MARITIME HISTORY 



Cornishman out of a Cinque Ports ship, and some of the Portsmen were killed in the affray. As a 

 consequence the Kent and Sussex ports were sending ships to sea to hunt down vessels hailing from 

 the Fowey River. The king's writ did not restore peace, for in the following August another 

 inhibition, following another appeal from the western men to the king, was addressed to the Ports- 

 men, 1 from which it seems that they were then at war with most of the western ports. There is 

 no documentary evidence for the well-known tale told by Leland, and assigned by him to the next 

 reign, of the Fowey men refusing to c vail bonnet ' to the Cinque Portsmen, fighting them off Rye, 

 and earning the name of the ' gallants of Fowey ' ; but the story as existing in the days of 

 Henry VIII may be a distortion by tradition of these facts. 



A short war with Scotland in 1327-8 hardly affected the south of England, but a more serious 

 one broke out in 1332 ; and in 1333 and 1334 there were orders to prepare all the ships 

 available, in both cases addressed only to Falmouth. 2 The continual embargoes and consequent 

 injury to trade were now causing some murmurs in the port towns, but Edward knew when to 

 persuade rather than to command, and in December, 1336, sent officials round the coast to explain 

 'certain things near the king's heart.' 3 At the same time the maritime towns were requested to 

 send representatives to London to discuss matters, and burgesses came from Falmouth, Fowey, 

 Polruan, Looe, and Padstow, 4 when, no doubt, social and other influences were brought to bear upon 

 them. In the following January there was a general arrest of shipping, 5 in which Fowey, Polruan, 

 Truro, Looe, Lostwithiel, and Bodmin took part. A catalogue of the orders which rapidly succeeded 

 each other during this reign for arrests of ships in the various ports would be barren of interest 

 unless the connexion with general history was shown. In 1338 and 1339, when France had 

 joined the Scots, the balance of maritime war was against England, until the victory of Sluys 

 restored our supremacy for many years. Several disasters occurred to towns on the south coast, 

 but Cornwall lay outside the raiding field, and perhaps did not promise much booty. But there are 

 indications that the Cornishmen were active enough themselves when there was a chance of legal 

 or illegal profit. In 1343 a great ' tarot ' put into Dartmouth, and was at once plundered by 

 Cornish and Devon men, 'to the shame and scandal of the whole realm.' 6 In 1342 the duchess of 

 Brittany took some Cornish privateers into her service, who used their opportunity by drawing no 

 distinction between friends and enemies, and in fact, joining with kindred spirits, seem to have 

 formed pirate fleets, 'confederating together in divers ships of war.' 7 



By 1340 the continuous strain was telling upon the English reserve of shipping, and the 

 sheriffs of the maritime counties were ordered to prevent any sales to foreigners ; 8 but apparently 

 this was not sufficient, and in 1341 a council was convened at Westminster to advise upon that and 

 other subjects. The more important seaports each sent two delegates; the others, including 

 Falmouth and Fowey for Cornwall, one each. 9 The plan may have been found successful in flattering 

 the shipowners, 10 and it was repeated in 1342, 1344, and 1347. In 1342 Fowey and Polruan sent 

 one delegate and Looe one, in 1344 Falmouth alone sent one, and in 1347 there was no repre- 

 sentative from Cornwall. 



There was a commercial as well as a military side to the maritime history of the county. 

 Padstow is reputed to have been a passage port for Ireland. Fowey was a passage port, and there 

 was evidently a wool trade, sometimes an arrival of a Spanish or Italian trading vessel, and a 

 general export trade in dried fish to Bordeaux existed. 11 



In 1339 the French were raiding the south coast, and came as close as Plymouth ; they were 

 expected in Cornwall, and in March a commission of array mustered all the men between Saltash 

 and Mousehole for the defence of the county. 12 The urgent necessity for ships may have caused 

 Sir William Trussell, the admiral of the western fleet, to exceed his powers in demanding four from 

 Bodmin, and in imprisoning the mayor and others at Lostwithiel for their refusal. A petition to 

 the crown, and consequent inquisition, showed that Bodmin was not a port, had never found ships, 

 and that the burgesses had nothing to do with maritime trade, except that four of them were in 



1 Close, 15 Edw. II, m. 324 



1 Rot. Scot. 7 Edw. Ill, m. ij d. ; 8 Edw. Ill, m. 3. A customs writ of 1324 (Pat. 17 Edw. II, 

 pt. ii, m. 2) shows that Fowey and Lostwithiel were then ' members,' in customs terminology, of Falmouth ; 

 therefore maritime writs to Falmouth may also have included Fowey. 



3 Close, 10 Edw. Ill, m. 4 d. ' Rot. Scot. 10 Edw. Ill, m. 3 d. 



5 Ibid. m. 2. 6 Pat. 16 Edw. Ill, pt. iii, m. I d. ; 17 Edw. Ill, pt. i, m. 34 d. 



I Pat. 1 6 Edw. Ill, pt. i, m. II d. 8 Rymer, Foedera, v, 210. 9 Ibid. 231. 



10 ' Avisamentum et consilium marmariorum et hominum maritimorum,' says the writ (Close, 1 6 

 Edw. Ill, pt. i, m. 23 d.}. They received zs. a day for their expenses (Ibid. 18 Fdw III, pt. i, m. 1 8 d.~). 



II Malvegin, Hist, du Commerce de Bordeaux, i, 177 ; Close, 12 Edw. Ill, pt. i, m. 4O</. ; Foedera (ed. 

 1816), iii, 191, 472, 479 ; Rot. Fr. 21 Edw. Ill, pt. i, m. I. In the last, the ' Langeshippes ' are mentioned 

 (1347). The Raynoldis Stone (Runnelstone) occurs in some sailing directions of the reign of Edward IV. 



" Pat. 13 Edw. Ill, pt. i, m. z8J. 



479 



