Hakluyt, << HAK loot, >> Richard (1552?-1616), was an English geographer, editor, and clergyman. In 1589, he published The Principall Navigations, Voiages, and Discoveries of the English Nation, consisting of eyewitness accounts and other records of more than 200 voyages. These stories stirred up interest in navigation and colonization. He later helped organize the settling of the Virginia Colony.
Hakluyt was born in Herefordshire. He graduated from Oxford University and took holy orders. He was an eager collector of documents of travel and trade. A work on American discoveries, published in 1582, led to his appointment as chaplain to the English ambassador to France. He later served as archdeacon of Westminster Abbey. He also translated the Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto’s description of his travels.
