The Sovereignty of the Sea / An Historical Account of the Claims of England to the Dominion of the British Seas, and of the Evolution of the Territorial Waters

by Thomas Wemyss Fulton

[159] Acts of the Privy Council of England, i. 103, 104, 106, 112, 114, an. 1543.

[160] 2 & 3 Edw. VI., c. 19. Certain exceptions, of those licensed, ill, or very old, or in prison, were made.

[161] State Papers, Dom., Addenda, Edw. VI., iv. 56. The paper, which is endorsed by Cecil, “The Answer of the Fishmongers,” is undated, but that it belongs to the reign of Edward VI. (1547-1553) is proved by the words, “the reign of our late sovereign, Henry VIII.” The return of 1528, referred to by the fishmongers, is among the State Papers (Foreign and Domestic Letters and Papers, Hen. VIII., iv. pt. 2, No. 5101). It states that 149 vessels went to the Iceland fishing, mostly from Yarmouth, Blakeney, Cromer, Dunwich, Walderswick, and Southwold; the herring-fishing in the North Sea employed 222, of which 110 belonged to the Cinque Ports, while 69 went to Shetland, the total being 440. Shetland lings were in those days greatly prized, and brought very high prices.

[162] State Papers, Dom., Addenda, Edw. VI., iv. 57. “The decaied Porte Townes w^th nombers of good villages a longe by the sea cost of this realm, within these twentie or thirtie years;” undated, but belonging to the same period, with Cecil’s calculations written on the back.

[163] State Papers, Dom., Elizabeth, xxvii. 71, February 1563. Endorsed, “Arguments for Increase of the Navy,” and “Arguments to prove that it is necessary for the restoring of the navy of England to have one Day more in ye weeke ordained to be a fish day, and that to be Wensday rather than any other.”

[164] The exportation, without license, of herrings, among other things, had been forbidden by 1 & 2 Ph. and Mary, c. 5 (1554); but by 1 Eliz., c. 17, subjects were permitted to export sea fish taken by subjects in English ships free of customs for four years.

[165] “The causes of the decay of fishing must be the lack of the vse of fishing, which must be divided into ij partes, small eating of fisshe in ye Realme, and not selling of it abroad.”

[166] The number of French vessels engaged in the Newfoundland fisheries is placed at 500, with 15,000 men; and over 100, with at least 1000 men, fished at Iceland for “herrings,”—but no doubt for cod and ling.

[167] There are many other memoranda amongst the State Papers, some in Cecil’s handwriting, which deal with fish-days. One gives in detail a note of all the fish-days throughout the year, amounting to 186, and in addition “a number of sayntes evens were fastyng dayes that now be not observed.” Ibid., xxxi. 41, 42 (1563).

[168] 5 Eliz. c. 5. The debate on the Wednesday proposal lasted three days, the clause being ultimately carried by 179 to 97 (Commons Journals, i. 68). It was in view of the expected opposition that the long paper above referred to was prepared. The Wednesday was not put on quite the same footing as the Fridays and Saturdays, since “one only usual competent dish of flesh and no more” was allowed, provided that at the same table “three full competent usual dishes of sea fish of sundry kinds, either fresh or salt,” were served and eaten “without fraud or covin.” Another clause explained that the object was “meant politically for the increase of fishermen and mariners, and repairing of port towns and navigation”, and not for any superstition “regarding choice of meats”; any one stating the contrary was to be punished.