the land on that side. And for the sake of correct information with respect to your intentions in this matter, it is befitting that you should send your messengers, and through them get a reply from the King my Lord, and meanwhile let me be advised of what you wish me to do, or in what quarter the fleet of the King my Lord can proceed and inflict most injury upon the Sultan for your service."

INSTRUCTIONS WHICH THE GREAT AFONSO DALBOQUERQUE GAVE
TO RUY GOMEZ, CONCERNING THAT WHICH HE WAS TO SAY
TO THE XEQUE ISMAEL.

"First of all your journey is to be made by whatever method and manner that you can well perform it, direct to the place where the Xeque Ismael may be; and on your arrival before him you shall do him that reverence which is due to so great a king and prince.

"On your arrival at Ormuz you shall send a requisition to Cogeatar to supply you with the relays of horses that you require, and a requisition to him to give you all things necessary for your expenses, and for the despatch of your journey, in accordance with the advice which I have forwarded to him in my letters.

"In the journey which you are thus about to prosecute, you shall be ever under the orders, advice, and disposition. of the Ambassadors of the Xeque Ismael in whose company you go, nor shall you ever detach yourself from him to go and see cities, strongholds, towns, streets, festivals, or games, nor shall you follow any other route than that which he takes, but be in all things under his orders, for you well know how the Moors desire to inflict upon us all the loss they can.

"You shall say to the Xeque Ismael, on my behalf, that I send this visitation to him on account of the greatness of his fame, lordship, and influence, and on account of the

good and great qualities which he personally possesses, and also because he shelters the Christians, and shews favour and honour towards them.

"You shall tell him how my Lord will be pleased to come to an understanding and alliance with him, and will assist him in his war against the Sultan; and that I, in his name and on his behalf, offer him the fleet, and army, and artillery which I have with me, and the fortresses, towns, and lordships which the King of Portugal holds in India, and I will give him all this same help against the Turk.

"You will tell him that when he rises up and attacks the house of Méca, and is desirous of obtaining possession of it, I will enter the Red Sea and make my way to the harbour of Judá1 with my fleet, and I will do likewise when he desires to go over the land of Arabia and Adem, and over the sea on the coast of Arabia, Bahrem,2 and Catife, and the city of Baçora; and I will overrun all the coasts of the Persian Sea where I can come and see him; and I will do everything that I can for him.

"You will describe to him the greatness of the King my Lord, and of his kingdoms and dominions, and the extent of their richness and abundance; and speak of the greatness and beauty of the city of Lisbon, the edifices and costly houses that it contains, and of the great quantity and stores of silver, and gold, and riches, and number of people that are contained in the kingdom; and how the King my Lord has two gold mines which yield him every year a great

1 See vol. i, p. 234, note 2, and the site of the "Cidade de Iuda" on Berthelot's chart, vol. i, p. 80.

" Baharem or Barem, "huma Ilha de Ormuz, onde se pesca o aljofar”. See Cam. Lus., x, 41, quoted in vol. i, p. 64, note; probably the Bahrein or Aval Islands, 26 deg. 10 min. N., 50 deg. 35 min. E.

3 El-katiff, on the western side of the Persian gulf, 26 deg. 32 min. N., 50 deg 8 min. E.

4 Bassorah, or Basra, in Irak-Arabi, Turkey in Asia, 30 deg. 31 min. N., 47 deg. 53 min. E.

quantity of precious metal; and you will relate to him the abundance of the ships that belong to the kingdom, their greatness, and the large fleets which he prepares every year for India; and how his fleets and subjects sail all over the world; and that he sends fleets to the East against the Turks.

"You will tell him how the King my Lord has acquired many towns, cities, and villages by force of arms in Africa; and how his power and dominion are rapidly progressing all along the sea-coast down to the Cape of Good Hope, and from that point inwardly as one enters the sea of India; and you will speak of the fortresses that are contained in this region, and the kings that are therein subject to his supreme authority.

"You will, moreover, tell him of the Queen my Sovereign Lady; whose daughter she is,1 and how the king her father, and the queen, her mother, hold their kingdoms and dominions which border upon the kingdom of Portugal: and in this manner you will give him an account of her estate, and of the maids of honour who minister to her, that they are daughters of dukes, marquesses, and counts of Portugal; and how they appear clothed in brocades and cloth of gold, and in all sorts of different coloured silks, and adorned with much jewelry, and that on passing from the service of the queen, these maids are married to the grandees of the kingdom.

"You will mention the household estate of the king my Lord, how he is served, and in what manner he eats at his high table of four degrees, while all the great lords and fidalgos who frequent his court, stand at the table with their

1 King Manoel, or Emmanuel "The Fortunate", married Maria of Castile, daughter of Ferdinand the Catholic, King of Aragon, and Isabella of Castile, in 1500. She was born in 1482 and died in 1517, and was the second wife of King Manoel who had previously married her elder sister, Isabella of Aragon.

caps removed from their heads until he has finished his repast and retired.

"You will tell him that he ought to send an ambassador to the King my Lord, with a view to procuring alliance and assistance, not only with regard to the war against his enemies, but also in the matter of the merchandise which can be sent into Persia from the kingdom of Portugal by way of Ormuz; and the King will help him against the Sultan, and against the Turk, by sea and by land, provided that he on his part will send to solicit his alliance, co-operation, and assistance.

"You will not omit to make mention to him of our Faith, and observe what his opinions are in this matter, and if he receives you well; and what you say to him in this respect shall not be more than what can be said without giving him any offence; and you will gather from the Christians of those parts if they practise the rites of our Faith, and believe truly that Our Lord was born of Our Lady, and died, and suffered on the Cross to save us; and you will take notice if any of these Christians exercise rites different in any way to ours, in the practice of their Faith; and see you if you can manage to bring some one of them back with you, that he may go to Rome to the Holy Father.

"You will inspect their churches and the ornaments therein, the altars, images, and saints; noting if they have Our Lord upon the Cross, and the image of Our Lady, and observing the manner of life among the friars and clergy, and their habits, and if there exist in this land any relics of the bodies of saints, martyrs, and apostles.

"You will relate to him minutely all the nature of the state of the King my Lord (although in a previous clause I have instructed you to touch but lightly upon these matters); nevertheless you will give him a detailed account of the greatness of the King of Portugal's feasts, the riches and

brilliancy of his household officers and of his court, the beauty of his palace wherein they live; and of the expense of his feasts, and the treasures, precious stones, pearls, and jewels, that they wear of various fashions; and of the grandness of his Court and of the mounted soldiers who are continually going up and down on guard therein; and of the Ambassadors of the Kings his neighbours who are ever coming to his Court; and of all other particular matters which he may desire to hear of from you.

"You will tell him and assure him how loyally and truly affected towards their Lord the Portuguese are; and this you shall perform in such a manner that the Xeque may desire earnestly and endeavour to acquire the alliance, assistance, and co-operation of the King my Lord, and may so be minded to take upon himself entirely the obligation and good will of doing likewise whenever he shall be called upon to do so, either by request of the King himself or by that of the Captain General, made in his name.

"You will also give him an account of the power, and fleet, and men, and arms, and artillery which I have under my orders in India; and also the great quantity of artillery and its extent which the King my Lord has in his kingdom; and you will relate to him how the soldiers of Portugal march on horseback, and tell him of the trappings of silver and gold, the saddles and caparisons which they have on their horses, and also of their military arrangements and brilliant appearance, and how the men-at-arms march, and the fashion and manner of their arms.

"I command you that both you and the interpreter whom you have with you do minutely read these instructions, and you are to adjust your account with that of the interpreter in such a manner that there be no discrepancy in the relations which you are to deliver in respect of all these matters, but that you be ever unanimous and act in conformity with my letter which I write to him."