Sir Francis Drake

This bronze statue of Sir Francis Drake stands on Plymouth Road in Tavistock, at the southern edge of the town. It was unveiled on 27 September 1883, a gift to the town funded by Hastings Russell, the 9th Duke of Bedford. The sculptor was Joseph Edgar Boehm, sculptor-in-ordinary to Queen Victoria, who cast Drake standing with sword, poignard and globe, ten feet tall and roughly two tons in bronze, on a granite plinth carrying four bronze relief panels of scenes from his life. It is Grade II listed (Historic England list entry 1326211) and is, in fact, the original: a second casting was placed on Plymouth Hoe the following year, in 1884.

Drake was born nearby at Crowndale, and the statue has become a focal point for a more searching look at his legacy. Tavistock Town Council added an Interpretation Board in 2020-21 acknowledging Drake's part in three slaving expeditions between 1562 and 1568, alongside his achievements as a navigator and naval commander. An early plaster model for the statue, lost for over a century, was rediscovered in woodland near Exeter in 1999 and, after restoration, is now on permanent display at Buckland Abbey, the house Drake bought in 1581.