Page 13 - Anglo Portuguese Rivalry in The Gulf_Neat

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1 at Swalley with his other two ships, but the Surat The rival squadrons came in sight of each other at

\ 1 factors, knowing of the peril to which the Hart and | sunset on Christmas day, but battle was not joined
Eagle were exposed owing to the presence of Ruy
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Freyre’s squadron off Jask, hurried him off again to the galleons came out of the road, “ and in a daring and
B . \ support of his consorts, “ for they knewe, they should f braving manner invited us to an encounter, which we
bee fought with all, if not over-set.” Some of his
intertained with many Navall ceremonies, and putting
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captains were not too keen to go, although they out our collours of defiance, with the adorning our
; realised “ it was not our turnes to dispute, nor had we ships to answere their proportion of Gallantnesse, we
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any other part to play but obedience, and so wee put made a brave show, as if we meant to intertaine death
. to sea againe, taking a course to follow our shipps.” . and slaughter with mirth and jollitie.” In this
The London and Roebuck had not been two days on manner they approached, until the Sdo Pedro and *
their voyage when they captured a Portuguese vessel
i ! London lay less than a musket shot apart, when Ruy
from Muscat laden with raisins, dates and forty-two Freyre, who was standing on the half-deck of his
Arabian horses,1 whilst shortly after this event, they
■ flagship dressed in rose-coloured camlet, took a goblet
fell in with the Hart and Eagle. The crews of these ;• of wine from an attendant page and drank Shilling’s
latter vessels gave an account of their flight from Ruy i health, to which the Englishman replied in a similar
Freyre’s squadron, “ whose strength and preparation ; fashion. As a gesture of mutual defiance, the two
they reported extraordinary . . . discoursing at large P : leaders then hurled their goblets into the sea, whilst to
of the matter, and describing the manner of the r the sound of drum and trumpet, both sides fell to it
enemies watches, and how bravely and warlike they H with a will.
were appointed.” Shilling however, was not the man i! The ensuing fight has been described elsewhere, so
to be daunted by any display of force, and he resolved
1 i need only be briefly recorded here.1 The action
to take in his lading at Jask roads, even if he had to try l raged until the exhausted combatants were parted by
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a bout with the redoubtable Ruy Freyre, “ whom I nightfall, but the advantage lay chiefly with the
themselves call the Pride of Portugal.” The united • if English. They had, it is true, prematurely fired their
squadron accordingly headed for Jask, the prize having 1
U prize “ when there was neither reason nor cause . . .
been prepared for use as a fireship if necessary. Shilling’s
and leaving us in a kind of confusion to see so many
determined character is well shown from the fact that goodly horses perish in the raging Sea,” but the
•when some people demurred at this step, “ as pittying . I slaughter caused by the English cannon on board the
the loss of so many brave horses, he as bravely replied, $ overcrowded Portuguese galleons was appalling. On
how doe they doe then in the wars, when they are
1 The best account from the English side is that of Richard Swan, master
compelled to kill their prisoners in colde blood ; and
i l of The Roebuck, printed on pp. 220-225, of the 1618-1621 volume of Foster’s
therefore think neither of scruple, or nicety, but let English Factories in India, q.v.. for other versions. Another valuable source is the
us follow the businesse we take in hand.” i excessively rare little tract, The true Relation of that worthy sea-fight, (London,
1622), whence most of the quotations in the text are talcen. Unfortunately
•• no trustworthy Portuguese account has come down to us, the only ones
available being translated in my edition of the Commentaries of Ruy Freyre
xThe Nossa Senhora das Mercety of 200 tons, Captain Francisco Miranda.
dCAndrade^ (London, 1929), pp. xxv-xxvii, 21-30 and 298-301.
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