View source for Contraband Trade between England and Spain

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|Title=Contraband Trade between England and Spain
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|Date=1593
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[English Merchants and the Spanish Inquisition in the Canaries, Ed. L. de Aberti and A. B. Wallis Chapman (Roy. Hist. Soc., 1912), pp. 64-74.]

In Canary, 14th Dec., 1593. [Barthw. Cole] said that, continuing that which he had com- menced to relate in the audience of yesterday afternoon, respecting information which might be of importance to his Majesty's service, he declares that from all parts of the Kingdom of England, and principally from London, Bristol, and Southamption, great quantities of merchandise are sent to Spain, chiefly to Seville. And that in order to ensure their safe dispatch they avail themselves of the assistance of various peoples such as Flemings, Germans, Scotch and Bretons in the following manner ; by sending the said merchandise to Hamburg in Germany, or to the town of Estod (Stade] also in Germany about six leagues from Hamburg, where a fleet goes every year for this purpose, composed of twenty, twenty-five and thirty ships loaded with various merchandise, such as London cloth, some white, others mixed, white kerseys and baizes, and also white says. And the Englishmen to whom this merchandise belongs have their factors in the said towns, both Englishmen and Flemings, who receive and distribute it among various towns both in Italy and Spain, and more usually Seville as far as this confessant knows.

And the cloth and other white materials are dyed in these said towns, and are dispatched as Flemish goods, and in this way they are, and have been, dispatched since trade and commerce with England were prohibited, and since trade in English stuffs was prohibited. And this confessant understands that at this present day this continues, and the merchants in Spain, who are Flemings, receive these goods knowing as they do that they come from England, and correspond with Englishmen in London. And from other parts of Spain the said Flemish merchants dispatch such merchandise as the English usually get from Spain, such as oils, wines from Xerez, raisins, almonds, and other things ; and the said ships bring their cargoes sometimes to the said towns of Germany, and sometimes to London and other towns of England. And sometimes Englishmen seize the said Flemish ships at sea on the ground that they carry Spanish merchandise, and on arriving in England they find that the said merchandise belongs to Englishmen, or Flemish residents of London, both the one and the other being heretics from what this confessant knows and can judge of them. And this merchandise is given to them, and the Englishmen who took them at sea have their trouble for nothing, all of which is known to this confessant because he has heard of it in London, and discussed it very fully, especially with a certain rich English merchant residing in London, who is called Artor Jase [Arthur Hussey ?], and with his servant, for whom this confessant had great friendship. And the reason this confessant knows of this and treated of the matter so fully is that he was negotiating with the said merchant to form a company to trade with Seville and the Terceira Isles, which are called the Azores ; and the said company was not then formed, because this confessant was on the point of sailing for these islands when it was spoken of, and it was agreed that he should inquire into the means afforded by the islands, and the profit to be gained quantities and species of merchandise VOL. in II.them, and the which would be needed, which having done he should return to England where the said company would be formed ; and this confessant would then go to reside in Seville to carry out the plan, as a person who, having been brought up in San Miguel, would be taken for a native of that place; but as he was arrested the matter fell through. And as this confessant did not form his company at the time of which he speaks, he did not hear the names of the merchants of Sevile and other towns of Spain, who carry on the said trade and commerce with the English in the manner referred to, but they may easily be discovered by the merchandise itself, because all the kerseys are English dyed in Flanders, where they are folded differently and a different stamp put on them, and the same is done with the anascotes [says], as very few come from Anascote [?] in Flanders, which is a small town. And no attention need be paid to the stamps, as they are stamped in England with Anascote stamps, and the baize can also be known, and although these were formerly woven in Flanders, they are now woven in England by Flemings of whom there are great numbers residing in the different towns ; and this baize is really made in England with wool of that country. And cloths and woollen stuffs can also be known, and the greater part of them also comes from England, from what this confessant gathers, and a large number of tapestries are also made in England by the said Flemings, and are sent to Spain in the same way, from what this confessant understands. And if this confessant had been as well advised, and had had the same motives then as he has now, he would know the names of the Flemish merchants residing in Spain, but as it was of no interest to him he did not trouble about it. And similar merchandise and other kinds are sent into Spain through St. Malo, Roscoff and Morlaix in Brittany, as many English ships frequent these towns bringing cargoes of the said stuffs which they sell there; and the Bretons send them to Spain. And besides those ships which this confessant has mentioned as coming to the Island of San Miguel claiming to be Scotch, whereas they were from England, and their cargo also, others have put in there as well, although he cannot remember details of them ; and confessant knows that the said Scotch ships also go to Spain under the same pretence ; and he knows that the said Scotch carry passports from the King of Scotland ; • and confessant cannot say whether these are forged or

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not, but he thinks that they may be, because any stamps needed can without difficulty be made in England, and this confessant has made a certain number with which he stamped the stuffs and merchandise he brought with him ; and he knows that the merchants who trade in this way with Spain have French, Scotch and Flemish stamps, with which they stamp their merchandise. And therefore no importance need be attached to the said passports, because even though they may really have been given by the King of Scotland, they are so easily obtained that they would be given for any bribe, and in any case the merchandise is not what it is stated to be.
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