All this second day, and the third day and night, our captaine and
company susteined the fight, notwithstanding the disadvantage where with
they fought; the enemie being [The disadvantage of ships to
lee-ward.] ever to wind-ward, and wee to lee-ward, their shott much
damnifying us, and ours little annoying them; for whensoever a man
encountreth with his enemie at sea, in gayning the weather gage, hee is
in possibilitie to sinke his contrary, but his enemie cannot sinke him;
and therefore [And the best remedie.] hee which is forced to
fight with this disadvantage, is to procure by all meanes possible to
shoote downe his contraries masts or yards, and to teare or spoyle his
tackling and sayles; for which purpose, billets of some heavy wood
fitted to the great ordinance, are of great importance. And so are
arrows of fire, to bee shott out of slur-bowes, and cases of small
shott, joyned two and two together, with peeces of wyer, of five or sixe
ynches long, which also shot out of muskets are of good effect, for
tearing the sayles or cutting the tackling.
Some are of opinion that crosse barres and chaine-shot are of moment for
the spoyling of masts and yards; but experience dayly teacheth them not
to be of great importance, though neere at hand, I confesse, they worke
great execution; but the round shott is the onely principall and
powerfull meane to breake mast or yard.
[The Spaniards fore-mast thrice shot through.]
And in this our fight, the admirall of the Spaniards had his fore-mast
shot through with two round shott, some three yardes beneath the head;
had either of them entred but foure ynches further into the heart of the
mast, without all doubt it had freed us, and perhaps put them into our
hands. The third day, in the after-noone, which was the 22nd of June
1594, according to our computation, and which I follow in this my
discourse, our sayles being torne, our mastes all perished, our pumpes
rent and shot to peeces, and our shippe with fourteene shott under water
and seven or eight foote of water in hold; many of our men being slaine,
and the most part of them which remayned sore hurt, and in a manner
altogether fruiteles, and the enemie offering still to receive us _a
buena querra_, and to give us life and libertie, and imbarkation for
our countrey;--our captaine, and those which remayned of our company,
were all of opinion that our best course was to surrender our selves
before our shippe suncke. And so by common consent agreed the second
time to send a servant of mine, Thomas Sanders, to signifie unto mee the
estate of our shippe and company: and that it was impossible by any
other way to expect for hope of deliverance, or life, but by the
miraculous hand of God, in using his Almighty power, or by an honourable
surrender: which in every mans opinion was thought most convenient. So
was I desired by him to give also my consent, that the captaine might
capitulate with the Spanish generall, and to compound the best partido
he could by surrendring our selves into his hands, upon condition of
life and libertie. This hee declared unto me, being in a manner voyd of
sence, and out of hope to live or recover; which considered, and the
circumstances of his relation, I answered as I could, that hee might
judge of my state, readie every moment to give up the ghost, and unable
to discern in this cause what was convenient, except I might see the
present state of the shippe. And that the honour or dishonour, the
welfare or misery was for them, which should be partakers of life. At
last, for that I had satisfaction of his valour and true dealing in all
the time hee had served me, and in correspondence of it, had given him
(as was notorious) charge and credit in many occasions, I bound him, by
the love and regard hee ought me, and by the faith and duty to Almighty
God, to tell me truely if all were as he had declared. Whereunto hee
made answere, that hee had manifested unto mee the plaine and naked
truth, and that hee tooke God to witnesse of the same truth; with which
receiving satisfaction, I forced my selfe what I could to perswade him
to annimate his companions, and in my name to intreate the captaine and
the rest to persevere in defence of their libertie, lives, and
reputation, remitting all to his discretion: not doubting but he would
be tender of his dutie, and zealous of my reputation, in preferring his
liberty, and the liberty of the company, above all respects whatsoever.
As for the welfare hoped by a surrender, I was altogether unlikely to be
partaker thereof, death threatning to deprive me of the benefit which
the enemie offered; but if God would bee pleased to free us, the joy and
comfort I should receive, might perhaps give me force and strength to
recover health.
Which answere being delivered to the captaine, hee presently caused a
flagge of truce to be put in place of our ensigne, and began to parley
of our surrendry, with a Spaniard, which Don Beltran appointed for that
purpose, from the poope of the admirall, to offer in his name, the
conditions before specified; with his faithful promise and oath, as the
king generall, to take us _a buena querra_, and to send us all into our
owne countrey. The promise hee accepted, and sayd that under the same
hee yeelded, and surrendred himselfe, shippe, and company. Immediately
there came unto me another servant of mine, and told me that our
captaine had surrendred himselfe, and our shippe; which understood, I
called unto one Juan Gomes de Pineda, a Spanish pilote, which was our
prisoner, and in all the fight we had kept close in hold, and willed him
to goe to the generall Don Beltran de Castro from mee, to tell him that
if he would give us his word and oath, as the generall of the king, and
some pledge for confirmation, to receive us _a buena querra_, and to
give us our lives and libertie, and present passage into our owne
countrey, that we would surrender ourselves and shippe into his hands;
otherwise, that he should never enjoy of us nor ours, any thing but a
resolution every man to dye fighting.
With this message I dispatched him, and called unto me all my company,
and encouraged them to sacrifice their lives fighting and killing the
enemie, if he gave but a fillip to any of our companions. The Spaniards
willed us to hoise out our boate, which was shott all to peeces, and so
was theirs. Seeing that he called to us to amaine our sayles, which we
could not well doe, for that they were slung, and wee had not men inough
to hand them. In this parley, the vice-admirall comming upon our
quarter, and not knowing of what had past, discharged her two chase
peeces at us, and hurt our captaine very sore in the thigh, and maimed
one of our masters mates, called Hugh Maires, in one of his armes; but
after knowing us to be [The English surrender.] rendred, hee
secured us: and we satisfying them that wee could not hoise out our
boate, nor strike our sayles, the admirall layd us abourd; but before
any man entred, John Gomes went unto the generall, who received him with
great curtesie, and asked him what we required; whereunto he made
answere that my demand was, that in the Kings name, he should give us
his faith and promise to give us our lives, to keepe the lawes of fayre
warres and quarter, and to send us presently into our countrey; and in
confirmation hereof, that I required some pledge: whereunto the generall
made answere: that in the Kings Majesties name, his master, hee received
us _a buena querra_, and swore by God Almightie, and by the habit of
Alcantara (whereof he had received knighthood, and in token whereof hee
wore in his breast a greene crosse, which is the ensigne of that order),
that he would give us our lives with good entreatie, and send us as
speedily as he could into our owne countrey. In confirmation whereof, he
took of his glove, and sent it to mee as a pledge.
With this message John Gomes returned, and the Spaniards entred and
tooke possession of our shippe, every one crying, _Buena querra, buena
querra! oy por mi, maniana por ti_:[235] with which our company began
to secure themselves.
The generall was a principall gentleman of the ancient nobilitie of
Spaine, and brother to the Conde de Lemos, whose intention no doubt was
according to his promise; and therefore considering that some bad
intreaty, and insolency, might be offered unto me in my shippe, by the
common souldiers, who seldome have respect to any person in such
occasions, especially in the case I was, whereof hee had enformed
himselfe: for prevention, hee sent a principall captaine, brought up
long time in Flaunders, called Pedro Alveres de Pulgar, to take care of
me, and whilest the shippes were one abourd the other, to bring me into
his ship; which he accomplished with great humanitie and courtesie;
despising the barres of gold which were shared before his face, which
hee might alone have enjoyed if he would. And truely hee was, as after I
found by tryall, a true captaine, a man worthy of any charge, and of the
noblest condition that I have knowne any Spaniard.
[The mildnes of a generall after victorie.]
The generall received me with great courtesie and compassion, even with
teares in his eyes, and words of great consolation, and commaunded mee
to bee accommodated in his owne cabbine, where hee sought to cure and
comfort mee the best he could: the like hee used with all our hurt men,
six and thirtie at least. And doubtlesse, as true courage, valour, and
resolution, is requisit in a generall in the time of battle, so
humanitie, mildnes, and courtesie, after victorie.