Letter ID: 0053
Reference: BL, MS Cotton Galba D X f.176r-v
Citation: DCB/001/HTML/0053/000
Date: 14 August 1594
Note:
Copy of: 0461

lettertext

fol.176r

Later Addition: [[To my L.]] Tresurer

May yt please your good Lp. For answere to your Lettre of the 3d of this present, I can signifie no more of the States preparation, then I have donne already. They have alwayes complyned, and so they do yet, that they are not made acquainted with hir Highnes resolutions knowing nothinge yet for certaine of the troupes that shalbe sent, of the number of hir shipps, of the tyme and place of their meetinge, or other needfull particularities: Neverthelesse in regarde of their desire to seconde that service, and that they may not be blamed for any backwardnes here, they have already ordained (as I wryt unto your Lp the 7 of this month) that of 10 of their best and greatest shippes, eyther all, or some parte shall repayre unto the Downes, assoone as they are armed; but yet I am perswaded, unlesse the certainty be greater of her Majesties proceedings then yet appeareth unto them, they will but temporise at home, and (as I may conjecture) will not willingly by the first that shall sett their shippes to sea. Master Caron (as I am privately informed) hath donne them to witt, that 14 of hir shippes are dispatched towards Plimmouth, but yet for ought I can perceave they are very lyttle stirred with that advertisement from him, dowbting (as I do suspecte) that it is but given owt, to tolle them faster forwarde, which perhaps they thincke the rather, because nothinge is wrytten of those shippes unto me; Although I had yowr lettre by their Agents conveyance, and it was dated as lately as his. It was my sute unto your Lp in all my former lettres, that for the better parfourmance of my charge, and to satisfy the States in that which they requyre, I might have knowne expresly and directly aswell what forces hir Highnes intended for hir part to fournish to this voyage as what she doth expect should be donne by them here; or in case that nothinge were determined, to insinuate yet somwhat whereby I might be hable to inter- tayne them here the whyle. Howbeyt your Lp knoweth that from the time that I parted from home till this tyme I had never any aunsweare to any point that I proposed. Onely by your lettre of the 7 of July, I was injoyned to recommende unto the States, those particular demands which were dl Master Caron but yt was not signifyed to me what those demaunds might importe: Uppon occasion whereof I am humbly to beseech yow, that in these affayres of hir Majesty I may alwayes be instructed boath precisely and by wrytinge, to what effect I shall negotiate, and that I may not be referred to knowe my message of them with whom I should negotiate. For to be playne in this case, they do very much mar- vayle, and speake of yt often, to see me left so longe here without any information especially in these matters that are of such consequence, and for which I was sent expresly unto them. They tell me also rowndly, that considering I am present, yt is not their order, to take onely notice of such messages from their Agent, and uppon this reporte to deale with their Provinces , but they must be recommended, as desyred from hir Majesty by hir lettres unto them or by me that am her servant and purposely imployed. And in effect yt wilbe hard for hir Highnes to be served as she woulde be yf there be no more care of hir Ministers credit. I will not amplifie this poynt, because your Lp in your wisdome doth knowe what is meete, and will pardonne me a litle yf I speake with some plainenes when I feele my selfe encombred wth the burden of my service for want of dew information. They have ddl unto me a transcript of hir Majestyes demaundes in which I doe not dowbt but they deale withall sincerity in delivering me the right demands, but yet I have reason to be scrupulous how farre I should give credit to that which they exhibit, where things are not specifyed to me in my lettres: For I see very now that in these demaundes, conferring some poynts with your Lps lettre there is apparant variance: For where your Lp doth certify that there were twelve shipps at the least required of them fol.176v
there are but 10 sett downe in wrytng, and lykewise for the place of their R[endez vous] it is to them assigned to be at Dover, or the Downes, where your Lp de[clareth] that they are looked for at Portesmouth. I have sent you here inclosed a [copy of] those demaundes as I receaved them here of them; Moreover I was in some [doubt as] I wryt unto your Lp whither they stood styll in force, because there follow[ed a present] countermaunde, which though you shewe to have bin frustrate by hir Hig[hnes] approbation of Master Carons dilligence in making his dispatch upon the first [motion] yet that was more then I was informed, or then the States at that tyme woul[d seem] to understande: What their aunswere was here to every poynt apart, I advertised your Lp the 21 of the last, and I did yt as becommed, with a fay[thfull] relation being ready uppon my perill to justify every worde with the testim[ony of the] States. And where your Lp alledgeth, that they had wrytten to Master Caron the 29 of July of their readynes at that tyme to sende away their shipps with o[ut making] any mention of dowbt or delay I have for myne owne discharge expostul[ated with] them, for answearing me in one sorte and their Agent in another: but the[y cleared] the matter presently, declaring unto me, that their maner was to deale hones[tly, and] not doubblely, and so they had in that matter, shewing me for my better sa[tisfaction] the copie of their lettre sent to Master Caron the 29 of July, which I hav[e caused] to be translated, and sende yt here unto your Lp wherein howsoever M[aster] Caron did explicate theyr meaning, there is no such promise made, that t[hey will] sende theyr succors owt of hande, and soe it will appeare by the issue [of their] dealing. And as touching those dowbts which they mouved unto me uppon [her] Highnes demaundes, they were onely such as passed by way of commun[ication] betweene them and me, and were not happely sett downe in that lettre to th[eir Agent] because they were not accepted as authenticall demaundes, Master Caron [not] knowing neyther at that tyme /that/ he wryt his lettre, nor in a good tyme afte[r as he] hath signifyed since, but that the countermaunde had stoode. I have [moved] them for 30 last of powder as your Lp desyred to have, but the Dep[uties of] Hollande who are chief in this action being absent from the Haegh[e, the rest] put of theyr aunsweare, till all come togither. I doe wonder very m[uch, that] the taking of Groninghen came so lately to your knowledge, for thag[reement] was made the 11th of July, whereof the newes coming hither the [14 which] was assoone as was possible Master Gilpin and I dispatched presently a [post by] whome he wryt unto your Lp and I to Sir Robert Cecill, having othe[rwise ] then occasion to sende him a lettre of the States, in aunsweare to one that [was sent] hither from hir Majesty and consigned by him to be ddl by me: where[with as] also with that occurrence of Groninghen I did assure myselfe that [he would] acquaynt your Lp. The Post by whome our lettres were sent to t[he end he] might prevent all other messengers, albeyt the wynde was very [contrary] hyred purposely a passage for Yarmouth, and was the first (as he [affirmeth] and I doe otherwise understande) that brought the tydings into Englan[d][, and] by him yt was undowbtedly that my L. of Essex might knowe the [certainty] and not before, unlesse that some body by presumption had wrytten the new[s before] it was true. And thus I take my humble leave. From the Haeghe August 14 1594