in Hopewell in search of the Northeast Passage. They set out in May, reached Greenland and then sailed north beyond Spitsbergen but pack ice forced him to turn back and he returned to England in September. Hudson made a second attempt in 1608 and sailed as far as Novaya Zemlya before being forced back.
Dutch East India Company
The intrepid explorer set out again in 1609 seeking a Northeast Passage under the auspices of the Dutch East India Company but once again he was stopped by ice. His crew refused to go any further so Hudson decided to try his search to the west and sailed his ship Half Moon across the Atlantic to Nova Scotia and then south to the Hudson River. He sailed up the Hudson for about 150 miles (240 kilometers) in hopes that he had found the Northwest Passage. He stopped periodically and traded with the natives, establishing Dutch claims on the area. On his return he stopped in England where he was arrested and forbidden to sail for the Dutch Company.
British East India Company
Hudson made his voyage in 1610 under the English flag with funds from the British East India Company and the Virginia Company. Sailing in Discovery he continued his search for a quick route to the Orient this time seeking the Northwest Passage. By June he had reached Hudson Strait and despite discontent amongst the crew continued on and entered Hudson Bay in August. He spent the fall mapping the bay and exploring the shores. Discovery was in James Bay in November when she became trapped in ice and the Englishmen were forced to winter ashore. The sailors were able to find birds and fish to eat but the natives wanted nothing to do with them and before long scurvy broke out.
Mutiny in Hudson Bay
With the coming of spring the ice melted and Discovery was freed. Hudson wanted to continue mapping and exploring and searching for the Northwest Passage but his men wanted to return home. In June they mutinied against their captain and forced Hudson, John, his teenaged son, and seven crewmen (the number various in different accounts) into a small boat. The mutineers gave them food, clothing and miscellaneous items and cast them adrift. Hudson attempted to row after the ship but eventually Discovery sailed away leaving the men to their fate. Hudson and his men were never seen again and their fate remains unknown. Some of the mutineers were killed by Inuit when they put ashore to barter for food. Eight of the mutineers returned to England but were never punished for the mutiny possibly because they were too valuable as sources of information about the New World.
Sources:
The Pathfinders of North America, Edwin and Mary Guillet, Macmillan Company of Canada (1957)
Encyclopedia Canadiana
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