OSEP NAPEA'S RETURN HOME a.d. 



1557- 

 majestie having on him a gowne of rich tissue, & a cap 

 of skarlet on his head, set not only with pearles, but also 

 with a great number of rich and costly stones : his noble 

 men were all in gownes of cloth of gold, which did 

 ride before him in good order by 3. & 3. and before them [I. 317-] 

 there went 5000 harquebusiers, which went by 5 and 5 in 

 a rank in very good order, every of them carying his gun 

 upon his left shoulder, and his match in his right hand, 

 and in this order they marched into the field where as the 

 foresayd ordinance was planted. 



And before the Emperors majestie came into the field, 

 there was a certaine stage made of small poles which was a 

 quarter of a mile long, and about threescore yardes off 

 from the stage of poles were certaine pieces of ice of 

 two foot thicke, and sixe foote high set up, which ranke of 

 ice was as long as the stage of poles, and as soone as the 

 Emperors majestie came into the field, the harquebusiers 

 went upon the stage of poles where they setled them- 

 selves in order. And when the Emperors majestie was 

 setled where he would be, and where he might see all 

 the ordinance discharged and shot off, the harquebusiers 

 began to shoot off at the banke of ice, as though it had 

 bin in any skirmish or battel, who ceased not shooting, 

 untill they had beaten all the ice flat on the ground. 



After the handguns, they shot off their wild fire up 

 into the aire, which was a goodly sight to behold. And 

 after this, they began to discharge the smal pieces of 

 brasse, beginning with the smallest and so orderly bigger 

 and bigger, untill the last and biggest. When they 

 had shot them all off, they began to charge them againe, 

 and so shot them al off 3 times after the first order, 

 beginning with the smallest, and ending with the greatest. 

 And note that before they had ended their shooting, 

 the 2 houses that they shot unto were beaten in pieces, 

 & yet they were very strongly made of Wood and filled 

 with earth, being at the least 30 foote thicke. This triumph 

 being ended, the Emperour departed and rode home in 

 the same order that he came foorth into the field. The 



43i 



