Volume 13 — APPENDIX D A PRIVATEER OF 1592

The two prizes taken by the Amity were the St Francisco of 130, and the St Peter of 150 tons, laden with 112 tons of quicksilver, and 28 tons of Bulls, 1,458,000 in number, for ‘lyvinge bodyes’ and ‘dead bodyes,’ which were to be sold in New Spain at two reals apiece. The ships also carried some wine, and the freightage paid to the owners was 40 ducats a ton. The armament of the St Peter is not given, but was probably little more than that of the St Francisco which carried[1565] three iron guns, two copper pieces of 20 quintals[1566] each, and one of 14 quintals. There were 90 round, and 40 chain shot for these guns with nine quintals of powder. Twenty muskets, and other arms of offence and defence, were also carried. Her crew numbered 28 men and two boys and she was licensed to take twenty passengers; if therefore 126 living persons were found in the two ships after the action, the St Peter must have furnished a much larger proportion or there must have been, as was common enough, a number of unlicensed passengers.[1567] If a loss of two killed and three wounded, in an action lasting five hours and with two antagonists, was an ordinary one, fighting at sea cannot be considered, in view of the normal mortality from disease on shore in the sixteenth century, to have added materially to the risks of life.

According to Malyne[1568] these Bulls were laded by Sixtus V. When they came to England Dr Lopez, the Queen’s physician, who was afterwards executed on a charge of being concerned in a plot to murder her, obtained them by purchase or as a gift. He and a partner started them again for the West Indies but the Pope’s agent stopped their sale, alleging that they had lost their virtue by having been in heretic possession. The factor representing Lopez, not to be outdone, said that they had been miraculously saved, but the speculation was a failure.

LANSDOWNE MSS., 70-23

The ordre and mannour of the takinge of the twoo Shippes laden with Quicksilver and the Pope’s bulles bound for the West Indas by the Amitie of London, Master, Thomas Whytte.

The 26th of July 1592 beinge in 36 degrees[1569] or thereaboutes, about 4 of the clocke in the morninge, wee had sight of the said Shippes beinge distaunte ffrom us about 3 or 4 leagues; by 7 of the cloke we ffeatched them up and were within goonn shotte whose boldnes (havinge the kinges armes dysplaide) did make us conceave them rather to be ships of warr then laden with merchandize. And as yt dothe appeare by some of theire owne Speeches they made full accompte to have taken us, and was Question amongst them whyther they should carrye us to St Lucar or Lishebonn. Wee wayfed eche other amaine,[1570] they havinge placed themselves in warlyke ordre, thone a cabolles lenght before thoother, we begonne the fight in the which we continued so faste as we were able to chardge and dyschardge the space of fyve houres, being never a cabells lenght dystaunte eyther of us the one from the other, in which tyme wee receaved divers shottes both in the hull of our ship, mastes and sayles, to the number of xxxii greate shotte which we told after the ffighte, besydes fyve hundreed muskett shotte and harquebuye acroke[1571] at the least. And for that wee perceaved they were stoute, we thought good to boorde the byskaine[1572] which was a heade the other, where lyinge aboord aboute an houre plyinge our ordenaunce and small shotte with the which we stowed[1573] all his men; now they in the flybotte makinge accompte that wee had entreed our menn, bare Roome[1574] with us, meaninge to have laide us aboorde, and so to have entrapped us betwene them both, which we perceavinge, made redy ordenaunce and fytted us, so as wee quitted ourselves of him, and he boorded his ffelowe, by which meanes they both fell from us. Then presently we kepte our looffe,[1575] hoysed our topsayles, and weathered them, and came hard aboord the flibotte with our ordenaunce prepared, and gave her our whole broadeside with the which wee slewe divers of theire menn, so as wee might perceave the bloud to Runne out at the Scoopers; after that wee caste aboute, and new chardged all our ordenaunce and came upon them againe and wylled them Amaine, or else wee would synke them, whereupon the one would have yelded which was shotte betweene wind and watter, but the other called him traytour; unto whom we mad answere that if he wold not yeld presently also we would synke him first. And thereupon he undrestaundinge our determinacon, presently put out a whyt fflagg and yelded, howbeyt they refused to stryke theire owne Sayles, for that they were sworne never to stryke to any Englishmann. Wee then commaunded the captaines and masters to come aboorde of us which they dyd and after examinacon and stowinge them, wee sent aboord them, strooke theire sayles and manned theire shipps, findinge in them bothe one hundreed and twenty and six soules lyvinge, and eight deade, besides those which they themselves had caste overboorde, so yt pleased God to geve us the victorye, being but 42 menn and a boye, of the which ther were two killed and three wounded, ffor which good succeasse wee geve the onely prayse to Allmightye God.