A. D. 1386. 599 



The king of France got together a fleet of about twelve hundred vef- 

 fels for an invafion of England, which he Rationed at Skiys and along 

 the adjacent coaft, having alfo a great army * encamped upon the land. 

 Though the Flemings faw their country devoured by fo many myriads 

 of confumers, fo important was the herring fifhery in their eflimation, 

 that the fafe arrival of all their fifhermen was thought a confolation for 

 all the hardfliips they had fufFered. [Froijfart, L. iii, c. 35. — Aleyeri Ann, 

 Flandr.f. 207 a. — Walfinghcun, p. 325.] 



1387, March 24'" — A great fleet of Flemifh, French, and Spanifh, 

 vefFels, failing together, as ufual in thofe days, for mutual protection, 

 was attacked by the earl of Arundel, who took 126 vefTels, loaded with 

 between twelve and thirteen thoufand tuns of wine f, the whole of which 

 the citizens of Middleburg offered to purchafe at £^ per tun, ready 

 money, which was no flight proof of their opulence : but their offer 

 was declined, and the prizes fent to England. Some time after he at- 

 tacked the harbour of Sluys, where he took feveral Flemifli, and alfo 

 fome Scottifh, veffels. \_Knyghton, col. 2692. — Walfingham, pp. 326, 539.] 



1388, February — Some laws favourable to commerce, enaded by Ed- 

 ward III, were now renewed, whereby foreign merchants were allowed 

 to fell in wholefale or retail in London or any other city, burgh, &c. in 

 England, notwithftanding any claim of exclufive privileges, and all new 

 impofitions upon merchandize w^ere declared to be illegal and of no ef- 

 fed. [Stat. 1 1 Ric. II, ec. 7, 9.] 



Auguft 21" — That fome Englifli merchants traded to PrufTia, has 

 been noticed under the years 1372 and 1379. Outrages, as ufual, were 

 committed on both fides in the reign of Edward III, probably in the 

 very infancy of the trade. The Prufllans complained, that fix of their 

 veflels had been plundered by the Englifli at the Swyn in Flanders. At 

 the prayer of his fubjeds the grand matter arrelted fome Englifh veflels 

 at Elburg and Dantzik : and, in return, fome Pruflian veffels were ar- 

 refted at Lynne. Conrad Zolner, now the grand mafler of Pruflia, de- 

 firing to have matters amicably adjufled, had fent ambafladors to Eng- 

 land, and Englifli ambafladors had alfo been fent to him. After long 

 negotiation, it was now agreed upon at Marienburg, the refidence of the 

 grand mafler, that juftice fliould be done to the Prufflan complainants at 

 London, and to the Englifh at Dantzik ; that Englifh merchants fhould 

 have free accefs to every port of Pruifla, with liberty alfo to carry their 

 merchandize to any part of the country, and to trade freely, ' as it ufed 

 ' to be in antient times,' the Pruffians having equal liberty in England. 

 If any difpute fhould arife, the king and the grand mafler were to ufe 



• Some writers, who think nothing worth no- but the loweft numbers are generally the trued ; 



tice that does not at leaft border upon the incred- and Knyghton is the earh'er writer. — Stow fays, 



ible, have increafed the fleet to 1,400 fliips, and the wine was fo!d in England for 23/). a tun ; but 



the army to 600,000 men. that feems a millake ; for the king paid 20/ for 



f Walfingham makes the wine 19,000 tuns; the wIiil- taken by prerogative as his prife. 



