The Constitutional Documents of the Puritan Revolution. Samuel Rawson Gardiner
The King’s service is much hindered; for the usual rendezvous of the King’s ships being at the Downs, and that being within the jurisdiction of the said Warden, the Lord Admiral or Captains of the King’s ships have no power or warrant to press men from the shore, if the King’s ships be in distress.
(5) When the King’s ships or others be in danger on the Goodwins, or other places within view of the portsmen, they have refused to help with their boats lest the King’s ships should command them on board; whereby many ships have perished, and much goods have been lost.
(6) When the warrants come to press a ship at road for the King’s service, the officers take occasion to disobey the warrants, and prejudice the King’s service; for if the warrant come from the Lord Warden they will pretend the ship to be out of their jurisdiction; if the warrant come from the Lord Admiral, they will pretend it to be within jurisdiction of the Cinque Ports; and so whilst the officers dispute the opportunity of the service is lost.
(7) When the King’s ships lye near the Ports, and the men come on shore, the officers refuse to assist the captains to reduce them to their ships without the Lord Warden’s warrant.
(8) If the King’s ships on the sudden have any need of pilots for the sands, coasts of Flanders or the like, wherein the portsmen are the best experienced, they will not serve without the Lord Warden’s or his lieutenant’s warrant, who perhaps are not near the place.
(9) When for great occasions for the service of the State, the Lord Admiral and the Lord Warden must both join their authority; if the officers for want of true understanding of their several limits and jurisdictions, mistake the warrants, the service which many times can brook no delay is lost, or not so effectually performed.
For these, and many other reasons of the like kind the Duke, not being led either with ambition or hope of profit, as hath been objected (for it could be no increase of honour unto him, having been honoured before with a greater place; nor for profit, for it hath not yielded him in a manner any profit at all, nor is like to yield him above three hundred pounds per annum at any time), but out of his desire to do the King and kingdom service, and prevent all differences and difficulties, which heretofore had, or hereafter might, hinder the same; he did entertain that motion: And doth confess, that not knowing, nor so much as thinking, of the said Act of Parliament before mentioned, he did agree to give the said Lord one thousand pounds in money, and five hundred pounds per annum, in respect of his surrender; he not being willing to leave his place without such consideration, nor the Duke willing to have it without his full satisfaction. And the occasion why the Duke of Buckingham gave that consideration to the Lord Zouch was, because the Duke of Richmond, in his life time, had first agreed to give the same consideration for it; and, if he had lived, he had had that place upon the same terms. And when the Lord Duke of Richmond was dead, his late Majesty directed the Duke of Buckingham to go through for that place; and, for the reasons aforementioned, to put both these offices together; and to give the same consideration to the said Lord which the Duke of Richmond should have given; and his late Majesty said, he would repay the money. And how far this act of his, in acquiring this office, accompanied with these circumstances, may be within the danger of the law, the King being privy to all the passages of it, and encouraging and directing of it, he humbly submitteth to judgment: And he humbly leaves it to your lordships’ judgments, in what third way, an ancient servant to the Crown, by age and infirmity disabled to perform his service, can in an honourable course relinquish his place; for if the King himself gave the reward, it may be said it is a charge to the Crown; if the succeeding officer give the recompence, it may be thus objected to be within the danger of the law: And howsoever it be, yet he hopeth it shall not be held in him a crime, when his intentions were just and honourable, and for the furtherance of the King’s service; neither is it without precedents, that, in former times of great employment, both these offices were put into one hand, by several grants.
4. To this article whereby the not guarding of the narrow seas, in these last two years, by the Duke, according to the trust and duty of an Admiral, is laid to his charge, whereof the consequence[s], supposed to have been merely through his default, are the ignominious infesting of the coast with pirates and enemies, the endangering of the dominion of those seas, the extreme loss of the merchants and decay of the trade and strength of the kingdom:—
The Duke maketh this answer, That he doubteth not but he shall make it appear, to the good satisfaction of your lordships, that, albeit there hath happened much loss to the King’s subjects, within the said time of two years, by pirates and enemies, yet that hath not happened through the neglect of the Duke, or want of care or diligence in his place; for whereas, in former times, the ordinary guard for the narrow seas hath been but four ships, the Duke hath, since hostility began, and before, procured their number to be much increased; for since June 1624, there hath never been fewer than five of the King’s ships, and ordinarily six, besides pinnaces, merchant ships and drumblers; and all these well furnished and manned, sufficiently instructed and authorized for the service. He saith he hath, from time to time, upon all occasions, acquainted His Majesty and the Council Board therewith, and craved their advice, and used the assistance of the commissioners for the Navy in this service; and for the Dunkirkers, who have of late more infested these coasts than in former years, he saith there was that providence used for the repressing of them, that His Majesty’s ships and the Hollanders joined together, the port of Dunkirk was blocked up, and so should have continued, had not a sudden storm dispersed them, which being the immediate hand of God, could not by any policy of man be prevented, at which time they took the opportunity to rove abroad; but it hath been so far from endangering the dominion of the narrow seas thereby as is suggested, that His Majesty’s ships, or men of war, were never yet mastered or encountered by them, nor will they endure the sight of any of our ships; and when the Duke himself was in person, the Dunkirkers came into their harbours. But there is a necessity that, according to the fortune of wars, interchangeable losses will happen; yet hitherto, notwithstanding their more than wonted insolency, the loss of the enemy’s part hath been as much if not more, than what hath happened unto us; and that loss which hath fallen hath chiefly come by this means, that the Dunkirkers’ ships being of late years exercised in continual hostility with the Hollanders, are built as fit for flight as for fight, and so they pilfer upon our coasts, and creep to the shore, and escape from the King’s ships; but to prevent that inconveniency for the time to come, there is already order taken for the building of some ships, which shall be of the like mould, light and quick of sail, to meet with the adverse part in their own way. And for the pirates of Sallee and those parts, he saith, it is but very lately that they found the way into our coasts; where by surprise, they might easily do hurt; but there hath been that provision taken by His Majesty, not without the care of the Duke, both by force and treaty to repress them for the time to come, as will give good satisfaction. All which he is assured will clearly appear upon proof.
5. To this article the Duke maketh this answer; that, about September last, this ship called St. Peter, amongst divers others, was seized on as lawful prize by His Majesty’s ships and brought into Plimworth, as ships laden by the King of Spain. In the end of October or beginning of November, they were all brought to the Tower of London. All of them were there unladen but the Peter; but the bulk of her goods were not stirred, because they were challenged by the subjects of the French King; and there did not then appear so much proof against her, and the goods in her, as against the rest. About the middle of November, allegations were generally put in against them all, in the Admiral Court, to justify the seizure; and all the pretendants were called in: Upon these proceedings, divers of the goods were condemned, and divers were released, in a legal course; and others of them were in suspense till full proof made. The eight and twentieth of December, complaint was made, on the behalf of some Frenchmen, at the Council board, concerning this ship and others; when the King by advice of his Council (His Majesty being present in person), did order that the ship of Newhaven, called the Peter, and the goods in her, and all such other goods of the other prizes as should be found to appertain to His Majesty’s own subjects or to the subjects of his good brother the French King, or the States of the United Provinces, or any other princes or states in friendship or alliance with His Majesty, should be delivered: But this was not absolute, as was supposed by the charge; but was thus qualified, so as they were not fraudulently coloured; and it was referred to a judicial