MARITIME HISTORY 



more powerful defences there."' The admirals desired to go to meet the 

 Armada on the Portuguese coast, a course of action which, if they had 

 fought successfully, would have secured the safety of Portland and every 

 other English roadstead. 



The experience of 1587 and of later years showed that the brunt of the 

 fighting had always to be borne by men-of-war, and that the chief value of 

 armed merchantmen was to inspire the confidence given by number. This 

 was understood in 1588, however, only by a few seamen ; therefore in that 

 year the whole of the English coast was called upon to help, not by a 

 general impressment but by sending ships according to order to join the 

 royal fleet. On 31 March a general embargo on shipping was proclaimed, the 

 object being to retain not so much the vessels as the men. This was followed 

 the next day by orders to the port towns to furnish ships at their own 

 expense, all to be more than 60 tons."* Weymouth and Melcombe were 

 set down for two ships and a pinnace, Poole for one ship and a pinnace, and 

 Lyme was linked with Chard and Axminster for two ships and a pinnace, 

 the two inland towns having of course only to contribute towards the 

 expense. There was an auxiliary order that most of the cost was to be 

 borne by those persons who had profited by privateering. Both now and on 

 subsequent occasions many of the ports sought excuses either to obtain a 

 reduction in the demands made upon them or to have the county and adjacent 

 towns joined with them towards the charges. Within a fortnight all the 

 Dorset ports protested to the Council that there were various reasons why 

 they were too hardly treated. The mayor and aldermen of Poole were 

 the first to enlarge, within forty-eight hours of the receipt of the order, 

 on their disabilities. They said that there was, at the moment, only one 

 ship of above 60 tons in port, and that she was about sailing for New- 

 foundland,"' and that the Council were quite wrong in supposing that any of 

 the Poole owners had made a profit by privateering, or, indeed, that any one 

 of them had indulged in any speculation of the kind. The Council were 

 besought ' to consider of the great decay and disability of this poor town ' 

 due to several causes, including pirates at Studland Bay, ' whereby we are 

 utterly unable to perform your Lordships' commandment.' "° The corpora- 

 tion of Lyme followed on 9 April ; '" they had no ships at home of the 

 required tonnage, but offered one of 40 tons, and complained that certain 

 inhabitants of Axminster had already refused any payments in aid. They 

 suggested that any future levies of the kind should be based on a wider 

 assessment among more towns. The mayor and corporation of Weymouth 

 did not answer until the i6th ; "* they did not deny that prize goods had 

 been brought, to some extent, into the two towns, but said that the owners 

 mostly dwelt elsewhere, and that Weymouth and Melcombe were ' of small 

 ability and in part decayed.' They added that notwithstanding their dis- 

 abilities they would provide the assistance required, but requested the Council 

 to add some other towns as contributories. There was no immediate answer 

 to this, but in June the Council ordered that Dorchester was to help Wey- 

 mouth."' The question of revictualling these ships came up again in July, 



"' Lansd. MSS. 52, fol. 66. '8' Jets ofP.C. 31 March, I April, 1588. 



'" She sailed in defiance of the embargo {atite, p. 204). ""' S.P. Dom. Ellz. ccix, No. 70. 



"' Ibid. No. 81. '" Ibid. No. 94. '™ Jets ofP.C. 23 June, 1588. 



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