William Borough was a British naval officer and the younger brother of Stephen Borough. He participated in the British attack on Cádiz

Cádiz

Cadiz is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the homonymous province, one of eight which make up the autonomous community of Andalusia....

 in 1587. He was responsible for the drawing of several early maps including one of Russia.

Early life

Borough was born at Borough House, Northam Burrows, Northam

Northam, Devon

Northam is a small town in Devon, England, lying north of Bideford and south of Westward Ho!. It is thought to have been the site of an Anglo-Saxon castle, and is said to have been where Hubba the Dane attacked Devon and was repelled . A little over a mile away along the coast is a town called...

, Devon

Devon

Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...

 and his childhood experiences of voyages were those acompanying his older brother Stephen Borough and their uncle John Borough. In 1580 Borough was appointed comptroller of the queen's ships

Third Sea Lord

The Third Sea Lord and Controller of the Navy was formerly the Naval Lord and member of the Board of Admiralty responsible for procurement and matériel in the British Royal Navy...

, which post he shared initially with William Holstocke

William Holstocke

Vice Admiral William Holstocke was a naval commander who went on to Comptroller of the Navy.-Naval career:Holstocke went to sea in 1534 and was appointed as keeper of the storehouses in 1549. He moved on to become Comptroller of the Navy in 1561. He served in the Anglo-French War of 1557 to 1559...

. In June 1583 he took ten pirate ships into custody and ensured that all ten masters were hanged at Wapping

Wapping

Wapping is a place in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets which forms part of the Docklands to the east of the City of London. It is situated between the north bank of the River Thames and the ancient thoroughfare simply called The Highway...

. In 1587 he sailed with Sir Francis Drake

Francis Drake

Sir Francis Drake, Vice Admiral was an English sea captain, privateer, navigator, slaver, and politician of the Elizabethan era. Elizabeth I of England awarded Drake a knighthood in 1581. He was second-in-command of the English fleet against the Spanish Armada in 1588. He also carried out the...

and was indicted for mutiny and cowardice but later acquitted and given command of the galley Bonavolia.

Family

In 1571 he married Judith Jones; they had one son and one daughter. He later married Lady Jane Wentworth.