This myth, along with many others associated with the explorer and privateer Sir Walter Raleigh, is false. While it’s true that on returning to England from the New World in 1586 Raleigh did indeed present both potatoes and tobacco to Queen Elizabeth I as gifts, he was not the first person to bring either product to Europe. According to records, potatoes were already being grown and distributed in Italy from 1585 onwards, an entire year before his return.