And We Again With All Endeavour Shall Study To Perform All Those Things
Which We Shall In Any Wise Understand To Be Acceptable To Your Imperial
Majesty, Which God, The Only Maker Of The World, Most Best And Most
Great, Long Keep In Health And Flourishing.
Given in our Palace at
London, the 5th day of the month of September, in the year of Jesus
Christ our Saviour 1584, and of our reign the twenty-sixth.
THE COMMANDMENT OBTAINED OF THE GRAND SIGNIOR BY HER MAJESTY'S
AMBASSADOR, FOR THE QUIET PASSING OF HER SUBJECTS TO AND FROM HIS
DOMINIONS, SENT IN ANNO 1584 TO THE VICEROYS, ALGIERS, TUNIS, AND
TRIPOLIS IN BARBARY.
To our Beglerbeg of Algiers. We certify thee by this our commandment
that the right honourable William Harebrowne, ambassador to the Queen's
Majesty of England, hath signified unto us that the ships of that
country, in their coming and returning to and from our Empire, on the
one part of the seas have the Spaniards, Florentines, Sicilians, and
Maltese, on the other part our countries, committed to your charge,
which above said Christians will not quietly suffer their egress and
regress into and out of our dominions, but to take and make the men
captives, and forfeit the ships and goods, as the last year the Maltese
did one which they took at Gerbi, and to that end do continually lie in
wait for them to their destruction, whereupon they are constrained to
stand to their defence at any such times as they might meet with them;
wherefore considering by this means they must stand upon their guard
when they shall see any galley afar off, whereby if meeting with any of
your galleys, and not knowing them, in their defence they do shoot at
them, and yet after, when they do certainly know them, do not shoot any
more, but require to pass peaceably on their voyage, which you would
deny, saying, "The peace is broken, for that you have shot at us, and
so do make prize of them, contrary to our privileges, and against
reason:" for the preventing of which inconvenience the said ambassador
hath required this our commandment. We therefore command thee that
upon sight hereof then do not permit any such matter in no sort
whatsoever, but suffer the said Englishmen to pass in peace, according
to the tenor of our commandment given, without any disturbance or let
by any means upon the way, although that, meeting with thy galleys, and
not knowing them afar off, they, taking them for enemies, should shoot
at them, yet shall ye not suffer them to hurt them therefor, but
quietly to pass. Wherefore look thou, that they may have right
according to our privilege given them, and finding any that absenteth
himself and will not obey this our commandment, presently certify us to
our porch, that we may give order for his punishment; and with
reverence give faithful credit to this our commandment, which having
read, thou shalt again return it unto them that present it. From our
palace in Constantinople, the prime of June, 1584.
THE TURK'S LETTER TO THE KING OF TRIPOLIS, IN BARBARY, COMMANDING THE
RESTITUTION OF AN ENGLISH SHIP, CALLED THE JESUS, WITH THE MEN AND
GOODS, SENT FROM CONSTANTINOPLE BY MAHOMET BEG, A JUSTICE OF THE GREAT
TURK'S, AND AN ENGLISH GENTLEMAN, CALLED MASTER EDWARD BARTON. ANNO
1584.
Honourable and most worthy Pasha Romadan Beglerbeg, most wise and
prudent judge of the West Tripolis, we wish the end of all thy
enterprises happy and prosperous. By these our Highness's letters we
certify thee that the Right Honourable William Harebrowne, Ambassador
in our most famous porch for the most excellent Queen's Majesty of
England, in person and by letters hath certified our Highness that a
certain ship, with all her furniture and artillery, worth two thousand
ducats, arriving in the port of Tripolis, and discharged of her lading
and merchandise, paid our custom according to order, and again the
merchants laded their ship with oil, which by constraint they were
enforced to buy of you, and having answered in like manner the custom
for the same, determined to depart. A Frenchman, assistant to the
merchant, unknown to the Englishmen, carried away with him another
Frenchman indebted to a certain Moor in four hundred ducats, and by
force caused the Englishmen and ship to depart, who, neither suspecting
fraud nor deceit, hoisted sails. In the meantime, this man, whose
debtor the Frenchman had stolen away, went to the Pasha with a
supplication, by whose means, and force of the Castle, the Englishmen
were constrained to return into the port, where the Frenchman, author
of the evil, with the master of the ship, an Englishman, innocent of
the crime, were hanged, and five-and-twenty Englishmen cast into
prison, of whom, through famine and thirst, and stink of the prison,
eleven died, and the rest were like to die. Further, it was signified
to our Majesty also that the merchandise and other goods with the ship
were worth seven thousand six hundred ducats. Which things, if they be
so, this is our commandment, which was granted and given by our
Majesty, that the English ship, and all the merchandise, and whatsoever
else was taken away, be wholly restored, and that the Englishmen be let
go free, and suffered to return into their country. Wherefore, when
this our commandment shall come unto thee, we straightly command that
the foresaid business be diligently looked unto and discharged. And if
it be so that a Frenchman, and no Englishman, hath done this craft and
wickedness, unknown to the Englishmen, and, as author of the
wickedness, is punished, and that the Englishmen committed nothing
against the peace and league, or their articles; also, if they paid
custom according to order, it is against law, custom of countries, and
their privilege, to hinder or hurt them. Neither is it meet their
ship, merchandise, and all their goods taken should be withholden.
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