Of what happened to the Captain Pedro Fernandez de Quiros at
the court of Spain; negotiating for leave from His Majesty to
discover and settle the southern parts; how, and in what form,
the business was negotiated; and his voyage to Peru.
Having spoken to His Majesty, and placed my first memorial in his
hands, in which I declared my plan and its importance, he heard me
with his accustomed clemency and benignity, and replied that he would
order the matter to be seen to. Presently I went to speak with Don Juan
Idiaquez, with the Father Confessor, with Don Pedro Franqueza, and with
other Members of the Council of State, and important persons about
the court, who might be able to help in despatching my business. To
these I gave the letters I brought from the Viceroy of Peru and the
Ambassador at Rome; and I showed to them the letters of His Holiness,
and the other papers and charts relating to my discovery.
Some received me well, holding the affair to be serious and worthy of
support. Others thought little of it or of me, thinking that I promised
more than I could perform, and that for the performance of so great a
deed, a person of more parts and valour was needed. Some answered me
that sufficient lands had been discovered for His Majesty, and that
what signified was to people and settle them, rather than go in search
of those I said were new, which were so distant that they would be
difficult and costly to maintain, after they had been conquered and
settled. There were not wanting those who threw doubts on the utility
of such conquests. So that I was forced to be more importunate to
His Majesty, submitting new memorials every day, representing the
arguments in favour of the enterprise, and endeavouring to satisfy
those who opposed me. During this time I had much trouble at court,
and I made a long discourse on the life passed by those who had
business to prosecute there. I had different replies, some sharp,
and others gentle, like those from Don Pedro Franqueza and others of
the Council of State.
At last, on the last day of Easter, in the year 1603, I was sent for
by Don Pedro Franqueza, who told me that my business was despatched;
and he took me to the Chief Secretary, named Matienzo, and said that,
as he valued his regard, he was not to delay me on any point. So on
Saturday, the 5th of April, they delivered to me some orders of His
Majesty which contained my despatch, and which had been passed by
the Council of State. Their tenor is as follows:--
Copy of the Order of His Majesty touching the Principal Despatch.
To Don Luis de Velasco or the Count of Monterey, my relation, my
Viceroy and Captain General in my kingdoms and provinces of Peru,
or such other person as may be governing in my name, at the time
of the delivery of this order.
There has come here from Rome the Captain Pedro Fernandez de
Quiros, a Portuguese; and the Duke of Sesa and of Baena, of my
Council of State and my Ambassador at that Court, wrote to me that
in the holy year he had news from Friar Diego de Soria, Prior at
Manilla of the Order of San Domingo, that there would be found at
that court the said Captain Quiros, who was a great pilot with
much experience of the South Sea and of the great gulf between
the coasts of New Spain and Peru and Japan and the Philippine
Islands, having been Chief Pilot of the second discovery made by
the Adelantado Alvaro de Mendaña. The said Father represented that
it would be much for the service of God and for mine to introduce
him, that he might again return to discover these unknown parts
and islands. So the Duke sent for him to his house to ask him
concerning curious things relating to his art; and entertained
him there for near seventeen months, during which time he opened
his mind, and showed many papers he possessed, and drew up others
which he communicated to Father Clavio and other mathematicians
and distinguished geographers. All were persuaded, by the proofs
and reasonings he submitted to them, that there could not fail
to be either a continental land or a number of islands from the
Strait of Magellan to New Guinea and Java and the other islands
of that great archipelago. And they concluded that, enjoying the
best part of the torrid and temperate zones, where it has been
seen, as well in the ancient provinces of the world as in the
new discoveries, that much and very good and rich land exists
which has a temperate and therefore a habitable climate. They
are, therefore, of opinion that it is very desirable to lose
no time in discovering that southern region, unknown until now,
which will be a great service to God.
Besides the interest and advantages that this discovery promises,
it will be easier to explore the southern region than it was to
find the Western Indies. When the said Captain returned from that
long navigation, including detentions in various parts, lasting for
two years, he offered to Don Luis de Velasco, my Viceroy of Peru
and your predecessor, to return in the same ship in which he had
come, to that discovery, if it should prove necessary, as far as
New Guinea and the Moluccas, and to return to Peru by way of the
Philippines, with a full account of all he had discovered. But
though it seemed well to the Viceroy he did not act, but gave
the Captain letters to me and to His Holiness, who has heard and
spoken with him. His Holiness was pleased with his proposals,
insomuch that he has conceded many spiritual gifts for those parts
(if I order the voyage to be undertaken), for the reasonings of the
said Captain satisfied him. The Duke has given me a good account
of his parts, good judgment, experience in his profession; and has
assured me that he is a worker, quiet, disinterested, of decent
life, zealous for the service of God and for my service. As regards
the theory (according to what the mathematicians at Rome affirm)
they say that there are few pilots who know as much as he does;
that he is expert in making globes, and charts for navigating;
that he well understands the use of instruments necessary for
navigation, and that he showed them two of his own invention,
one by which to know, in navigating, the difference made by the
needle between the N.E. and N.W. points, and the other for taking
an altitude with more ease and accuracy. Both were commended
by the Fathers Clavio and Villalpando of the Company of Jesus,
and by the Doctors Toribio Perez and Masa, who have lectured
publicly in mathematics at Salamanca, as well as by distinguished
geographers. Captain Quiros had made an offer to the Duke that,
I being served by it, he would go from Spain by the Strait of
Magellan and return by the Eastern Indies, having gone round
the world, using, by sea and land, the instruments he had made,
and that he would make quite clear the true differences made by
the needle in variation: a matter which up to the present time
is very obscure, and respecting which there are many different
opinions. The discovery of the truth will be of great advantage
to navigation, in giving a knowledge of the true latitude and
longitude of places, ports, and capes discovered, or which may
be discovered in various voyages.
In conformity with what has been reported, the said Captain Quiros
has related to me all that he has told to others respecting the
navigations and discoveries; proving his statements by writings
and maps of the islands he discovered, when he served as Chief
Pilot under the said Adelantado, Alvaro de Mendaña, describing
the diversity of people shown by their different colours, yet
appearing to be docile, and the fertility of the islands which
promised wealth. He prayed that, taking into consideration his
zeal, and that his ends and objects being the service of God and
my service, and the conversion of these people to our holy faith,
and the good that might accrue from the discoveries (without
reference to his interests), and besides all this the way in which
the navigation of these wide seas would be facilitated through the
great practice and experience he has of them, I would be served by
ordering that a ship, not very large, should be provided with crew,
provisions, munitions, and other things necessary for the said
navigation and enterprise; and that matters should be arranged
in a manner that would enable him to accomplish what he wishes
to undertake. Having considered his proposal, with the attention
that so serious a matter requires, for the increase of the faith
and the benefit of the souls of those remote people, and placing
the service of God before all things, as is reasonable, after
consulting my Council of State, I have resolved:--
That the said Captain Quiros shall presently depart to make this
discovery, in the first fleet for Peru; and I ordain and command
that on his arrival you are to give him two very good ships with
which he will be satisfied, to fit them out and provide them with
the number of people necessary, well victualled, and supplied
with munitions and arms requisite for so long a voyage. The ships
are also to be supplied with things for bartering with natives,
if they should reach places where this can be done, in conformity
with the general orders which you and your predecessors have for
similar discoveries, and with all that seems most conducive to my
service. The cost of the preparations, of the people who will be
embarked, of the provisions, munitions, clothing, and other things
necessary for the voyage, is to be defrayed from my royal revenues,
and from those which are most readily available. You are to give
orders that some bare-foot friars, of the Order of St. Francis,
exemplary and of good life, are taken; and you are to see that the
people who are embarked in the said ships are good and useful,
ordering them to obey and respect the said Captain during the
voyage out and home, as their leader and superior, whom I name
for that position from this time, obeying him in all things.
Take notice that it is my will that the said Captain Quiros is
presently to make this voyage and discovery without delay; and
so I charge and order you very positively to comply promptly
with my orders, without interposing doubts or difficulties,
notwithstanding that this order does not come through my Council
of the Indies. The business being peculiar, I have arranged and I
shall be served by its coming through the Council of State, and in
this I must receive precise service from you. By the first ship you
are to report the arrival of the said Captain Quiros in those my
kingdoms, and how you have furnished him with the said two ships,
and provided him with all that is necessary. For I shall look out,
with much anxiety, for the news of compliance with my orders. And
to such of my officials or accountants as have the duty of keeping
the accounts respecting what is contained in my royal letter,
I order and command that they receive and pass the expenditure
which you sanction out of my royal revenues, with your orders
or letters of payment without seeking any other authority; for I
approve it, from this time as well and properly spent and paid, and
this shall be their authority. In Valladolid, 31st of March, 1603.
Copies of two other Royal Orders.
To Don Luis de Velasco, or the Count of Monterey, my cousin,
my Viceroy and Captain-General in my kingdoms and provinces
of Peru, or whomsoever shall be governing the said kingdoms in
my name at the time that this Order is presented. Although in
another separate letter I have caused to be written to you very
specially the reasons which have moved me to resolve to send the
Captain Pedro Fernandez de Quiros, a Portuguese by nation, who
will deliver this, to proceed with two ships well supplied with
men, victuals, munitions, and artillery, to discover the southern
islands and lands as far as New Guinea and Java Major, in this I
desire to repeat those orders, as I do very particularly, that,
without hindrance by difficulties or other causes, you are to
further my service by sending the said Captain Quiros, with as
much despatch as possible, with the said two ships, so that my
orders may be complied with quickly; and I trust to you that you
will do your part in providing the two ships, in obedience to my
commands. For besides that it is furthering my service, I take a
particular inclination and pleasure in the discovery that is to be
undertaken, for the increase, which is to be hoped from it, of our
holy faith among those remote people, for the glory of God and the
public benefit, which is the object I have before me. You are to
advise me, by the first opportunity, of what steps you have taken,
for I shall await the news with the desire for it that you should
understand. From Valladolid, the 31st of March, 1603.
The King.
To whomsoever my Viceroys, Governors, Lieutenant-Governors,
Captains-General, Adelantados, and Admirals of my armies and
fleets by land and sea in the eastern and western Indies, the
Philippine and other islands, and coast of Africa, and to all
my Ministers of Justice and War, of whatsoever title, quality,
nation or condition they may be, to whom this my royal order
may be presented. Forasmuch as I have ordered the Captain Pedro
Fernandez de Quiros, a Portuguese by nation, to proceed to the
city of Lima in Peru, and with two ships, well supplied with men,
victuals, and munitions of war, to proceed thence to discover
New Guinea, Java Major, and other southern lands and islands,
returning by that part of the world to these my kingdoms of Spain,
to deliver and account to me of what he had seen and discovered,
and of the observations he will have made by land and sea during
his navigation, in conformity with the orders he has received. I
hereby order and command you, that in whatever part of the said my
kingdoms and states the said Captain, or the officers and sailors
who go with him, may arrive with the said two ships or any one
of them, or with any other vessel, you shall receive, protect,
and succour the said Captain and his people in my ports and
lands, and provide them with whatever is necessary to complete
the said voyage without delay; and you are to assist them to
obtain whatever they may require, and he may ask for, as he is
my servant and Captain, going expressly to carry out my orders;
and you are not to interpose any impediments or difficulties,
but rather you are to extend to him favour and help, if you desire
or seek my approval. For this proceeds from my will, and is very
conformable to my royal service. At Valladolid, March 31st, 1603.
These orders were accompanied by many letters, which were given to
me at court by some great lords, for the Viceroy of Peru. Having
communicated the letters of His Holiness to the Royal Council of the
Indies, the Count of Lemos, who was President of that Council, and the
other members of it, desired that I should explain to them my objects
and intentions, and they ordered that I should bring them a map. I
went to give this account in a garden of the court, where the other
members assembled to hear me. Having listened to what I told them,
they were satisfied, and rather envious that my despatch should have
been arranged by the Council of State. But I was not yet contented,
on seeing that, in the orders that had been prepared, a special
clause had not been inserted that, in the event of my failure or
death, I might nominate another person to carry on and complete the
discovery. So I represented that an order should be given to me, with
this provision; and, after some trouble, I succeeded. The additional
order is as follows:--
The King.
To Don Luis de Velasco or the Count of Monterey, my cousin, my
Viceroy and Captain-General in my kingdoms and provinces of Peru,
or whomsoever may be governing in my name at the time that this
order is presented. The Captain Pedro Fernandez de Quiros who,
by my order, proceeds to make discoveries in the unknown parts
of the south and others (as is contained in more detail in the
despatches which I have ordered to be sent to you), has besought
me, in order to make more sure of the success of the enterprise
that, if he should fail through sickness, accident, or death,
that as great a success as is expected from the said discovery
for the service of God and of our Holy Faith may not be lost,
I shall be served by ordering that, in the said event, you shall
nominate a person equally able and sufficient for the duty, in
order that with the said despatches and papers and writings that
he may have left, concerning what he had seen and what he hoped
to discover, such a person may continue the said discovery. And
as what he asks is a testimony of his zeal in the service of God,
in my service, and in that of Christianity, I order and specially
charge you that if our Lord should be served by the failure of
the said Captain Quiros, or if he should not be able to go on the
said voyage, with the papers and memorial that he will leave to
explain and throw light on his intentions, you shall nominate the
most suitable person you can find to take his place and carry out
this great undertaking. And to him who may be selected you are to
give all the assistance and help he needs, in the form indicated
in the previous orders; and this is my will, and is conformable
to my service. At Aranjuez, May 9th, 1603.
With this I set out on the road to Seville, and found the fleet for
New Spain ready to sail. I at once applied to the House of Commerce
for my despatch; and, though there were some difficulties to overcome,
in the night of the eve of St. John I went on board a brigantine,
and proceeded down the river of Seville. But when I reached the bay
of Cadiz I found that the fleet had already sailed, consisting of
thirty ships, and in the fleet was the Marquis of Montes Claros,
going out as Viceroy of New Spain. I had to do what I could, and in
great haste. So I took a passage in a frigate, commanded by Captain
Diego Ramirez, going to Tierra-firme under convoy of the fleet. After a
good voyage we sighted the island of Marigalanta on the 1st of August;
and on the next day, which was that of a Franciscan festival called
"Porciuncula," we came into the port of Guadaloupe, when the Viceroy
and Vice-queen landed to hear Mass. At dinner-time the persons of most
consequence went on board again; but a great many remained on shore,
wandering about or washing clothes. They were suddenly attacked by
the natives of that island, who fell upon them with great shouting
and flights of arrows. It seemed certain that they would be captured,
killed, or wounded, and, in consequence, upwards of sixty persons
were drowned, seven of whom were Dominican friars. This caused great
sorrow and perturbation throughout the fleet, and was a prognostication
of what was afterwards to happen. For that night there rose a wind
from the S.S.W., which was nearly abeam; and as the ships were near
the shore and close to each other, they were all in great danger,
especially the Capitana, for another ship, named the Pandorga, came
into collision with her, and both were in danger of being lost. It was
necessary for the Viceroy and the Vice-queen, almost naked, to pass
to another ship. They left behind much property that was coming with
them; and the ships were ordered to be burnt, that they might not fall
into the hands of enemies. The other ships put to sea as well as they
were able, and proceeded on their voyage, and our frigate on hers,
making for the island called Curaçoa. The frigate's voyage was so
unlucky that, on the vespers of St. Lawrence, she struck and went to
pieces on some rocks, which we afterwards learned were those off the
island called "Aves." We found ourselves in great trouble, but by the
mercy of God most of the people were saved, being taken in the boat
to those rocks. With the same boat what was possible of the ship's
gear was got on land, with which we set to work, until the diligent
Captain ordered the boat to be sawn in two, and a small vessel to be
built of the materials, which was launched in the end of August. He
said that he was determined to send her with all the passengers, and
me as their leader, to the port of Guayra, of the city of Caraccas,
to bring back provisions for those who remained, with some vessel in
which the whole party could escape from that dangerous prison into
which God had put them. I do not know whether it was worse for those
who remained behind, or for those who went in the vessel. But by the
favour of God, having passed through great hardships, I arrived at
Caraccas, and gave an account of what had happened to the Governor,
who supplied me with what was necessary, and I returned with the
refreshments to my unhappy companions who, with penitence and prayers,
besought God for my return. They had been on an allowance of only two
ounces of bread for ten days. Having brought the relief and almost
made another frigate, I said to the Captain that it was only fair
that I should continue my voyage. So I took my leave, and embarked,
with certain persons returning to Caraccas, where I remained for eight
months, waiting for a passage. I noted and wrote in much detail the
things I observed concerning that island. [75] By great good luck I
found there three children of a brother of mine, of whom I had not
heard for many years. It appeared that he had married there and died,
leaving a widow and these three children. It seemed to me right that I
should take them out of such a bad country, and bring them with me. I
got leave from the grandfather, for the widow was also dead, and I
took the two boys, [76] leaving the little girl with her grandfather.
At last the time for my long desired departure arrived, and I embarked
for Cartagena in a frigate. There I presented to the Governor the order
of His Majesty, in which all his officers are instructed to help me;
but he made little account either of the order or of assisting me. As
soon as I could I again embarked for Puerto Bello, and arrived at
Panama so poor that for the space of eight days I had not one rial. I
arrived, owing for the hire of the mules and many other things. So I
determined to apply to the Audience of that city to present me with
200 dols. from the treasury, or I should have to seek it at a loss
from merchants, to be repaid at Lima. But the judges made as little
of me as of the royal orders which I presented, saying that that was
no place for advances from the public funds. So I had to retire to
my poor lodging, where I was sued by the muleteer and other creditors.
In the middle of these troubles, on Monday, the 30th of August, the
most Holy Sacrament went forth from its house to the hospital, which
was built of old wood. Ascending to the upper story, as the weight
of the people was great, a large part of the building gave way, and
we fell, sixty of us, with the beds and patients, a height of more
than twenty feet. There were many accidents. A priest was killed on
the spot, and there were broken limbs. I escaped with what I got,
which was a severe blow on the left side, a wound on the right ankle,
and a hand cut open by a nail. My cure cost me four bleedings and two
months and a-half in bed, without possessing a single maravedi during
the whole time, and in a very expensive place. Only by a miracle I
found anyone to take pity on me in my necessity.
When barely convalescent, I was able to embark in a ship bound for
Peru, without a bit of bread or a jar of water. God favoured me
with such a good voyage that in twenty days we anchored at Payta,
and I sent a letter by the chasqui to the Count of Monterey, who had
arrived as Viceroy of that kingdom from New Spain. Embarking again,
God was served that in eighteen days I should arrive at the port of
Callao, where I disembarked on the 6th of March, 1605, with debts
for the passage and food, and with no money. I hired horses from one
I had known before, and entered Lima by night. I went round without
being able to find any hostelry, until God led me to a potter who,
for that night and for three other nights, hospitably received me with
goodwill among his pots; so that I am able to say with good reason
that I arrived at Lima weighted down with so many old labours to make a
beginning with new ones, in the way that will be seen by what follows.