[Sidenote: The Madre de Dios taken.] The same euening sir R. Crosse finding the carak then sure and drawing neere the Iland perswaded his company to boord her againe, or els there was no hope to recouer her: who after many excuses and feares, were by him incouraged, and so fell athwart her foreships all alone; and so hindered her sailing that the rest had time to come vp to his succour, and to recouer the carak yer she recouered the land: and so toward the euening after he had fought with her alone three houres single, my lord of Cumberlands two ships came vp, and with very little losse entred with sir R. Crosse, who had in that time broken their courages, and made the assault easie for the rest.
The generall hauing disarmed the Portugals, and stowed them for better security on all sides, first had presented to his eyes the true proportion of the vast body of this carak, which did then and may still iustly prouoke the admiration of all men not formerly acquainted with such a sight. But albeit this first apparance of the hugenesse thereof yeelded sights enough to entertaine our mens eyes: yet the pitifull obiect of so many bodies slaine and dismembred could not but draw ech mans eye to see, and heart to lament, and hands to helpe those miserable people, whose limnes were so torne with the violence of shot, and paine made grieuous with the multitude of woundes. No man could almost steppe but vpon a dead carkase or a bloody floore, but specially about the helme, where very many of them fell suddenly from stirring to dying. For the greatnesse of the stirrage requiring the labour of twelue or fourteene men at once, and some of our shippes beating her in at the sterne with their ordinance often times with one shot slew foure or fiue labouring on either side of the helme; whose roomes being still furnished with fresh supplies, and our artillery still playing vpon them with continuall volleys, it could not be but that much bloud should be shed in that place. [Sidenote: Exceeding humanity shewed to the enemy.] Whereupon our Generall moued with singular commiseration of their misery, sent them his owne chyrurgions, denying them no possible helpe or reliefe that he or any of his company could affoord them. Among the rest of those, whose state this chance had made very deplorable, was Don Fernando de Mendoça Grand captaine and Commander of this Carake: who indeed was descended of the house of Mendoça in Spaine; but being married into Portugall, liued there as one of that nation; a gentleman well stricken in yeeres, well spoken, of comely personage, of good stature, but of hard fortune. In his seuerall seruices against the Moores he was twise taken prisoner, and both times ransomed by the king. In a former voyage of returne from the East India he was driuen vpon the Baxos or sands of Iuda nere the coast of Cephala, being then also captaine of a caracke which was there lost, and himselfe, though escaping the sea-danger, yet fell into the hands of infidels on land; who kept him vnder long and grieuous seruitude. Once more the king carying a louing respect to the man, and desirous to better his condition, was content to let him try his fortune in this Easterly nauigation, and committed vnto him the conduct of this caracke, wherein he went from Lisbon Generall of the whole fleet, and in that degree had returned, if the Vice-rey of Goa embarked for Portugall in the Bon Iesus had not, by reason of his late office, bene preferred. Sir Iohn intending not to adde too much affliction to the afflicted, moued with pity and compassion of humane misery, in the end resolued freely to dismisse this captaine and the most part of his followers, to their owne countrey, and for the same purpose bestowed them in certaine vessels furnished with all kindes of necessary prouision. This businesse thus dispatched, good leasure had he to take such view of the goods as conueniency might affoord. And hauing very prudently (to cut off the vnprofitable spoile and pillage whereunto he saw the minds of many inclined) seised vpon the whole to her Maiesties vse, after a short and slender romaging and searching of such things as first came to hand, he perceiued that the wealth would arise nothing disanswerable to expectation; but that the variety and grandure of all rich commodities would be more then sufficient to content both the aduenturers desire and the souldiers trauell. And here I cannot but enter into the consideration and acknowledgement of Gods great fauor towards our nation, who by putting this purchase into our hands hath manifestly discouered those secret trades and Indian riches, which hitherto lay strangely hidden, and cunningly concealed from vs; whereof there was among some few of vs some small and vnperfect glimse onely, which now is turned into the broad light of full and perfect knowledge. Whereby it should seeme that the will of God for our good is (if our weaknesse could apprehend it) to haue vs communicate with them in those East Indian treasures, and by the erection of a lawfull traffike to better our meanes to aduance true religion and his holy seruice. The caracke being in burden by the estimation of the wise and experienced no lesse then 1600 tunnes had full 900 of those stowed with the grosse bulke of marchandise, the rest of the tunnage being allowed, partly to the ordinance which were 32 pieces of brasse of all sorts, partly to the passengers and the victuals, which could not be any small quantity, considering the number of the persons betwixt 600 and 700, and the length of the nauigation. To giue you a taste (as it were) of the commodities, it shall suffice to deliuer you a generall particularity of them, according to the catalogue taken at Leadenhall the 15 of September 1592. [Sidenote: A briefe catalogue of the sundry rich commodities of the Madre de Dios.] Where vpon good view it was found, that the principall wares after the iewels (which were no doubt of great value, though they neuer came to light) consisted of spices, drugges, silks, calicos, quilts, carpets and colours, &c. The spices were pepper, cloues, maces, nutmegs, cinamom, greene ginger: the drugs were beniamin, frankincense, galingale, mirabolans, aloes zocotrina, camphire: the silks, damasks, taffatas, sarcenets, altobassos, that is, counterfeit cloth of gold, vnwrought China silke, sleaued silke, white twisted silke, curled cypresse. The calicos were book-calicos, calico-launes, broad white calicos, fine starched calicos, course white calicos, browne broad calicos, browne course calicos. There were also canopies, and course diaper-towels, quilts of course sarcenet and of calico, carpets like those of Turky; whereunto are to be added the pearle, muske, ciuet, and amber-griece. The rest of the wares were many in number, but lesse in value; as elephants teeth, porcellan vessels of China, coco-nuts, hides, eben-wood as blacke as iet, bedsteads of the same, cloth of the rindes of trees very strange for the matter, and artificiall in workemanship. All which piles of commodities being by men of approued iudgement rated but in reasonable sort amounted to no lesse then 150000 li. sterling, which being diuided among the aduenturers (whereof her Maiesty was the chiefe) was sufficient to yeeld contentment to all parties. [Sidenote: The capacity and dimensions of the Madre de Dios.] The cargazon being taken out, and the goods fraighted in tenne of our ships sent for London, to the end that the bignesse, heigth, length, bredth, and other dimensions of so huge a vessell might by the exact rules of Geometricall obseruations be truly taken, both for present knowledge, and deriuation also of the same vnto posterity, one M. Robert Adams, a man in his faculty of excellent skill, omitted nothing in the description, which either his arte could demonstrate, or any mans iudgement thinke woorthy the memory. After an exquisite suruey of the whole frame he found the length from the beak-head to the sterne (whereupon was erected a lanterne) to containe 165 foote. The breadth in the second close decke whereof she had three, this being the place where there was most extension of bredth, was 46 feet and ten inches. She drew in water 31 foot at her departure from Cochin in India, but not aboue 26 at her arriual in Dartmouth, being lightened in her voyage by diuers meanes some 5 foote. She caried in height 7 seuerall stories, one maine Orlop, three close decks, one fore-castle, and a spar-decke of two floores a piece. The length of the keele was 100 foote, of the maine-mast 121 foot, and the circuite about at the partners 10 foote 7 inches, the maine-yard was 106 foote long. By which perfect commensuration of the parts appeareth the hugenesse of the whole, farre beyond the mould of the biggest shipping vsed among vs either for warre or receit.
Don Alonso de Baçan hauing a great Fleet and suffering these two caraks, the Santa Cruz to be burnt, and the Madre de Dios to be taken, was disgraced by his prince for this negligence.
* * * * *
The firing and sinking of the stout and warrelike Carack called Las Cinque
Llaguas, or, The fiue Wounds, by three tall Ships set foorth at the
charges of the right honorable the Erle of Cumberland and his friends:
Written by the discreet and valiant captaine M. Nicholas Downton.
In the latter ende of the yeere 1593. the right honourable Erle of Cumberland, at his owne charges and his friends, prepared 3 ships, all at equall rate, and either of them had like quantitie of victuals, and like numbers of men, there being embarked in all 3 ships 420 men of al sorts. [Marginal note: Besides these three ships there was a pinnas called the Violet, or the Why not I.] The Roial Exchange went as Admirall, wherein M. George Caue was captaine. The May-flower Viceadmirall vnder the conduct of William Anthonie: and the Sampson, the charge whereof it pleased his honour to commit vnto me Nicholas Dounton. Our directions were sent vs to Plimmouth, and we were to open them at sea.
The sixt of Aprill 1594 we set sayle in the sound of Plimmouth, directing our course toward the coast of Spaine.
The 24 of the sayd moneth at the Admirals direction wee diuided our selues East and West from ech other, being then in the heigth of 43 degrees, with commaundement at night to come together againe.
The 27 day in the morning we descried the May-flower and the litle Pinnasse with a Prise that they had taken, being of Viana in Portugall, and bound for Angola in Africa. This Barke was of 28 tunnes, hauing some 17 persons in the same. [Sidenote: Commodities fit for Angola.] There were in her some 12 Buts of Galicia wine, whereof we tooke into euery shippe a like part, with some Ruske in chests and barrels, with 5 buts of blew course cloth, and certaine course linnen-cloth for Negros shirts, which goods were diuided among our fleet.
The 4 of May we had sight of our Pinnasse, and the Admirals Shallop which had taken three Portugall Carauels, whereof they had sent two away and kept the third.