Note 1 — Information, Petitions, and Stipulations Concerning Sending Aid to the Kingdom of Camboja

I, Captain Beloso, appear before your Lordship and say that I have lived ten years in the kingdom of Camboja, where the king of that country has always shown me great graces and favors, since I was acquainted with his language, and has appeared highly satisfied with me, as well in the conducting of matters of peace as in matters of war and government. For these reasons I am under great obligations to him, and likewise because he is a person bound by close ties to the Spaniards, and who consents and desires that there should be in his kingdom churches and Christians. He also maintains their ministers, as appears from the two orders of the Dominicans and Franciscans which he has in his country, whom he is providing with provisions and personal service; and he has not only maintained them but has sent to Malaca and Macan a great deal of rice and wine, and other presents. He has always held all Spaniards as his friends, and received them in his courts and lands with great friendship and graciousness. He has lent aid to them in their need, as appears from the case of Page 152Captain Gregorio de Bargas, and Blas Rruys, who in the year of ninety-two sailed from the city of Canton in the land of China, with the intention of going to the said kingdom of Canboja in order to examine and explore the said country, and to bring about communication between the said king and this city, for they were already aware of his desire and his friendly disposition. During the voyage the king of Chanpan, like the tyrant and pirate that he is, treacherously robbed and captured them, and held them in that captivity until they were obliged to leave in flight, with much cunning and craft, alone and taking nothing with them. After suffering immense hardships, they arrived at his city poor and in ill condition. The said king of Canvoja received them kindly, treated them well, and lent aid to their needs. He was much pleased with them when he found that they were from this country, and that they had intended to come to his. He was greatly pained to learn of their captivity and loss, and had much pity for them when he found what misery and hardship they had endured. For their coming was a thing which he desired much on account of the many things which I often told him, because he had always been interested in them, and because of the many conversations which I had with him. I recounted to him the greatness of his Majesty and of this city, whereupon he showed a lively pleasure in all, and was led to wish to communicate with the city, of which communication he was already greatly desirous. With the arrival of the said persons and what they told him, he completed his information concerning the matters that he had learned from me. At that time he was suspicious of the king of Ssian, who was his bitter Page 153enemy, as well as the enemy of Christianity and of the Spanish nation, and with whom he was in a state of open warfare. He preferred to avail himself of aid from the Christians rather than from the heathens or Moros who dwelt in the neighborhood, if he could do so. He gave entire credit to what we had told him, and what we were then telling him. He confirmed by deed the love which he had shown to all of us Spaniards, and decided to send an embassy to the governor of these islands, seeking aid for the conflict in which he feared he would soon find himself. This embassy he entrusted to me and to Captain Gregorio de Vargas, placing more confidence in us than in any of his own subjects. The said Blas Rruiz he kept in his service to satisfy the wishes of some of his own subjects, who, because they do not like him, opposed the voyage and the embassies. He wrote to the said governor a letter, written on a leaf of beaten gold, and sent as a present an elephant, slaves, and other articles, as appears by the said embassy, to which I refer you. This embassy we carried out, on arriving at this city, delivering the letter and the presents, and were engaged in it many days, beseeching the last governor to send the king some aid, in order to redeem him from the utter ruin which afterward happened. As this country was on the point of sending an expedition to Maluco, the governor deferred the aid. After your Lordship succeeded to the government, you despatched me and gave me an answer for the said king, sending him a Castilian horse with trappings, and a rich jewel of emeralds. When I arrived at the said kingdom of Canvoja I sent a soldier named Pantaleon Carnero to give the news to the king, and to take measures to learn the state in Page 154which the country was—all of which is explained more at length by this information which I am presenting, and which I drew up in Sian before the religious, together with the persons who went with me, to clear myself and in order that it might appear thereby that the embassy was accomplished. I petition that it be examined, and a copy be given me as a safeguard for my exoneration in all particulars. In fact the Sianese robbed and captured us and we were carried as prisoners to the city of Judea,1 which is in the kingdom of Sian. Here we found the fathers and other Christians, who had come from Canvoja, and who were in a sad and unfortunate captivity; they were allowed no churches or provisions, but must seek their food as alms from the heathen, so that the affliction and misfortune which they undergo is a most pitiable thing. When we were all joined together and saw what we must suffer, we decided to seek some remedy. We considered the state of that kingdom, and that the king had expended his substance and had few Sianese troops, on account of the many who had died in the war with Camboja and the war which he was carrying on with Pegu—who had sent a great army against him, so that there were none left in the city except children and women; and that he is a very cruel tyrant and a persecutor of the holy Catholic faith, and will consent to no Christian place of worship in his kingdom, but rather destroys them, and burns those which he may find in other kingdoms. He receives in his kingdom the worship of Mahoma, which is preached with his consent, and he gives permission Page 155to his subjects to turn Moors. We also considered the king of Canboja was such a friend of ours that he protected our faith, and that he was so placed that he would be heartily pleased to aid the Spaniards with all his power against that tyrant, because the latter would then be destroyed and put in the power of the Spaniards. For this is what he wishes, even although he should help the Spaniards to win all the kingdoms in the neighborhood, of which there are more than twelve; for I have always heard this from him, and further that he wishes to be a Christian and that his whole kingdom should be Christian. Accordingly, pondering over what means we could use to advise your Lordship of all this—as you are a person so jealous of the honor of God and the service of his Majesty, and are in a position to remedy it all; and, with so good and certain an ally, would win all those rich kingdoms and reduce to the holy Catholic faith so many thousands of souls, which are being lost, not by their own fault—we noticed that the king of Sian had been much pained by the death, before he had seen it, of the horse which was brought from your Lordship. And, considering the great pleasure which he took in a philosopher's stone, we promised him that if he would send me to this country I should bring him back a large horse and mare for breeding, and a philosopher's stone a cubit long, which he had said he would prize much. Out of desire for these things, he ordered that I be sent back; and told the fathers that they on his behalf should write to your Lordship—for he is so arrogant that he even sets no store by writing. He ordered to be given to me, to present to your Lordship, two elephants and an ivory Page 156tusk, which I have already delivered to your Lordship. After I set out upon the voyage I underwent many hardships, as I arrived at Malaca with ill weather, and when the chief captain found what message I was carrying and learned my intentions in the matter, he wished to interfere with me and detain me and stop the voyage. He attempted to take the elephants from the junk, in order to send them to Goya, and to take me prisoner. And in fact I suffered in the said city and fortress of Malaca, more hardships and hindrances than among the heathen before I was sent on the road with these letters to bring to your Lordship, as appears more at length by the information which I have given your Majesty for the remedy of all this.