<P> The Roanoke Colony, also known as the Lost Colony, was established in 1585 on Roanoke Island in what is today's Dare County, North Carolina . It was a late 16th - century attempt by Queen Elizabeth I to establish a permanent English settlement in North America . The colony was founded by Sir Walter Raleigh . </P> <P> The colonists disappeared during the Anglo - Spanish War, three years after the last shipment of supplies from England . Their disappearance gave rise to the nickname "The Lost Colony". There is no conclusive evidence as to what happened to the colonists . </P> <P> The enterprise was originally financed and organized by Sir Humphrey Gilbert, who drowned in 1583 returning from a voyage to the fishing settlement at St. John's, Newfoundland . Sir Humphrey Gilbert's half - brother Sir Walter Raleigh later gained his brother's charter from the Queen and subsequently executed the details of the charter through his delegates Ralph Lane and Richard Grenville, Raleigh's distant cousin . </P> <P> On March 25, 1584, Queen Elizabeth I granted Raleigh a charter for the colonization of the area of North America . This charter specified that Raleigh needed to establish a colony in North America, or lose his right to colonization . </P>

Who financed the roanoke colony with his own money