Sir Walter Raleigh: In Life & Legend (65 page)

12 Works of Ralegh, viii, p. 165.

13 Ibid., p. 183.

14 Ibid., p. 211.

15 Ibid., p. 153.

16 Ibid., p. 162.

17 Ibid., pp. 215, 218.

18 The Discourse was first printed in 1650. The edition used here is that in Works of Ralegh, viii, pp. 253-97.

19 Ibid., pp. 253-6.

20 Ibid., pp. 257-77; above, Chapter Five.

21 Ibid., p. 279. For the influence of Machiavelli on Ralegh's writings see P. Lefranc, Sir Walter Ralegh ecrivain: Poeuvre et les ides (Paris, 1968), pp. 224-53.

22 Works of kale,'li, viii, p. 279.

23 Ibid., p. 281; Beer, Ralegh and his readers, pp. 129-30.

24 Works of Ralegh, viii, pp. 282-94.

25 Beer, Sir Walter Ralegh and his Readers, pp. 111-15, 181-3; The Petition of SirJohn Eliot, prisoner in the Gatehouse, in behalf of the liberty of the subject, incorporated in J. Eliot, The Arguments upon the Writ of Habeas Corpus (London, 1649).

26 Quoted in J. N. Ball, 'Sir John Eliot and parliament, 1624-29', in K. Sharpe (ed.), Faction and Parliament (Oxford, 1978), p. 180 and fn; on Eliot, see also H. Hulme, The Life of John Eliot, 1592-1632 (London, 1957).

27 For Scott see P. G. Lake, 'Constitutional consensus and puritan opposition in the 1620s: Thomas Scott and the Spanish match', Historical Journal25 (1982), 805-25.

28 Published Utrecht, 1626. A facsimile edn was published in 1974.

29 Beer, Sir Walter Ralegh and his Readers, chs 5 and 6; below, Chapter Fourteen on Ralegh's legacy.

CHAPTER 12

1. J. Lorimer, Untnith and Consequences: Raiegh's Discoverie of Guiana and the "salting" of tin' 'old mine (London, 2007), pp. 6-7.

2 J. Lorimer, 'The location of Ralegh's Guiana gold mine', Terrae IncoNlnitae 14 (1982), 77-95, at 88-91.

3 Lorimer, Untruth and Consequences, pp. 14-19.

4 See ibid., pp. 9-10.

5 Letters of Chamberlain, i, p. 618.

6 Letters of Ralegh, p. 337.

7 [F. Greville], The FiveYeares of KingJames (London, 1643), pp. 66-7.

8 S. W May, Sir Walter Ralegh (Boston, 1989), pp. 80-4. See above, Chapter Eleven (i). The lively irony of the Dialogue suggests that Ralegh would have made a very successful playwright.

9 S. Clucas and R. Davies (eds), The Crisis of 1614 and the Addled Parliament: literary and historical perspectives (Aldershot, 2002); C. Russell, The Addled Parliament 0/1614: the limits of revision (Reading, 1992).

10 J. R. llasent et al. (eds),Acts of the Privy Council of England (London, 1890-1964),p.456.

11 E. A. Strathmann,Ralegh plans his last voyage', Mariner's Mirror 50 (1964), 261-70, from Folger Shakespeare Library MS G.b.10.

12 SP 14/99/77, quoted in L. Jardine and A. Stewart, Hostage to Fortune: the troubled life of Francis Bacon, 1561-1626 (London, 1999), p. 422.

13 V. T. Harlow, Ralech's Last Voyage (London, 1932), pp. 40-1.

14 Ibid., p. 336.

15 Letters of Chamberlain, ii, p. 67.

16 S. R. Gardiner, History of England from the Accession of James I to the Outbreak of the Civil War, 1603-42 (London, 1883-4), iii, pp. 47-55, 150n remains a coherent and plausible summary of the dealings with France. Letters of Ralegh, pp. 340-2; R. Trevelyan, Sir Walter Raleigh (London, 2002), pp. 468-76.

17 See ODNB and C. H. L. Ewen, Lording Barry: poet and pirate (London, 1938).

18 Harlow, Ralegh's Last Voyage, p. 331.

19 BL, Add. MS 73085, to. 2. See ODNB. Ralegh thought highly of Penington, describing him in March 1618 as 'one of the most sufficient gentlemen for the sea England hath' (Letters of Ralegh, p. 349; Bodleian Library, MS Tanner 290, to. 4v). See also SP 14/98/62.

20 Plymouth municipal records, as cited by T. N. Brushfield, Ralcgliana (Plymouth], 1896-1907), published as a series in the Transactions of the Dceo,zshircAssociatioll for the Advancement of Science, Literature and Art, viii, p. 135.

21 Letters of Chamberlain, ii, p. 85.

22 BL, Add. MS 72709, fo. 8. These are Bess's words in a letter to Nicholas Carew.

23 Letters of Rale,gh, p. 345; BL, Cotton MS Titus BVIII, fos 168v, 169.

24 BL,Add. MS 34216, fo. 49r.

25 Ralegh's journal of the voyage to 13 February 1618, BL, Cotton MS Titus BVIII, fos 162-175v, printed by Sir Robert Schomburgk (ed.), The Discovery of the Lar~e, Rich, and Beautilld Empire of Guiana...by Sir W. Ralegh (London, 1848), pp. 177-208. This quote at to. 167.

26 BL, Cotton MS Titus BVIII, fo. 167.

27 Letters of Chamberlain, ii, p. 104, letter dated 18 October 1617. The teller of tales, one Captain Bayley, who apparently left Ralegh's fleet at Lanzarote, was later imprisoned for defamation and desertion in the Gatehouse in January 1618 (Letters of Chamberlain, ii, p. 131; SP 14/95/20; APC 1618-19, pp. 7-9, 55-6).

28 BL, Cotton MS Titus BVIII, to. 168.

29 Ibid., fos 168, 168v.

30 Ibid., fos 169, 171, 172, 173v-174.

31 Letters of Rale th, pp. 345-6.

32 For the 'Newes', eventually published in 1618, see Harlow, Rah,Qh'.s Last Voyage, pp. 148-53.

33 BL, Cotton MS Titus BVIII, fo. 173v.

34 These instructions were set out after the event by Ralegh in his 'Apologie' (Harlow, RaletYh's Last U3yage, pp. 324-5).

35 Spanish accounts of the capture of San Thons are copied in BL, Add. MS 36321, esp. fos 1-10, 53-118. See Harlow, Ralegh's Last Voyage, pp. 162-237.

36 Harlow, Rale,Ehs Last Voyage, p. 344.

37 See the helpful note in Trevelyan, Sir Walter Raleigh, p. 497.

38 Huntington Library MS HM 60322.

39 J. Lorimer, 'The location of Ralegh's Guiana gold mine', Terrae Inxgnitae 14 (1982), pp. 90, 94; Harlow, Ralegh's Last Voyage, p. 235.

40 C. Le Neve Foster long ago suggested that the Caratal goldfield was the inspiration for Ralegh's great mine ('On the Caratal gold-field', Proceedings of the Geological Society in the Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society 25 (1869), 336-43). Joyce Lorimer argues that a mine did exist near San Thome, and even that James knew of its existence, carefully concealing that knowledge from Gondomar, 'The location of Ralegh's Guiana gold mine', passim.

41 A. M. C. Latham, 'Sir Walter Ralegh's gold mine: new light on the last Guiana voyage', Essays and Studies 4 (1951), 94-111, at 107-8.

42 BL, Cotton MS Titus BVIII, to. 174v.

43 BL, Cotton MS Titus BVIII, to. 175.

44 This is a summary of the argument set out by Keymis while returning to Trinidad, see Latham, 'Sir Walter Ralegh's gold mine', pp. 108-11.

45 S. J. Greenblatt, Sir Walter Ralegh: the renaissance man and his roles (London, 1973), p. 168.

46 Latham, 'Sir Walter Ralegh's gold mine', p. 110.

47 Letters of kal,Eh, p. 355.

48 Harlow, Rahgh's Last Voyage, p. 328.

49 Letters of Ralegh, p. 355.

50 Ibid., p. 356.

51 Harlow, Ralegh's Last Voyage, p. 325.

52 Much later, he made out that he had pretended a commission from France to the rebellious fleet. Plundering Spanish silver would, he said, satisfy his French masters while placating the English king (SP 14/99/58,Thomas Wilson to King James, 21 September 1618)!

53 Letters of Ralegh, pp. 354-5.

54 Ibid., p. 357.

55 Ibid., pp. 358-9.

56 Ibid., p. 359.

57 Ibid., p. 363.

58 Ibid., p. 359.

CHAPTER 13

1 Letters of Ralegh, pp. 353-6.

2 J. F. Larkin and P. L. Hughes, Stuart Royal Proclamations: royal proclamations of KingJames I, 1603-25 (Oxford, 1973), i, pp. 391-3.

3 P. Hyland, Ralegh's Last Journey: a talc of madness, vanity and treachery (London, 2003), pp. 45-6.

4 APC, 1618-19, p. 220.

5 See M. Nicholls, 'Treason's Reward: the punishment of conspirators in the Bye plot of 1603', HistoricalJournal38 (1995), 837-8.

6 V. T. Harlow, Ralegh's Last Voyage (London, 1932), p. 317. His faked illness convinced those on the spot, though more distant commentators, aware of Ralegh's subtleties, speculated whether he might have 'taken a dramrne of somwhat to do himself harme' Letters of John Chamberlain, ii, pp. 163, 167).

7 A. M. C. Lathan, 'Sir Walter Ralegh's gold mine: new light on the last Guiana voyage', Essays and Studies 4 (1951), 95.

8 Harlow, Rnlcv th s Last Voyage, p. 334.

9 Ibid., p. 334; Hyland, Ralegh's Last Journey, pp. 108-9.

10 Harlow, Rafe, hWs Last Voyage, p. 322.

11 Ibid., p. 331.

12 See S. W May, Sir Walter Ralegh (Boston, 1989), pp. 113-14.

13 Harlow, Ralcc~li's Last Voyage, p. 332.

14 Gondomar to the President of the Hacienda, quoted in J. Lorimer (ed.), Sir Walter Ralegh's Discoverie of Guiana (London, 2006), p. 304.

15 APC, 1618-19, p. 239;TNA, SP 14/98/78.

16 TNA, SP 14/98/79; APC, 1618-19, p. 254.

17 For an indication of the instant high profile it attracted see May, Sir Walter Ralegh, p. 115.

18 Letters of Chamberlain, ii, p. 165.

19 S. R. Gardiner, History of England from the Accession of Jamcs I to the Outbreak of the Civil War, 1603-42 (London, 1883-4), iii, p. 154. See also the article in ODNB.

20 Letters of Chamberlain, ii, p. 167. Stucley's 'Appollogie' survived in a single MS copy as Bodleian Library, MS Ashmole 830, 29. It should not be confused with his Petition, a longer piece serving a wider purpose, published after Ralegh's death. See T. N. Brushfield, Raleof ana ([Plymouth], 1896-1907), published as a series in the Transactions of the DevoruhireAssociationfor theAdvancement of Science, Literature and Art, vii, pp. 28-41.

21 1 StucleyI To the kings most excellent ma_jestic. The humble petition and information of Sir Lewis Stucky...(London, 1618), p. 2.

22 Hyland in Ralegh's Last Journey offers a sympathetic reappraisal of the much-reviled Stucley. See esp. pp. 160-1.

23 TNA, SP 14/98/82, letter from the Archbishop of Canterbury to Sir Thomas Lake.

24 Letters of Ralegh, pp. 368-9;TNA, SP 14/98/79. See also SP 14/103/67.

25 See Hyland, Ralegh's Last Journey, p. 143; May, Sir Walter Ralegh, pp. 118-19.

26 Quoted inA. R. Beer, MyJust Desire: the life of Bess Ralegh, wife to Sir Walter (New York, 2003), p. 216.

27 Harlow, Ralegh's Last Voyage, p. 91.

28 TNA, SP 14/99/3, letter from John Pory to Dudley Carleton, 5 September 1618; 14/99/7, Wilson's commission.

29 Harlow, Ralegh's Last Voyage, pp. 272-3.

30 Hyland, Ralegh's Last Journey, p. 166.

31 The order for his transfer is dated 14 September (TNA, SP 14/99/11i). SP 14/99/25.

32 Harlow, Ralegh's Last Voyage, p. 271.

33 TNA, SP 14/99/10i.

34 TNA, SP 14/99/21, Naunton to Wilson, 16 September 1618; 14/99/25, Wilson to Naunton, 17 September.

35 TNA, SP 14/99/48/69,Wilson to the King, 18 and 24 September 1618. Ralegh seems to have written three letters to James around this point. Only the last of them, dated 4 October 1618 in the surviving copy in the Archivo General de Castilla, Simancas, seems to be extant (Letters of Ralegh, p. 375).

36 Letters of Ralegh, p. 374. The letter of 4 October appears to have responded more honestly and fully to interrogatories dated 24 September (TNA, SP 14/99/71), which might yet suggest a 'new style' continental dating of the Simancas copy, notwithstanding the reasonable reservations expressed in Letters of Ralegh, p. 375.

37 TNA, SP 14/99/72,73.

38 Harlow, Rale~h's Last Voyage, p. 271.

39 TNA, SP 14/99/1Oi.

40 Harlow, Rah:~h's Last Vyayc, pp. 270-1.

41 The point is made by Edward Edwards, and also byWalter Oakeshott in rather a different context: 'Carew Ralegh's copy of Spenser', The Library, 5th series, 26 (1971), pp. 1-21, at 16.

42 CSPD, 1611-18, p. 575.

43 TNA, SP 14/99/96ii.

44 See his conversations in late September as reported by Wilson (TNA, SP 14/99/77).

45 TNA, SP 14/103/36; Harlow, Ralegh's Last Voyage, p. 285; APC, 1618-19, p. 276.

46 Harlow, Rale,Ehs Last Voyage, p. 279.

47 See TN A, SP 14/99/74, Philip III to de Ulloa.

48 TNA, SP 14/103/14, letter dated 3 October 1618.

49 Harlow, Ralcgli'a Last Voyage, pp. 295-6.

50 Letters of Chamberlain, ii, p. 173.

51 Harlow, Ralc,th s Last Voyage, p. 296.

52 Harlow, Ralegh's Last Voyage, p. 297.

53 Stebbing's analysis of the 1618 'trial' process is still of considerable value (W. Stebbing, Sir Walter Ralegh: a biography (Oxford, 1891), pp. 359-70).

54 Harlow, Ralegh's Last Voyage, pp. 297-300, transcribed from BL, Lansdowne MS 142, fo. 396.

55 Harlow, Ralegh's Last Voyage, p. 93.

56 William Camden, Diary (1603-1623), hypertext ed. D. F. Sutton (Irvine, 2001), entry for 24 October 1618.

57 Letters of Chamberlain, ii, p. 175.

58 1Overbury] The Arraigurneut and Conviction of Sir Walter Rawleigh...Coppied by SirTho: Overbury (London, 1648), p. 26; Harlow, Ralegh's Last Voyage, p. 302.

59 [Overburyl The Arraignment of Rawleigh, p. 26.

60 Harlow, Ralc Ii c Last Voyage, p. 303.

61 Ibid., p. 302.

62 Ibid., pp. 303-4.

63 Ibid., p. 304.

64 Queen's College Oxford, MS 32, fo. 14r; see A. R. Beer, Sir Walter Rale'h and his Readers in the Seventeenth Century, Speaking to the People (Basingstoke, 1997), p. 88.

65 Harlow, Raleghs Last Voyage, pp. 304-5.

66 Letters of Chamberlain, ii, p. 180.

67 M. Rudick (ed.), The Poems of Sir Walter Ralegh: a historical edition (Tempe, AZ, 1999), p. 133; above Chapter Seven, p. 164.

68 Hyland, Ralegh's Last Journey, p. 205. See the analysis of Ralegh's last moments by A. Fleck, "'At the time of his death": manuscript instability and Walter Ralegh's performance on the scaffold', Journal of British Studies 48 (2009), 4-28, at p. 22. Death as a journey: a classic seventeenth-century conceit, frequently encountered. See P. Marshall, Beliefs and the Dead in Reformation England (Oxford, 2002), p. 309.

69 [Overbury] TheArraignment of Rawleigh, p. 27.