CH. XVI] 
William Baffin 
147 
1st October, 1619, "William Baffin, a master's mate in 
the Anne, to have a gratuity for his pains and good art in 
drawing out certain plots of the coast of Persia and the 
Red Sea which are judged to have been very well and 
artificially performed." 
In the following year Captain Shilling was selected 
to command the Company's fleet. He was on board 
the London, and, at his special recommendation, Baffin 
was appointed Master. The Company's fleet encountered 
the Portuguese off Jashak, near the entrance of the 
Persian Gulf in December 1620, and the fight continued 
without intermission for nine hours. The Portuguese 
ships then anchored to repair damages. The English, 
after raking them, put into Jashak Roads on the coast of 
Mekran. A second and more decisive encounter took 
place on the 28th December, when the Portuguese were 
defeated, but the victory was dearly bought by the death 
of Captain Shilling, who was interred at Jashak on the 
9th January 1621. 
Captain Baffin remained in command of the London, 
and the fleet returned to Surat. The English then made 
a treaty with Abbas the Great, Shah of Persia, to drive 
the Portuguese out of Ormuz, a Persian port which they 
had occupied since 15 15. The English fleet, consisting 
of five ships, arrived at an open roadstead on the Persian 
coast near Ormuz, where news was received that the 
Portuguese had erected a fort on the island of Kishm 
to protect some wells. It was necessary to take it before 
investing Ormuz. The Kishm fort was already beleagured 
by a Persian army, and the English fleet arrived there 
on the 20th January, 1622. 
After two days, Captain Baffin went on shore with 
his mathematical instruments, to take the height and 
distance of the castle wall so as to find the range " for 
the better levelling of his guns." But while he was so 
engaged he was hit by a shot from the fort, and killed on 
the spot 1 . 
Baffin's geographical discoveries were extensive and 
his scientific observations were not only valuable at the 
1 The Portuguese Admiral, Ruy Freire de Andrada, and 17 guns were 
captured when the Kishm fort was taken. Ormuz then surrendered and 
was handed over to Shah Abbas. 
10 — 2 
