i8o A. D. 1585. 



tioned remaining in her hands by way of fecurity for the fame, and for 

 Li 00,000 in money, which fhe had formerly lent them. 



Sir Bernard Drake, with a fquadron of Englifh (hips, was now fent to 

 Newfoundland, where he took feveral Portuguefe Ihips laden with fifh 

 and oil, (Portugal being now united to Spain) which is all that we meet 

 with material concerning that ifland during the reft of this century. 



1586 Miflelden [Circle of commerce, p. 54, ed. 1623, 4*^"] relates, 



that Queen Elizabeth now confirmed all the former charters of the com- 

 pany of Englidi merchant-adventurers, granting them the like autho- 

 rity to hold their courts, and to exercife their trade in Germany as am- 

 ply as they had formerly done in the Netherlands, with ftrid prohibition 

 to all not free of that company to trade within their limits *. Where- 

 upon the city of Hamburgh invited them again to fettle there, and the 

 company fent thither two commiflioners : yet the imperial and Spanifli 

 party in the fenate fo far prevailed, that the commiflioners were oblig- 

 ed next year to go over to Staden, where they fixed the company's ftaple 

 to good purpofe. Before this time, Staden was unfrequented by mer- 

 chants ; but in ten years that the company refided there, Staden found 

 a great change for the better, till the year 1597, when the company 

 was forced to leave it. 



Captain John Davis with three fhips made his fecond voyage for the 

 north-weft pafllige ; but finding no paflage in the ftraits of his name, 

 attempted it farther fouth, where he loft fome of his men by the na- 

 tives ; and returned after bartering toys for fome hundreds of feal- 

 fkins. 



The Hanfeatic towns on the Baltic ftiores, and particularly Wifmar 

 and Lubeck, ftill continued to have a confiderable commerce while 

 they continued to fail dire(n;ly to Spain with their own vefl'els ; but from 

 this time forward, (fays their hiftorian Werdenhagen) by means of fuch 

 numbers of Netherlanders as had fled to Hamburgh, that city puftied on 

 a much greater commerce to Spain. From this period moft authors 

 date the great, but gradual, declenfion of the Hanfeatic towns on the 

 Baltic fea, and more efpecially that of Wifmar; the magnificent churches, 

 auguft market-place, town-houfe, capacious wine-cellars, and the large 

 and ftately private houfes of which city, fuflaciently teftify its antient 

 great trade arid opulence. 



At this time flourifhed the famous Danifti aftronomer Tycho Brahe, 

 who made fome aftronomical difcoveries and improvements, which 

 proved very beneficial to navigation, and confequently to maritime 

 commerce. 



According to Gemelli, theChinefe about this time granted to thePor- 

 taguefe the rocky ifle of Macao, below Canton, then inhabited by rob- 



* Miflelden fays, he perufed the original charter. \ 



