The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 05 Central and Southern Europe — Key Ideas to Explore

Chronicles of the Order

The volume opens with a catalogue of the grand masters of the Order of the Dutch knights, tracing their lineage from Henrie of Walpot in 1190. The text notes that the order originated in Jerusalem and later moved to Ptolemais (Acre), but the narrative quickly shifts to their campaigns in Prussia. The language is formal and genealogical, listing masters and their deeds in a manner typical of 16th-century historical compilations. For instance, Hermannus de Saltza is credited with managing 'the first expedition of warre against the Infidels of Prussia' and ordaining another master there. This section establishes the order's institutional memory, but the excerpts do not provide continuous narrative—only a series of entries that break off abruptly, leaving the reader with a sense of incompleteness.

Siege Diplomacy at Rhodes

A more detailed account emerges from the siege of Rhodes, where the great master negotiates with the Ottoman sultan. The text records a dialogue between an ambassador and Acmek Basha, who claims that 64,000 Turks died 'of violent death' during the siege, plus 40,000–50,000 from sickness. These numbers, presented as sworn testimony, illustrate the scale of conflict and the use of casualty figures as rhetorical tools. The narrative then follows the internal debate among the defenders: the common people refuse to yield, fearing a massacre like that at 'Bellegrado in Hungarie.' The great master argues for secrecy and swift action, sending ambassadors to the sultan. The prose is dense with procedural details—councils, messages, and delays—revealing a world where diplomacy and military pressure intertwine.

Voice and Editorial Layers

The excerpts contain multiple layers of authorship: Hakluyt's original 16th-century spelling and abbreviations, preserved by the transcriber, alongside 19th-century editorial footnotes and sidenotes. The transcriber's notes explain that manuscript abbreviations like 'ye' for 'the' have been silently expanded, while Hakluyt's own marginal notes are labeled [Sidenote:]. This editorial apparatus creates a palimpsest, where the reader encounters both the original text and later interventions. The language itself is archaic—'the saide Master,' 'the sayd Robert Perruse'—and the syntax often convoluted, reflecting early modern English prose. These features demand careful reading but also offer a direct window into the period's historical and linguistic conventions.

Readers approaching this volume should be prepared for a fragmentary text that jumps between catalogues, siege narratives, and diplomatic exchanges. The excerpts do not provide a complete story; instead, they offer snapshots of how 16th-century English compilers understood European conflicts. Pay attention to the editorial notes and the original spelling, as they reveal the text's transmission history. This is not a polished modern history but a raw collection of documents, each with its own biases and gaps.