Richard Penkevell (died 1616) was an English adventurer who went in search of the

Northwest Passage The Northwest Passage (NWP) is the sea route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways through the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. The eastern route along the Arct ...

and became

Member of parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

(MP) for

Tregony Tregony ( kw, Trerigoni), sometimes in the past Tregoney, is a village and former civil parishes in England, civil parish, now in the parish of Tregony with Cuby, in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It lies on the River Fal. In the village th ...

Life and career

He was the eldest son of Francis Penkevell (d. 1622), of Roserrow by Katherine (d.1621), daughter of Richard Roscarrock of Roscarrock in

St Endellion St Endellion ( kw, Sen Endelyn) is a civil parish and hamlet in north Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The hamlet and parish church are situated four miles (6.5 km) north of Wadebridge. The parish takes its name from Saint Endelienta, wh ...

. Penkevell's family had lived at

St Michael Penkevil St Michael Penkivel ( kw, Pennkevyl), sometimes spelt ''St Michael Penkevil'', is a civil parish and village in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is in the valley of the River Fal about three miles (5 km) southeast of Truro. The popul ...

, near Truro, Cornwall since at least the time of

Edward II of England Edward II (25 April 1284 – 21 September 1327), also called Edward of Caernarfon, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1307 until he was deposed in January 1327. The fourth son of Edward I, Edward became the heir apparent to ...

, and had intermarried with many leading Cornish families. In 1607 along with others he was granted a licence by King

James I James I may refer to: People *James I of Aragon (1208–1276) *James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327) *James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu *James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347) *James I of Cyprus (1334–13 ...

for seven years to discover the passage to

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

Cathay Cathay (; ) is a historical name for China that was used in Europe. During the early modern period, the term ''Cathay'' initially evolved as a term referring to what is now Northern China, completely separate and distinct from China, which ...

, the

Moluccas The Maluku Islands (; Indonesian: ''Kepulauan Maluku'') or the Moluccas () are an archipelago in the east of Indonesia. Tectonically they are located on the Halmahera Plate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone. Geographically they are located eas ...

and other regions of the East Indies by the North, North-east or North-west, incorporated as the "Colleagues of the fellowship for the discovery of the North West passage". Any lands discovered (not already found by Christians) would be theirs in perpetuity with the Crown sovereign supreme. Furthermore, if the venture proved successful within seven years, the licence would be extended to 21 years with the Crown taking 20% of all gold, silver and other precious materials brought into England. However, nothing came of the project, possibly because it was too soon after the voyage of John Knight or because of opposition from the established City of London merchants. The Colleagues went on to promote

Henry Hudson Henry Hudson ( 1565 – disappeared 23 June 1611) was an English sea explorer and navigator during the early 17th century, best known for his explorations of present-day Canada and parts of the northeastern United States. In 1607 and 160 ...

’s last voyage in 1610, and in July 1612 he is mentioned with Peter, Benjamin, Nicholas and Digory Penkevell among members of a company for the discovery of the North West passage. His election as MP for Tregony was influenced by his connections with the Pomeroy family. After his death his estates passed to his son in 1622, but had been lost before the end of the century.

Personal life

Some time after 1590 he married Jane (d.1623), daughter of ?Hugh Pomeroy of Tregony.

References

{{reflist 1616 deaths English explorers category:People from Cornwall