JOHN WILLIAMSON a.d. 



C.1534 



your highnes letters to your officers whom it may con- 

 cerne, that we may perceive, that our subjects right and 

 liberty hath especially beene maintained upon this our 

 commendation. Which we will take in most thankfuU 

 part, and your highnes shal find us in the like or a 

 greater matter most ready to gratifie you, whom we wish 

 most heartily well to fare. From our Court at Waltham 

 the 15. of October 1531. 



A voyage made with the shippes called the Holy [il. i. 98.] 

 Crosse, and the Mathew Gonson, to the lies of 

 Candia and Chio, about the yeere 1534, 

 according to a relation made to Master 

 Richard Hackluit, by John Williamson, 

 Cooper and citizen of London, who lived in 

 the yere 1592, and went as cooper in the 

 Mathew Gonson the next voyage after. 



He shippes called the Holy Crosse, and ^-^^ fi'^b 

 the Mathew Gonson, made a voyage to ^IJ^^^^f^^^ 

 the Ilandes of Candia and Chio in Gomo^i depart 

 Turkie, about the yeere 1534. And \n for Turkic. 

 the Mathew went as Captaine M. Richard 

 Gonson, sonne of old Master William 

 Gonson^ paymaster of the kings navie. 

 In this first voyage went William Holstocke (who after- 

 wards was Controuller of her Majesties Navie, lately 

 deceased) as page to M. Richard Gonson aforesaid, which 

 M. Gonson died in Chio in this his first voyage. The 

 ship called the Holy Crosse was a short shippe, and of 

 burden 160 tunnes. And having beene a full yeere at 

 the sea in performance of this voyage, with great danger 

 she returned home, where, upon her arrivall at Black- 

 wall, in the river of Thames, her wine and oyle caske 

 was found so weake, that they were not able to hoysc 

 them out of the ship, but were constrayned to draw 

 them as they lay, and put their wine and oyle into new 

 vessels, and so to unlade the shippe. Their chiefe fraight, 



67 



