The American loves to connect the beginnings of his country with a hero like Grenville.  He was one of the English admirals who helped to defeat the Spanish Armada, and nothing in naval warfare is more memorable than his death.  In an expedition led by Lord Charles Howard in 1591 against the Spanish plate-fleet, Grenville was vice-admiral, and he opposed his ship single-handed against five great Spanish galleons, supported at intervals by ten others, and he fought them during nearly fifteen hours.  Then Grenville’s vessel was so battered that it resembled rather a skeleton than a ship, and of the crew few were to be seen but the dead and dying.  Grenville himself was captured mortally wounded, and died uttering these words, “Here die I, Richard Grenville, with a joyful and quiet mind, for that I have ended my life, as a true soldier ought to do, fighting for his country, queen, religion, and honor."[10]

Of the settlers at Roanoke during the winter after their landing nothing is recorded, but the prospect in the spring was gloomy.  Lane made extensive explorations for gold-mines and for the South Sea, and found neither.  The natives laid a plot to massacre the settlers, but Lane’s soldierly precaution saved the colonists.  Grenville was expected to return with supplies by Easter, but Easter passed and there was no news.  In order to get subsistence, Lane divided his men into three parties, of which one remained at Roanoke Island and the other two were sent respectively to Hatteras and to Croatoan, an island just north of Wokokon.

Not long after Sir Francis Drake, returning from sacking San Domingo, Cartagena, and St. Augustine, appeared in sight with a superb fleet of twenty-three sail.  He succored the imperilled colonists with supplies, and offered to take them back to England.  Lane and the chief men, disheartened at the prospects, abandoned the island, and July 28, 1586, the colonists arrived at Plymouth in Drake’s ships, having lost but four men during the whole year of their stay.[11]

A day or two after the departure of the colonists a ship sent by Raleigh arrived, and about fourteen or fifteen days later came three ships under Sir Richard Grenville, Raleigh’s admiral.  Grenville spent some time beating up and down Pamlico Sound, hunting for the colony, and finally returned to England, leaving fifteen men behind at Roanoke to retain possession.[12] This was the second settlement.

The colonists who returned in Drake’s ships brought back to Raleigh two vegetable products which he speedily popularized.  One was the potato,[13] which Raleigh planted on his estate in Ireland, and the other was tobacco, called by the natives “uppowoc,” which he taught the courtiers to smoke.