Sir Thomas Button (died April, 1634) was a
Welsh officer of the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
, notable as an
explorer
Exploration refers to the historical practice of discovering remote lands. It is studied by geographers and historians.
Two major eras of exploration occurred in human history: one of convergence, and one of divergence. The first, covering most ...
who in 1612–1613 commanded an expedition that unsuccessfully attempted to locate explorer
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 16 ...
and to navigate 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 Arc ...
.
Early life
Born about 1575, he was the fourth son of Miles Button of
Worlton,
Glamorgan
, HQ = Cardiff
, Government = Glamorgan County Council (1889–1974)
, Origin=
, Code = GLA
, CodeName = Chapman code
, Replace =
* West Glamorgan
* Mid Glamorgan
* South Glamorgan
, Motto ...
, and his wife Margaret, daughter of Edward Lewis. His father's family had been landowners, originally at
Bitton
Bitton is a village and civil parish of South Gloucestershire in England, to the east of the Greater Bristol area on the River Boyd.
It is in South Gloucestershire. The parish of Bitton has a population of 9,307, and apart from the village ...
in
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a Counties of England, county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean.
The county town ...
, since the 1100s. Around 1595 he married Elizabeth, daughter of landowner
Sir Walter Rice of
Newton House, Llandeilo, and his wife Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Edward Mansell of
Margam
Margam is a suburb and community of Port Talbot in the Welsh county borough of Neath Port Talbot, Wales, close to junction 39 of the M4 motorway. The community had a population of 3,017 in 2011; the built up area being larger and extending into ...
. This made him a nephew of the prominent naval officer Sir
Robert Mansell
Sir Robert Mansell (1573–1656) was an admiral of the English Royal Navy and a Member of Parliament (MP), mostly for Welsh constituencies. His name was sometimes given as Sir Robert Mansfield and Sir Robert Maunsell.
Early life
Mansel was a ...
, from whose patronage he benefited for the rest of his career.
Arctic exploration
In April 1612 he was given command of two navy ships,
''Resolution'' and
''Discovery'', to lead an expedition in search of the North-West Passage. Sailing from
England about the beginning of May 1612, they reached the mouth of a river which he named the
Nelson
Nelson may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey
* ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers
* ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...
after the ship's master, who had died.
They wintered at what is now known as
Port Nelson and the next year headed north to search for the Northwest Passage. They lost the ''Resolution'' to
sea ice
Sea ice arises as seawater freezes. Because ice is less dense than water, it floats on the ocean's surface (as does fresh water ice, which has an even lower density). Sea ice covers about 7% of the Earth's surface and about 12% of the world's ...
and continued on to 65° North. He discovered and named
Mansel Island
Mansel Island (Inuktitut: Pujjunaq), a member of the Arctic Archipelago, is an uninhabited island in Qikiqtaaluk Region, Nunavut. It is located in Hudson Bay off of Quebec's Ungava Peninsula. At in size, it is the 159th largest island in the wo ...
and returned to England in September 1613.
He is credited with exploring and securing the west coast of
Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay ( crj, text=ᐐᓂᐯᒄ, translit=Wînipekw; crl, text=ᐐᓂᐹᒄ, translit=Wînipâkw; iu, text=ᑲᖏᖅᓱᐊᓗᒃ ᐃᓗᐊ, translit=Kangiqsualuk ilua or iu, text=ᑕᓯᐅᔭᕐᔪᐊᖅ, translit=Tasiujarjuaq; french: b ...
for his country, naming the area New Wales. The region would again be visited twelve years later in 1631 by Captains Thomas James and Luke Foxe. Supposedly, upon discovering a cross erected by Button at Port Nelson, Captain Foxe christened the shore north of the Nelson River as
New North Wales and all the lands south as
New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
. Button and his men were some of the first recorded Europeans to explore the area now known as
Manitoba
, image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg
, map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada
, Label_map = yes
, coordinates =
, capital = Winn ...
and his discovery meant that others followed after him, using his landmarks, his stories, and his detailed notes. The first maps of areas near Hudson Bay were struck from his explorations and from those of his predecessor, Henry Hudson.
Later life
On his return, he was appointed
Admiral of the Irish Coasts in command of the
Irish Squadron and on 30 August 1616 was knighted by the Lord Deputy of Ireland. The activity of pirates and smugglers at
Pwllheli
Pwllheli () is a market town and community of the Llŷn Peninsula ( cy, Penrhyn Llŷn) in Gwynedd, north-western Wales. It had a population of 4,076 in 2011 of whom a large proportion, 81%, are Welsh speaking. Pwllheli is the place where Plaid ...
in the Cardigan Bay occupied the subject in 1631.
["Charles I - volume 196: July 1-19, 1631." ''Calendar of State Papers Domestic: Charles I, 1631-3.'' Ed. John Bruce. London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1862. 97-114]
British History Online website
Retrieved 7 June 2021. Despite his standing in the Navy, his subsequent career was marked by prolonged quarrels with the
Admiralty, wrongs being committed on both sides, resulting in the end with him in ill-health being stripped of his post as Admiral and left effectively bankrupt. He was buried on 8 April 1634 at the church of
St Margaret's, Westminster
The Church of St Margaret, Westminster Abbey, is in the grounds of Westminster Abbey on Parliament Square, London, England. It is dedicated to Margaret of Antioch, and forms part of a single World Heritage Site with the Palace of Westminster ...
, survived by his wife and five of their seven children. He left no will and his Welsh lands passed to his eldest son, Miles, who had to mortgage them to meet his father's debts. After waiting three years, his widow received 650 pounds (equivalent to about 98,000 pounds in 2015) from the government in settlement of pay and expenses he was owed.
[
]
References
External links
*
Manitoba Historical Society Biography of Button
{{DEFAULTSORT:Button, Thomas
1634 deaths
Royal Navy officers
People from the Vale of Glamorgan
Welsh explorers
Explorers of the Arctic
British explorers of North America
Explorers of Canada
1612 in Canada
1613 in Canada
British polar explorers
Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada)
Year of birth unknown