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Primary sourceBook1596

The Discovery of Guiana

Walter Raleigh · 1596

Raleigh's own 1596 account of his Orinoco expedition, mixing fact with the legend of a gold-rich empire called El Dorado.

Raleigh's own account of his search for El Dorado, revealing his ambitions, propaganda, and promotional skill.

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Title page of a 1599 Latin edition published in Nuremberg, printed in black letters, reading 'Brevis & admiranda descriptio Regni Guianae' and naming Walter Raleigh. Below is an engraving of three figures with bows and arrows in a landscape.
Walter Raleigh, The Discovery of Guiana, 1596 (Latin edition title page, Nuremberg, 1599).

About this source

What it is

This book was written by Walter Raleigh in 1596, a year after he sailed to Guiana (modern Venezuela) searching for gold. He also visited Trinidad on the same voyage. The full title promises a 'large, rich, and beautiful Empire' including the golden city of Manoa, also called El Dorado.

Why it matters

Raleigh's expedition found no treasure and conquered no land, but his skilful writing turned the failure into a sensation. The book fuelled European belief in a hidden golden civilisation, helped spread anti-Spanish propaganda, and later cost Raleigh dearly: his promises about Guiana's gold were used against him at his trial after a second disastrous voyage.

Look closer

  • Why might a writer describe gold he never actually found or brought home?
  • What does the title page's imagery of strange peoples suggest about European ideas of distant lands?
  • How might this book have shaped later explorers' and kings' decisions?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Sir Walter Raleigh on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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