[citation needed] in 1587, Hawkins may probably be identified with the William Hawkyns who, commanded the Advice ship on the coast of Ireland.

[citation needed] In 1595, His uncle, John Hawkins, also granted William inheritance, besides a share of the prospective profits of the last fatal voyage to the West Indies, £10 a year to be paid quarterly, on condition that he does not sell the same annuity nor rent-charge, or any part thereof.

He left also legacies of £100 to each of Hawkyns's children, to be payable "to every such child at the time of their marriage, or at the accomplishment of their several ages of eighteen years, which shall first happen."

[2][3] He was theorized taking the command of the East India Company's ship Hector on a voyage to Surat with William Keeling, and was charged with the king of England's letters and presents to the princes and governors of Cambay, due to his experience with the region and language expertize.

[4] In 1608, on August 24, William arrived at Surat andwas approached by Portuguese sailors who told him that all the ports in the region belonged to Philip III of Spain.

Thanks to the efforts of the viceroy of Deccan sultanates, Khan-Khana, the ship was authorized to set sail and William was allowed to proceed to Agra.

According to the account given in his Journal, the emperor gained good impression about William and assigning an administrative position with its annual payment of estimated at upwards of £3,000, his serious occupation being to combat the intrigues of the Portuguese and to endeavor to obtain formal permission for the establishment of an English factory at Surat.

[9] His favor with the emperor enabled him to overcame any difficulties in the court, and the required license was given; it was the first distinct recognition of English commerce in the East.

[9] The one who was became William's wife was Mariam Khan, a daughter of an influential merchant in the court of the Mughal Emperor Akbar and Jahangir.

[citation needed] In 1611, William left Agra on November, and three months later arrived at Surat, where he found Sir Henry Middleton, with whom he went to the Red Sea, and afterward to Java.

[citation needed] In the end of his time in India, William failed to secure permission from the emperor of Mughal to built English factory.