Drake's Drum



Drake’s Drum is a snare drum that Sir Francis Drake took with him when he circumnavigated the world. Shortly before he died he ordered the drum to be taken to Buckland Abbey, where it still is today, and vowed that if England was ever in danger someone was to beat the drum and he would return to defend the country. According to legend it can be heard to beat at times when England is at war or significant national events take place.

History
Drake is said to have taken the drum, emblazoned with his coat of arms, with him on his voyages around the world between 1577 and 1580. It was still with him for his final voyage and as he lay on his death bed off the coast of Panama in 1596 he ordered the drum returned to England where in times of trouble it should be beaten to recall him from heaven to rescue the country.

Following his death the drum was returned to Drake’s family home of Buckland Abbey in Buckland Monachorum, Devon. The drum remains on public display at Buckland Abbey under the care of the National Trust.

Cultural impact
The drum has become an icon of English folklore with its variation of the classic king in the mountain story. Several times throughout history, people have claimed to have heard the drum beating, including: when the Mayflower left Plymouth for America in 1620,, when Admiral Lord Nelson was made a freeman of Plymouth, , when Napoleon was brought into Plymouth Harbour as a prisoner, and when World War I first began in 1914.

Reportedly, on HMS Royal Oak, a victory drum roll from a drum was heard when the German navy surrendered in 1918. The ship was then searched twice by the officers and then again by the captain and neither a drum nor a drummer was found on board and eventually the phenomenon was put down to the legendary drum.

In 1938, when Buckland Abbey was partly destroyed by fire, the drum was rescued and taken to safety at Buckfast Abbey. Plymouth was devastated in the air raids that followed, reminding some of the ancient legend that “If Drake’s Drum should be moved from its rightful home, the city will fall”. The drum was returned and the city remained safe for the rest of the war.

The drum was most recently reported to be heard in 1940 at the Dunkirk evacuation during World War II.

In popular culture
Drake’s Drum has been the title and subject of poems by Sir Henry Newbolt and the Victorian poet Norah M. Holland. Newbolt's poem was set to music by Charles Villiers Stanford as part of his Songs of the Sea, op.91 suite2. It was popularised by Peter Dawson (bass-baritone). It is set in the key of D minor, with a dramatic resolution to D major.

The drum was also mentioned in Bernard Cornwell’s 1988 novel Sharpe’s Rifles as analogous to the Gonfalon of Santiago Matamoros that features heavily in the story. A composition called "Drake's Drum" can also be heard on the album by British instrumental band Acoustic Alchemy, Natural Elements (1988).