Editing Francis Drake (section)

===Rathlin Island massacre===
Drake was present at the 1575 [[Rathlin Island massacre]] in Ireland. [[John Norris (soldier)|Sir John Norris]] (or ''Norreys'') and Drake, acting on the instructions of Sir Henry Sidney and the [[Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex|Earl of Essex]], Robert Devereux, laid siege to [[Rathlin Castle]]. Despite its surrender, Norris' troops killed all the 200 defenders and several hundred more men, women and children of Clan MacDonnell.{{sfn|Sugden|2006|p=85}} Meanwhile, Drake was given the task of preventing any Gaelic Irish or Scottish reinforcements reaching the island. Therefore, the remaining leader of the Gaelic defence against English power, [[Sorley Boy MacDonnell]], was forced to stay on the mainland. Essex wrote in his letter to Queen Elizabeth's secretary that following the attack Sorley Boy "was likely to have run mad for sorrow, tearing and tormenting himself and saying that he there lost all that he ever had."<ref>{{cite book|first=Hugh|last=Forde|title=Sketches Of Olden Days in Northern Ireland: Including Portrush, Dunluce Castle, Dunseverick Castle, Ballycastle, Giant's Causeway, Rathlin Island, Coleraine, Derry, Inishowen, Tory Island|publisher=MC'aw, Stevenson and Orr Ltd|place=Belfast|year=1923|url=https://www.libraryireland.com/sketches/toc.php|access-date=16 June 2019|archive-date=16 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190616133647/https://www.libraryireland.com/sketches/toc.php|url-status=live}}</ref>