The Treaty by Leonel de Souza
Portrait of prince D. Luis (1506-1555), Duke of Beja, brother of D. João III to whom Leonel de Souza addresses his letter.
There is no doubt that Macau was of very little or no importance at all to China before the arrival of the Portuguese. The governing classes were always much more interested in the administration and in the study of the Classics and did not care much about trade business. Besides, the sea trade was so limited compared to that which went on among the provinces in the mainland that the mandarins very rarely paid attention to the coastal area. There were no important seaports. Canton was the only major centre dealing with foreign countries. From several Asian places there came, occasionally, to Canton some vessels and Chinese junks that dared to sail to foreign ports in the South and, more seldom, to Japan. The junks from Fukien sailed periodically to Canton, too. One cannot forget that Fukien, although severed from the rest of China by high mountains, was the main centre of the Chinese maritime population. In fact, the inhabitants of Fukien were, for centuries, the best sailors in China. The rivers and watercourses were, for the Chinese, the main tradeways and the goods carried along those ways reached very far.
That explains why the provinces' main cities were far from the sea and lay upon the mainland trade routes. One can easily understand why the coastal villages were inhabited mainly by fishermen whose goods didn't always reach the big cities because the journey was too long. Occasionally, there came some small merchants.
The Chinese authorities had only nominal jurisdiction over those places which were, anyway, too far from the main centres of decision.
The coastal inhabitants have probably traded among themselves. But they almost formed a special class as it really came to happen, while most of the islands next to the mainland were pratically abandoned just like many of them are abandoned today. The pirates didn't attack so much the ships as the coastal villages and towns. It is no surprise, then, that the Chinese didn't pay much attention to the first Portuguese who arrived in China and that the Chinese scarcely mention them in their reports. But what surprises us is the fact that no mentions are made of the arrival of the first Portuguese. We have already said that Canton traded with foreign countries. It is then natural that the Portuguese aimed to Canton when they left Malacca towards China. It was not a fortuitous exploring trip. The Portuguese knew there was a place called China up there in the north. They sailed in Chinese boats with Chinese pilots and they probably visited the main ports.
T'ien-tsê Chang, who studied carefully (1) the first Chinese trade with foreign countries, mainly the trading routes, says that the Chou Ch'u-fei manuscript (about 1178) reads as follows: "Those who want to enter in Kwangchow (2) come into the port through T'un-men (屯門)". This proves that this place cannot be far from Canton.
Upon further analysis, we discover that Tang Shih (唐史) says in Vol. 43, no 2: "About 200 lis (3) from the sea, in the southeast side of Canton, there lies T'un Moon Shan (屯門山) or Tui Moon". Meanwhile Tu Shih Fan Yu Chi Yao, in Vol. 101 "Kwangtung" no 2, reads: "In the Tang Dynasty watch towers were built in T'un Moon against the pirates. In the second year of Tien Pao (4), Wu Lin-Kwang, chief-pirate, became more powerful, but was defeated by Lin Ch'u-lin, a Mandarin from the Nam Hoi district (5). During the Sung Dynasty, fortresses were built there".
However, the most important reference is the one in the historical records of the Tung Koon district known as Tung-Koon Hien-Chi (東莞縣誌). Nowadays, the Tung Koon district is situated on the east side of the Canton River and includes a wide extension of land. These historical records read, in Vol. 31: "In the first year of Cheng-Tu (6) in the reign of Emperor Wu-Chung, the Fu-Lan-Ki (7) occupied Tun Moon O". And in Vol. 31, no 2, it says: "The Tun Moon O harbour is the most important port in the Tun Koon district. In the 33rd year (8) of Chen Hua, a castle was built and the port has been used, since long ago, by many foreign vessels".
The historical records of the Tung Koon district (near the San On district, also east of the Canton River) naturally only mention the places within the district boundaries. We have no doubt when we say that the Tun Moon harbour is the anchorage ground located between the Lin Tin island (零汀) and the old city of Nam Tau (南頭). The present Castle Peak might have been the Tun Moon Shan (Tun Moon Hill) mentioned in the above quoted Tang Shih.
The whole Nam Tau bay together with the surrounding land and water was known by the name of Tun Moon O (屯門澳) or Tun Moon harbour. The Portuguese must have landed in the Lin Tin island where Jorge Alvares erected the "padrão" (9) mentioned in the History of Portugal(10). The Portuguese, to whom those sounds sounded strange, probably named the place Tamão, but the dialect then used by the Chinese with whom the former Portuguese dealt must be taken into account. If one could find out this small detail, it would help enormously to ascertain exactly which places the first Portuguese visited. The arrival of the Portuguese in China was for themselves an event of major consequences.
For the Chinese whose apathy and great indifference to everything which was outside the boundaries of the "heavenly" Empire of the Middle was still notorious some years ago, the Portuguese expedition was nothing but another group of foreign "barbarians" coming to China to look for the Chinese imperial grace and the gentle influence of the "superior civilization" which, so they thought, could be found nowhere but in China. Whenever one studies the ancient relationship of the Portuguese with China, one must take that attitude into account because it explains the inumerous lacks, the scarcity of Chinese reports, the indifference of the official media towards everything concerning the foreigners, the contempt and the convicition of their own superiority when dealing with foreigners. We shall overlook the adventures of the Portuguese pioneers in several places in China, in Liampo and Chincheo where the Portuguese tried to deal with the people of Che-Kiang and Fukien provinces after having failed in the south, in Sanchoao and Lampacao, off the Kuang-Tung coast until they overcame the Chinese restrictions. We shall tell the story of these adventures some other time.
Nevertheless, we recommend the reading of the "Treatise about the Things in China and Ormuz"(11)by the Portuguese Father Gaspar da Cruz who was in China in 1556. The book portrays coeval China and narrates the adventures of the Portuguese since about 1548 until 1554. It is published in low-price, modern editions and it provides a good reading. The style is simple and the notes on several facts show a certain point of view in direct opposition to the extremely exaggerated narrative of "Peregrinação" by Fernão Mendes Pinto, who is much less trustworthy.
If we catch a glimpse at the conscientious work of Gaspar da Cruz, we shall see that Liampo was the name given by the Portuguese not only to the city of Ningpo but also to the whole Chekiang province where Ningpo is situated. The same happened with Fukien which the Portuguese also called Chincheu(12),a name originated in the city and its surroundings, where the Portuguese then traded.
We apologize for overlooking all this and for only mentioning, in this article, an almost unknown fact that changed the difficult situation of the Portuguese in China.
It is undeniable that it was Leonel de Souza(13), a commander of the Portuguese Merchant Marine in China who gave the Portuguese the opportunity to resume the free trade with the Cantonese separating it from the illegal one.
This distinguished Portuguese made a treaty with the Chinese authorities in Kuang Tung and the Portuguese could trade with official approval ever since.
Father Gaspar da Cruz, who was in China 1 or 2 years after the agreement, specifies(14):"Since the year of 54 until now, when Leonel de Souza, born in the Algarve and married to Chaul, was in Command, he made a treaty with the Chinese. According to it, the Portuguese would pay them taxes and the Chinese would allow them to trade in their ports. Since then, they trade in Canton which is the main port in China. There go the Chinese with their silks and musk which are the main things that the Portuguese buy in China. There they have safe harbours where they can stay in peace and without being disturbed. The important and also the common Chinese people are now very happy trading with the Portuguese and they are famous all over China. Imperial officers came to Canton only to see them because they had heard about them. But before this and after the uprising caused by Fernam(15) (sic) Perez Dandrade, it was very difficult to trade and they didn't allow the Portuguese to disembark. Led by hatred and annoyance, they called them Francu(16), which means devil's men. Now we are not known by the name of Portuguese nor was this name mentioned in the Court when they agreed to let us pay the taxes. We are known as Fangin(17)which means "people from another coast".
Indeed, a new era was beginning for the Portuguese in China. They continued to disembark in Sao Choam (as they called it) and in Lampacao where the Portuguese traded illegaly. Until the treaty made by Leonel de Souza was signed, the Portuguese had to stop off-shore far from the vigilance of the Chinese junks. After that they began using Macau as a permanent trading post almost immediately after the signing of the treaty and they abandoned the other harbours definitively.
So we know that Fernão Mendes Pinto, who accompanied Father Master Belchior Nunes, was in Macau in the Autumn of 1555. The first document which mentions the name of Macau is the letter written by the "prince" of Portuguese adventurers, Mendes Pinto, dated from the 20th November 1555(18).
The letter begins: "The grace and love of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Saviour, be always with Your Highness and with all our dearest brothers. Amen. Because I am short of time, I shall not write such a long letter as I wished to tell Your of our voyage and everything that happened and all the toil we had after we departed from Your Highness. I arrived today from Lampacau, the harbour where we stayed, to Amaquao (19)6 leagues away, where I met Father Master Belchior. He had arrived here from Canton where he had been 25 days before to ransom(20)Matheus de Brito, a nobleman, and another man for whom he paid thousand tael, corresponding to one thousand and five hundred cruzados. He also visited the city and saw how the people lived, trying to see if he could leave there his brother Luiz (21) (sic) de Guois to learn the language..."(22)
A letter written by Father Belchior Nunes in Macau in the same occasion also mentions (23) the already finished hostilities. The letter says: "Since my arrival, I have been twice in Canton and each time I spent one month. The first time I tried to free three Portuguese, honest people, and three other native Christians who were in prison in... There are these and other prisoners in China, because until now they have been at war. When a ship sank, the Chinese caught them and killed them or made them prisoners. Now it is different because the Portuguese pay the taxes".
Another missionary, Aires Brandão, also mentions the beginning of this peace age. His letter dated from the 29th November, 1556 is in Biblioteca da Ajuda (Cod. 49-IV-49, p. 259). It reads: "The ports of China are open, a thing we have been looking forward to do for such a long times".(24)
Nevertheless, the best proof of the treaty is contained in a letter written by Leonel de Souza himself to the King of Portugal when he arrived in the city of Cochim, in India.
It was transcribed, in the first place, by the learned and laborious Mr. Jordão de Freitas in Archivo Histórico Portuguez, Vol. VIII, 1910. It is an extremely interesting document and we took the liberty of transcribing it as an appendix to this article. We recommend the readers to read it carefully,because it evidences a knowledge of human nature and sensibility and an understanding of the Chinese psychology that should have been copied often throughout the long history of Macau. Macau must be grateful to Mr Freitas for having published this extremely valuable manuscript.
The way was open for the effective settlement of the Portuguese in Macau. Soon after, these newly arrived Portuguese were showing their value fighting against the pirates who infested the waters of the Canton River. Later, they obtained the formal authorization to occupy the territory.
The circumstances related to the defeat of the pirates and the permission to build the city of Macau are sufficient matter for another article.
(1) "The Sino-Portuguese Trade from 1514 to 1644", Leiden, 1934.
(2) The right word in Cantonese for Canton.
(3) Three Chinese lis are about a mile. So the T'un Moon of the Chinese history is 60 miles southeast of Canton.
(4) I. e., in 743 A. D.
(5) The district where Canton is situated.
(6) I. e., in 1506 (?) A. D.
(7) (佛郎機) Feringis, i.e., Franks, a name given by Arab merchants to the first Europeans who came to Asia. This name was adopted by the Chinese.
(8) I. e., in 1486 A. D.
(9) Stone monument bearing the Portuguese national arms.
(10) See the author's article in T'ien Hsia, Shanghai, Vol. III, 1939, P. 420-432 and in Boletim Eclesiástico, Macau. year XXXVII. July, pp. 945, 957.
(11) Published by Portucalense Editora, Barcelos, 1937
(12) A message from the Leal Senado to the vice-roy of Kuangtung in 1746 reads inter alia: "In the Foquien province usually known as Chincheu..." (See Arquivo das Colónias, Vol. III, no 13, Lisboa, 1918. p.22.
(13) In 1547 (12th February), he was allowed to make two trips to China. He certainly took advantage of this opportunity to benefit his own country. (Torre do Tombo- Chancelaria de D. João III. Book 15. p. 23V).
(14) " Tractado... das Cousas da China, etc.", Chapter XXIII.
(15) This is a mistake. It must be Simão (the angry brother of the peaceful, gentle and pleasant Fernão).
(16) 番鬼
(17) 番人
(18) One can find a modern version in Biblioteca da Ajuda in Vol. 49-IV-49 of Cartas da Ásia, 1.252 and the following.
(19) This letter ends: "From Ama Cuao, the servant of the Company's servants to Fernão Mendes, 20th November 1555-Ame". The use of Ama Cuao as a variant of the more common word of Amaquao is an important argumentation for those who believe that the name of the new trading port came from the word Ama shelter-(A-ma-gao).
(20) No dealing of this kind could have been possible unless there had been a friendly relationship, as there certainly had been a year before, established by Leonel de Souza.
(21) It probably is "Estevam de Gois".
(22) This is a transcription from the work of the researcher, Cristovão Ayres, in Fernão Mendes Pinto: subsídios para a sua biographia, published under the auspices of the Academia Real das Ciências de Lisboa, in 1904.
(23) It was dated the 23rd November 1555-Biblioteca da Ajuda, Cod. 49-IV-49, p. 240V.
(24) Mentioned by Jordão de Freitas in Archivo Histórico Portuguez, Vol. VIII, Lisboa, 1910.
APPENDIX
LETTER BY LEONEL DE SOUZA
to the Infant D. Luiz, Brother of D. João III Written on the 15th January 1556, In Cochim
Sir,
"I sailed to China in a merchant ship as I wrote to Your Highness from Malacca in 1552.1 could not come to India, but spent last March in China because, although Your Highness had ordered me so, D. Afonso(26), the viceroy, didn't allow me to travel.
There we learned the news that the Prince(27) had passed away, may his soul rest in peace. The news took us by surprise and saddened us. But we thanked God, because He makes us see and understand great misteries. He seems to make use of the great distress and sorrow of His Highness and of Your Highness for the betterment of Your royal states and Your lives in His holy glory.
Your Highnesses' great virtues are an example for us of how to praise God and to Him do I pray for His Royal Highness, for His states and for Your Highness and more can I not say, because I am but a humble servant".
"I shall not speak much of the business and of the trip to China because, although I have travelled for 3 years(28), I didn't profit much because all the ports where closed and heavily guarded in order to prevent us from collecting goods or deliver them. I was soon told by an important Chinese as well as by some Portuguese prisoners that I could be sure they would fight against me and they would not trade with me, for those were the Emperor's orders, who wished to be informed if we did it secretly and who had told them to let all merchants in and pay taxes except for the European Franges(29), i.e., the Portuguese, because they were men with dark hearts, thieves and rebels who didn't obey their King".
"Because of this and of the warning, I took the best care of the ships and told the Portuguese who were with me not to cause any trouble and not to make mistakes, because they were shocked with the things we had done in the past. But I suffered hardship and the lack of food because they didn't give it to me. And it was Our Lord's wish that they made an agreement with me and allowed me to pay the taxes as it was the custom which I accepted with everybody's approval. This was regarded as God's and His Hinghness's favour, because we were the first Portuguese ever to obtain this benefit for the King had decided to have them come to China. And in order to make peace with us, they changed the name Franges they used to call the Portuguese from Portugal and from Malacca, because we did not belong to the generation of the former Portuguese. And by fortune and by presage, which is very typical of these heathens, they told me I was fated by God to live this adventure and that my name would be written on the city gates and other places".
"This agreement and these rights were offered by the ruler of the city and kingdom of Canton, who holds a very high and important official position as sea Admiral for he attends to all matters concerning the sea, both the trade and the fleets. He sometimes goes out in person, all powerful, when it is necessary. The agreement I made with him has not been written, because I don't consider it as a regulation. We were to pay 20% as it was usual and as it was payed by the Siamese from the Kingdom of Siam, who sailed in China by privilege and consent of the Emperor. I asked him to lower it to 10% and he answered that he could not do that because those were royal taxes, but he promised to inform the Emperor and give us an answer the following year. We could not get an answer that year because it would take 3 to 4 months to reach the place where the Emperor was. He then suggested that we payed 20% taxes only for half of the goods and so we would pay only 10%. He also asked me to welcome the Mandarins, who are a sort of judges at High Court and to let them see the vessels. I was asked to overlook the fact of them being Chinese and to take into consideration their rank and the fact that they represented the Emperor's Navy. I should also remember that because the Portuguese had been impolite to a Mandarin, the Emperor didn't allow them to stay in China and once I had such a good fortune, I should not loose it".
"So I made the agreement and they began trading in China, making business and profits. Many Portuguese went to Canton and other places where they rested and enjoyed themselves for some days and then traded their goods, at will, with not being disturbed nor paying more taxes than those already mentioned. Many of them, because they hid a lot of things, ended up by paying taxes on only one third of the goods. Canton is 30 leagues in the mainland away from a river in the Sã Choam harbour and is situated among some islands where our vessels were. Because I did not want to go to Lumpacau which is situated in the mouth of the river, where they sent me. I did not go because I did not trust them, nor did I trust the city called Quoai(30), 5 or 6 leagues away. Those two cities are strong and well walled in and they say that the others are like these. They say that Canton is a very large city and an important trading centre".
"This agreement put an end to many troubles and difficulties which I cannot describe. Many deals could not have been made otherwise because the Portuguese had lost their reputation in China. I charged Simão de Almeida(31), an honourable and nobleman who knows China very well, because he has sailed here in a rented ship with some duties which he performed with great care and willing to serve His Highness. He went and came back with honour and at his own expenses and besides that I know that he gave some presents to some people and officers related to the Admiral, so being able to trade quicker than if he had not given them. I could not have served His Highness the way I did if Simão de Almeida had not given me his help and advice, because I was short of money. And he did not accept the money back and he always said that this way he was serving His Highness and only from Him and nobody else did he want the reward. To ease my conscience I remind Your Highness of this. Because if Your Highness has Simão de Almmeida at your service, we both will be very pleased to fulfil His Highness's wishes with honour and retribution. To give Your Highness an example, I shall tell You that it is not common for the people who live in such distant places to serve His Highness with so many people and money as he did".
"When I left, the Admiral sent the word to me that if we wanted to sail in China I should be named Embassador to His Highness so that the Emperor might be informed of us, what kind of people we were and then the agreement would be written down. Because those who sail in China do it with the Emperor's permission and they can only disembark in some ports. No Chinese can sail out of China and the one who does so is considered a rebel and immediately punished if he gets caught. That is the reason why many of them live in Malacca and other places and then plunder the coast. These people fear foreigners, especially the Portuguese, because they consider them restless, impatient and boisterous. China is a country of much justice and cruelty and everyone tries to escape from there, because they respect nobody's freedom. Even now they don't talk much with us and decide that when we are in the ships we don't look like thieves, who look very bearish. But they say that traders do not carry weapons and it surprises them because, among them, nobody carries weapons, especially in the cities, except those who defend the land and protect the government officers".
"We had some formal, honourable meetings. One of the Chinese officers, appointed for Admiral, came aboard the ships. We got along very well and with no problems because I knew how to show importance and respect towards their habits and rules of courtesy, which they have in abundance. I welcomed them and offered them a banquet and some gifts which they received secretly, because they can be severely punished if they accept them. They like details and they insisted with me to tell them if I was a merchant's captain or His Highness's captain. If I was His Highness's I should show my credentials and the sign, which they hardly knew. Well pleased with this, they were satisfied that I was His Highness's captain and they greeted and saluted me. They completely accepted my authority not only over the Portuguese but also over the people of all other origins, because I had 17 different nationalities under my command, because they did not want to interfere and I was in charge of everything. When they wanted something they came to ask my permission and asked me to send a Portuguese with them and they left very happy and satisfied with me. The admiral was also very pleased with me and I became famous in the country. And so I left China peacefully as it was proved by the fact that the honourable merchant, who was a messenger, accompanied me until I left the harbour and took my route. May the Lord help them to keep that peace so that they may profit from it. The Customs of Malacca have already profited with my arrival. I have felt that His Highness can take great advantage from China because there are lots of good merchandises. People can profit from this and become rich without charging their conscience. But the merchants should not be Portuguese because they don't respect justice. They do not behave properly in the countries where they travel. They act against China which is a peaceful country and is ruled with justice"
"What I have learned about China is that it is a huge kingdom with a coast longer than 500 leagues. In former times there were several kingdoms that now belong to an Emperor. They speak different languages but they are all Chinese. In the mainland, we find the Tartar and it is said that, on the other side, there is a dead sea which they do not sail and through it the Parsees came into China. China has long rivers with 200 or 300 leagues. The Chinese are strong, white-skinned people. Those from the mainland are more civilized and with a lighter skin than the coastmen. They wear long dresses like the women, a kind of skirt. The leaders are very serious and pompous. They give quick orders in a loud voice. They are cruel and severe and they whip and torture everybody. For that purpose they bring ministers with them who carry the instruments. I reproached them for being so cruel and they replied that it was appropriate to the people because they were bad and that was even less than they deserved. This country is ruled by scholars who hold the dignities and offices of the Empire and the Emperor. This Emperor has schools throughout the Empire as well as examiners who test the young men. When they are able to read and write, they then go to those schools where they learn their Latin, which is Mandarin. The examiners are like High Court judges and have priorities like the Bachelors, Licentiates and Doctors and others of the Cavalry Order. They rule both the Justice Administration as the Public Finances and have also other offices, which they perform with wisdom; they make charges and receive appeals. Those made by foreigners, especially by the Portuguese, are sent to the Emperor, because they do not make them slaves but arrest them as criminals and they are sentenced to death or they are exiled, according to their offences".
"Every year, the Emperor sends a Senior judge to inspect the prisons and sentence everyone according to his offences. They also bring the answers to appeals made by the foreigners to the Emperor. That is why he did not bring the appeals made by Mateus de Brito(32)and Amaro Pereira, arrested in Canton, because the appeals were with the Emperor. The admiral apologized, but he could not give them without the Emperor's approval, but he mitigated their suffering in prison and sent someone to tell me that they would not die because he would write to the Emperor, because Amaro Pereira had been sentenced to death".
"The whole country belongs solely to the Emperor and there is no nobleman because all ranks and honours are in the hands of the scholars, who are the Mandarins. They follow each others in rank up to the Emperor. So everyone has his hierarchical superior and the Emperor gives them food and allowances. The great ones and the Emperor's relatives, who have no posts nor honours, are fed and housed by the Emperor. Those who rule and have authority are sent from one kingdom to another. The kingdom and the provinces are divided and each one has its leaders and officers, lower and higher, and everything follows its course. The rest I leave to Our Lord and Your Highness so that you may recall my services in this part of the world for 30 years and more and the troubles I have had for 3 years with this trip and with trying to make peace with China and bringing it to its present state(33).I really had too much trouble and now I am old and tired because everything can be lost and we are to blame. These troubles I have suffered at Your Highness's service so that, as a very fair and virtuous Prince, You may grant me His Highness's help during my old age so that I may save my soul with less pain. Because men are feeble and disturbed by shame. And that concerns me specially for I am among those who saw my services and to whom I own no apologies. May Our Lord forgive me for reminding Your Highness and His Highness of my work so often, but I was not treated with respect and the instructions and orders of His Highness concerning me were not respected either, thus depriving me of my merits and of my life, which they attributed to others who could not give more profits than I did. Because now I am returning a poor man and I do not know if what I bring with me will be enough to pay the expenses. Because Your Highness knows well how merchants are and how much I have disbursed in 3 year of business, because the years I spent in Malacca were enough to ruin me for I had only my position as Captain and no official help or favour from His Highness. I was deprived even of the "Insurance in case of Death"(34) that others always have had and which are given to those who wish to go there, both to the governors and to the Malacca captains. I was only given the license and those who, by any chance, go to China and bring some money with them, they do not bring it back unless they sell and buy. I remind Your Highness that from now on I have only God, Your greatness and virtues to prize and expressely reward my justice and merits so that they might not say, as D. Afonso did, that His Highness didn't allow them to give me a vessel, because if His Highness would have given the order himself, they would have given it to me. And that it was not enough to tell me to promote the trips for me to deserve the same reward as those who have just arrived in China to serve God and His Highness like Francisco Mascarenhas(35) and António Pereira(36). Besides the profits, therewill not be so many deaths and ship losses every year as before; because in these we lost many people and much money. The mainland is cold and stormy and in the coastal areas there are always fleets on the lookout and they could not disembark, because they were bound to get arrested or lost.
The governors make so much profit out of China for their close collaborators that I now doubt tha I shall be able to take some profit myself if Your Highness does not help me. So I ask Your Highness to allow me to make 3 trips from Porto Pequeno (Small Harbour)(37) in one of His Highness's ships because, due to my age and pains, I shall be contented with little and, besides, I want to save my soul. I say Porto Pequeno of Bengal because in China there are 2 Militia Commanders and I was told there is already another one. It is not good for the service of Your Highness to have so many commanders and those who go there must act wisely.
I shall not speak to Your Highness of the things happening here, because I have been away. Only Malacca is important and famous among all the Kings of the south and the Emperor of China. It is in Your Highness's interest to defend it and it would be of much inconvenience for His Highness if there should be war here. The merchants who pay the agreed taxes are well protected, because it is unscrupulous that neither the Captain nor the officers buy them "calioim" or other goods at low prices, because they pay taxes to His Highness. The lord of Achem is becoming very powerful in vessels, guns, weapons and longs for Malacca and the city is not well protected. May Our Lord grant Your Highness long life and wealth for may years to come. Amen. From this Barra de Cochim on the 15th of January 1556.
Envelope: To Our Lord, the Infant
As far as the letter from Leonel de Souza. The agreement initiated by Leonel de Souza constitutes firmly one of the acts more important of 16th century history on commercial and so to speak of diplomatic relations between the Portuguese and the Chinese.
The news of this fact, really of great significance, was carried to Malacca where the Jesuits, Fr. Belchior Nunes Barreto and Fernão Mendes Pinto were on their mission. Malacca was under the control of the then governor D. António de Noronha (1554-1556), the successor of D. Afonso de Atayde (1552-1554).
NOTES
(25) This letter is in the archives of Tôrre do Tombo, Drawer No2, bundle 10, No15, transcribed in book 6 of reforms, sheets 160-160 and published for the 1st time by Dr. Jordão de Freitas, in Portuguese Historical Archives, vol. VIII, 1910. It is noted that Leonel de Souza had no intimation of the death of Prince D. Luiz occurred on 27th November 1555.
(26) D. Afonso de Noronha, son of the 2nd Marquis of Vila Real. He was the 5th Viceroy of India (1550-1554).
(27) Referring to prince D. João, who was nephew of prince D. Luiz and son of D. João III. He was the father of D. Sebastião.
(28) 1552-1554.
(29) Francos i.e. europeans, name given by the arabs.
(30) Should be the city of Kwanghai, which appears in the present maps of the Admiralty.
(31) Could not identify Simão d'Almeida, unless it was a mistake for Luiz d'Almeida, whose generosity and patriotism at that time made him a prominent and distinguished portuguese trader, and who later on handling all sorts of worldly trade, joined the Society of Jesus and did wonderful work in Japan.
(32) See the letters of Fernão Mendes Pinto and of Fr. Belchior Nunes Barreto, already quoted.
(33) No evidence of any reward having received by Leonel de Souza, who served in the expedition of Viceroy D. Constantino de Bragança to Jafanapatam (from 17 September 1560 to March of 1561) and at a later date took part in the siege of Chaúl in 1571 (Diogo do Couto, Decade VII, Book 9, Chap. I and Dec. VIII, Chap. XXXVII.)
(34) It is interesting to note that the purveyor of the dead did not remain ashore. It is quite probable that Luiz de Camões could have been in China under these conditions, making trips to Macau from time to time.
(35) Served for many years in the East, and was at a later date appointed Viceroy of India (1581-1584).
(36) D. António Pereira, brother-in-law of Viceroy D. Antonio de Noronha (1571-1573), was a brave soldier.
(37) Satgaon, on the bank of river Saraswati, was considered after Chittagong, the most important port on the river Hooghly, and was already famous during the time of Ptolemeu.
start p. 105
end p.