Page images
PDF
EPUB

together with William of Malmesbury, that he was not onely soveraigne lord of all the British seas, and of the whole Isle of Britaine it selfe, but also that he brought under his yoke of subjection, most of the Isles and some of the maine lands adjacent. And for that most of our Navigators at this time bee (for want of trade and practise that way) either utterly ignorant, or but meanely skilfull, in the true state of the Seas, Shoulds, and Islands, lying between the North part of Ireland and of Scotland; I have for their better encouragement (if any weightie action shall hereafter chance to drawe them into those quarters) translated into English a briefe treatise called, A Chronicle of the Kings of Man. Wherein they may behold as well the tragical and dolefull historie of those parts, for the space almost of 300. yeeres, as also the most ordinarie and accustomed navigations, through those very seas, and amidst those Northwesterne Isles called the Hebrides, so many hundred yeeres agoe. For they shall there read, that even then (when men were but rude in sea-causes in regard of the great knowledge which we now have) first Godredus Crovan with a whole Fleet of ships, throughly haunted some places in that sea: secondly, that one Ingemundus setting saile out of Norway, arrived upon the Isle of Lewis: then, that Magnus the king of Norway came into the same seas with 160. sailes, and having subdued the Orkney Isles in his way, passed on in like conquering maner, directing his course (as it should seeme) even through the very midst, and on all sides of the Hebrides, who sailing thence to Man, conquered it also, proceeding afterward as farre as. Anglesey; and lastly crossing over from the Isle of Man to the East part of Ireland. Yea, there they shall read of Godredus the sonne of Olavus his voiage to the king of Norway, of his expedition with 80. ships against Sumerledus, of Sumerled his expedition with 53. ships against him; of Godred his flight and second journey into Norway; of Sumerled his second arrival with 160. shippes at Rhinfrin upon the coast of Man, and of many other such combates, assaults, & voyages which were performed onely upon those seas & Islands. And for the bringing of this woorthy monument to light, we doe owe great thanks unto the judiciall and famous Antiquarie M. Camden. But sithens we are entred into a discourse of the ancient warrelike shipping

of this land, the Reader shall give me leave to borow one principall note out of this litle historie, before I quite take my leave thereof: and that is in few words, that K. John passed into Ireland with a Fleet of 500. sailes; so great were our sea-forces even in his time. Neither did our shipping for the warres first begin to flourish with king John, but long before his dayes in the reign of K. Edward the Confessor, of William the Conqueror, of William Rufus and the rest, there were divers men of warre which did valiant service at sea, and for their paines were roially rewarded. All this and more then this you may see recorded, pag. 83. out of the learned Gentleman M. Lambert his Perambulation of Kent; namely, the antiquitie of the Kentish Cinque ports, which of the sea-townes they were, how they were infranchised, what gracious privileges and high prerogatives were by divers kings vouchsafed upon them, and what services they were tied unto in regard thereof; to wit, how many ships, how many souldiers, mariners, Garsons, and for how many dayes each of them, and all of them were to furnish for the kings use; and lastly, what great exploits they performed under the conduct of Hubert of Burrough, as likewise against the Welshmen, upon 200. French ships, and under the commaund of captaine Henry Pay. Then have you, pag. 93. the franke and bountifull Charter granted by king Edward the first, upon the foresayd Cinque portes : & next thereunto a Roll of the mightie fleet of seven hundred ships which K. Edward the third had with him unto the siege of Caleis out of which Roll (before I proceed any further) let me give you a double observation. First; that these ships, according to the number of the mariners which were in all 14151. persons, seeme to have bene of great burthen; and secondly, that Yarmouth an haven towne in Northfolke (which I much wonder at) set foorth almost twise as many ships and mariners, as either the king did at his owne costs and charges, or as any one citie or towne in England besides. Howbeit Tho. Walsingham maketh plaine and evident mention of a farre greater Fleete of the same king; namely, of 1100. shippes lying before Sandwich, being all of them sufficiently well furnished. Moreover, the Reader may behold, pag. 172. a notable testimonie of the mightie ships of that valiant prince king Henry the 5. who (when after his great

victory at Agincourt the Frenchmen to recover Harflew had hired certaine Spanish and Italian ships and forces, & had united their owne strength unto them) sent his brother John duke of Bedford to encounter them, who bidding them battell, got the victory, taking some of their ships, and sinking others, and putting the residue to dishonorable flight. Likewise comming the next yeere with stronger powers, and being then also overcome, they were glad to conclude a perpetuall league with K. Henry ; & propter eorum naves (saieth mine Author) that is, for the resistance of their ships, the sayd king caused such huge ships to be built, quales non erant in mundo, as the like were not to be found in the whole world besides.

But to leave our ancient shipping, and descend unto later times; I thinke that never was any nation blessed of JEHOVAH, with a more glorious and wonderfull victory upon the Seas, then our vanquishing of the dreadfull Spanish Armada, 1588. But why should I presume to call it our vanquishing; when as the greatest part of them escaped us, and were onely by Gods out-stretched arme. overwhelmed in the Seas, dashed in pieces against the Rockes, and made fearefull spectacles and examples of his judgements unto all Christendome? An excellent discourse whereof, as likewise of the honourable expedition under two of the most noble and valiant peeres of this Realme, I meane, the renoumed Erle of Essex, and the right honorable the lord Charles Howard, lord high Admirall of England, made 1596. unto the strong citie of Cadiz, I have set downe as a double epiphonema to conclude this my first volume withall. Both of which, albeit they ought of right to have bene placed among the Southerne voyages of our nation : yet partly to satisfie the importunitie of some of my special friends, and partly, not longer to deprive the diligent Reader of two such woorthy and long-expected discourses; I have made bold to straine a litle curtesie with that methode which I first propounded unto my selfe.

And here had I almost forgotten to put the Reader in mind of that learned and Philosophical treatise of the true state of Iseland, and so consequently of the Northren Seas & regions lying that way: wherein a great number of none of the meanest Historiographers and Cosmographers of later times, as namely, Munster, Gemma

Frisius, Zieglerus, Krantzius, Saxo Grammaticus, Olaus Magnus, Peucerus and others, are by evident arguments convinced of manifold errors: that is to say, as touching the true situation and Northerly latitude of that Island, and of the distance thereof from other places; touching the length of dayes in Sommer and of nights in Winter, of the temperature of the land and sea, of the time and maner of the congealing, continuance, and thawing of the Ice in those Seas, of the first Discoverie and inhabiting of that Island, of the first planting of Christianitie there, as likewise of the continuall flaming of mountains, strange qualities of fountains, of hel-mouth, and of purgatorie which those authors have fondly written and imagined to be there. All which treatise ought to bee the more acceptable; first in that it hath brought sound trueth with it; and secondly, in that it commeth from that farre Northren climate which most men would suppose could not affoord any one so learned a Patrone for it selfe.

And thus (friendly Reader) thou seest the briefe summe and scope of all my labours for the commonwealths sake, and thy sake, bestowed upon this first Volume: which if thou shalt as thankefully accept, as I have willingly and freely imparted with thee, I shall bee the better encouraged speedily to acquaint thee with those rare, delightfull and profitable histories, which I purpose (God willing) to publish concerning the Southerne and Westerne partes of the World.

THE EPISTLE DEDICATORIE IN THE SECOND VOLUME OF THE SECOND EDITION, 1599.

To the Right Honorable Sir Robert Cecil Knight, principall Secretarie to her Majestie, master of the Court of Wardes and Liveries, and one of her Majesties most honourable privie Counsell.

Right honorable, having newly finished a Treatise of the long Voyages of our Nation made into the Levant within the Streight of Gibraltar, & from thence overland to the South and Southeast parts of the world, all circumstances considered, I found none to whom I thought it fitter to bee presented then to your selfe: wherein having begun at the highest Antiquities of this realme under the government of the Romans; next under the Saxons; and thirdly since the conquest under the Normans, I have continued the histories unto these our dayes. The time of the Romans affoordeth small matter. But after that they were called hence by forren invasions of their Empire, and the Saxons by degrees became lords in this Iland, and shortly after received the Christian faith, they did not onely travel to Rome, but passed further unto Jerusalem, and therewith not contented, Sigelmus bishop of Shireburne in Dorcetshire caried the almes of king Alfred even to the Sepulcher of S. Thomas in India, (which place at this day is called Maliapor) and brought from thence most fragrant spices, and rich jewels into England which jewels, as William of Malmesburie in two sundry treatises writeth, were remaining in the aforesayd Cathedrall Church to be seene even in his time. And this most memorable voyage into India is not onely mentioned by the aforesayd Malmesburie, but also by Florentius Wigorniensis, a grave and woorthy Author which lived before him, and by many others since, and even by M. Foxe in his first volume of his Acts and Monuments in the life of king Alfred. To omit divers other of the Saxon nation, the travels of Alured bishop of Worcester through Hungarie to Constantinople, and so by Asia the lesse into Phoenicia and Syria, and the

« PreviousContinue »