A. D. 1516. 51 



in the Eaft, by throwing two fuch noble countries as Syria and Kgypt 

 into the Icale of the Turkilh empire, ah-eady too ponderous ; whereby 

 the fiiltans were enabled to give the law in the Levant feas, and to dif- 

 trefs the commerce and territories of Venice and Genoa in thofe parts, 

 as they foon effedually did. It alfo gave them the dominion of both 

 fides of the Red fea, and on the coaft of Africa without that fea, and 

 fouth-eaft on the Arabian fliore. It likewife gave the Turks the means 

 of going by fea to Eaft-India, to the great annoyance of the Portuguefe 

 in thofe parts, as may be feen in the hiftories of their Indian conquefts. 



The city of Antwerp conftantly increafing in wealth and commerce, 

 and the city of Bruges as conftantly declining, fuch foreign meixhants 

 as had not before left the latter, removed in this year to Antwerp. The 

 Englifh had removed thither in the preceding year : So there now only 

 remained a few Spaniards at Bruges ; yet the flaple for Englifh wool 

 was not as yet removed thence. 



151 7. — Four Portuguefe fliips, attended by four Malayan fliips, failed 

 from Malacca for China, with an ambaflador to the Chinefe emperor, 

 who travelled from Canton to Pekin, all the way over land. 



The firfl; account we have of the grand cod-fifhery on the banks of 

 Newfoundland was in this year, when an Englifh fhip of 250 tons ar- 

 rived at the ifland of Puerto Rico, pretending flie came with another to 

 difcover a pafFage to Cathay, and had been at Newfoundland, v/here 

 there were fifty Spanifh, French, and Portuguefe fhips on the fifhery. 

 Thence fhe failed for Hifpaniola, but being fired at from the caftle, 

 returned to Puerto-Rico, and departing thence, was never heard of 

 more. [Hakluyt's Voyages^ K iii, p. 499.. Hererra dales it two years 

 later.] 



So great an event, and fo fraught with interefting confequences, as 

 was the reformation of a great part of Chriftendom from popery, can- 

 not altogether be pafled over in filence for iundry obvious reafons ; yet, 

 as ecclefiaftical hiftory is not our province, it will fufhce that we briefly 

 obferve, under this year 1517, that Pope Leo X, being, or feeming to 

 be, alarmed at the conqueft of Syria and Egypt from the Mamelucs, 

 by Selim the grand iignior, publifhed a croiiade againll the Turks ; 

 and, fbr that feeming end, difperfed his mdulgences all over Chrillen- 

 dom, which were fo fliamefully difpofed of in Germany, that the bene- 

 fit of thofe indulgences were even to extend to the dead, whofe fouls, 

 upon payment by their heirs, &c. of a fum of money, were imme- 

 diately to be redeemed out of purgatory ; and Guicciardini, in his wars 

 of Italy, relates, that thofe powers for releafing fouls put of purgatorv 

 were openly played for in taverns : which fcandalous proceedings ex- 

 cited Martin Luther, a monk, and profeflbr of divinity at Wirtenberg 

 in Saxony, to attack the papal power, wherein being fupported by Fre- 

 derick eledor of Saxony, &c. a reformation of religion was gradually 



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