Note 1 — Letter from Silva to Felipe III

In the capitana “San Juan Bautista,” which sailed from this port on the twelfth of July last, I gave your Majesty an account of everything that had occurred up to that time; I likewise did so by the Dutch almiranta, which left four days later. But as it was not so good a sailing ship as the capitana, and did not weather the storms so well, it was delayed several days, without being able to get outside the island of Fortun. I ordered it to return thence to this port, as it appeared that it was not fit for a freight ship, and because it was necessary for the service of your Majesty, owing to new developments, which I shall here detail. A fortnight after the ships were despatched, and when the almiranta was about to put out to sea, there arrived here a fragata belonging to your Majesty, which came from Goa, and had sailed from Terrenate for Yndia, loaded with cloves. It brought me a despatch from the viceroy, Ruy Lorenco de Tabora, in which he informed me of his arrival in that kingdom, and in what desolation he found the affairs of Yndia, and particularly the trade, on account of the Dutch. And he said that, in order to make safe the voyage from Japon, he sent Don Diego de Vasconçelos de Meneses, with eight galleons, Page 143well provided with men, artillery, and supplies of war, with orders that if I should advise him that he might accomplish some good for the service of your Majesty, he should attend to it with his fleet. Likewise General Diego de Vasconcelos wrote to me from Malaca, that he was crossing to Macan with six galleys and one urca;1 and that there he would await advices from me or from Maluco, so that, if anything could be accomplished for the service of your Majesty, he could be present with his fleet. The day after the arrival of this fragata, there entered this port a Dutch patache, which had been taken by Captain Pedro de Avellaneda, with the galley “San Christobal,” close to the island of Tidore, after a fight of three hours; and in it were General Pablos Brancaorden [i.e., van Caerden], twenty others, and five Dutch. This general is the one who was taken in another galleota by Captain Pedro de Heredia, and who was ransomed by Master-of-camp Christobal de Axqueta for fifty of our soldiers and sailors, thirty Indian pioneers and artisans, and six thousand pesos in money. All the forces that the enemy has in Maluco and Banda were in his command. The said master-of-camp advises me that only a patache and one ship of the enemy’s had remained in the islands; and that although he sent a vessel with persons acquainted with the language to Ambueno to learn whether a fleet had come, there was no news of one, and the enemy were greatly cast down and discouraged to see that no fleet was coming to them, as there is little hope that it will be here this year, for none thus far has waited longer than May or June to Page 144come. When the information was sent [to me] it was the thirtieth of July, and there was no word of a fleet.