244 ■^' ^' '^o5' 



Giles's, is in this aft called ' the ftreet in that part of the town of St, 

 ' Giles leading to Holborn.' 



About this time coaches began to be in pretty general ufe among the 

 nobility and gentry in London ; but hackney-coaches and ftage-coaches 

 to and from the country were flill unknown. 



Philip III king of Spain iflued a fevere declaration, prohibiting the 

 inhabitants of the United provinces from trading to the dominions of 

 Spain, or to the Eaft or Weft Indies. But the Dutch Eaft-India com- 

 pany were fo fav from being thereby overawed, that it rather infpired 

 them with freili refolution and diligence ; for they prefently fent out 

 eleven fliips, prepared as well for war as for commerce. Theie were 

 foon followed by eight more, well fupplied with foldiers, who were to 

 keep garrifon in the Eaft-Indies, where they at firfl reduced the fort of 

 Amboyna, and after taking feveral Spanifh and Fortuguefe prizes, they 

 entirely diflodged thofe two nations from the Molucco ifles. But with- 

 out tiring the reader with all the feveral voyages of that Dutch com- 

 pany, and their numberlefs advantages over the Spaniards and Fortu- 

 guefe in India and at fea, we fliall here onlv fumaiarily obferve that 

 they foon obtained full pofleflion of an imraenie commerce there, and 

 in time eflabliflied their fidories and fettlements from Balfora at the 

 mouth of the river Tigris in the Perfian gulf, along the coafts and 

 iiles of India even to ]apan, making alliances with many Indian princes, 

 being moreover fovereigns in many parts of India, particularly the 

 coafls of Ceylon, Palicat, Mafulipatam, Negapatam, and many other 

 places along the coafts of Coromandel, Cochin, Canonor, Cranganor, 

 and other places along the coaft of Malabar, and the beft part of the 

 great ifle of Java, with Batavia, their great emporium there, the centre 

 of all their Indian commerce : they are alfo fovereigns of the Moluccos 

 and other fpice iflands ; and at length they became fo potent as to be 

 able to fend out a fleet in India of forty or fifty capital fhips, and a land 

 army of 30,000 men. 



The riches brought home to Europe by the feveral nations now trad- 

 ing to the Eaft-lndies, having excited the emulation of the court of 

 Denmark to attempt a fliorter way thither by the north-weft, although 

 fo often before fruitlefsly attempted by others, King Chriftiern IV this 

 year fent out three ftiips into Frobifher's ftraits, which traded with the 

 natives, fome of whom they brought home to Copenhagen. 1 hey re- 

 pealed thefe attempts thither for feveral fucceeding years, but made no 

 material difcovery. 



1606. — The people of Hull, who had long frequented the fifliery 

 on the coafts of Iceland and Norway, made aUb fome eftays for that 

 pallcige on the coafts of Greenland ; and now alio the Pvuilia and Eaft- 

 India companies joined in fending out John Knight, who h-:d ueen fent 

 thither the preceding year by the court of Denmark ; but he returned 



