Biography of john smith explorer wife
Jamestown, pocahontas, & adventures.
Biography of john smith explorer wife
Early Life and Military Exploits
Born around 1580 in Willoughby, a town in Lincolnshire, England, Smith left home at age 16 after his father’s death. He sailed to France, where he joined volunteer forces fighting for Dutch independence against Spain.
He later served on a pirate ship in the Mediterranean Sea before heading to Austria in 1600 to join the forces of the Holy Roman Empire in their fight against the Ottoman Empire. His valor earned him the rank of captain, which he would wear with pride the rest of his life.
While fighting in Transylvania in 1602, Smith was wounded, captured by the Turks and sold into slavery.
He managed to escape by killing his owner, and traveled across Russia, Poland, Europe and North Africa before returning to England in 1604.
As a commemoration of his feats in battle, Smith had a coat of arms engraved with three heads (representing three Turkish officers he had killed) and the motto Vincere est Vivere, Latin for “to conquer is to live.”