with the executing of my office with great trouble not onely of the body but also of the spirite made an end of this Booke with others the which I doe humbly offer vnto your Highnes whome God after manye and most fortunate yeares remayning in your place the Prince take and receiue you from the senurie of the earth vnto the ioyes of heauen Your Highnes most humble Orator Hernan Lopes de Castaneda ⧠How the King Don Joan the second of that name did send to seeke out by sea and by land the East India and of the newes that was brought him of the same Cap. 1. THIS King Don Ioan the second of that name of the Kings of Portingale the thirtéenth perceiuing that all the Spices Drugs Stones and other riches which came to Venice were brought out of a certaine Prouince of the East parte And as he was a Personage of an hautie stomacke and valiaunt minde so was he desirous to inlarge his Kingdome and increase the Christian faith and therefore he determined to discouer by Sea the Country from whence so great plentie of riches came that thereby his Subiects might be inriched and his Kingdome of Portingale enioy all such commodities as came from thence to Venice Moreouer to discouer the same Countrey he was the rather animated and enclined for that he was giuen to vnderstand that in the East India where Christians which were gouerned by a King of great power called Praesbiter Ioan with whom Don Ioan thought good to haue acquaintaunce and to know him by his Ambassadors and the rather for that he was reported to be a Christian Prince And therefore consulting with the Cosmographers of that time he gaue them in charge to procéede and goe forwarde by example of others which had sayled along the Coast of Guynee which Coast was before that time discouered by commaundement of the Prince his Vnckle Master of the Order of Christ who had sent for that purpose one Bartholome Dyas one of the Officers of his Storehouse in Lyshborne who did discouer that great monstrous Cape not knowen of our Auncestours which is now called the Cape of Buena esperansa And finding there matter of great terrour and daungers he passed beyond the same one hundred and fortie leagues where comming to a Riuer which he named Rio del infante from thence he retourned to Portingale In this voyage he gaue to the Ports Herbours and Riuers where he tooke in fresh water theyr names which at this present they doe retaine Likewise he erected there certaine markes with Crosses and with the roiall Armes of Portingale and the last that he erected was in a Rocke the which they named El pennol de la crus which standeth fiftéene leagues on this side the foresayde Riuer And from thence he retourned without hearing any newes or yet hauing any further intelligence of that India by reason all the Inhabitaunts along those Coasts bée almost a sauage and a wilde kinde of people and of coulour blacke This voyage and intelligence being intimated and reuealed to the King Don Ioan he foorthwith minded to 〈◊〉 couer that India by land albeit before that time he 〈…〉 and sent for the same discouerie intended 〈…〉 of the order of Saint Fraunces called Fryer 〈…〉 Lixbona by land in the company of a 〈…〉 two persons for want of the Arabian 〈…〉 trauaile those parts so that they went 〈…〉 Ierusalem from whence without 〈…〉 of that iourney they returned into Portingale The King neuerthelesse continuing to prosecute to effect his determination for discouerye of that India by lande did therevppon choose two of his owne seruauntes men of good knowledge and dilygent in whatsoeuer they were to be imployed the one called Pedro de Couillian borne in the saide Village and the other called Alonso de Payua borne in the Towne of Castil Blanco which did verye well vnderstande the language of Arabia to whome he tolde how that he had made choyce of them as of persons apt to execute his pretence which was to discouer by lande as well the Countrey of Presbiter Ioan as also that from whence the Drugges and Spices come to Venice Giuing them in charge and that earnestlye to make dilygent enquirye and gather certaine knowledge whether that from the Cape of Buena Esperansa forwarde there were anye Nauigation to the East India and that they shoulde set downe all thinges they founde necessarye to bée knowen or that they coulde by anye possible meane learne or gather of the same for certaintye Commaunding also a Sea Carde to bée giuen them which was taken out of a Maâ—pe of the whole worlde by a Maister of Arte called Calsadilla Bishoppe of Vyseu who was a good Astronomer Moreouer hée gaue them a Letter of credite whereby they might bée succoured and protected from and in daungers of death and in cases of necessitie and want of money in whatsoeuer Kingdomes and Countreyes theyr happe shoulde be to trauayle And for theyr charges hée commaunded to giue them foure hundreth Crownes out of the Chest of the Orcherd of Almeryn Of which summe they tooke as much as they déemed would suffice for theyr expence vntill they came to Valencia in Aragon putting the residue in the Baâ—cke of Bartelme Florentine to be deliuered them there and so he gaue them the blessing of God and his in the presence of the King Don Manuel who at that time was Duke of Vesa After this they departed from the Village of Santaren the seauenth day of May in the yeare of our Lord a thousand foure hundred foure score and seauen and came to Naples vpon Saint Iohns daye the same yeare from whence they were set forward on their way by Cosmo de Medicis sonnes and so went they from thence to the Rhoodes of which Religion wer then none other but Portingales And from the Rhoodes they went to Alexandria from thence to the Cayro as Merchaunts and from thence in the companie of certaine Moores of Feez and Tremencen they came to Toro which is a place that hath his harbour in the Straights of the red Sea in the Coast of Arabia at the foote of the Mountaine Sinay where they vnderstood mainie matters of the Indias and of the trade those places had out of the Straightes to Calicut and therevpon they trauailed to another place in the selfe same Sraightes of the Redde Sea ouer the Coaste of Aethiopia from whence they went to Edin And for that it was out of the waye to the Indies they parted companye and seuered themselues Alonso de Payua remained to go ouer by land to the Emperour of Aethiopia which is he whom we before haue named vpon errour Presbiter Ioan for the certaintie is this is he of whom Marco Paulo maketh mention in his booke who gouerneth all the Indies and whose Countrey ioyneth vnto the great Cam of Catayo where in a battaile betwéene them fought the saide Prester Ioan was vanquished and dyed And so thencefoorth finally ended
his Kingdome so that in these dayes there is in trueth none of that name or race that raigneth or gouerneth It is to be vnderstoode that Alonso de payua did verely beléeue that this Emperour of Aethiopia was this supposed Presbiter Ioan by reason he was informed and had intelligence that the same Emperour was a Christian and the People of his Kingdome were also Christians as héereafter I shall declare when occasion shall serue For which cause I am in opinion y ◠Alonso did depart towards his Court taking order and determining with Pedro de Couillian that at a time appointed they shuld méet in the great Cayro This conference and determination betwéene them so had and accorded vpon Pedro de Couillian went towards the Indies in a shippe of the Moores of Cananor and béeing come to the Indies he went to the towne of Calicut and to the Ilands of Goa where hée gathered perfect information intelligence of the spices which they haue in the Indies and of the commodities which come from other places and of the lyke sorte of Townes which were ther in the Indies of all which he set downe the names in the Card he carried with him albeit ill written And after he had séene those places he went to Sofala where he gathered knowledge of the great Iland of San Laurenso which the Moores doe call La ysla de la Luna And séeing the people of Sofala to be blacke as those of Guynee are he therevpon surmised that all that coast was subdued and that they might goe by Sea to the Indias and therefore returning thence he went to Ormuse and so to Cayro where hée vnderstoode that Alonso de Payua was dead And béeing desirous to returne to Portingale by chaunce hée mette with two Iewes of Spaine the one called Raby Abraham borne in Vesa the other Ioseph borne in Lamego These after the departure of Pedro Couillian and Alonso de Payua from Portingale tolde the King Don Ioan that they had béene in the Cayro vnderstoode there much newes of Ormuse and of theyr tract had with and into the Indies Wherevpon the King sent letters by Raby Abraham to Pedro Couillian and to Alonso de Payua declaring that his pleasure was they shoulde retourne in the companie of those Iewes if they had séene all those thinges whereof hée gaue them charge and commaundement at their departure if not that then they shoulde sende by those Iewes a declaration and true reporte what they had séene and had intelligence of And moreouer that they shoulde procure to atteine to the sight of Presbiter Ioan and also shewe and informe what they coulde concerning Ormuse to Raby Abraham for that hée had sworne by his lawe neuer to retourne to Portingale vnlesse hée first sawe the same Vppon receipte of which letters and message Pedro de Couillian his purpose of retourning to Portingale was then stayed And therefore he forthwith dispatched Ioseph with letters to the King his Lorde and Maister wherein hée related and fully declared in euery respect what hée had séene in the Indias and of Sofala and lykewise hée sent the Carde in which all the Townes names were put downe that hée had séene Informing also the King Don Ioan that the Emperour of Aethiopia is hée who is supposed to bée y e Presbiter Ioan But I am of opinion that in Portingale remaineth this name of Emperour of Aethiopia for that in his kingdome hée is not called by the name of Prester Ioan as I will heereafter declare When Ioseph was departed Pedro de Couillian with Raby Abraham went towards Ormuse and thence to the straights of the red sea and hauing shewed to the same Raby those places and scituation therof Pedro Couillian then sent him to Portingale with letters to the king importing what hée shewed him and how that hée himselfe was determined to make his voyage to Presbiter Ioan and after this pursuing that his intent accordinglye he came to the presence of y e Emperour that then ther reigned and gouerned whose name was Alexander of whome hée was verye well receiued and when hée had presented vnto him the letters of the king Don Ioan he accepted the same verye ioyfully in that they came from a Christian Prince so farre distaunt from his Countrie Howbeit hée gaue to the same little credite and yet neuerthelesse hée gaue vnto Pedro de Couillian great honour and gifts and when hée was in readynesse to departe thence and expected lisence for the same which hée had requested and should haue béene graunted him the Emperour then deceased after whome succéeded in the Empire another named Nahu hée coulde not by him bée lycensed to depart thence neither yet of his sonne Dauid who was Emperour also and succéeded Nahu so that Pedro de Couillian remayned in that Countrie and neuer after returned into Portingale neyther yet the King Don Ioan euer hearde or vnderstoode more of him and therefore supposed him to bée dead Onely there remaineth the information of his trauailes which hée had sette downe and written in the letters which the Iewes carryed After this came to Lishborne a Frier out of the Countrie of Presbiter Ioan to whome the king shewed great curtesie and vpon whose reporte and great relation made of that countrie the king then determined to procéede in and follow the discouering of the Indias by Sea and therefore hée commaunded two little Shippes to bée made committing the charge of that preparation and appointing for ouerséer or surueiour of the Timber then cut for that purpose one Ioan de Braganca his seruaunt borne in the woodes in a village called Daluor and was brought to Lishborne to the house of the Myna in the yeare of our Lord a thousande foure hundred nintie fiue the fiue and twentie daye of October in the same yeare and afterward did succéede in that Kingdome the most high king of glorious memorye Don Manuel by whome also it appeared that he was there elected by diuine prouidence for discouery of those Countries and Prouinces whereby the Christian faith is so greatly increased and inlarged the róyall house of Portingale so mightely honoured and the subiectes of the same so plenteously enriched ¶ How King Don Manuel the first of that name prepared after the decease of King Don Ioan to discouer the Indias by one Vasco de la Gama and by other Captaines and howe they departed from Lyshborne Chap. 2. THE King Don Ioan béeing dead Don Manuel then succéeded him in whome appeared a higher stomacke and more valyauntnesse of minde for atteining of things impreagnable making triall and executing matters that passed common capacitie of man and aboue the retch of naturall knowledge then was in Alexander the greate Don Manuel now come to the crowne and earnestly minded bent to prosecute that which his predecessour Don Ioan had begun for discouering of the Indias and being therein greatly furthered by such matter order and intelligence as he found and were
of y â— forsaid cotteÌ„ y â— which reched down vnto his knées y â— fingers of his haÌ„ds toes wer ful of rings of gold in y e which were set very fine stone on his armes legs many bracelets of golde hard to this Estrado there was a certein yewer y â— which had a high foot wrought al of gold is of y â— making of y e Flanders cups that plaine albeit they are greater not so déepe in this was y e Vitele which the king doth chaw in his mouth w t salt Areca which is an apple no bigger theÌ„ a nut in Conserua This is eateÌ„ in all y e Indias for y â— the same doth make a good breth drieth y â— stomack killeth y â— thirst which being chawed in péeces hée throweth y â— same out of his mouth taketh another And for y t the king shuld not swallow y â— same downe there is prepared a vessel of gold for him to spit in which is as big or litle bigger theÌ„ a dish hauing a foot also of gold Also he hath a fountaine of gold which is ful of water wherw t hée washeth his mouth when he had made an end of chawing this Vitele which he is accustomed to take This Vitele is ministred vnto him by an olde man which standeth hard by the Estrado all the others that are in this place holde their left hands afore their mouths to the end their breath should not come where the king is who taketh the same for great discurtesie to spit or to sâ—niese therefore there is none that breatheth afore the king The Captaine General being come into this house made reuerence to the king after the vse of the Countrie which is to stoope or bowe downe thrée times lifting vp his hands as one that praiseth God The king immediatly made signes vnto him as willing him to drawe néere vnto him and commaunded him to sit downe in one of those seates which I haue spoken of who being thus set the rest of his men did enter and made him the lyke reuerence whom the king commaunded likewise to sit down right ouer against him and that there should be giuen them water for their hands that they might with the same refresh themselues since they were very hot for although it was winter yet it was hot After y t they had washed their hands he commaunded to be giuen them Figges and Iacas to eate and that forthwith which they did receiue with a good will The king was very glad to sée them eate who was very earnest in looking vpon them and did laugh thereat Afterward hée tooke occasion to talke with the old man that ministred vnto him this Vitele and in the meane time our men did cal for water for that they were a thirst the which was giuen them to drinke by an Yewer of golde and when our men did vnderstand y e order of their drinking was to hold their cup of height ouer their mouths for y â— the Malabars do take the same for an iniurie to touch y e cup with their lips they did therfore hold the same ouer their mouth in that order that part of the water fell into their throates made some of them to cough vnto others it fell besides their mouths and vpon their faces which did runne downe vppon theyr breasts All this the king was very gladde to sée who looking towards the Captaine Generall spake vnto him by an interpretour willing him to speak vnto those that were there to tell them his pleasure likewise to report vnto him of theirs with this the Captaine General was nothing contented for y t he thought the same a disgracing vnto him answered by y e interpretor y t he was the king of Portingales Ambassadour which was a mighty king that the christian princes did not vse to receiue their imbassage by a third person but by themselues that before very few those y t were of great credit And for that he did accustome the same order in y e other countries from whence he came he wold not therfore vtter his imbassage but only vnto y e king himself vnto which the king answered y t he liked wel therof that it shuld be so obserued immediatly he commaunded the Captaine Generall Fernan Martines to be carried vnto another chamber which was adorned with y e like estate as the other was as wel hanged after y t the Captaine general was ther y â— king came thether also but our men remained where they wer first this was about the Sun set The king as soone as he was come into this chamber went to his Estrado there came no more with him but his interpretor the Bramene Mayor the olde man which doth alwayes giue this Vitele vnto y e king controler of his house The king they being ther together he asked of y e captain general of what part of y e world he was what he wold haue whervnto he answered that he was an Ambassadour of a christian king of y e Occident part of a kingdome called Portingale besides many others insomuch y t he is of a great power both in possessions people much more in riches all other things necessarie more then any other king of those parts hath so ben for y e space of these lx yeres so y â— those y t haue ben kings his predecessours hauing the fame brought vnto them how y â— in the Indias there were christian kings great noble men in especiall y e king of Calicut they were moued the rather to send to discouer y e same by their Captaines to make friendship with the king of y â— country to take them for brothers as reason doth bind the king his Maister now to do to visit them by his Ambassadors not y t he hath any néed of their riches for that in his owne countries of golde siluer and other things of great value he hath more therof then néede did require And as for those Captaines whom he did send vnto this discouerie they haue gone in the same a yeare or two vntill such time as they haue consumed their victuals and without finding of that which they sought for haue returned to Portingale haue in vaine spent great sums of money But the king Don Manuel which reigneth as now is desirous to make an end of this enterprise which was begun so long time agone for that to them ther shuld not lack sufficient victuals as there did vnto the others before did therfore giue him thrée shippes that were laden therwith commaunding him not to returne to Portingale without the discouery of that king of the christians which is Lord of Calicut And if so be y t he shuld returne without bringing him relation therof he would then commaund his head to be cut off And further he
¶ The first Booke OF THE HISTOrie of the Discouerie and Conquest of the East Indias enterprised by the Portingales in their daungerous Nauigations in the time of King Don Iohn the second of that name VVhich Historie conteineth much varietie of matter very profitable for all Nauigators and not vnpleasaunt to the Readers Set foorth in the Portingale language by Hernan Lopes de Castaneda AND NOW TRANSlated into English by N. L. Gentleman ¶ Imprinted at London by Thomas East 1582. ⧠To the right Worshipfull Sir Fraunces Drake Knight N. L. G. wisheth all prosperitie THey haue an auncient custome in Persia the which is also obserued throughout all Asia that none will enterprise to visit the king noble man or perticularly any other person of countenance but he carieth with him some thing to present him with all worthy of thanks the which is not onely done in token of great humilitie obedience but also of a zealous loue friendly affection to their superiours wel willers So I Right worshipfull following this Persian president hauing taken vpon me this simple translation out of the Portiâ—gale tongue into our English language am bold to present dedicate the same vnto you as a signification of my entire good will The history conteineth the discouerie and Conquest of the East Indias made by sundry worthy Captaines of the Portingales in the time of king Don Manuel of the king Don Iohn the second of that name with the discription not onely of the country but also of euery harbor apperteining to euery place whervnto they came of the great resistance they found in the same by reson wherof there was sundry great battels many times fought likewise of the commodities riches that euery of these places doth yeeld And for that I know your worship with great perill daunger haue past those monstrous bottomelesse seas am therfore the more encouraged to desire pray your worships patronage defence therof requesting you with all to pardon those imperfections which I acknowledge to be very many so much the more by reason of my long many yeares continuaunce in foreine countries Howbeit I hope to haue truly obserued the literall sence full effect of the history as the Author setteth it forth which if it may please you to peruse accept in good part I shal be greatly emboldened to proceede publish also the second third booke which I am assured will neither be vnpleasant nor vnprofitable to the readers Thus alwaies wishing your good worship such prosperous continuance and like fortunate successe as God hath hetherto sent you in your daungerous trauaile affayres and as maye euerye waye content your owne heartes desire doe euen so take my leaue From London the fift of March 1582. ¶ Your worships alwayes to commaund Nicholas Lichefield Gentleman ¶ TO THE MOST HIGH and mightie Prince our King and fouereigne Don Iohn the third of that name king of Portingale and of the Algarues c. IT hath séemed to me so straunge and waightie a thing most high mightie Prince our king and Souereigne to vndertake to write of the most worthy and valyaunt acts which the Portingales haue enterprised in the discouery and conquest of the Indias that oftentimes I thought to giue ouer and relinquish the same but as the attempt and dooing thereof was principally taken in hande for the glorye of Almightye God and to conuert those barbarous Nations to the Christian Faith and the great honour of your highnesse wherein God gaue them by his Omnipotent power fauour and mercye such fortunate successe in the atchieuing of those famous actes without whose great prouidence it coulde neuer haue béene performed or brought to passe And therefore doe hope and altogether comfort my selfe with the ayde and assistaunce of his diuine goodnesse in publishing the same by writing yéelding the glorie thereof onely to his celestiall Godhead and the praise terestriall vnto your excellent highnesse and to that famous and most happie king Don Manuel your Father And although the same be well knowne and spread abroad ouer all the worlde yet it cannot be so perfectlye published vnlesse it bée set forth in writing For by this meanes the memorie thereof will indure for euer because that the writings will alwayes shew the same to bée present Like as it doth continue those actes of the Gréeks and of the Romanes the which long since is past so many yeares And therefore they lyke wise men perceiuing the same to be true did trauaile all that was possible to leaue the memorie thereof by writing and noting that the worthinesse of the same did consist much in the eloquence of the writer did therefore choose such excellent learned men as those were that wrote the same béeing thereto aided with much fauour and helpe of others that were nothing inferior vnto theyr own possible were far greater but for that the same did not remaine in writing there is no memorie thereof euen as those of the Assyrians of the Medes of the Persians of the Affricans against the Romanes of the Sweuians against Iulius Caesar of the Spaniards against the Moores in the recouerye of their Countrey of Spayne Principallye of those inuincible and holye Kinges of Portingale your auncestours the King Don Alonso Henriques the King Don Sancho his sonne the King Don Alonso the which did gettte the Kingdome of Portingale and of the Algarues in the which conquest there was wonderfull greate actes done and that by force of Armes Of all the which almost there hath remayned no memorie of that there shoulde haue béene yea those matters of the Indyas the which was done but yesterdaye there is no man that hath the same in memorye more then foure personnes so that if they had dyed all the same hadde ended with them the which woulde haue béene imputed to theyr greate shame and rebuke And I hauing a regarde and partlye a remorse to sée this losse did therefore determine my selfe to note of those notable actes the which your subiects hath done in the discouerie and Conquest of the Indias of whose valiauntnesse there is none of theyr progenitours of any age or antiquitie that euer did excéede them no nor yet were equall with them For leauing a side the Conquest of the Semyrian of Cyro Pirhus and of other barbarous all the which was nothing in comparison of this and take amongest them also that great Alexander the which was so feared and wondred at throughout all the world since that the Indias is frequented by the Portingales theyr dooings are no more meruailed at then a dead Lyon in respect of one aliue for the Conquest of Alexander was all by lande and against people that were smallie accustomed or trayned in the feates of warres hée alwayes going in his roiall person but this of the Indias was done by sea and that by your Captaines béeing vpon the same a whole yeare and eight monethes and at
a Pilot a Gentile called in their language Gosarate whose name was Canaca making excuse that hée had not sent him sooner and so the king and the Generall remained friends and continued the peace before concluded vpon betwéene them ¶ How the Captaine Generall departed from Mylynde came to Calicut and of what greatnesse and noblenesse that citie is Cap. 13. THE Captaine Generall béeing thus prouided of all things necessarie for his voyage departed from Mylynde towards Calicut vpon the Tewsday being the 22. day of Aprill and from thence he began to cut ouer a goulfe which is of seauen hundreth and fiftie leagues for the land there doth make a certeine great valley which doth runne along the coast from the North to the South and our voiage in demaunding of Calicut lay to the Eastward in following whereof the next Sunday our men sawe the North which a long time before they had not séene and also they sawe the South of which good fortune they thanked God in that it represented as then to them winter of the Indias where alwaies in that goulfe are great stormes they now found none but rather faire weather The Fridaye being the .xvii. daye of May and xxiii daies next after their departing from Mylynde in which time they had séene no land they then discouered came to sight of land And the Fléete béeing viii leagues of seaboord from the shoare the land séemed high their Pilot whose name was Canaca did as then let fall the Plommet found fortie fiue fathom wherevpon to auoide and apart himselfe from that coast he made his way to the Southeast vppon the Saterday he made to landward howbeit he ranne not so néere the same as he might certainly knowe it but he perceiued by small showres of raine which fell as they made towards land y ◠they were on the coast of y e Indias for y ◠at y ◠present time of y e yere y ◠winter is euer in those Indias The sunday being y e xx day of May the Pilot sawe certeine high hils which were ouer the Citie of Calicut and came so néere to land that he did reknowledge the same and with great ioy and pleasure demaunded of the Generall Albrycias saieng that this was the land which he and his companie so greatly desired to sée and come to The General replenished with ioy of that good fortune gaue Canaca his demaund forthwith went to praier saieng the Salue wherein they gaue God greate thanks for this their happie and safe arriuall vppon that coast and in sight of the place which they so earnestly longed for to sée when praier was done they made great ioy and feasted on shipboord and the selfe same daie in the euening the Generall came to an Ankor two leagues from Calicut and immediatly came certeine people of that land in fowre boates called Almaydyas to our Fléete to vnderstand what ships these were hauing neuer before séene any of that making come to that cost These people came all naked sauing that their members were couered with little péeces of linnen cloath they are browne people At their comming to vs some of them entered into the Generalls shippe and albeit the Pilot Goserate tolde him that they were Fishermen a poore kinde of people for so they call all such as bee poore men in the Indias yet hée receyued them all well and commaunded his men to buye of their Fish which they brought with them And hauing some talke with them he did vnderstand that that towne was not Calicut for it was they said further off offered to carrie our Fléete thether Wherevpon the Generall required them so to doe and therewith departed thence and were brought by those Fishermen to Calicut which is a Citie scituated on the Coast of Malabar which is a Prouince of the second Indias that hath his beginning in the Mount Dely and endeth at the end of Comory which is in lentgh thréescore leagues and one and fiftéene in breadth All the Countrie lyeth lowe and is apt to be couered with water Ther be many Ilandes in the same it doth enter into the Sea Indico There is a verie high hill which diuideth the limits betwéene them and a great kingdome called Narsinga The Indians do report that this land of Malabar in olde time was maine Sea and ran as far as y e hill where now the Ilands of Maldiua are which were then firme land did couer discouer y e other of Malabar in which are many and pleasaunt Cities those also very rich by reason of y e trade they haue principaly with thē of Calicut which in riches vice doth excel al in our time whose foundation was on this sort This Prouince of Malabar was in the olde time gouerned altogether by one king who made his aboade in the Citie of Conlan and in the last kings daies of this land whose name was Saranaperimal and died sixe hundreth yeares agone the Moores of Meca discouered the Indias and came to the Prouince of Malabar the inhabitaunts wherof then were Gentiles and the king himselfe was a Gentile From the time of the comming of these Moores they beganne to account the yeares as we account from y e birth of our Lord God And after they came thether they grew into such familyaritie with this king and hée entered into such conference good opinion of their lawes that he renounced the manner of religion of his owne Countrie and minded thence forth to imbrace theirs and the loue and liking he had of this sect of Mahomet so déepely tooke roote and entered into his heart that he determined to goe and ende his lyfe in the house of Meca Thus béeing resolued for the loue he bare to that sect to abandon and leaue his kingdome for euer and goe with them before his departure he imparted to his kinred and diuided amongest them all his Lordships and territories and hauing distributed and giuen the same so farre forth that there remained to him no more but xii leagues of his Countrie which laye néere to the shoare where he meant to imbarke himselfe the which was neuer before inhabited therfore he then gaue y e same to a cosin of his which then serued him as his Page commaunding y ◠the same circuit shold be inhabited in perpetuall memorie of his imbarking there To the same his kinsman hée also gaue his swoord a towell after the Morisco sort as things apperteining and incident to the estate gaue commaundement to all the Gentlemen to whom he had giuen all the rest of his lands that they should be obedient true subiects vnto him and to take him for theyr Emperour the kings of Conlan and Canamor onely except whome also he commaunded and charged likewise al the others that they nor no other Lordes shoulde coine money in the Prouince of Malabar but onely the King of Calycut So hauing thus bestowed and giuen
his lands possessions and dignities as he thought good and set euery necessary thing in order for establishing his determinate will and pleasure he then imbarked himselfe there wher now Calicut is builded and scituated and for that the King did there imbarke himself to go towards y e house of Meca y e Moores then took such deuotion towards that place that they and all their posteritie euer since that time hitherto would not nor yet will take any lading but out of that Port. And from that time afterward they came no more to the Port of Coulan as vsually they did before by meane and occasion whereof the same grew to ruine and was destroyed especially when Calicut was once builded and that many Moores came and inhabited the same For as they were Merchaunts of great dealings so came they thether and made there the greatest and richest Faire or Marte of all the Indias finding there all the Spices Drugs Nutmegs and all other things that could be wished as all kindes of precious stones pearles séede of pearle Muske Saunders Aguila fine Dishes of earth Laker gylted Coffers and all the fine things of the Chyna Gold Amber Waxe Iuorie fine and couâ—se cotten as well white as dyed in colours much rawe silke silke twisted and all kinde of linnen cloth of silke and golde and cloth of golde and cloth of tissew chamlets graine scarlets carpets of silke Copper Quicksiluer Vermilion Allome coralls Rose waters and all kinde of Conserues so that ther is no kinde of Merchandise of all the world which coulde be demaunded but it should be found there Moreouer it was very quiet for that it was scituated along the Coast the which lieth almost open and very daungerous it is inuironed set round about with many Orchards in which are many sorts of fruits of that lande and many hearbes and excellent waters Also they haue many Palme trées and other sorts of trées In this lande there is but small store of Rice which is ther a principall victuall as amongst vs our Wheate is but there commeth from other places great aboundaunce thereof as in like manner there doeth of other victualls The Citie is great and all the houses be of straw onely the houses of their Idolls Chappels and the Kings houses except which are of lyme and stone and couered with tyle for none but they are permitted by theyr lawes to haue anye other manner of building then with strawe It was inhabited by Gentiles of sundry sects and by Moores which were great Merchaunts and so rich that some of them had fiftie ships There is no such season of Winter but that there may lye in that Harbour sixe hundred shippes They haue there a shore whether they do cary them with small trauaile for that they be made without nailes sowed with ropes of Cayro and pitched vpon they haue no quiell but are flat bottomed ¶ Of what great power the King of Calicut is and of his vse and custome likewise of the other Kings of Malabar and how the Nayres do liue Chapter 14. FOr that this Citie was of so great a trade and also the Countrey round about so inhabited which increased so largelye the Kings rents it came to passe that he grew to be so rich of money and so mightie in power by multitude of people that in one daye he was able to leauie and make in a readinesse thirtie thousand fighting men and in thrée dayes space one hundred thousand They called him Samoryn which in theyr tongue is Emperour for so he was among the Kings of Malabar and there were no more but two beside him that is to say the King of Coulan and the King of Canauor For albeit the others were called Kings yet were they not so This King of Calycut was a Bramene as others his Predecessours also were which amongst the Malabars are Priests and for that it is a custome and auncient order obserued that all the Kings doe dye in one Pagode which is the house of praiers to their Idolls he is elected for that cause for alwayes in the same house there must be and is a King to serue those Idolles and when he that serueth there doeth dye then must the King that then raygneth and gouerneth leaue his Empire and goe serue in that place as the other did and into his place and Kingdome they elect and put an other that shall so succeede him And if anye of them that is in possession of the Kingdome refuse to goe into the Pagode the King that then serueth in the same béeing dead they will then inforce him thereto which so refuseth although it be against his will These Kings of Malabar be browne men and goe naked from the gyrdell vpwarde and from thence downewarde they be couered with cloath of silke and of Cotten sometime they put vppon them shorte gownes which they doe call Basus of silke or cloath of golde and of scarlet with very rich stones and especiallye the King of Calycut excelleth in those attires and Iewells They be shauen leauing vpon the vpper lip as the Turkes vse the hayre vnshauen They be serued but with small estate especiallye at theyr meate whereof they haue but lyttle But the King of Calycut is serued with greater Estate These Kings doe not marrie nor obserue the Lawe of marriage but yet they maye haue a Lemman of the house of the Nayres which amongest the Malabars are Gentlemen and shée hath hir house by hir self neere to the Pallaice They doe allowe hir so lyberallye for hir charges and maintenaunce that she maye haue plentifullye of all thinges to hir contentation vppon that Stypende assigned hyr And when any disliking is had of hir by them they may alwayes leaue hir and such children as they haue by hir be not taken or accompted for theyrs neither doe they inherite the Kingdome nor anye thing of theyrs After they be men they are had in no more estimation then that is incident vnto them from the mothers bloud and parentage Their brothers doe inherite if they haue any if not then their sisters children shall who doe not marry neither yet haue any certaintie of their husbands They bée very frée and at libertie to choose those of whom they lyke and be such as are best estéemed of They haue verye great rents allowed them and when anye of them come to the age of ten yeares for at that time they are to be knowen of men their kinred then doe sende forth out of this kingdome for a young man Nayre and presenting him with gifts earnestly request the same to take hir virginitie who then receiueth hir with great ioy and after she is thus vsed doth tye about hir necke a Iewell which she doth carry and weare alwayes during hir life as a thing in great estimation for a token of the libertie giuen hir by that act to do with hir bodie afterward for euer what she will for without this manner of
ceremonie they may not know any mā These Kings sometimes haue warres one with another they in their owne persons goe into the fieldes yea and if néed so require they also fight when they die they be caried out from their pallaice into a plain field wher they be burned with great quantitie of wood of sanders a swéet wood called Aguila At this burning are alwaies present all his brothers néerest kinred and al the noble men of the countrey And they make staye of him from burning after his death thrée daies that they all may repaire thether come together to sée and viewe whether he came to his death naturallye or whether he were killed for if he dyed by force of anye mans hande then are they bounde to take reuenge thereof After hée is burned and all the ashes buryed they doe all shaue themselues without leauing any hayre yea euen of the least childe that is a Gentile All of them in generall doe then cease from eating of Betele during the space of thirtéene daies and he that doth eate the same infringeth their law and therefore they wil cut his lips and that by iustice In all this time the prince which shall succéed doth not command nor gouerne which is done of purpose to sée whether in that time anye man will come to saie or obiect any thing against him These things and daies thus done and past the noble men of the Countrie doe cause him to bée sworne to all those lawes customs which were made by his predecessour and to pay all his debts Also that hée shall trauaile to recouer whatsoeuer things of his kingdome before were lost This oath he taketh hauing his swoorde in his lefte hande and in the right hande a Candle burning which hath a ring of golde vppon it which he toucheth with two of his fingers and so taketh his oath This being done they throwe or powre vpon him a few graines of Rice with many such other ceremonies in dooing whereof they say many prayers and he worshippeth then the Sunne three times which so done the Caymayles that be Lords by parentage doe immediatly holding the selfe same Candle sweare to be true subiects vnto him The thirtéene daies béeing ended they all then doe eate Betele againe and flesh and fish as before the king onely except who then taketh thought and sorroweth for the death of his predecessour whose manner of mourning is thus He must not by the space of one whole yeare eate any flesh or fish or yet Betele neither must he shaue his beard nor cut his nailes nor eate but once in a daie and must wash himselfe all his bodie ouer before he doe eate and praie certeine houres in the daye After the yeare is past and ended he then vseth a certeine ceremonie for the soule of the king his predecessour which is much like to our Dirge whereat are assembled an hundreth thousand persons at which time he giueth great almes when this ceremonie is finished they then confirme the Prince for inheritour of the kingdome and so all the people do depart The king of Calicut and all the other kings of Malabar haue one especiall man that hath the charge for administration of iustice and doth command is obeyed in all other matters of gouernement as amplie as the king himselfe The men of warre which the king of Calicut the other kings haue are Nayres which be all Gentlemen and are appointed to no other office or affaires but to fight when néede requireth They be all Gentiles and carrie their armour wherewith they fight themselues which is bowes arrowes speares daggers made like a hooke and targets and march with them very honourably and gallantly but they goe naked carrieng onely certeine linnen cloth of cotten painted with the which they couer themselues from the girdle to the knée they are bare footed and weare vppon their heads certeine towels They all liue by the king and by the noblemen of the countrie of whome they haue ordinarie stipends and allowaunce for their maintenaunce They doe so greatly estéeme and make account of theyr gentrie and of their cleanlinesse that they will not touch any husbandman neither permit any of them to come into their houses The husbandmen are bound when they goe in the stréetes to crie with a lowde voyce and saye Hoo they goe for if these Gentlemen doe come and bid them goe out of the way and they doe not obey their commaundement therein then may they kill them The king cannot make Gentlemen except they be of the stocke of Gentlemen They serue very well and faithfully with them of whome they haue their interteinment and vnder whose obeysaunce they liue not sparing by night nor daie anye opportunitie of time for shewe of their best indeauour in seruice of the same nor making anye account of meat or of theyr person or of sléepe whensoeuer their trauell or dilligence may take effect or purpose of well doing They haue so small charge and occasion of expence that with halfe a crowne a péece which is their ordinarie allowance for one moneth they may very well and sufficiently mainteine themselues and each of them a boye to serue him The Nayres by the law of the country cannot marry and for that cause they haue no children certain but those which they haue are begotten of Lemmans with which thrée or fowre of them do lie by accord agréement had and determined amongest themselues hauing one woman onelye to serue that purpose vnlesse any cause or quarrell growe amongest them and euerye one of them shall be with her a whole daie accompting from the one halfe of the daye present wherein he commeth to the other halfe of the day next following at which time he departeth from hers and then commeth another who continueth the lyke time Thus they passe ouer and spend their life time without care and trouble of wife and children They mainteine their lemmans verie well according to their degrées and birth And if any of them will at any time leaue and forsake her they may at their pleasure doe it and likewise she maye refuse anye of them at her will These women are all Gentlewomen for the Nayres amye not take anye Countrie women and they also doe not marrie And for that there bée so many men to one women they take not them for theyr children which bée begotten of her although the same bée lyke vnto them and therefore theyr brothers children doe inherit their lands and haue their goods This lawe that these Gentlemen shoulde not marrie the king ordeined and made for that they hauing no wiues nor children on whom they should haue care and fixe their loue might the better indure the warres and liue at more libertie to serue in the same And because they are Gentlemen and that they should be the more animated and incouraged to liue in that order and to serue well they be so priuiledged that none of them
which words was vttered in y e Spanish tongue And after he asked him what way he had gone and trauailed that he was come to this place wherevnto the banished man aunswered told him shewing also how many ships the Generall had ther wherat Bontaybo meruailed and wondred how they could come by Sea thether Then he asked him what they sought so farre off And he aunswered that they came to séeke Christians and spices Moreouer Bontaibo asked why y e Kings of Fraunce and Spaine the Duke of Venice did not also sende thether Whereto the banished man made aunswere that◠y e King of Portingale would not giue his consent they should so doe Bontaybo replieng thereto sayde that he did well wisely therein Thus hauing talked a while he gaue him very good entertainment and commaunded to giue him certaine Cakes made of the flower of Wheate which the Malabars do call Apes and with the same honnie After be had well eaten Bontaybo aduised him to go to the ships said he would goe with him as indéede he did to see y e Captaine generall And being come to the Admirall which was then entered Bontaybo then began to say to the General in Spanish Good lucke good lucke many Rubies many Emeraulds thou art bound to giue great thankes to God for that he hath brought thée where there is all kinde and sorts of spices stones and all the riches of the worlde When they hearde him so saye they all meruayled greatlye thereat for they before woulde not haue beléeued that there hadde béene anye man so farre off from Portingale that coulde vnderstande theyr language Wherefore with wéeping teares which they then plentifully shed for ioye and pleasure they had conceiued as well for the same as also for their safe and happie arriuall there they then gaue to God most humble and heartie thankes through whose onely fauour good will and pleasure that good lucke and great good benefite had happened to them And then the Generall imbraced Bontaybo and caused him to sit downe by him asking him if he were a Christian and how he came to Calicut For aunswere whereto y ◠Moore told him of whence he was and what he was and how he came to Calicut by the way of Cayro also he shewed him by what meanes he came to knowledge of Portingals and that alwaies he had bene a friend to them for that in all respects at all times their doings manners appeared to him to be good and worthy of friendship Finally he sayde that as he had in time past bene a friend to them so would he now at this present continue his good will and was ready and would be to doe all that in him was to pleasure further them and the effect of their purpose in comming thether The Captaine generall gaue him great thankes and promised to recompence him very liberally in respect of that his good will and for any pleasure or friendship he shoulde thenceforth shew to him and his company he shuld be wel assured to be thankfully considered of Declaring also that he was the most ioyfull man of all the world to finde him there and to haue him for a friend and an ayde verely beléeuing that God had sent him thether to giue an ende to the enterprise of the voyage which he so desired in discouering of those Indias and had entered into and passed through so many daungers by long tract of time to attaine vnto the same and now notwithstanding his arriual ther he thought to haue but small fruite of his trauaile without his helpe friendly furtheraunce Then he requested him to declare what manner of man the King of Calycut was and whether he thought he would receiue him with good wil as an Embassadour from the King of Portingale 〈◊〉 Bontaybo aunswered that the King of Calycut was a very good man and of an honourable disposition and that he no doubt would receiue him gladly for Embassadour from a straunge king especially if his comming were to settle and intreate for establishment of tract or trade of merchaundise in Calicut and had brought with him anye kinde of Merchaundise for that purpose For said Bontaibo as there doth grow great aduauntage and profit by custome thereof to the king so is the same indéede the verye principall rents or reuenewes he hath for his mainteynaunce Moreouer he informed the Generall that the king at that instant was in a certaine village fiue leagues from Calicut scituated along the coast named Panane whether he aduised him to send vnto him to declare of his arriuall and comming thether The Generall very well liking of the speaches and aduise of Bontaybo did therefore giue vnto him certeine gifts and sent with him two of his men in message to the king of Calicut requesting Bontaybo to direct them on their waye to Panane which he accordingly did These messengers being nowe come before the king one of them whose name was Fernan Martyn by an interpretour which he had declared vnto him that he came from his Captaine who is arriued in the port of Calicut with certeine shippes and is come thether from the king of Portingale of purpose to bring him letters which the same Captaine is readie to come and present vnto him if it so stoode with his good liking and pleasure whereof to vnderstand he then had sent him and his fellowe there present The king hearing this message commaunded before he would make aunswere thereto to giue to each of them a certeine péece of lynnen cloth made of Cotten and two of silke whith were very good and euen such wherewith he was accustomed to girdle himselfe And after these péeces were so giuen them he then demanded of Fernan Martyn what king that was which hadde sent him those letters and how farre from thence his kingdome was wherevnto Fernan aunswered and fully informed him touching that demaund declaring also that he was a Christian prince that all those whom he had sent were christians hauing past many troubles and daungers vpon the sea before their arriuall there at Calicut The king hearing all the discourse of their voiage wherof Fernan Martynes somwhat at large informed him did greatly maruell at the same shewed himselfe to be right glad y ◠a Prince of so great a power as the king of Portingale was being also a christian would send an Ambassadour to him And therefore he sent word to the Generall that he and his cōpanie were hartelye welcome into his Countrie requiring him to bring his ships to an ankor néere to a village named Padarane which is somwhat beneath the place where they first came to an ankor being a far better harbour then that of Calicut which is an open roade very dangerous for the ships And appointed that from thence the General shuld go by land to Calicut wher he wold be to speak with him And therw t he sent a Pilot who conuaied the ships to the
that by the aduise of the other Captaines to burne one of those shippes and that the same should be Saint Raphael which they determined to doe the rather forsomuch as the same was al open and they had not brought him a grounde as they did the others and also determined to burne the same vppon the shoels of Saint Raphael vnto which place they came on the Sunday following where what for taking in of her furniture as also for burning the same he spent fiue daies and during that time from a village the which is called Tangata there were brought to sell many hens This béeing done the Captaine Generall departed hauing with him in his shippe his brother called Paulo de la Gama and on the .xx. of Februarie he found himselfe with onely Nicholas Coello in the Iland of Zenziber which standeth in the altitude of sixe degrées lieng but ten leagues from the firme land This Iland is verye greate with the other two that standeth néere vnto it whereof the one is called Pemba and the other Mofya and are verye fertill and haue in them great store of victualls Their groues are of Orenge trées which bringeth forth goodly Orenges They are inhabited by Moores which are but a weake kinde of people and they haue but small store of weapons howbeit they goe very well apparelled in silke and fine cloath made of Cotten the which they doe buye in Mombassa of Merchants of Cambayo The women haue store of iewells of golde from Sofala and of siluer from the Iland of Saint Larence They are merchants their trade is in the firme land and thether they do carry victuals to sell in litle boats Each of these Ilands hath a king of himselfe the which also doe obserue Mahomets lawe as all the rest of the subiectes doe As soone as the king of Zenziber hearde that the Captaine Generall was there arriued he sent to visit him and sent him great presents of the fruits of the country requesting him of his friendship to the which he agréed After all this he departed on the first of March and came to an Ankor before the Ilands of Saint George in Monsanbique and the next day after he sent a marke to be erected within that Ilande where at his going thether he heard Masse without any conuersation with those of Monsanbique he departed And on the third of March he came to the Iland of Saint Blase where he stayed to take in his water and to victuall himselfe of Sea woulfes and of Solitarius which they salted to eate whilest they were on the sea and for the same they gaue God great thanks After that they were departed from thence being once before putte back with westerly winds which blew right against them God of his goodnes sent them so prosperous a winde that on the twentith of March they hadde doubled the Cape of Buena Esperansa with great pleasure forsomuch as all those that came thether were all in health and verie strong and as they thought were all in good liking to arriue at Lishborne And finding héere a colde Winde which endured well twentye dayes did set them in a good forwardnesse towarde the Ilande of Santiago which by theyr Sea cardes was by the Pilots we known not to bée at the vttermost a hundred leagues from thence Some there were that thought themselues to bée with the same but it was not so Héere that goodly and fayre winde did faile them and forsomuch as the Captaine Generall would néedes knowe where that he was for that hée coulde not tell by reason there fell certeine showres which came from the landewarde he commaunded to make as much waye as they coulde possible And going after this sorte on Thursdaye being the xxv of Aprill he commaunded the Pilot to let fall his Plommet who founde that they were in xxv fathome Yet in all that daye sailing and kéeping the selfe same course the least water that they came to was at xx fathome and therefore the Pilottes iudged themselues to bée vppon the shoels Del zio Grands All the rest of this voyage perticularlye what aduentures the Captaine Generall did passe vntill such time as he came to the Ilande of Santiago I coulde not come to the knowledge thereof but only how that as they went néere to the same Nicholas Coello to carry the king newes of this discouerie did on a certeine night a parte himselfe from the Captaine Generall and followed his course vnto Portingale where hée arriued at a place called Cascais on the x. of Iuly in the yeare of our Lorde God 1499. who informed the king of all that the Captaine Generall hadde past in the discouery of the Indias and of the commodytyes that he had brought with him from thence Of whose discouery the king was so gladde to heare of and that they might trade into the Indias by sea as when he was proclaimed king of the kingdomes of Portingale Now after that the Captaine Generall founde missing Nicholas Coello hée went forwarde on his course towarde the Ilande of Santiago for because his Brother was verye sicke of a Tyssicke and also for that his Shippe made but small waye for that shée was all open and therefore hée did fraight there a Caruell which he found there for to carrye him to Portingale before that he should dye who left there Iohn de Sala for Captaine of his ship as I sayd before who as soone as the ship was new rigged had charge to bring the same to Portingale from the which place the Generall departed with his brother in the Caruell whose infirmitie did dayly increase in such sort that the Captaine Generall was driuen to beare with the Iland of the Terceras And béeing there arriued commaunded that his brother might be brought a lande where he was so cruellye handled with his disease that he dyed thereof who at his end shewed himselfe to be a good and perfect christian and a very honest Gentleman After that he was dead and buried the Captaine Generall departed toward Portingale who came to Belen in the moneth of September in the selfe same yere 1499. being two yere two moneths past after his departure frō Lishborne with 108. men of them came backe but fiftie aliue which considering theyr great trauaile and trouble that they had past was verye much After that the Captaine Generall had giuen God greate thanks for that he had escaped so many great daungers he sent word of his arriuall vnto the king of Portigale who for the great pleasure that he receiued of his comming sent Don Diego de la Silua de Menesis Lord of Portugalete with many other Gentlemen to receiue him as they did brought him vnto y e court w t an excéeding great number of people that came thether to sée so new rare a matter as that was of y e Captaine General not onely for that hée had done but also for that they tooke him for dead
béeing come to the kings presence his highnesse gaue him so great an honour as such a one deserued who by the discouerie of the Indias did giue so great a glorie vnto the eternall God and honour and profit to the crowne and kingdome of Portingale and a perpetuall fame to all the world Afterward he made him knight to him and to his heires for euer he gaue for armes the royal armes of Portingal also to set at the foote of the Scutchin two Does the which they call Gamas Also he gaue him towarde this his liuing thrée hundred thousand Ceis a yeare the which may be worth of our money 200. pound a yeare and this to be paied out of the tiths of the fish in the village of Sinis Moreouer hée promised him to make him Lord of the said village forsomuch as he was borne there And vntill such time that he could giue him y e same he allowed him a thousand crowns a yeare the which he did well perfourme from that time forwarde and after that he had receiued the possession therof he did passe it ouer vnto the house appointed for the contraction of the Indias Moreouer he graunted him that after the trade of the Indias was setteled or established that then he might lade for his own account to the sum of 200. Duckats in spices that without paieng for the same any custome at all Also he gaue him other possessions rents and a bill of remembraunce to make him Lorde As for Nicholas Coello he made him a Gentleman of his house and gaue him possessions and did allowe him some recompence toward his charges The king himselfe with this new discouerie did increase his titles with a newe and a famous stile of Lorde of the conquest and nauigation of Aethiopia Arabia Persia and of the Indias How the king of Portingale did nominate A Pedro al Verez Cabral for Captaine Generall of a Fleete towarde Calicut for to settle there a factorie and of his departure from Lishborne Chap. 28. BEing certainlye knowne to the king of Portingale that from his kingdome there is a nauigation to the Indias and also of the innumerable riches that there are in those parts among the Gentiles sundrye Christians did therfore determine to prosecute and followe the discouerye of the same giuing all praise and lande vnto the eternall God for his great benefits that he hath bestowed vpon him to let him be the first that hath discouered this new worlde the which hath alwayes beene so close vpon the Sea that there hath béene none in all Europe that durst aduenture that waye But hée not remembring the trouble of his spirite neyther yet the spending of his treasure nor the daunger of his subiects woulde neuerthelesse take this most famous enterprise in hande for that there might bée in the Indias publyshed the Euangelicall lawe to the ende that those kinde of lost people might receiue the same as also for the increasing not onelye of his owne treasure but generallye the benefite of all his subiects And that the same might take the better effect hée determined to giue the attempt if it were possible to settle a Factorye in Calycut by gentlenesse for as hée once vnderstoode that the dwellers in the same were inclined to trade he thought that after this sort there wold grow betweene them and vs conuersation and so a friendshippe the which might bée an occasion that they woulde incline themselues to heare the worde of God preached And béeing thus fullye determined hée commaunded to bée in a readinesse against the next yeare following a Fléete of ten shippes and two Caruells which shoulde goe well laden with all such thinges as Vasco de la Gama shoulde informe him to bée spent in Calycut Also there went others towarde Sofala and Quyloa where also hée commaunded certeine Factoryes to bée setteled not onelye for the golde which they haue there but also that theyr shippes might alwayes touch there And concerning such as shoulde bée appointed for Calycut he named for Captaine Generall of this Fléet a Gentleman called Pedro Aluares Cabral who came of an honourable house of the Cabralls and for his pettie Captaine a Gentleman called Sancho de Toar The names of the other Captaines as manye as I knewe were these Nicholas Coello Don Luis continuo Simon de Myseranda Simon Leyton Bartholome Dyas who discouered the Cape Buâ—na Esperansa Dyego Dyas his brother y t which went before for purser with Vasco de la Gama Those that wer Captaines of y e Caruels were one Pedro de Taide and Vasco de la Siluera and for Factor of the whole Fléete was one Aries Correa who lykewyse should remaine for Factor in Calycut and for his clarkes there were appointed one named Gonsalo Gyl Barbasa Pedro vas Caninon Of this Fléete there shoulde remaine and staie with the Merchants and Merchaundise in Sofala two ships and with the same shoulde contineu for Factor one called Loriso Hurdato In this Fléet ther went 1500. men The Articles which the Captaine Generall carryed in his instructions besides those of the setling of the Factory was y t if so he y t the king of Calycut would not quietly conseÌ„t or giue sufficient lading for those ships which he caried nor consent to haue the factorie setled there That then he should make him most cruell war for the iniury which he shewed vnto Vasco de la Gama And if so bée that the Factorie might be quietly settled then he should request the king in secret that he doe not consent in Calycut or in anye other of his harbours belonging to his kingdome any of the Moores of Meca to remaine ther forsomuch as hée would send him from hence forth all such Merchaundise as they doe bring and that farre better cheap then they doe sell the same Moreouer that in theyr waye they doe touch at Milinde to set ther a land the Embassador which Vasco de la Gama brought from thence and to sende the king a present Also the king did send with the Fléete fiue Friers of the order of Saint Fraunces of whome went for Vicar a Frier called Fraij Henrique the which was afterward Bishop of Siebta and he to remaine in the Factorie to preach the Catholike faith vnto the Malabars The Fléet beeing dispatched the king in person on Sunday being the .viii. of March went to heare Masse at the Monasterie of Belem going thether in Procession hauing the Captaine Generall the which heard Masse with him within the curten for on that sort he ment to giue honour to such as did serue him in such daungerous affaires as this was The Masse was said after the Portingale order and at the same there was a Sermon made by Don Diego Ortis who was then Bishoppe of Vyseâ— who gaue great praise vnto the Captaine Generall for accepting the saide voiage at the kings hands since that therby he did not onely serue the king who is his
him almost he spent his time in no other thing but to knowe the vse custome of the king of Portingale of the order of his gouernment also perticularly as though y t he did remember no other matter all y â— time being desirous to see y e Captain general did procure with as much diligeÌ„ce as he could to haue him a land to bring him to his pallaice notwithstanding he made his excuse saieng y t the king his master had commanded him not to come a land in any port with this answere y e king was driuen to encounter with him vpon the water who would néeds go as far as y e water side on horsback with y â— furniture of a Ienet y t the king of Portingale had sent him And for y t in his country he had none y t could tel y e order therof he requested one of our men to do so much And when the king had all things in a redines ther wer tarrieng for him certein of y e principals at y e foot of a staire amongst them ther was brought a liue shéep which whilest y e king was coÌ„ming down they did open as he was aliue after y t they had taken out his guts bowels they laid y â— same vnder y e horse féet The king being now on horsbacke he went also with his horse vpon y e shéepe which is a kinde of ceremony y â— the witches ther do vse After y t he had thus troden vpon the shéepe he went toward y e water side with all his company after him a foot saieng w t a lowd voice certein words of witchcraft And after this sort he met with the Captaine Generall vpon y e water where he deliuered him a Pilot to carrie him to Calycut Heere there were lefte with the king two of those banished men that they might enforme themselues of the countrie as farre as in their strength one of those was called afterwarde Machado who after that hée had gotten the Arabian language went by lande vnto the straights and from thence vnto the kingdome of Cambaya from whence he did passe to Balagarte and did there settle himselfe with the Sabayo that was Lorde of Goa saieng that he was a Moore and for the same he was taken in all that Countrie this his trauell was very profitable to Alonso de Albuâ—querque as you shall perceiue héereafter How the Captaine Generall arriued at Calycut and how the king sent to visit him a boord his ship and also how afterward he came a land for to see him and of his receiuing there Cap. 22. THe Captaine Generall béeing returned to his ships departed toward Calycut being the 7. day of August on the 20. he came to Ansadina wher he staied certeine daies for the comming of the shippes of Meca with intent to set vpon theÌ„ if so be y t they came thether And whilest they were there they did confesse themselues and afterward did receiue the Sacrament And they séeing that there came no ships departed toward Calycut and on the 13. of September he came to an ankor within a league of the same And immediatly there came certeine Almadias toward our fléete to sell victuals also there came certein Nayres of y e most principall belonging to y â— king of Calicut with a certeine Guzarate merchant by whom y e king sent word vnto y e Captaine General y â— there could not haue happened a better thing vnto him then to vnderstand y t he was come vnto his port that hée could not do him no better pleasure theÌ„ to command him if ther were any thing in his citie y t he had néed of he would accomplish y e same with great good wil whervnto y â— Captaine generall made answere with great thanks séeing w t what good will y â— king sent to visit him he brought himself to an ankor néere vnto y e citie alwaies shooting of his ordinance with y e which he did salute theÌ„ which was so great a wonder to the dwellers that those that were Gentiles said that against vs there were no resistaunce The next daye following by the consent of the Captaines of the Fléete the Captaine Generall sent by one whose name was Gaspar to demaund a safe conduct of the king for to send a messenger vnto him sending also with the saide Gaspar those foure Malabars that Don Vasco de la gama had carried from Calicut These went all apparelled in a gallant sort after the Portingales order whom all the citie came forth to sée who meruailed to beholde them to returne so well which was the cause that they were so well pleased with our men that they were had in so great reputation But forsomuch as these were but fisher men the king woulde not sée theÌ„ although he was glad to vnderstand after what sorte they returned commaunded y t the said Gaspar shuld be brought before him whome he receiued very well And after that he knew wherfore he came aunswered him that whosoeuer of our men would come a lande might without any feare at all This answere béeing come to y e Captaine Generalls eares he sent presently vnto the king Alonso Hurtado to signifie vnto him y t the said fléet belonged to the king of Portingale of the which he went for Captaine Generall and that his comming thether was for no other purpose but onely to settle w t him a trade friendship for the which it was conuenient for him to talke with him Howbeit hée sayde the king his Maister hadde commaunded him that he shoulde not doe it without he might for the assurance of his person receiue some pledges to remaine in the shippes whilest hée was a lande with the king and that the one of those pleadges should be the Catuall of Calicut and Araxamenoca the which is one of the principallest Nayres And another there went with Alonso Hurtado one that coulde speake the language which shoulde declare vnto the king the effect of the message The king béeing héereof informed meruailed much to heare that the Captaine general did demand those pledges which he did excuse to giue forsomuch as they were sickly olde howbeit he said he would giue others that coulde better abide the brannesse of the sea But afterwards hée did insist very much not to giue any pleadges at all forsomuch as those that were Moores were verye sorrie to sée our men in Calycut and gaue the king counsell to sende none for that in giuing of any he might wel iudge therin y â— the Captaine Generall had but little confidence in him and by this meanes he should remaine dishonoured Yet for al this Alonso Hurtado did still insist in his demaunde In this encountrie they spent thrée daies At the end the king hauing a desire to haue a trade setled with ours for the benefit that might redound vnto him by the same did consent to Alonso
Hurtado his request in giuing the pleadges that were demaunded which being come to the Captaine Generalls knowledge he began to make himselfe in a readinesse to goe and speake with the king and to remaine a land thrée or foure daies apointing in his place Sancho de Toar to whom he gaue commaundement that there shuld be made for those pleadges at their comming aboord good enterteinment and to looke well vnto them and not to deliuer them to any that should come to demaunde them although they came in his name On the xxviii daye of December the Captaine Generall put himselfe in his best apparell and carryed with him thirtie of the principall men of his Fléete which shoulde remaine with him a lande with others that were the kings seruauntes which shoulde attende vppon him as vpon the kings own person Hée commanded also to bée carryed with him all the furniture for his Chamber and Kitchin with his Cupboorde of Plate in the which there were many rich péeces of siluer gilted Nowe béeing with all these thinges in a readynesse to depart there came from the Citie sundry principall Nayres which were commaunded by the king to attende vppon the Captaine Generall accompanyed with manye men besides others that came sounding vppon Trumpets other vppon Sackbuts and other instrumentes The Captaine generall being informed that the King was tarrieng for him in a certaine Galerie which onelye for to receiue him in he had commaunded to be made harde by the water side tooke his boate and went toward the shore beeing accompanied with all the other boats of y e Fléete which went all in good order and set out with manye flagges and trumpets which being ioyned together as wel these as those that came from the Citie made a wonderfull noyse With this came those pledges aboord the Generalls ship into the which they were loath to enter vntill such time that y e Captaine generall did disimbarke himselfe a lande giuing therby to vnderstand that they wer afeard that they being once aboord he would returne againe into the Fléete and so take them for captiues They did stand so much vpon the same that Aries Correa was faine to tell them that without any suspition they might enter into the shippe forsomuch as the Captaine generall was not come thether for to deceiue the King but onely for to get his good will with this they were contented to goe aboorde yet it was with some feare that he would take them captiues In the meane while that we were about this the Captaine generall landed where there was tarrieng for him sundry Caymales and Pymacales and other principall Nayres being accompanied with many others And before that the Captaine generall coulde set his féete on the grounde he was taken vp and put in an Andor or chaire in the which he was carried to the Serame accompanied with the multitude aboue saide Being come to this place he entered into a certaine house where the King was whome he founde in this order The house was hanged ouer with Carpets or as they call them Alcatifas at the ende whereof there was a certaine place where the King was sitting made much lyke vnto a lyttle Chappell and ouer the Kings head did hang the cloth of Estate of vnshorne Crimson veluet and vnder him and about him were twentie cushions of silke The King himselfe was all naked sauing that about his middle he had a cloth made of Cotten which was white as snowe and wrought ouer with golde On his head he had a night cap of cloath of golde which was made of the fashion of an head péece or skull On his eares he had hanging certaine Iewelles of Diamonds Saphyres and Pearles of the which ther was two bigger then Walnuts On his armes from the elbow to the hande he had sundrye Bracelettes of Golde in the which there were precious Sones and that without number and of a wonderfull valewe Moreouer on his legs from the knées downward and on the fingers of his handes and the toes of his feete and especially on his great toe there was a ring in the which there was a Rubie so great and fine that it gaue such a light as was wonderfull amongst al which stones ther was a Diamond bigger then a great Beane But all this was nothing in comparison of his girdell which was made of Golde and Stone that the same was aboue all price and out of it there came such a resplendour or brightnes that it blinded mens eyes to looke vpon it There stoode harde by him a Chaire of Estate of golde and siluer wrought in the best manner full of precious stone and of the selfe same sort was the Andor in the which he was brought from his Pallaice which also stood there Also there were twentie Trumpets whereof seauentéene were of siluer and the other thrée of golde the mouthes whereof were finely wrought and set with stone Also ther was a Bason of golde in the which he did spit and certaine perfuming pans of siluer out of the which ther came an excellent smell And for estate sake ther wer lightned certain Lampes of Oyle which were after the Moores order the which were also made of siluer Sixe paces from the King stood his two brethren which were heires vnto the Kingdome after him and somewhat further off stood many Noble men they all standing vpright vppon theyr féete ¶ Of the meeting of the Captaine generall and the King of Calycut and how there was deliuered vnto him the Kings present which he brought and afterward what hapned Chap. 23. THe Captaine generall béeing entered into this place and viewing the Kings estate wold haue gone to kisse the Kings handes as it is commonly vsed amongst vs but for that he was enformed by those that stoode by that it was not the vse and custome amongst them he did it not Howbeit ther was a Chaire appointed him that was hard by the Princes seate in y ◠which the Captaine generall did sit that from thence he might declare his minde to the King which was the greatest honor that he could giue him Being set downe he deliuered his letter of credite which he brought from the King of Portingale written in the Arabian tongue which béeing read by the King y e Captaine generall also told his message the effect wherof was this That y e King of Portingale was desirous of his friendship to settle a Factorie in Calycut in the which there shoulde be sufficient of all kinde of Merchandize that should be spent there in trucke of the same or for ready mony he requested that he would let him haue sufficient lading of spices for those ships there The King shewed himselfe to be content with this Embassage aunswered the Captaine generall that he wold yéeld the King of Portingale out of his Citie all that he shoulde haue néede of While they two were in this talke came thether the present which the Captaine generall
very fresh This Citie is buylded much after the manner of Calycut and is inhabited by Gentiles and sundry Moores strangers which are come thether from manye places and are great Merchaunts amongst whom there are two that haue fiftie shippes a péece In this Countrey is great store of Pepper and the most parte that they haue in Calycut commeth from thence But forasmuch as in Calycut there are more store of Merchaunts which come from other places therefore the same is richer then Coching The King is a Gentile and is of the behauiour and propertie of the King of Calycut howbeit he is verye poore by reason his Countrey is but small neither can he commaund any money to be coined in his Citie The Kings of Coching are in great subiection to the Kings of Calicut for as often as ther chanceth a new king to succéede in Calycut he immediately goeth to Coching and dispossesseth him that hath the same of the whole kingdome and taketh possession himselfe therof so that by this meanes it lyeth in his hands whether he will restore that King to the crowne againe or not Also the King of Coching is bound to aide and accompany the King of Calycut in battaile against any other King also he is bounde to dye in the religion of the King of Calicut The Captaine generall being come to this harbour did there let fall his Ankor for that he was afearde to send Gaspar with a message to the king least he would runne awaye he choosed rather to send one whose name was Michael Iogue which although hée were a Gentile a straunger yet he came vnto our Fléete with intent to turne Christian saieng that he would goe for Portingale wherevpon the Captaine generall tooke occasion to baptize him and gaue him the name of Michael for his surname as he was called before By this man he sent to y e king of Coching his message certifieng him of all that they had past in Calicut also y ◠the Captain generall had brought w t him great store of Merchandize to giue in trucke for such commodities as there were in Coching with the which if so be that the King wer not contented that then he would buy the same for ready mony wherof he had brought with him great store and therefore his request was that in trucke of his merchandize or for his ready money he would giue him lading for foure ships The answere that the king made to this messenger was That he was very glad of his comming to this his Port for that he was wel informed of his strength and valiantnesse and therfore he estéemed them all the better as héereafter he should well perceiue And as for such Spices as he had there he would giue him y e same in trucke of his Merchaundize y ◠he had brought with him from Portingale or els for money as he should thinke best And also that without any feare he might send a land whom he should thinke good to prouide the said lading for the assurance of such as shuld trauel about y e same he sent him 2. of y ◠principal Naires in pledge vpō cōditiō y t euery day he shuld chaunge them and take others for that all such as did féede a sea boorde could not come anye more in the kings presence The Captaine Generall was well contented therewith who had the sending of those pleadges so quietly a boord for a good beginning and therfore he sent immediatly for Factor of this lading Gonsallo Gilbarbosa which was sent before with Aries Correa and for his Scriuenor he sent Larenco Moreno and for Interpretour one called Maderade Alcusia Also the Captaine Generall commaunded to be deliuered vnto them and to serue them in all kinde of affaires foure banished men The king hauing notice of the comming of the Factor a land sent to receiue him the Rogedor of the Citie who went accompanyed with many noble men of the Courte who brought them before the king This king euen as his rents did farre differ in value from the king of Calycuts so he did also differ very much in his estate not onely for y e furniture of his person but also of the place in the which he was in For there appeared nothing else but the verye bare walls The king himselfe was sitting within certeine grates made much lyke a Theatre with the which the whole house was compassed aboute and there was attending vppon him verie few men The Factor béeing come before the king did present vnto him a present which the Captaine Generall sent him which was a Bason of siluer to wash his hands in full of Saforne and a greate Ewer of siluer full of rose water besides certeine braunches of Corall this present the king receiued very ioyfulfully giuing vnto the Captaine Generall great thanks for the same and after that he had talked a while with the factor and with Larenco Moreno he commaunded them to be lodged and so there remained those thrée a land besides the other foure banished men But the Captaine Generall would not consent there should remaine a land anye more for he iudged that the fewer ther remained a land the fewer would be lost if so be that there should chaunce the lyke misfortune to that which did in Calycut Howbeit that was farre vnlike for y t the king of Coching séemed to be a man inclined to vertue all the loialtie in the world which wel appeared in his fauour in the vsing of our men in the dispatch he made for the lading of our ships with spices in the commanding of helpe to be giuen by those of y ◠countrie which they did so willingly and with so great a zeale that the same séemed to be ordeined of God that the trade might be brought from Calycut to Coching that his holy Catholike faith might increase in the Indias as y e same did besides the estate of y e king of Portingale which might increase also in riches as the same hath done Hovv the Captaine General being at Coching ther came vnto him a Priest vvhich vvas an Indian and a christian from the citie of Grangalor to go vvith him to Portingale and also vvhat els he tolde him of the christians of this citie Chap. 39 THe Captaine Generall béeing in this citie laden there came vnto him two Indians which as they said were christians naturally borne in y e citie of Grangalor which is hard by Coching these were brothers were desirous to go to Portingale frō thence to Rome to sée the Pope afterward to Ierusalem to visit y e holy sepulchre And being demanded by y e Captaine generall what city y ◠Grangalor was whether the same was only inhabited by christians also whether they do estéeme y e christiā order of y ◠Gréeks or of y e church of Rome one of thē made answere y ◠Grangalor was a gret city in y e prouince
of Malabar staÌ„ding wtin y e couÌ„try at y e end of a riuer which coÌ„passeth y e same by some parts y e inhabitaÌ„ts therof saith he are both GeÌ„tiles christiaÌ„s also ther dwel amoÌ„gst theÌ„ many Iewes which are smally estéemed of ther are also many strangers amongst theÌ„ which are merchants of Surria of Aegipt of Persia Arabia by reason of y e great store of pepper which is there gathered this citie hath a king amongst theÌ„selues vnto whoÌ„ al such christians as dwel wtin this citie do pay certein tribute these dwel by theÌ„selues where they haue their church made after our order sauing they haue not in theÌ„ any Images of saints but only certein crosses they do not vse bels but when y e priests would haue theÌ„ come to diuine seruice theÌ„ they do obserue y â— order of y â— Gréeks The christiaÌ„s haue their Popes which haue 12. cardinals two patriaks many Bishops Archbishops all which do reside in Armenia for thether go y e bishops of GraÌ„galor to receiue their dignity he himself had ben ther w t a bishop which y e pope did consecrate he himself receiued at his hands orders of priesthood euen so he is accustomed to do vnto al others y â— are christians in y â— Indias in Caitaio also he is called catholike their Tonsura is made w t a crosse Of those two patriarks which they haue y t one remaineth in y e Indias y e other in Caitaio as for y â— bishops they are reposed in cities as is thought coÌ„uenient The cause why they haue a pope in those parts hath ben as is thought by theÌ„ for y t in S. Peters time he being in Antioch ther arose a great scisme of Simon Magus which was y e occasioÌ„ y â— he was called to Rome to ouerthrow y e same to help y e christians which wer in great trouble and séeing y â— he must depart froÌ„ Antioch for y t the church of y â— orient shuld not remaine wtout a shepheard he appointed a vicar to gouern who S. Peter being dead shuld remaine for pope those y â— succéeded him shuld alwaies assist him in Armenia but after y e Moores entred into Suria Asia for y e Armenia remained alwaies in the christian faith the Christians did therfore chuse to gouerne it by 12. cardinals Marco Paulo doth also make mentioÌ„ of this catholike pope wher he writeth of this Armenia in which he declareth there are two orders of Christians the one of those are Nestorians the other Iacobites their pope is also named Iacobite is hée whoÌ„ they cal y e catholike Ioseph Moreouer he told y e Captaine general y â— in Grangalor are priests whose crowns are not shauen as ours are but onely in y e midst of their heads they leaue certein haires al y â— rest is shauen also they haue deacons subdeacons They consecrate w t leuened bread with wine made of raisons for they haue no other in y â— couÌ„try Their childreÌ„ are not baptised vntil xl daies after their birth without they be sickly Those y â— are christians do coÌ„fesse theÌ„selues as we do they receiue y â— sacrament bury y e dead as we doe They doe not vse the holy Oyle but in stéede of the same they doe blesse them when that any die they gather many of themselues together and for the space of viii daies they doe eate abundantly and afterward they celebrate the obsequies of the dead They make their testament before they dy those y â— do not so â—he next heire shal inherit their lands and goods if so be that the husband die first the wife shal haue her dowrie on condition that she shall not marrie in one whole yeare after when that they enter in their churches they take holy water Their opinion is that there are sowre Euangelists whose writings they haue in great veneration They fast the Lent and the Aduent with greate solempnitie and take regard not to breake the same during this time they doe exercise themselues in praier on Easter euen they neither doe eate nor drinke any thing till the next day They doe vse to heare Sermons on holy Friday at night they obserue the day of the resurrection with great solempnitie with the two other daies following and also the sunday next following for that Saint Thomas on that day did put his hands into Christs side they do kéepe it with great solempnitie acknowledging thereby that the same was no fantasie or dreame Also they kéepe holy with great deuotion the Ascention day Trinitie Sunday the Assumption of our lady hir birth Candlemas day Christmas day all the Apostles Sundaies as wel the Christians as y e Gentiles And they with great deuotion kéep y â— first day of Iuly in the honour of S. Thomas they could yéelde no reason or cause why they doe obserue that daie They haue Fryers of Negroes which doe liue very chastly Also there are Nunnes of the same order Their Priests doe liuâ— verye chastly for if so be that they doe not so they are depriued from celebrating There can be no seperating of the man and woman but well or ill they must liue together till death doe separate them They receiue the Sacrament thrée times in the yeare they haue amongst them greate Doctours and open schooles in the which are read the Prophets and also there were in times past olde auncient doctors doctors which haue left the Scriptures of the olde newe Testament well expounded or interpreted Their apparell is after the order of y e Moores They haue their day which they do call Iâ—tercalor which is of 40. hoâ—â—s They know how the day passeth away by the Sun the night by the stars for they haue no clocks The Captaine generall was very glad of the companye of this Ioseph his brother to carry them to Portingale for whom he commanded a good cabine should be giuen them in his ship Of the great Fleet of ships that was sent out of Calicut to fight with the Captaine Generall and what was the cause that ours did not sight with them And also of his departure from Coching toward Portingale and how in his way he was driuen to Cananor Chap. 40. THe Captaine Generall being in this harbour ther came vnto him a messenger froÌ„ the king of Cananor also from the king of Coulaâ— they both being great princes in y â— kingdome of Malabar requesting him to come to their ports or harbours for y t they would giue him sufficient lading for his ships better cheape then in Coching with verye many other offers of friendship To whom he made answere by a messenger that he sent yéelding vnto them most hearty thanks certifieng them y â— at this present he could not go to lade at their ports for that he
héereof I am in no fault The King of Calycut perceiuing that the King of Coching did stand so much vpon his reputation and wold not doe that which he had requested him did then determine the Captain generall being once departing to set vpon him by the waye and vtterly to destroy him against whome he commaunded to be made in a readines a Fléet of xxix great ships that they might encounter with him vpon the Sea at his departure toward Portingale supposing that forasmuch as they went laden he should be the better able to do them the more harme Of the battaile that was fought betweene the Fleet of Calycut and the captaine generall as hee was going toward Cananor how Vincente Sodre Pedro Raphael and Diego Pieres tooke two of those ships how the Captaine generall departed toward Portingale Chap. 49. OF all these letters and messages the King of Coching woulde neuer make the Captaine generall priuie vntill such time that he was ready to depart and then he tolde him which before he was loth to doe And for that he should not conceiue and thinke him to be so vaine as to alter his minde to doe as the King of Calycut would haue him he did therefore shewe himselfe to be so constant and such a friend of the king of Portingales that for his sake he woulde aduenture to loose his Citie if it were néede For this the Captaine generall gaue him great thankes saieng that the King his Master would neuer forget that good will and in his name he promised to fauour and succour him in such sort that he shoulde not onely haue his kingdome in great assuraunce but also that he would ayde him to conquere others He willed him also not to feare those Letters that the King of Calicut hadde sent him for that they were nothing els but to put him in feare and bring him to be a traitor as he was being therefore so destroyed and that from henceforth there shoulde bée made such cruell wars against him y e he shuld haue inough to doe to defend himselfe much lesse to make warres against others All this he tolde him for the succour of those ships which should remaine in the Indias These wordes were spoken afore many of his Nayres of the which the King was verye gladde that they heard them And for that we had knowledge that in respect of the friendship that they had with the Moores they were verye sorye that we had the Factory graunted in Coching Therefore the Captaine Generall promised vnto the King that from Cananor hée woulde forthwith sende him thether a Fléete of ships from whence he was minded to departe Now after that he had laden his ten shippes and was a Sea boorde thrée leagues from Pandarane he had knowledge of the nine and twentie great shippes of the Moores that went to séeke him out And as soone as he had sight of them he consulted with his Captaines to fight with them vpon whom with the winde that did begin to blowe they did beare This being agréed vppon the Generall began to beare toward the Enimies Vincente Sodre Pedro Raphael and Diego Pieres for that theyr ships were great saylers went before them all and these were the first that did giue the onset vpon two of the chiefest ships Vincente Sodre fought with the one alone and Pedro Raphael and Diego Pieres with the other Their méeting was with such a valyaunt minde that out of both the Enimyes shippes there leapt many into the Sea The fight indured no longer but vntill such time the Captaine generall with the other shippes drewe néere who did alwayes shoote off at them In the meane while the rest of the Enimies did beare all that they could towarde the shoare The Captaine generall for feare of the losse of some of his shippes would not followe the rather for that they were all laden Howbeit our men leapte into theyr boates and there fought with those that were swimming in the water and slewe them all the which were néere to the number of thrée hundred persons After this the Captaine Generall commaunded to discharge theyr Shippes which were taken in the which was founde store of rich Merchaundize and amongest the same these péeces following Sixe great Tynages of fine Earth which they doe call Porcelanas and the same is verye costlye as by experience thereof we do sée in Portingale foure great Guyndes of siluer with certaine perfuming Pannes of siluer also they there founde certayne Basons of siluer and gylte in the which they doe vse to spit But that which excéeded the rest was an Idoll of Golde which weighed thirtie pounde waight with a monstrous face and for his eyes he had two verye fine Emerauldes a Vestement of beaten golde wrought and set with fine stone the which vestement belonged vnto this Idoll with a Carbuncle or Rubie in his breast as bigge as a Crosado which gaue as great a lyght as it had bene a fire The ships being set a fire y e Captaine general departed toward Cananor wher he was with the King who gaue him a house for the Factorie the possession whereof was taken by Gonsallo Gill Barbosa who was appointed for Factor and by Sebastian Aluares and Diego Godino Notaries and by the Interpretour called Edwarte Barboso and sundry others in all to the number of twentie of all whom the King tooke charge vpon him with all that was in the Factorie and bound himselfe to lade from thenceforth all the King of Portingales ships of Spices that they should at any time haue néed of and this at a certaine price which was immediately named The Captaine generall did enter into the like bonds in the name of the King of Portingale to defend him from all those that shoulde make him warres for this cause Also the King of Cananor did the lyke and to remaine the King of Cochings friend and not to helpe nor aide any that should come against him vpon paine that wée should make him warres and of all this there were sufficient great and lawfull writings made on all parts After this the Captain generall sent Vincente Sodre to go along the Coast and to kéepe the same vntill Februarie And if in the meane while there were any newes or knowledge of any lykelihood of warres betwéene the King of Coching the King of Calycut that then he shoulde Winter there in Coching but if not that then he should go to the straights of the red Sea to take such ships of Meca as doe passe to the Indias This being dispatched and those thrée shippes laden with that they should haue they departed toward Portingale with thirtéene shippes the twentith daye of December in the yeare of our Lord 1503. and so arriued with all their ships at Monsanbique And for that the ship that Steuen de la Gama went in had a great leake he commaunded the same to be vnladen and brought a ground and after that she was
newlye rigged they departed And within seauen dayes after there fell a great leake in the ship y t Lewis Cotine was in for that it was in such a place that they could not come by it they were therefore driuen with all the Fléete to retourne to Monsanbique to new rigge the same Now the winde was scant they were faine to remaine in a certeine créeke vntill she was finished and afterwarde they retourned to their voyage and at the Cape of the Correntes they were so ouertaken with stormes which came sodeinly and with such a force vpon them and that against them that they were forced to stay there with all the Fléete The ship that Steuen de la Gama went in did beare vp onely with her fore saile and his sprit Saile all to torne by reason wherof he lost the companie of the whole Fléete and was no more séene And within sixe dayes after that the Captaine Generall arriued at Lishborne shée came in also with her Mast broken This storme being past from this Cape of the Currents the Captaine Generall followed his course toward Lishborne where he arriued the first day of September All the noble men of the Court went as farre as Cascaes to receiue and accompanie him till he came to the king He had going before him his Page which carryed a Bason of siluer within the same was layde all the tribute which the king of Quiloa had paide Béeing come where the king was his grace honourably receiued him according as he did deserue who had done him so great seruice as it was to discouer the Indias and to leaue setled Factoryes in Coching and in Cananor which things must néeds redound vnto the king to most certeine gaine and profit besides the great fame and honour which he got therby in being the first king that had sent to discouer the East partes whereof he might make conquest if so be that it pleased him So in satisfaction the king made him Admerall of the Indias and also gaue him the title of Lord of Vydeguero which was his owne Of the newes that were giuen out in Coching how the king of Calycut put himselfe in a readinesse for the warres and how Vincente Sodre wold not succour him but went to the cape of Quardafum Chap. 50. AS soone as the king had knowledge that y e Captaine general was departed toward Portingale he immediatly determined to put his warres in execution which he had signified to y e king of Coching before And so he marched toward the village of Panane where he beganne to ioyne his power which was immediatly knowne vnto all those of Coching for that it was not far of Wherfore the dwellers there were wonderfully afeard saieng that they had cause so to be for that the king of Coching did all things contrarie to iustice and equitie And since he did the same vnto those that are of his sect and all most naturally borne with him why should he not doe the like vnto the christians which are our enimies And for that God doth well perceiue the iust quarrell the king of Calycut hath to make him warres that he will therefore aide and succour him therein vpon the charges of those that are innocents thereof This they did not onelye tell our men but also in euery place they railed at them and endeauoured to procure as much hurt as they coulde against them Some of them also that were in credite with the king and ought vs no great good will did openlye saye that if so bée that the king of Calycut did come with a greater power then they hadde they would immediatlye deliuer our men vnto him since the warres were begunne in respect of vs and for our sakes they did put in hazarde the losse of their kingdome The king meruailing much of the boldnesse of his subiects aunswered them with louing wordes saieng that they had offended him verie sore with theyr vaine speach assuring them that if so bee that the king of Calycut woulde come and séeke him out yet hée woulde notwithstanding defende himselfe onely for that hée well knoweth that God will fauour him for his iust dealing in defending those christians as he had taken vppon him to doe But for all this his subiects coulde not bée well pacified whereof some were desirous to set vppon our men but yet they durst not for that the king had allowed them a gard to attend vppon them and also appointed a strong place for their lodging Vpon this there came newes that Vincente Sodre was come to Coching who had left greate hurt done along the coast of Calicut both by water and by land Of whose comming all our men were very glad for that they were before in great daunger But the Factor perceiuing that they came not a land sent the Captaine generall word by Laurenco Moreno the certeintie they heard of the warres which the king of Calycut was minded to make vppon the king of Coching and where hée was at that present in a readinesse for the same Requesting him on his behalfe and requiring him in the name of the king of Portingale that he woulde forthwith disimbarke himselfe for that with his béeing in Coching they were certein they should remaine conquerours yéelding sufficient reason for the same otherwise that they were in greate daunger The Generall aunswered that he was appointed for Captaine Generall of the Sea and not of the lande and did therefore remaine in the Indias onelye to kéepe the seas Neuerthelesse if so bée that the king of Calycut had prepared his warres against the king of Coching by sea he would haue defended him but since it was by lande he had nothing to doe withall but to suffer the king to defend himselfe for that he would depart to discouer the redde Sea The Factor vpon this determinate answere did once more send vnto him requiring him on Gods behalfe and the king of Portingales that he would not leaue them so for that the king of Cochings power was but small to defend himselfe withall in these warres against the king of Calicut who had begun the same onely and for none other cause but to destroy our Factorie And therfore he as Captaine Generall of the king of Portingale was bound for to defend him and that this was the principall cause why he remained in the Indias But for all this the General would not tarrie and so he departed with the rest of his Fléet toward the Cape de Quardafum where he did well knowe that he shoulde take sundrye rich prises This was that which he did better remember then to stay and defend the king of Coching or the king of Portingales Factorie How the king of Calicut signified vnto his noble men all such as did assist him the causes why he made this warre against the king of Coching And how the Prince Nabeadarni was hee that onely spake against the same chap. 50. AFter that the king of Calycut
was come to Panane thether also came presentlye sundry noble men his subiects and others his friends whome he had sent for to aide and succour him in this enterprise Others there were that came before they were sent for For as soone they heard that the warres were begun and that for our sakes that remained in Coching of the which they were all glad hoping therby to hunt vs out of the Indias therfore they came with the better good wil to séeke the destruction of the king of Coching There were also of his owne subiects that arose against him and some of his nobilitye as the Caimall of Chirapipill and hée of Cambalane and also he of the greate Iland which is ouer against Coching who carryed with them all the power that they were able to make And béeing come into the presence of the king of Calycut he spake vnto them all IF that good workes doe engender friendshippe amongest men then I and you for my sake and generally all the Malabars ought to beare the same greatly vnto the Moores for that it is well knowne that it is sixe hundred yeare since they came into the Prouince of Malabar and in all this time yea to this daie there was neuer anie that euer receiued at theyr handes anye hurt or losse But hauing no sooner receiued straungers newly come into anye of our Countries immediatlye we receiue losse by them wheresoeuer they doe beginne to settle theyr trade But the Moores doe trade with the people with all friendship and loue as ought to doe one naturall neighbour with an other by whose meanes the Countrey hath béene alwayes well prouided of much victualls and merchaundise which hath béene a cause to enrich our Townes and that our rents are greatly increased in especiall within this our Citie For whilest the Moores are héere resident they haue made the same the greatest mart Towne that is in all the Indias For this cause I am bounde in conscience and haue greate reason to fauour them and to mislyke of the christians which to my greate hinderaunce yea and against my good will settle in my lande more for to take the same and to destroye mée then to bring mée anye profite or gaines as the Moores doe hauing giuen of themselues greate shewes and signes thereof within these few daies that they were héere as in taking of my Captaine Generall and my Embassadour prisoners in making of new lawes in my Citie to lade their shippes first and before the Moores shuld lade And vpon this they tooke an occasion to staye a certeine Shippe of the Moores which was the cause that the Moores did as you doe heare and as I maye iudge by the sequeale thereof was so ordeined of God for theyr pride of the which hée was in no fault Yet this notwithstanding they burnt ten of my shippes which lay within my harbour After all this they with theyr Ordinance destroyed my Citye so that I was driuen to runne awaye out of my pallaice Not contented with this they burnt me other two shippes which they woulde not haue done if so be that they had come to settle a trade But first of all since they found themselues agréeued they shoulde haue come and made theyr complaint to mée of the Moores and tarryed till I had punished them and not to doe as they haue done by which it was apparant that they are théeues and no Merchants as they name themselues to be that vnder this coulour they might conquere the whole Countrie Which things the king of Coching would neuer vnderstand nor giue credit vnto although I sent him worde And being as he is my subiect wel vnderstanding what they had done vnto mée yet he would not but receiue them giue them lading for their ships and now he hath giuen them a factorie I sending him word and praieng him many times that he wold not consent therevnto For this cause therfore I haue sent for you that you should ioyne your selues And also to request you to tell me your opinions whether I haue reason to reuenge my selfe or no This determination to them all séemed verie good and they praised his purposed intent but principally the Lord of Repelyn forsomuch as hée was a greate enimie to the king of Coching for that he had vsurped an Iland of his called Arraul also of the selfe same opinion were other principall Moores But against this his pretended iourney spake the kings brother called Nambeadarin which was the onely heire to the Kingdome after the death of his brother who immediatlye in the presence of them all sayde THE kindred that is betwéene thée and mée beside sundrie other thinges may certifie thée that I do desire more thine honour and profit then anye that bée héere present and therefore my councell ought to be of a more efficacie then anye others For as they are not so greatlye bound to giue thée the same as I am so as it appeareth they doe feede thy humour and councell thée according to thy will since thou art desirous to accept it and not according to good reason which thou hast to leaue it But if so bée that they without flatterye and thou without passion wouldest iudge or weigh the cause of these Christians thou shouldest finde that vnto this present time they haue giuen thée no cause but that they should be well receiued into thy Countrie and so into all the Prouince of Malabar and not to hunt them foorth lyke théeues which they cannot bée called although they were present And forasmuch as from all the places of the worlde men doe resorte hether and assemble themselues to buye those Merchaundise which they haue not in theyr Countryes and bring those hether which we haue not héere In the same sorte come these Christians and as the custome is of Merchauntes they brought thée in their kings behalfe the richest present that thou diddest yet euer receiue And besides theyr merchandise they brought much Golde and siluer made in coine which they doe not vse to bring which come to make warres And if so bée they hadde come in anye such sorte they woulde not haue dissimuled the running awaye that the Pleadges offered vnto them whome thou doest call Embassadours that were kepte in Prison for that theyr Captaine was a Lande But they reconciling themselues vnto thée went and tooke the shippe at thy request in the which was the greate Elephant and afterward did present thée therwith and with all that the same ship carried besides those that are théeues doe not vse so to doe nor yet paye so well nor vse so much truth as they did for all the time that they were in Calycut there was none that did complaine of them but onely the Moores which they did for that they are their enimies and being mooued with enuy to sée them pertakers of their profite did accuse them that they hadde taken greate store of Pepper from the owners against theyr wills they
fully come vnto himselfe he willed them in anye case not to feare neither yet to doubt that this mischance should haue any such power as to make him chaunge from that which he hadde alwayes promised For which words they would haue kissed his hands but he would not consent therevnto and hearing the sturre that his men made against ours he sayd vnto them NOw that Fortune doth shew her selfe froward against me I had thought that as true friends and louing subiects ye wold haue trauelled to giue me héerein some comfort But ye are desirous to followe and serue the king of Calycut which as often as I doe remember it doubleth my paine for the death of the Prince my brother and my Cousins and since you also are against the Christians whome I haue so oftentimes in commended vnto you you doe well knowe that it will bée much more griefe vnto mée that they at your handes shoulde receiue anye hurt then I haue alreadie receiued for the death of my kinsmen since they lyke true subiectes dyed in my defence and you are desirous to persecute those whome I haue receiued vnder my protection and such as remaine with mée for my comfort It were a harde matter for me to perswade my selfe that this ouerthrowe happened vnto mée for dooing vnto these men as I ought to doe Doe you not iudge so for I will not beléeue that they were the cause neither yet for that I doe fauour them therefore God doth fauour the king of Calycut against mée It is not so but for that I haue offended him otherwise I am very glad that there hath béene this occasion giuen that I might receiue condigne punishment and that the King of Calicut might bée the onelye executor of his iustice And that also for all other offences that I haue done I might bée punished by him in séeking my destruction the rather for that I doe kéepe my promise with these Christians in especiall béeing as wée bée so much bounde vnto them Therefore weie well this cause and let it not sinke into your mindes that for vsings clemencie to these Christians and for defending them I receiue this punishment neither yet that the King of Calycut hath power to ouerthrowe my power which I canne make and destroye me altogether although that nowe hée driueth mée out of Coching The Fléete of the Christians will not tarrye long and then the Generall will restore vnto mée againe my Kingdome In the meane space lette vs goe to the Ilande of Vaypin which is strong and for that the Winter is at hande I trust in God wée shall escape the King of Calicut And since my losse is farre more then yours I comfort my selfe with this requesting you to doe the lyke not to be an occasion to renue my troubles with this your mutinie They séeing the greate constancie of theyr King meruailed much thereat and immediatlye did quiet themselues and promised him that they would do that which hée had commaunded and so they did The constancie of y e king was so great that whereas once more the king of Calycut sent him word that if so be that he would deliuer our men vnto him he would presently leaue the warres yet he wold not consent therevnto but sent him word againe that since that he had gotten the victorie more by treason then by valiantnesse for if so be that valure had bene vsed his brother and cousins had not died but they were betraied by those that faine would kill him also He did not passe for Coching it selfe but hoped that those Christians which he looked for euery day who restore him vnto it again likewise reuēge his quarrell This aunswere being come to the king of Calycut he commaunded to destroye the whole countrie with fire and swoord which commaundement being once known the feare was so great amongst the inhabitants of Coching that the most part of them ranne away with them went two Milanesis which were Lapidaries that remained with the Factor which vpon the King of Portingale commaundement were brought thether by Vasco de la Gama the one of these was called Ioan Marya and the other Pedro Antonio Those did discouer vnto the king of Calycut the feare that the dwellers of Coching were in of him how that dayly they came awaie They also did offer the king to make him ordinance and afterward they made him some as it shall appeare in the sequeale of the historie The king of Calycut made verie much of this Milanesis gaue them greate rewards to the ende therby he might winne them to make him more ordinance and hauing certein knowledge how few people were left in Coching what feare those that remained were in and how few men the king had to defend himselfe he put his men in a readinesse to take the same The king of Coching carrieng some of our men in his companie went to méet with the king of Calycut wheras that daie he behaued himselfe that it was wonder to sée Neuerthelesse for all that the enimies being verye many and the king somewhat hurt he was faine to retire and for that he durst not tarrie another battaile he therefore repaired vnto another Iland called Vaypin which is right ouer against Coching and is verie strong to the which he carried with him all our men and all the Factorie so that there was nothing lost The Citie béeing thus disinhabited the king of Calycut commaunded the same to be setts a fire After this he sent his men to enter the Ilande of Vaypin which for that our men and others did defend it with greate valour and for that the Winter was at hand and stormes of foule weather did beginne the king of Calycut was driuen of force to giue ouer and to leaue the warres and so went to Grangalor with determination to returne vpon the same Ilande at the spring For the which cause he commaunded to be made manye trenches about Coching and left many of his men to kéepe the same How Vincente Sodre and Blas Sodre were cast awaie at Curia Muria and what the other Captaines did afterward chap. 55. VIncente Sodre with his Fléete béeing departed from the harbour of Coching without hauing any respect to succour the king or those that remained in the Factorie but woulde needes goe towarde the kingdome of Cambaia to take such rich ships of the Moores as come from y e red sea to Calycut Vpon the same coast he tooke by y ◠helpe of other Captains fiue ships in the which onely in ready money there was found two hundred thousand Perdaos The most part of the Moores wer slaine in the battaile and their ships burnt From thence he kept his course toward certein Ilands called Curia Muria which stood a seaboord the Cape of Quardafum where hée thought good to bring his ships a ground which were all open He arriued there the twentéeth of Aprill in the yere of our Lord.
1503. And although all those Ilandes were greatlye inhabited by the Moores yet he would venture a land y e rather for that the dwellers in that Iland were no men of war so that with the onely feare they stoode in of our men they gaue them good interteinment selling vnto them such victualls as they had and did conuerse in their companie Vincente Sodre hauing brought a Caruell a grounde therevpon the Moores tooke occasion to tell him that in the moneth of Maye there came alwayes such a torment or storme out of the North that no ships doe remaine there but are driuen a lande And therefore such as knowe the same doe immediatly auoide the daunger willing him likewise so to doe and to remoue himselfe on the other side of the Ilande which will be a defence for them and when the storme is past they may returne without feare But he not making account of their words but rather iudging y t they meant to do him some displeasure wold not go from thence but aunswered them that their ships had Ankors of wood that they were driuen so a shore but his were of yron and for all that the Moores could perswade him he wold neuer be remoued Yet Pedro Raphael Hernan Rodrigues Badarsas and Diego Pierres would not tarrie but on the last day of Aprill they went their waie and as for Vincente Sodre and his brother they remained And when the torment came and began to blow their ships were driuen on shore for all their Ankors and were torne in péeces in the which there were many men slaine Amongst these ther died the two brethren and of the ships was nothing saued but onely the Captaines that remoued with the Caruell that was brought a ground The losse of the two brothers was iudged to come by the handie worke of God for their sins and for not fauouring the king of Coching for leauing the Factour with the Factorie of the king of Portingale in so greate a daunger And therefore those that were saued returned toward Coching to succour our men if happely they had any such néed Amongest themselues they appointed for Captaine Generall Pedro de Tayde and so they made saile at the entering of Maie And for that the Winter of the Indias was come they passed greate stormes whereby they sawe themselues sundry times in great danger And for that they could not fall with Coching therfore they were driuen to winter in Ansadina Thrée or foure dayes after their cōming thether there came thether also a shippe from Portingale of the which was captaine a gentleman called Antonio delcimpo who departed alone after Don Vasco dela Gama his tarrieng was so long by reason y t his pilot died by meanes whereof he was driuen to kéep the coast so that with great trouble danger he arriued at Ansadina wher he was driuen to winter where also they susteined great necessitie for lacke of victualls How Francisco de Alburquerque and Alonso de Alburquerque departed to the Indias for two captaines generalls of two fleetes and how they arriued at Coching did after their comming restore the king of Coching to his kingdome chap. 56. IN the yeare of our Lord. 1503. the king of Portingale supposing that the Admiral had left setled the Factorie quietly in Coching Cananor that he should haue no such néed as to send any great fléet Therfore he determined to send but sixe ships imparted vnto two Captaines generalls Of the first there he named for Captaine general a gentleman called Alonso de Alburquerque which afterward was gouernour of y e Indias as héereafter I shall declare in the third booke These were his Captaines one called Edwarto Pacheco of whom I spake before Hernan Martines Mascarennas who they said died in the voiage to Gordo Of the other thrée he appointed for Captaine general one Francisco de Alburquerque cousin to y e other Alonso Alburquerque These following wer his Captaines Nicholas Coello one y t was in y e discouery of the Indias and Pedro Vas de la Vega. This Fléete departed fiftéene daies after Alonso de Albuquerque and so as well the one as the other passed in their voyage great stormes in the which was lost Pedro vas de Lauega Francisco de Albuquerque which departed last of all came first and before Alonso de Albuquerque who brought with him Nicholas Coello to Ansadina who came thether in the month of August where as yet he found Pedro de Taide with their Captaines which were forced to winter ther. And hauing certeine knowledge of the warres that were published betwéene the king of Calicut and the king of Coching and all about our men they went immediatly with all the Fléete which was of sixe sailes to Cananor for that he would enforme himselfe the better thereof and what had passed in Coching At theyr arriuall in Cananor our men were verye glad of theyr comming The king of Cananor himselfe reioysed so much that he went to visite the Captaine generall a sea boord and told him all what perticularly had happened to the king of Coching and where the king was As soone as he knew all this he immediatly departed toward Coching to the which place he came on Saterdaie at night being the second day of September in the selfe same yeare As soone as his comming was knowne to the king of Coching ther was great reioysing at the same not onely of the king our men but of all the dwellers in Coching There were sundrye that at his comming did so reioyce that they plaied vpon sundrie sorts of instruments in token thereof All those that were in theyr trenches by the king of Calycuts commaundement viewing this great ioye and mirth and perceiuing wherfore it was as soone as the night came ranne their waie to Grangalor for so the king of Calycut had commaunded them to doe who also knewe of their comming by the waye of Cananor Immediatlye on Sundaie in the morning Francisco de Albuquerque came to an Ankor at the entering of the riuer of Coching The king hearing of his arriuall also sent to visite him by the Factor On the Munday morning Francisco de Alburquerque hauing left his ships in good order tooke his boates being very well armed and went in the same vnto Vaypin caried with him also two Caruells to succour him if there should come any Paraos from Calycut As he went somewhat far off from the Caruells came after him Edwarte Pachece who suspecting wherevpon he went leapt into his boat with some of his men which came after him with such hast hee made with his rowing that he ouertooke him before he came to Vaypin where the King of Coching was tarrieng for him along the water side with as many men as went with him to the Iland The pleasure was so great of theyr méeting that as soone as the King of Coching had sight of our boates he began to crye out saieng
Portingale Portingale and all those that were with him did the lyke Our men also out of their boates did aunswere after the selfe same manner saieng Coching Coching in despite of the King of Calycut As Francisco de Albuquerque did leape a land the King of Coching was there ready and tooke him in his armes with the teares in his eyes for excéeding ioye saying that his desire was to lyue no longer but to see himselfe restored to Coching that his Subiectes might well perceiue how much he was bound to passe so great troubles as hée had past all for to serue the King of Portingale In whose name the Captaine generall gaue him great thankes with promise to reuenge his quarrell vpon his enimies And for his part he gaue him ten thousand crownes to spend during the time that he did not receiue his rents and this money was taken out of the Coffer he carried which gift y e king of Coching estéemed very much for that he was very poore Also his subiects iudged this to be done right liberally as it was noted amongst them all and from thencefoorth they thought all to be well bestowed that the King had done for our men Foorthwith they carried the King to Coching where he entered with great glorye besides the reioycing which his subiects made and from thenceforth all our men were amongst them well estéemed Now it was not long after that the newes how that the King was retourned to Coching was brought to the King of Calycuts cares and of the money that the Captaine generall had giuen him who seeing that there was likelyhood of wars sent certain Caymales into his Countrey to defend the same for that it ioyned vnto the kingdome of Coching How Francisco de Alburquerque began the warres against all those that were enimies to the king of Coching and how the Caymall of the Ilande of Charanaypin was slaine Chap. 57. THe King of Coching being put in his possesion Francisco de Albuerquerque tooke his leaue of him His entent was that yet afore night he would partly reuenge himselfe vpon his enimies And so he went to the Iland which is ouer against Coching Now as the inhabitants thereof were somewhat forgetful and thought not that as that daye he woulde retourne so therefore did our men set vppon them before they were aware and that vpon such a sodaine that there were slaine of them a great number and sundry of their Townes set a fire and afterward they imbarked themselues without receiuing any harme And Francisco de Alburquerque going toward his Fléete met with the King and tolde him what he had done The next day after he returned to the same Iland to destroy it altogether He caried with him to y â— number of sixe hundred men for so many he had with those that he found in the other two ships and there went with him al his Captaines The Caymall of that Ilande was tarrieng for him along the water side with two thousand Nayres wherof the most part were bow men y â— others had speares swords and targets They did all they coulde to kéepe our men from landing which they did without receiuing anye hurt and they being galled sore with our Crossebowes were driuen away Our men followed them vnto the other side of the Ilande with so stout a stomacke that they had no other remedie but to take the water leauing behinde them many of their companye slaine and hurte And our men not hauing with whom to fight did set fire to all the Townes y â— were in the Ilande so that the whole Iland was destroyed The next day following Erancisco de Alburquerque went to another Iland called Charanaipin which was belonging to a Caymall subiect to the king of Coching who serued in al these warres with the King of Calycut Concerning whom by certaine spyes that the King of Coching had in that Iland he vnderstood that he had made himselfe in a readines to defend himselfe against the Captaine generall hauing redie in armes thrée thousand Nayres of the which were seauen 〈…〉 and fortie with shot besides all their houses 〈◊〉 with sundry trenches round about Also he had by 〈◊〉 certeine Paraos with Ordinance in the same which the king of Calycut had giuen him These wer aâ—â—oat in a certaine harbor where our men pretended to disimbarke themselues which were there placed that they shoulde resist our comming into that place if that it were possible About this place there was great store of boates all furnished with Ordinance but the enimies at the length were driuen to runne away so that our men remained quietly in the harbour where there stood in the water yea euen vp to their girdles a great number alwaies 〈◊〉 our landing throwing at vs both stones and spâ—â—res and shooting off their arrowes in great plentie But as one as our Ordinaunce began to go off then they desperatâ—ly began to run away and giue place Howbeit they 〈…〉 did so ioyne themselues together that in such sort they gaue our men inough to do to disimbarke themselues for that the same was so valiantly by them resisted And for all that our men could doe they woulde reuer leaue their olde altogether but by a â—wordfâ— and a lyttle they retired themselues to their Palme trée or to haue amongst them succour and there what with the hinderance that our men found by those trées they defended themselues a small time But afterward they ranne awaye and that without order so that our men followed them to the vttermost in especiall the Constable of Francisco de Alburquerque whom they call Pedro de lares who found himselfe alone with thrée Nayres which came toward him The one of these shot an arrow which strake him in the breast and for that he wore a breast plate it did him no harme And as the Nayre loosed off his arrow went off lykewise his shot and strake the Nayre in the breast so that he ouerthrewe him and afterward shot off another péece vpon one of the others that remained and killed him also By the third he himselfe was hurte in the legge with a certaine weapon which they doe call a Gomya and with the same hée that hurt him would haue run awaye but at length this Pedro lares killed him with his sword Thus all the enimies béeing put to flight Francisco de Alburquerque did then determine to march toward the Caymalls house wher he had gathered together all his force which was somewhat strong by reaâ—on of certaine trenches that he had made about the same The Captaines were diuided on both sides of the Iland and each of them had their men with them and in the middes of the Iland were placed those of Coching In this order they went all burning and spoylyng such Townes as there were and that without any resistaunce Going in this order there came certaine Paraos from Calycut on that side of the Ilande which Edwarte Pachecho had the
charge off who for y t they were many in number did leape a land encounter with y e foresaid Edwarte Pachecho had giuen him the ouerthrowe if Francisco de Alburquerque had not bene who came thether with those that he had in charge And for that he found greater resistaunce in his Enimyes then he looked for and also being somewhat afearde least the Caymall would haue come thether to succour the rest which if he had so done would haue put him in daunger he therefore commanded Nicholas Coello to take with him Antonio del Campo and Pedro de Tayde and to set vpon the Caymals house who was there slaine in defending himselfe valyantly At that time manye more of his companye were both slaine and hurt the house was lykewise spoyled and ransakt of our men were hurt eightéene and one onely slaine In the meane while that this was a doing Francisco de Alburquerque and Edwarto Pacheco did put to flight those of the fléete of Calycut many of them lieng along the water side sorely hurt and slaine the others hadde inough to doe to imbarke themselues in their Paraos in the which afterward they fled away And in remembraunce of so great a victory as this was Francisco de Alburquerque made certaine Knights for that through their manhood the victory was obtained for of thrée thousand Nayres the Caymall had the least part escaped and the Iland was all destroyed with fire and sword and thus after this sorte was the King of Coching well reuenged ouer his enimies ¶ Of the warres which Francisco de Alburquerque began to make against the Lord of Repelyn and how by the King of Cochings license a Castle was begun to be made called Manuel Chap. 58. ALl this being ended then determined Francisco de Alburquerque to make wars against the Lord of Repelyn And to begin the same he departed with his other Captaines in the night toward a towne of his which is foure leagues from Coching whether he came the next day about eight of the clocke To receiue him there were placed along y e water side welny two thousand Nayres of the which ther were fiue hundred bowmen Our men being come within a Base shot of the land began to shoote off in such sort that the enimies were driuen to giue place and retire vnto their Palme trées who being there did tarie the comming of Francisco de Alburquerque He being disimbarked with the rest of his company did giue the onset vpon the enimies hauing Nicholas Coello with his men in the forward and after him marched the rest of the Captaines At the first meeting were some of our men hurt with them 〈◊〉 which they shot standing behinde their Palme trees which to them were a very good bulwarke Our men séeing that as they were and hauing those trees for their defence they could not make them to remoue did then remoue themselues and got on the one side of them shooting at them with their Crossebowes and Caléeuers with the which there were some slaine and the rest fled away vnto their Townes after whom our men followed so eagerly that there was made a great slaughter yea farre greater then in the fieldes for that there they were sperpeled héere they tooke them altogether in their stréets where they might the better deale with them The Towne being left alone was immediately set a fire the spoyle therof was giuen to those Nayres of Coching which went with him this rewarde Francisco de Alburquerque gaue vnto them that they shoulde not thinke his comming into the Indias was to robbe any man but rather to reuenge such iniuries as were shewed to the King of Coching Now at his returne with this victory he was ioyfullye receiued at the Kings handes who requested him not to trouble himselfe any farther for that he iudged himselfe to be well reuenged But he aunswered him that although his highnes was satisfied yet he was not satisfied but requested him to giue him yet for her license for y t he accounted it not any pains to fight in his seruice Howbeit he séeing y t the king was contented did then aske him license to buyld a Fort of timber forasmuch as after that he wer gone for Portingale there might remaine the Kinges Factorâ—esure and without feare and all such as shoulde be lefte in the same And this he declared to be the greatest seruice he coulde doe to the King his Master to consent therevnto To this request the King aunswered that his desire was to serue the King of Portingale with a greater matter then that was for that he must needes confesse that by his meanes he was restored vnto his Kingdome of Coching againe And therefore he willed him to make the same and what els he would and if that néede were he woulde commaund it for to bée made at his owne cost and charge This license being graunted with the consent of the other Captaines it was thought good the same to be made harde by the riuer of Coching right ouer against the Citie within the lande for that there it was thought most surest and from thence they might best resist the comming of the King of Calicuts Fléete And for that they had neither lime stone sande nor anye other necessaries therevnto hee was driuen to make the Castle of timber which the King commaunded to be cut in great plentie as well Palme trées as of other timber He sent also many of his men for the furtherance of the worke saieng that he would not haue anye of our men to labour for that as yet the troubles were sufficient that they had sustained in the warres past But for all that the Captaine generall wold not let but cause them to worke The Captaynes were deâ—â—ded with theyr men and beganne theyr worke the sixe and twentith of September in the selfe same yeare 150â— It was a great pleasure to sée with what diligence our men did labour insomuch that it was sayde there that there were no such men in the worlde againe as ours were for that they serued for all assâ—yes ¶ How the Fort of Coching was made an ende off and how Francisco de Alburquerque and Alonso de Alburquerque retourned againe vppon the Lord of Repelyn Chap. 59. FOure dayes after that the Forte was begun came thether Alonso de Alburquerque who by meanes of the great stormes other foule weather coulde not come sooner notwithstanding he brought all his men with him in health of the which Francisco de Alburquerque was very glad and immediately departed a péece of the Fort to be made by his men and hy this his comming the Fort was made an ende off in a short time which being as it was made of timber was as strong faire as though it had bene made of lyme and stone It was builded square and within the walls from the one side to the other it was square euery way nine fathome The walls were made of
and how the Apostle Saint Thomas came thether and there was martyred and Alonso de Alburquerque went and laded there and in what place did settle a Factorye Chap. 62. IMmediatly after this was the king of Calicut aduertised of the losse of those â—araos and also of all the successe that our men had in those wars for the knowledge wherof he vsed all diligence in respect of the great desire he had to turne vs out of the Indias for that naturally they could not abide vs. And fearing least that we shuld take their countrie from them they were so much the more desirous to hunt vs away This thing they procured with great instance and also were the occasion that we should haue no Pepper Making this account that if so be that we should goe without the same vnto Portingale it would be the occasion that we would not retourne againe to the Indias By this meanes therfore we were driuen to prouide for the Fléete in their riuers and that with such a number of men that we could neuer haue aboue a 1200. quintall of Pepper of 4000. Bahares that the Merchants had promised and yet this we got with great shot of Ordinaunce and hurt of our men and with infinit shedding of bloud of the enimies In the ende the king of Calycut found the meanes by merchants his friends to perswade with the merchants of Coching to giue to the Captaine general no more pepper excusing themselues with the warres Which thing was done in such sort that neither with the request of the king of Coching neither with anye gifte that was giuen them by Francisco de Alburquerque hée coulde moue or perswade them to giue them anye more Pepper Now the hope of our men for hauing the same anye more in Coching béeing past Alonso de Alburquerque with Pedro de Tayde and Antonio del Campo were driuen to séeke for the same at the citie of Coulan which they did the sooner for that they knew that the gouernours of y â— Towne were desirous of our factorie the which was offered to Pedro Aluares Cabrall and the Lorde Admerall Those that thus went thether were fully bent to make warres against them if so be that they woulde not giue them lading for theyr ships Alonso de Alburquerque béeing departed from Coching with certaine Captaines came into the port of the Citie of Coulan the which standeth twelue leagues from Coching and from Comarin xxiiii the which is beyond the same bearing toward the South This Citie as 〈◊〉 saye before that Calycut was builded was the principall of the Poruince of Malabar and the greatest and most principallest Port of all that Coast Notwithstanding as yet their houses be both greate and fayre and so are also theyr Pagodes and Chappell 's comparable to these of Calycut Their harbour or hauen is verie good they are well prouided of all sortes of victualls the people are in condition lyke vnto those of Calicut The inhabitants are Malabars Gentiles and Moores and the Moores are verie rich and greate merchauntes in especially since the warres beganne betwéene Calycut and vs for many merchauntes of Calycut lefte the same and nowe dwell there They doe trade in Coromandyll Ceilan in the Ilands of Maldyua Bengala Pegu â—â—matia and in Malaea The king of this countrie is Lorde of a greate Kingdome wherin are many great Cities and rich which haue belonging vnto them sundrye goodlye harbours by reason whereof his customes are great and for that cause they are riche of Treasure and are able to make a greate power of men of warre which are for the moste parte men but of lyttle stature He hath alwayes in his gard thrée hundred women which doe vse bowes and are very perfect in the skill of shooting They haue about their breasts certaine bands of lynnen of silke with the which they doe binde them so harde that they are no hinderaunce vnto them in their shooting This king hath for y e most part of his 〈◊〉 war with the king of Narsinga which is a great trouble vnto him He doth continually or for the most part remain◠〈◊〉 a Citie the which they doe call Calle The Gouernours of Coulan are as it were Aldermen in the which there is a certaine Church which y e Apostle Saint Thomas builded comming thether to preach the Catholike faith by reason wherof there were great numbers that turned Christians as well of the Gentiles as otherwise so that of them there are procéeded from generation to generation the number of twelue thousand householders that are scattered abroad in the Country wher they haue their Churches The King of Coulan séeing how many were daylye conuerted and the daunger thereof did banish him out of his Countrey who being thus gone went to a Citie called Malapur lyeng along that Coast and is parcell of the Kingdome of Narsingas And yet being there for y t he was so followed by y â— Gentiles and by y e Christians of Coulan did apart himselfe to y e Mountains wher they affirme y t he dyed from thence he was brought to be buried in Coulan in a vante y t was made in the foresaide Church This Church is now ouergrowen with bâ—shes and woodes for that the Citie is disinhabited onely there remaineth a poore Moore which doeth kéepe the same for that there are no Christians néere vnto it and there he liueth vppon the almes of all those y t commeth thether in Pilgrimage aswell of Christians as of the Gentiles for y e Moores doth not let to giue their almes likewise vnto him for that he was buried in their Countrey Alonso de Alburquerque being come to the harbor of this citie the Gouernours hauing knowledge therof they came to visite him a boord his ship where within the same there was setled a peace y â— which was made vpon condition that we should haue our Factory in the Citie also should haue as much lading of spices and other commodities as would lade presently those ships the which immediatly they went about to prouide In the meane while that our men were there and whilest that the one ship tooke in his lading the other two kept abroad in the sea to watch all such as past by from other places and those that they could discrie were brought some with their good wills and others there were brought against their wills to speake with Alonso de Alburquerque and to shew him obedience as to a Captaine general of y e king of Portingales He offered no hurt to any but onely to the Moores of the red sea for all such of them as he tooke he would cause their ships first to be ransacked and afterward to be burnt in reuenge of that they had done to Pedro Aluares Cabrall of the which those of Coulan were greatly afraid The house for the Factorie béeing finished and the shippes laden Alonso de Alburquerque lefte there for Factor one Antonio de Sala
you doe make so little accompt off I doe not take it in vs for so great a victorie in ouercomming these Christians but rather in them in defending themselues from vs as they haue done Wher in it hath well appeared that their God did fight for them And will you sée how it is so You maye well consider that our men are many and that they haue bene valyant in the warres past it hath well appeared in many and great battailes wherein I haue ouercome mine enimies as you do all well know But since they haue fought with these Christians they séeme to be not as they were nor durst giue the onset vpon them for the feare they haue conceiued And certainly as farre as I can learne and also all those that are of a good iudgement we ought to beléeue that those workes are rather of God then of man For who is he that would not be afeard of them wel perceiuing that all others are I meane not onely the King of Cochings subiects which came to succour vs who haue repented themselues thereof but also manye other of our friends which in the beginning of these wars did also aide vs. And farther I am enformed by some that they haue now offered their friendship vnto the King of Coching Which thing if it be true it is for that they haue lost the hope they had of any victory on our part as well for that which is past as also reputing how lyttle time there is now lefte of the Summer and also for that in the Winter they cannot remayne anye time to continue in the Fieldes because of the great stormes and raine which would then be And in the ende of the winter then will there come the Fléete from Portingale which will doe vs as much harme as the fléete did the last yere and so I shall neuer bée out of vnfortunate mischiefes but thus in the end I shall be vtterly destroyed All this shall be that I shall gette with the losse of the friendship of the Christians And it is possible that for theyr causes the Pagodes will not aide nor helpe me as they haue done before time For although you tell me that they doe permit sometime their friendes to suffer persecution for their profit do you not thinke the same also to happen for their offences as it is well knowne this doth for mine What then shall néede any further exhortations to cause me to doe as you would haue me and to suffer persecution for my wealth since I doe vnderstand what the same meaneth and for the preseruing of mine estate it is requisite and needfull to haue friendshippe with the Christians if so be that you be also of the same minde for that we are all equall in the losse and also in the gaines For this talke of the kings they were all sorrie that had giuen him counsell to go forward in these wars since that they perceiued that his intent was to leaue the same and haue friendship with the Captaine Generall These therefore would forthwith haue aunswered but the Prince Nabeadarin didde preuent them who was sorrie for these warres commensed and spake thus looking vppon them all SInce the king doth aske vs counsell what is best to be done in this matter which standeth him so much vppon I as one that most of all am gréeued with this losse and most desirous of his profite will therefore bée the first that shall shewe heerein my minde and what I doe thinke thereof In that which you saye that oftentimes the Pagodes in the time of the persecutions that we do receiue will commaund vs to doe that which they will haue vs so we ought to vnderstande them although therefore in these warres it appeareth that it goeth very euill with vs and in this they doe shew how much they are our frends truely I doe beleue the same the rather for that we ought not to beleue them that would haue a matter done without reason as it were to geue vs the victorie against those Christians and power to destroy the king of Coching vnto whom we haue done very much hurt killynge the laste yeare his Princes and almost all his men setting of Coching a fire and destroying his countrey from whence we hunted him away with his great discredite dispossed him of his kingdome subiects so that al they for the feare they had of vs did leaue him yea his own frendes forsooke him went against him all for our sake And aboue all these euils the which he did not deserue for y t he was not in any fault we would yet procéed further vtterly to destroy him What hath he done Did hee procure to take anye mans countrey from him No. In friendship did he vse himselfe traiterously Neither Did he commaunde the Marchantes that they should not come to Calicut Neither Did he thē some worse thing since he did nothing of these Nothing at all What then forsooth for y t he did receiue into his countrey the Christians which being driuen out of Calicut went to séeke him out as he was desirous to encrease and enpeople his Citie and to augment hys estate and riches Shall we therefore destroy him being our friend as an enemie With this right doe the Pagodes helpe vs to take the honor riches and credite from the right owner It cannot be so for that they be righteous and iust and therfore they will not help vs agaynst those Christians which were slayne robbed and thrust out of Calicut and were there receiued vnder safeconduct from the king comminge to his porte before any others and not geuing cause wherfore they should receiue so many iniuries If wee doe it for that they laide hande vpon a Shippe of the Moores there is no reason why for that the Kinge commaunded them to stay the same And if he had ben aduised by al men as he was by me the Moores should haue paid for that they ha done that very well for if they had ben punished it wold wel haue appered y t the king had ben in no fault of y t which they had done And this had bene sufficient to haue confirmed the friendship of the Christians with him this also would haue bene a cause sufficient to haue kept them in Calicut from going to Coching to haue there setteled a trade whom the King through euill councell hath trauayled so much to take them as though they were théeues that had robbed him of his owne they being so good so gentle so valyant as we sée and besides so gratefull of the benefite they doe receiue For the receiuing of them as y e King of Mylinde did they gaue ouer two ships laden with gold the which they had taken from a Cousin of his If these men were Théeues as the Moores doe say they are those were prices not to be left You know how rich a Present they brought to the King and what ritch merchandise
pleasure that I shoulde get the victorie ouer it which hath procured my dishonour so is it not his pleasure and will that I possesse the state of a king any longer but rather for the amending of my sinnes will ende my lyfe in this Torcull where I meane to continue vntill such time that God hath taken awaye this hatred which hée hath conceiued against mée And from this time forward you may dispose of your selues and do what you shall thinke best with my countrie and subiectes I doe not offer you my person forsomuch as béeing a man so vnfortunate as I am it shall not stand with your credite to require his companye and with this speach hée ended his talke But the Princes and Noble men woulde somewhat haue comforted him and withdrawne him from this his determination but it could not preuaile for that he had fully bent himselfe to the contrary and so with certeine of his Chaplaines he entered into this Torcull Now his mother hauing knowledge that he was there shée sent him word that for this his sodeine determination she remained as heauie and with as sorrowfull a heart as might bée Informing him moreouer that through this sodeine chaunce there hath risen in Calycut a great alteration for that from thence are gone and now are ready to go many sundrie merchants and also that the citie is become wonderfully vnprouided of victualls with the greate feare the inhabitants are in of the Christians which is the occasion ther are no victualls brought thether But no perswasion she sayd could withdrawe him from these wars with the Christians which from the beginning of the same was a great griefe vnto her willing him also that in no case he shoulde returne vnto Calycut vntill he might doe the same with his credit which was cleane lost alreadie And therefore shée counsailed him a while to forbeare vntill such time he did recouer it againe and that with victorie yea rather to loose all then to returne without it With this message the Kings heauinesse increased greatlye and he sent immediatelye for his Brother to whome being come he gaue him charge of the gouernment of his kingdome But after that he came out of the foresaid Torcull it was restored vnto him againe ¶ How there came sundry Kings Princes of the Countrey to demaund peace of the Captaine generall also how there came vnto Coching many Moores of Calycut to inhabite there Chap. 74. ALL these Kings and Noble men which came to serue y e king of Calicut after that he had placed himselfe in the Torcul remained a few dayes in Repelyn tarrieng to sée whether he did repent himselfe of that which he had done or not and perceiuing y e contrary each of them repaired toward their Countreyes whereof the most part of them laye there along the water side And forsomuch as the Winter began to increase and they fearing least the Captaine generall would ouercome them all hauing now lost the hope they had to defend themselues now as before time Therefore they minded to procure as much as they could to be friends and in peace with the Captaine generall For the which intent as Mediatour for the same purpose they sent to the King of Coching whom for that his condition and nature was very good without calling to remembraunce the iniuries that were past which they had done vnto him did vndertake to do the same Sending them immediatly a safeconduct for their safe comming vnto Coching from whence he went in their company to visit the Captaine generall whom at their méeting he earnestly requested to receiue them as his friendes who aunswered that for his sake he would so doe Diuers other Princes also there were that coulde not come but yet notwithstanding they sent vnto him their Embassadours to conclude this peace likewise Also sundrye Moores of Calycut that were great Merchants to the ende they might quietly vse their trade forsooke Calycut came to dwell at Coching with the consent of the Captaine generall Others there were that went to Cananor and Coulan so that the great Trade that was before in Calycut began sodainly to fall And for that the Moores of Calycut began in this sorte to inhabite in Coching therefore the Captaine generall wold not leaue this passage as also for that there came manye sundry times Paraos from Calycut into the riuers to kéep the same by Nabeadarins commaundement Howbeit the Captaine generall met with them and fought with them and hurt many of his enimies Moreouer he oftentimes entered into the Lord of Repelyns Countrey to take Cattell for his prouision fought with many of his enimies vpon whom he made great slaughter One daye by chaunce our men met with certaine Tones of the enimies the which were in a certaine standing water and carried them away into the riuers and made with the enimies a valyant and stout skirmish in the which was slaine the greatest parte of them and not one of our men hurt After all this the Lorde of Repelyn became the Captaine generalls friende and came to visite him and brought him for a Present a great quantitie of Pepper which he had in his Countrey ¶ How Lope Suares de Menesis departed for the Indias for captaine generall of the Fleete that went in the yeare of our Lorde a 1504. and what more past or euer he came to Ansadina cap. 75. IN the yeare of our Lorde 1504. the king of Portingale hauing certeine knowledge that the king of Calycut continued as yet in the warres did therfore send to succour our men with a Fléete of twelue great shippes and appointed for Generall of the same a Gentleman called Lope Suares de Menesis who in the time of king Don Iohn the second had bene Captaine in the Mina The Captaines of the Fléet were these following Pedro de Mendosa Lionel Cotinuo Tristim de la Silua Lope Mendus de Vascon Cele Lope de Abreo Philipe de Castro Alonso Lopes de Castro Alonso Lopes de la Cocts Pero Alonso de Aguylar Vasco de la Siluero Vasco Caruallo Pedro Dynes de Sutunell All these were Gentlemen borne and some were made Gentlemen by seruice These also carryed with them many valiant souldiers who being imbarked and the Captaine Generall dispatched did depart from Lishborne the .xxii. of Aprill in the selfe same yeare and continuing theyr voiage on the second day of May they found themselues right in their course to Cape Verde Then y ◠Captaine generall hauing héere all y ◠Fléete together caused his Captaines Maisters and Pilots to assemble themselues vnto whome he spake in sence following Willing them to call to remembraunce howe lately they had departed from Portingale for which cause it was requisite that they were circumspect and diligent and not to fall into such disorders and extremities as hetherto they haue done for not looking euery man vnto his charge and not to
Mores The king quarrelleth vvith the Captaine Generall The effect of y e king of Portingales Letters to the king of Calycut the Mores make a nevv conspiracie Dissimulation in y e Catuall The Catuals purpose opened The Generals vneffectuall excuse Gonsallo Peres sent back to the ships The generals constancye marueled at by the Catuall The effect of y e Generals letters vnto his brother His brothers aply deuises of the Mores to entise theÌ„ aland Their merchandize paide for by y e king him selfe Bontaybo vsed but not trusted The ende of y e vvinter in the Indias The kings aunsvvere vnto Diego Dias Diego Dias kept in prison Boies sent for spyes The king of Calicuts treson towards the Captaine generall Certaine Malabars stayed in exchange Yet 〈◊〉 deuices to slaye the Portingals from departing The effect of y e king of Calicuts letters Bontaibo vvilling to goe to Portingal Cinamon grovving AnsaÌ„dina forsaken of the inhabitants They repaire their ships Sugar Canes grovving there A notable couÌ„terfait discouered A kinde of boates so called A Moore christened Men stifled vvith the Sunne onely The Skurfe A vvofull mortalitie The Citie of Magadoxo The Raphaell burned The I le of Zenziber The preparation vnto y e second voiage The names of the Generalls Captaines Factors Friers sent to the Malabars A ievvell of great price OrnameÌ„ts made of Parrats feathers The couÌ„trey of Brasil discouered A Comet seene in the elemeÌ„t four ships sunke by tempest A vvoÌ„derful storme and great Seas They coÌ„e to Sofala The king of Quiloa a mightie Prince The descriptioÌ„ of the city of Quyloa Shippes vvithout nailes The meeting of y e king y e Captaine Generall A malitious ferfull More The kings message to y e Captaine Generall 〈…〉 The king of Calycuts message to y e Captaine Generall The king of Calicut maketh excuses vvhen he should deliuer pledges Pleadges are sent aboorde vvhich feare to be taken captiue The king of Calycuts state furniture The Captaine generall deliuereth his letters of credite to the king of Calicut The preseÌ„t vvhich y e generall brought with him Humaiâ—â— pity in 〈◊〉 Captaine generall tovvard faithlesse Infidells The pledges sent aboord The Captaine generall had good came to feare and hate the Moores A free house for the factory giueÌ„ to the king of Portingale by deede This ship for one in those coasts very vvel appointed The Moores yeelded vnto our men The Moores Oration against our men Proues that vvee vvere rather pirats then merchants why he requested our men to take the ship of Meca The king accused plainly of doblenes Nothing more acceptable to the Mores theÌ„ to quarell fall out vvith our men The Moores moued a tumult against our men The sauage fircenes of the Moores against our men Succour sent by y e Generall Captaine to the Factorie The king of Calicut vvas farre off from making a mendes Iust reuenge vvrought vpon the iniurious CalicuttaÌ„s The feare that the King of Calicut and the citizens were in Coching standeth in 9. degrees and the scituatioÌ„ therof A Moore baptised called Michael The king of Coching much inferior in vvealth state to y e king of Calycut The discriptioÌ„ state of GraÌ„galor Why the christians of y e Indias hath a Pope The manner of shauing their priests differing froÌ„ ours Negro friers professing chastitie A greate Fleete of enimies He maketh tovvard Portingale The discription of the tovvne of Cananor Drugs for the Pothecaries Euery quintall is 100. vveight A ship of the fleete cast avvay Diego Dias found at Capo Verde his voyage The IlaÌ„d of Sofala discouered The third Fleet that vvent froÌ„ Portingal to the Indias The order that the king gaue him concerning this voyage they take their voyage to the Indias The malitiousnesse of the Moores Euerye Quintall is a 100. vvaight The king of Calicut sent lxxx Paraos to fight with y e captain generall This flag was a sign request of peace they ariue safelye at Portingal The iiii voyage to the Indias 1502. He goeth first to Sofala to regrate their golde A house apointed for the Factory A ship of y e Moores of Meca taken Desperate minds in time of extremitie An embassadour set to y e king of Cananor The meeting of y e king and the Captaine Generall at Cananor 1502. The preseÌ„t vvhich the king of Portingale sent y e king of Cananor The Moores make him keepe no promise vvith the Capteine Generall nor feare his povver The king of Portingales present seÌ„t to the king of Coching The king of Coching present set to the king of Portingale This messeÌ„ger was one of his chief chaplaines The king of Calycuts letter to y e king of Coching The aunsvvere of the king of Coching to the king of Calycuts letter The reply to the king of Cochings letter The king of Cochings ansvvere to the reply Great friendship and constancie in an heatheÌ„ Prince A battaile by sea between our ships and the kings of Calicut A rich price takeÌ„ from the enimie The order that vvas giuen to Vincente Sodre at the departure of the Captaine generall froÌ„ Cananor They vvere dispersed by a tempest Both commons noble meÌ„ repine against theyr king and our men The Captain generall excuseth himselfe for deling on the lande This generall captaine had other matters of more profit in hand The king of Calicut signifieth the cause vvhy hee beginneth to make these vvarres against the king of Coching Heere this enterprise vvas vvell liked of by his noble men others The aunswere vvhich y â— prince made to y â— foresayde Oration The execution of y e pledges defended by the kings brother The Mores ouerthrovv the credit of y e kings brothers Oration The very sight of our men abhorred in Coching The aunsvvere vvhich the king of Coching made to the factor Fevve hauing the right on their side preuayle most times against nuÌ„bers that come in an euill cause The king of Cochings Oration to his noble men It is better to dye vvith honor then to lyue vvith the infamous name of a rude and lieng Prince The kings brother made general of the field and armie The king of Calycuts letter to y e king of Coching The aunsvvere which the king of Coching made to the foresaid letter The Calicutians repulsed froÌ„ passing ouer the Foorde IncoÌ„stancie â—n the king of Calycut noted A stout stomacke of a prince Treason practised against y e prince Naramuhim Prince Naramuhim and his povver ouerthrovvne Comfortable vvords of a prince The kings Oration made vnto his subiects about the losse of his kingdome Ouerthrovvs in vvar sent of God vnto princes for their of fences The inhabitants of Coching flye for feare of the king of Calicut The king of Coching is faine to flye and leaue his citie 1503 The familiaritie securitie of y e inhabitants of the Iland of Curia Muria The effect which the torment vvrought amongest their ships in that coast 1503. The