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1550
Late 1550s and Early 1560s
served in the English Parliament -
1554
1554
Lane, born to Sir Ralph Lane and Maud Parr Lane of Northhampton, attended Oxford University -
1563
1563
Lane was serving in Queen Elizabeth I’s court, marking the beginning of a career of service to queen and country. -
1569
1569
Lane participated in a force that suppressed a rebellion in Scotland in 1569 where he gained accolades for his military skill. -
1570
By the early 1570s
Lane had involved himself in maritime affairs which included a queen’s commission to seize ships in 1571. -
1570
late 1570s and early 1580s
By the late 1570s and early 1580s, he was developing plans and offering his services in helping England struggle with Spain. -
1583
Lane received a commission to go to Ireland and direct the construction of forts. -
1585
the queen recalled Lane from Ireland and he was given command of the colony that Sir Walter Raleigh was organizing to sail to Virginia (Roanoke Island). Raleigh evidently personally invited Lane to command the land expedition. The company was organized as a military expedition with soldiers and support personnel but also included artist John White and scientist Thomas Harriot. -
In April, 1585
seven ships with about 600 men under the overall command of Sir Richard Grenville left England. After a storm scattered the fleet and reduced it to five ships, the company regrouped. They arrived at the Outer Banks by June. By August, the colony had come ashore and built a fort following an invitation from the Indians. Grenville’s fleet left at the end of August after being unable to secure a good harbor. -
On June 18 or 19, 1586
Lane’s colony of 107 men lasted for only eight months. Lane’s men explored the countryside with the intent of finding a better site for settlement. The colony suffered because of the lack of supplies and Lane’s lack of skill in dealing with the Indians. Eventually, Lane decided to abandon the colony. The conditions for success were not favorable due to the colony’s small size and the ravages of storms.a fleet led by Sir Francis Drake left Roanoke carrying the first English colonists back home. -
1592
Lane was back in Ireland in 1592 serving as “muster master general” and “clerk of the check of the garrison” and remained in that country for the rest of his life. -
1601
Lane’s physical weakness had made him unfit as muster master -
Lane died
Lane died in Dublin, Ireland, in October 1603 and was buried at St. Patrick’s Church on the 28th of that month.