was sure. It was called out occasionally for the transport of royal
personages and was employed by Henry VII. and Henry VIII. to transport
troops to France; it furnished some of the ships which harassed the
Armada in its passage up the Channel; but that was its final effort. The
King's Navy with difficulty survived the chaos of the reign of Henry
VI., but it never wholly disappeared. The revival of commerce in the
reigns of Edward IV. and Henry VII., both of whom were engaged largely
in mercantile speculations, created additional interest in maritime
affairs; but it was left to Henry VIII. to make the vital change which
firmly established the Royal Navy as an organisation independent of the
merchant service.
THE STORY OF SIR EDWARD HOWARD.
BY JOHN CAMPBELL.
Sir Edward Howard was the second son of Thomas, Earl of Surrey,
afterwards Duke of Norfolk, and treasurer to Henry VIII. He seems to
have begun early in life to testify his inclination for the sea service,
and we find him employed in the Flanders expedition in 1492, when King
Henry VII. thought fit to assist the Duke of Burgundy against his
rebellious subjects.
The Flemings, naturally a brave people and fond of freedom, grew uneasy
under the yoke of the House of Austria, and under the command of the
Baron de Ravenstein began to throw off allegiance. In doing this, they
seized the town and harbour of Sluys, whence they fitted out a number of
vessels of considerable force; and, under colour of pursuing their
enemies, took and plundered vessels of all nations without distinction.
As the English trade with Flanders was then very extensive, English
ships suffered at least as much as any others; and this was the reason
why King Henry, upon the first application of the Duke of Burgundy, sent
a squadron of twelve sail to his assistance under the command of Sir
Edward Poynings, with whom went out Sir Edward Howard, then a very young
man, to learn the art of war. The Duke of Saxony, in consequence of his
alliance with the Duke of Burgundy, marched with an army into Flanders,
and besieged Sluys by land; and Sir Edward Poynings thereupon blockaded
it by sea.
The port was defended by two strong castles, which the Flemings, who had
nothing to trust to but force, defended with unparalleled obstinacy;
insomuch, that though Poynings attacked them constantly every day for
twenty days successively, yet he made no great impression, till at last,
through accident, the bridge of boats, by which the communication
between the castles was preserved, took fire; whereupon the besieged
were glad to surrender their city to the Duke of Saxony, and their port
and castles to the English. After this expedition Sir Edward was made a
knight for extraordinary bravery, of which quality he gave many proofs
during the reign of Henry VII., so thoroughly establishing his
reputation that Henry VIII., on his accession, made choice of him for
his standard-bearer, which in those days was considered not only as a
mark of particular favour, but as a testimony also of the highest
confidence and esteem.
In the fourth year of the same reign he was created lord high-admiral of
England, and in that station convoyed the Marquis of Dorset into Spain.
The admiral, after the landing of the forces, put to sea again; and,
arriving on the coasts of Britanny, landed some of his men about Conquet
and Brest, who ravaged the country and burnt several of the small towns.
This roused the French, who began immediately to fit out a great fleet,
in order, if possible, to drive the English from their coasts; and, as
this armament was very extraordinary, King Henry sent a squadron of
five-and-twenty tall ships, which he caused to be fitted out under his
own eye at Portsmouth, to the assistance of the admiral. Among these
were two capital ships; one called the _Regent_, commanded by Sir Thomas
Knevet, master of the horse to the king; and the other, which was the
_Sovereign_, by Sir Charles Brandon, afterwards Duke of Suffolk. When
these vessels had joined the admiral, his fleet consisted of no less
than forty-five sail, with which he immediately resolved to attack the
enemy, who were by this time ready to come out of the harbour of Brest.
Authors differ much as to their number, though they agree pretty well as
to the name of the admiral, whom they call Primauget; yet it seems they
agree in a mistake, for the historians of Britanny assure us they have
no such name in that province, and that undoubtedly it ought to be
Porsmoguer.
Whatever his name was, or whatever the force of his fleet might have
been (our writers say it consisted of thirty-nine, and the French only
of twenty, sail), he was certainly a very brave man. The ship he
commanded was called the _Cordelier_, and was so large as to be able to
carry twelve hundred fighting men, exclusive of mariners. At this time
there were nine hundred on board; and, encouraged by their gallant
officer, they did their duty bravely. Sir Thomas Knevet, in the
_Regent_, which was a much smaller ship, attacked and boarded the
_Cordelier_, and the action lasted for some time with equal vigour on
both sides. At last, both flag ships took fire and burnt together,
wherein the two commanders and upwards of sixteen hundred valiant men
were lost. It seems this accident struck both fleets with amazement; so
that they separated without fighting, each claiming the victory, to
which probably neither had a very good title.
In the beginning of the next April the admiral put to sea again with a
fleet of forty-two men-of-war, besides small vessels, and forced the
French into the harbour of Brest, where they fortified themselves, in
order to wait the arrival of a squadron of six galleys from the
Mediterranean. Sir Edward Howard, having considered their position,
resolved, since it was impossible to attack them, to burn the country
round about; which he accordingly did, in spite of all the care they
could take to prevent it; and yet the French lay still under the cover
of their fortifications and of a line of twenty-four large hulks lashed
together, which they proposed to have set on fire in case the English
attempted to force them to a battle. While the admiral was thus
employed, he had intelligence that M. Pregent, with the six galleys from
the Mediterranean, had arrived on the coast, and had taken shelter in
the Bay of Conquet. This circumstance induced him to change his plans;
and he now resolved first to destroy the galleys, if possible, and then
to return to the fleet. Upon his advancing to reconnoitre Pregent's
squadron, he found them at anchor between two rocks, on each of which
stood a strong fort; and, what was likely to give him still more
trouble, they lay so far up in the bay that he could bring none of his
ships of force to engage them. The only way open to him now was to put
the bravest of his sailors on board two galleys which were in his fleet,
and with these to venture in and try what might be done against the six.
This being resolved on, he went himself, attended by Sir Thomas Cheyne
and Sir John Wallop, on board one of the galleys, and sent Lord Ferrers,
Sir Henry Sherburn, and Sir William Sidney on board the other; and,
having a brisk gale of wind, sailed directly into the bay, where, with
his own galley, he attacked the French admiral. As soon as they were
grappled, Sir Edward Howard, followed by seventeen of the bravest of his
sailors, boarded the enemy, and were very gallantly received; but it so
happened that, in the midst of the engagement, the galleys sheered
asunder, and the French, taking advantage of this circumstance, forced
the English overboard, except one seaman, from whom they quickly learned
that the English admiral was among the slain. Lord Ferrers, in the other
galley, did all that was possible for a very brave man to do; but,
having spent all his shot, and perceiving, as he thought, the admiral
retire, he likewise made the best of his way out of the harbour.
In Lord Herbert's "Life and Reign of Henry VIII., 1513," there are some
very singular circumstances given relating to this unlucky adventure. He
says that Sir Edward Howard having considered the position of the French
fleet in the haven of Brest, and the consequences which would attend
either defeating or burning it, gave notice thereof to the king,
inviting him to be present at so glorious an action; desiring rather
that the king should have the honour of destroying the French naval
force than himself; a loyal, generous proposition--supposing the honour,
not the danger, too great for a subject, and measuring (no doubt very
justly) his master's courage by his own; the only standard men of his
rank and temper of mind ever use.
But, his letter being laid before the council, they were altogether of
another opinion; conceiving it was much too great a hazard for His
Majesty to expose his person in such an enterprise; and therefore they
wrote sharply to the admiral, commanding him not to send excuses, but to
do his duty. This, as it well might, piqued him to the utmost; and as it
was his avowed maxim that a seaman never did good who was not resolute
to a degree of madness, he took a sudden resolution of acting in the
manner he did. When he found his galley slide away and saw the danger to
which he was exposed, he took his chain of gold nobles which hung about
his neck, and his great gold whistle, the ensign of his office, and
threw them into the sea, to prevent the enemy from possessing the spoils
of an English admiral. Thus fell the great Sir Edward Howard, on April
25th, 1513, a sacrifice to his too quick sense of honour in the service,
and yet to the manifest and acknowledged detriment of his country; for
his death so dejected the spirits of his sailors that the fleet was
obliged to return home.
Sir Edward Howard, we are assured, was very far from being either a mere
soldier or a mere seaman, though so eminent in both characters; but he
was what it became an English gentleman of so high a quality to be--an
able statesman, a faithful counsellor, and a free speaker. He was ready
at all times to hazard his life and fortune in his country's quarrels;
and yet he was against her quarrelling on insufficient occasion or
against her interests. He particularly dissuaded a breach with the
Flemings, for the wise and strong reasons that such a war was
prejudicial to commerce abroad; that it diminished the customs, while it
increased the public expenses; that it served the French, by
constraining the inhabitants of Flanders to deal with them against their
will; and that it tended to the prejudice of our manufactures, by
interrupting our intercourse with those by whom they were principally
improved.
Thus qualified, we need not wonder he attained such high honours, though
he died in the flower of his age. Henry conferred upon him many titles
and other rewards, making him Admiral of England, Wales, Ireland,
Normandy, Gascony, and Aquitaine, for life, and causing him to be
chosen Knight of the Garter; believing that he should thereby command,
as indeed he did, not only the utmost service of Sir Edward, but also
all the force and interest of his potent family; an interest in later
years which he but ill requited. As soon as the news of his unfortunate
death reached the ears of his royal master he was succeeded in his high
office by Sir Thomas Howard, his elder brother.
THE STORY OF SIR THOMAS HOWARD AND SIR ANDREW BARTON.
BY JOHN CAMPBELL.
In the third year of the reign of Henry VIII., Sir Andrew Barton, a
Scots seaman, with two stout vessels--the _Lion_ and the _Jenny
Perwin_--ranged the coasts of England and interrupted all trade and
navigation; his authority being letters of reprisals against the
Portuguese, granted him by James III., late King of Scotland, under
which he did not hesitate to attack and appropriate ships of all
nations, alleging that they had Portuguese goods on board. On complaint
of these grievances being made to the Privy Council of England, the Earl
of Surrey, afterwards Duke of Norfolk, treasurer to Henry VIII. and
father of Sir Edward Howard referred to in the previous story, and of
Sir Thomas Howard, who forms the subject of this sketch, said the narrow
seas should not be so infested while he had estate enough to furnish a
ship and a son capable of commanding it.
Upon this, two ships were immediately fitted out by the brothers,
probably at their own, or at their father's cost; for if they had gone
with the king's commission they would most likely have sailed at the
head of a squadron. Upon an expedition of this kind, however, they
needed no commission, for pirates being _hostes humani generis_, enemies
to mankind in general, every man was at liberty to act against them.
The brothers having been some days at sea, were separated by a storm,
which gave Sir Thomas Howard an opportunity of coming up with Sir Andrew
Barton in the _Lion_, whom he immediately engaged. The fight was long
and doubtful; for Barton, who was an experienced seaman, and who had
under him a determined crew, made a most desperate defence; cheering his
men with a boatswain's whistle to his last breath. On the loss of their
captain, however, they were induced to submit, and were received to
quarter and fair usage. In the meantime, Sir Edward fought and took the
consort of the _Lion_, which was likewise a strong vessel, and
exceedingly well-manned. Both these ships, with as many men as were left
alive, being in number one hundred and fifty, they brought on August
2nd, 1511, into the River Thames, as trophies of their victory.
King James IV., who then governed the Scots, exceedingly resented this
action, and instantly sent ambassadors to Henry to demand satisfaction;
on which the king gave the memorable answer: "That punishing pirates was
never held a breach of peace among princes." King James, however,
remained still dissatisfied; and, from that time to his death was never
thoroughly reconciled to the king or English nation.
Sir Thomas Howard accompanied the Marquis of Dorset in his expedition
against Guienne; which ended in King Ferdinand's conquering Navarre; and
the commander-in-chief falling sick, Sir Thomas succeeded him, and
brought home the remains of the English army. He had scarcely returned,
however, before the news arrived of the death of his brother, Sir Edward
the lord-admiral; whereupon the king instantly appointed him his
successor. The French ships were at that time hovering about the English
coasts; but Sir Thomas quickly scoured the seas, so that not a barque of
that nation durst appear; and, on July 1st, 1513, landing in Whitsand
Bay, he pillaged the country adjacent and burnt a considerable town.
Henry VIII. was at this time engaged in Picardy, and in the absence of
the king and his admiral, James IV. seized the opportunity to invade
England with a mighty army, supposing he should find it without defence.
Thomas, Earl of Surrey, father of the admiral, however, quickly
convinced him of his mistake, marching towards Scotland with a powerful
army, which strengthened as it moved; while Sir Thomas Howard,
returning, on the news of the invasion, landed five thousand veterans,
and made haste to join his father. The Earl of Surrey despatching a
herald to bid the Scots king battle, the lord-admiral sent him word, at
the same time, that he was come in person to answer for the death of Sir
Andrew Barton. This defiance produced the famous battle of Flodden
Field, which was fought on September the 8th, 1513, when Sir Thomas
Howard commanded the van-guard, and, by his courage and conduct,
contributed not a little to the glorious victory in which James IV. of
Scotland fell, with the flower of his army.
King Henry, for this and other services, restored Thomas, Earl of
Surrey, to the title of Norfolk, and created the lord-admiral Earl of
Surrey.
The war being ended with France, the admiral's martial talent lay some
time unemployed; but certain disturbances in Ireland calling for
redress, the active Earl of Surrey was sent thither, with a commission
as lord-deputy, where he suppressed Desmond's rebellion, humbled the
O'Neals and O'Carrols, and, without affecting severity or popularity,
brought all things into good order, leaving, when he quitted the island,
peace and a parliament behind him, and carrying with him the affections
of the people.
The pretence for recalling him was the breaking out again of a French
war. Before it was declared, the French ships of war interrupted
(according to custom) the English trade, so that we suffered as their
enemies, while their ambassadors were treated as our friends. The
lord-admiral, on his arrival, immediately fitted out a small squadron of
clean ships, under a vigilant commander, who soon drove the French
privateers from the sea. In the spring, Sir William Fitz-William, as
vice-admiral, put to sea, with a fleet of twenty-eight men-of-war, to
guard the narrow seas; and it being apprehended that the Scots might add
to the number of the king's enemies by sea as well as by land, a small
squadron of seven frigates sailed up the Firth of Forth, and burned all
such vessels as lay there and were in a condition of going to sea. In
the meantime, the admiral prepared a Royal Navy, with which that of the
Emperor Charles V. (of Spain) was to join; and as it was evident that
many inconveniences might arise from the fleets having several
commanders-in-chief, the Earl of Surrey, by special commission from
Henry VIII., received the emperor's commission to be admiral also of the
united navy, which consisted of one hundred and eighty tall ships.
With the united fleets, the admiral sailed over to the coast of
Normandy, and landed some forces near Cherbourg, wasted and destroyed
the country; after which they returned. This seems to have been a feint;
for, in a few days, the admiral landed again on the coast of Bretagne a
very large body of troops, with which he took and plundered the town of
Morlaix; and having gained an immense booty, and opened a passage for
the English forces into Champagne and Picardy, he first detached Sir
William Fitz-William with a strong squadron to scour the seas and to
protect the merchants, and then returned to Southampton, where the
emperor, Charles V., who had visited England to confer with Henry VIII.
and Cardinal Wolsey, embarked on board his ship, and was safely convoyed
to the port of St. Andero, in Biscay.
The Earl of Surrey succeeded to the office of Lord Treasurer on the
retirement of his father, and on the duke's death was appointed to
command an army against the Scots and employed on various other
commissions of importance.
Towards the close of his reign the king was led to believe that he (now
Duke of Norfolk) and his son, Henry, Earl of Surrey, the most
distinguished poet of his time, were in a plot to seize upon his person,
and to engross the government into their own hands. For these supposed
crimes, he and his son were imprisoned and attainted almost on
suspicion. Henry, Earl of Surrey, lost his head in his father's
presence; nor would the duke have survived him long, if the king had not
died at that critical juncture and thereby opened a door of hope and
liberty. After all these sufferings, he survived King Edward VI. and
died in the first year of Queen Mary, at the age of sixty-six, when his
attainder was repealed, and the act thereof taken from amongst the
records.
THE STORY OF SIR JOHN HAWKINS
AND THE TROUBLESOME VOYAGE MADE WITH THE JESUS OF LUBECK, THE
MINION, AND FOUR OTHER SHIPS TO THE PARTS OF GUINEA AND THE WEST
INDIES, IN THE YEARS 1567 AND 1568 BY MASTER JOHN HAWKINS.
Sir John Hawkins was born at Plymouth about the year 1520. He was from
his youth devoted to the study of navigation, and began very early to
carry his knowledge into practice by making voyages to Spain, Portugal
and the Canaries, voyages which were in those days great undertakings.
In 1562 he made his first voyage to Guinea for slaves, and then to
Hispaniola, St. John de Porto Rico, and other Spanish islands, for
sugars, hides, silver, etc. His venture proving financially successful
he made another voyage in 1564 with a like purpose, with the same
success, arriving on his return at Padstow in Cornwall, on September
20th, 1565.
Towards the end of the year 1567, he started on the unfortunate voyage
made with the _Jesus_, the _Minion_ and four other ships to the ports of
Guinea and the West Indies, his own personal account of which is thus
recorded in Hakluyt's "Voyages."
"The ships departed from Plymouth October 2nd, 1567, and had reasonable
weather until the seventh day, at which time, forty leagues north from
Cape Finisterre, there arose an extreme storm which continued four days,
in such sort that the fleet was dispersed and all our great boats lost,
and the _Jesus_, our chief ship, in such case as not thought able to
serve the voyage. Whereupon in the same storm we set our course
homeward, determining to give over the voyage; but the eleventh day of
the same month the wind changed, with fair weather, whereby we were
animated to follow our enterprise, and so did, directing our course to
the islands of Grand Canaries, where, according to an order before
prescribed, all our ships, before dispersed, met in one of those
islands, called Gomera, where we took water, and departed from thence on
November 4th towards the coast of Guinea, and arrived at Cape Verde,
November 18th, where we landed one hundred and fifty men, hoping to
obtain some negroes; where we got but few, and those with great hurt and
damage to our men, which chiefly proceeded from their envenomed arrows;
although in the beginning they seemed to be but small hurts, yet there
hardly escaped any that had blood drawn of them but died in strange
sort, with their mouths shut, some ten days before they died, and after
their wounds were whole; where I myself had one of the greatest wounds,
yet, thanks be to God, escaped. From thence we passed the time upon the
coast of Guinea, searching with all diligence the rivers from Rio Grande
unto Sierra Leone till January 12th, in which time we had not gotten
together a hundred and fifty negroes: yet, notwithstanding, the sickness
of our men and the late time of the year commanded us away: and thus
having nothing wherewith to seek the coast of the West Indies, I was
with the rest of our company in consultation to go to the coast of the
Myne, hoping there to have obtained some gold for our wares, and thereby
to have defrayed our charge. But even in that present instant there came
to us a negro sent from a king oppressed by other kings, his neighbours,
desiring our aid, with promise that as many negroes as by these wars
might be obtained, as well of his part as of ours, should be at our
pleasure. Whereupon we concluded to give aid, and sent one hundred and
twenty of our men, which January 15th assaulted a town of the negroes of
our allies' adversaries which had in it eight thousand inhabitants, and
very strongly impaled and fenced after their manner; but it was so well
defended that our men prevailed not, but lost six men, and forty hurt,
so that our men sent forthwith to me for more help; whereupon,
considering that the good success of this enterprise might highly
further the commodity of our voyage, I went myself, and with the help of
the king of our side assaulted the town, both by land and sea, and very
hardly with fire (their houses being covered with dry palm leaves)
obtained the town, and put the inhabitants to flight, where we took two
hundred and fifty persons, men, women, and children, and by our friend
the king of our side there were taken six hundred prisoners, whereof we
hoped to have our choice, but the negro (in which nation is seldom or
never found truth) meant nothing less; for that night he removed his
camp and prisoners, so that we were fain to content us with those few
which we had gotten ourselves.