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James Lancaster's Voyage to the East Indies

When
1591
Where
Torbay, Devon
Episodes
1

In April 1591, English merchant James Lancaster departed Torbay with a three-ship fleet to reach the East Indies. This expedition, financed by the Levant Company, marked the earliest English overseas Indian expedition.

Episodes

  1. 10 April 1591 · Torbay, DevonDeparture from Torbay

    Lancaster departed Torbay on 10 April 1591 with three ships for the East Indies.

Background and detail

Departure from Torbay. On 10 April 1591, Lancaster set sail from Torbay in Devon. He commanded a fleet of three ships: the Penelope, Marchant Royal, and Edward Bonaventure. This departure initiated the earliest English overseas Indian expeditions.

People involved

Sources

  1. James Lancaster Wikipedia, revision of 2026-06-26
  2. East India Company Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-13

Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.