And For That I Know Your
Worship, With Great Peril And Daunger Haue Past These Monstrous And
Bottomlesse Sees, 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 years continuance in
foreine countries. Howbeit, I hope to have truly observed the literal
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 shall 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 hitherto sent you
in your dangerous trauaile & affayres, and as maye euery waye content
your owne heartes desire, doe euen so take my leaue. From London the
fifth of March. 1582.
Your worships alwayes to commaund,
_Nicholas Lichefild._
[1] Bibl. des Voyages, V. 2.
* * * * *
DEDICATION BY CASTANEDA.
_To
The most high and mighty Prince,
John III.
King of Portugal and Algarve,
&c._
It hath seemed to me, most high and mighty prince, our dread king and
sovereign, so important and weighty a matter to undertake a history of
the great and valiant actions which our Portuguese have performed in
the discovery and conquest of India, that I often thought to
relinquish the attempt. But as these noble deeds were principally
undertaken and performed for the glory of Almighty God, the conversion
of the barbarous nations to the Christian faith, and the great honour
of your highness; and as, by the power and mercy of the Omnipotent,
such fortunate success has been granted to these famous enterprises, I
have been encouraged to proceed. I therefore trust entirely to the aid
and comfort of the divine goodness in publishing this work, giving the
glory thereof to God alone, and its earthly praise to your excellent
highness, and the king Don Manuel your father, of famous and happy
memory.
Although these glorious deeds are well known and spread abroad over
the world, they yet cannot be sufficiently made manifest unless set
forth in writing, by means of which their memory may endure for ever,
and remain always as if present to the readers; as history hath
perpetuated the actions of the Greeks and Romans which are of such
high antiquity. Of other transactions, nothing inferior to theirs,
perhaps even far greater, which have been performed by other nations,
there is little or no memory, because these do not remain recorded by
history: Such are those of the Assyrians, Medes and Persians; of the
Africans against the Romans; of the Suevi against Julius Caesar; of
the Spaniards in recovering their country from the Moors; and
principally of these invincible and pious kings of Portugal, your
glorious ancestors, Don Alonso Henriques, Don Sancho his son, and Don
Alonso, who acquired the kingdoms of Portugal and Algarve by great and
wonderful deeds of arms.
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