English Privateering Voyages to the West Indies, 1588-1595 by Kenneth R. Andrews

Author:Kenneth R. Andrews [Andrews, Kenneth R.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781317142959
Google: bzk4cgAACAAJ
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Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Published: 2017-05-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER VIII

THE VOYAGE OF WILLIAM KING 1592

THE main narrative for this expedition was printed by Hakluyt in 1600 and there can be little doubt but that the author was the commander himself—William King. His account, reproduced below,1 is supplemented here by three High Court of Admiralty documents2 which fill out the story with details concerning the ships and personnel, the financing of the venture and the prizes. Further evidence is provided in various Spanish documents printed elsewhere.3

Howard’s note to Caesar at the end of December 1592 shows that John More, Roger Howe and Simon Boreman probably intended setting forth, in addition to the Salomon and the Jane Bonaventure, a ship called the Gertrude and another pinnace.4 Of these nothing more is heard, however, and in the middle of January bonds were taken from King and Wildes, captain and master of the Salomon, and from Richards and Perryman, captain and master of the Jane.5 Ten days later the ship and pinnace set sail from Ratcliffe. In all these preliminary proceedings there is no mention of Sir Henry Palmer, who according to King was the owner of the Jane. Such silence need not surprise us, for men of position were sometimes reluctant to disclose their interest in a pursuit which, though legal, easily deteriorated into something less than respectable.6 Palmer was one of the leading naval captains of his day; he is first found commanding a squadron of the Queen’s ships in 1576 and was knighted in 1587 while operating off Dunkirk; he again commanded a squadron in the Narrow Seas in 1588 and for many years after that remained in active and responsible service.1 The other promoters of the expedition were three London merchants, who presumably shared ownership of the Salomon, for this ship sailed in Lancaster’s expedition to Brazil and John More, Roger Howe and Simon Boreman are mentioned among the Londoners who subscribed to that enterprise.2 The same three merchants were also interested in a projected cruise of the Salomon and the Roebuck in 1593.3

The Salomon was a fairly powerful ship for a privateer, armed with 26 pieces of ordnance and 90 men.4 Her twelve-months supply of victuals was unusual, even for a West Indies cruise, the normal arrangement being to victual for six months only. The owners clearly meant business and they chose for their commander a man of some twenty-seven years who had proved his worth as a practical seaman and a fighter the previous year. For William King of Ratcliffe had been master of Carey’s Content in 1591 and may well have written the account of her ‘memorable fight’ which was later to appear in Hakluyt’s pages.5

The course of the voyage as far as the northern coast of Cuba is told straightforwardly enough by King and needs no further comment here. It must have been early in May (old style) that he rounded Cape San Antonio some three weeks after his arrival at Dominica. During the month of May he seems to have taken a few

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