A PACKE OF SPANISH LYES SENT ABROAD IN THE WORLD FIRST printed in SPAINE in the Spanish tongue and translated out of the Originall Now ripped vp vnfolded and by iust examination condemned as conteyning false corrupt and detestable wares worthy to be damned and burned PSAL. 5. VERS 6. Thou shalt destroy them that speake lyes the Lord wil abhorre the bloodie and deceitfull man Imprinted at London by the Deputies of Christopher Barker Printer to the Queenes most excellent Maiestie 1588. A Packe of SPANISH lyes From Spaine 1 THE true relation of the succes of the Catholike armye against their enemies by letters of the Post master of Logrono of the iiii of September and by letters from Roan of the one thirtieth of August a and by letters from Paris of the Kings Embassadour there wherein hee declareth the imprisonment of Francis Drake and other great Nobles of Englande and howe the Queene is in the fielde with an armie b and of a certaine mutinie which was amongst the Queenes army with the successe of the said Catholike armie since they entred in the Groyne till they came on the coast of England with two ballets compounded by Christouer Brauo a c blinde man of Cordowa Printed with lycence by Gabriel Ramos Beiarano Printer A Packe of Spanish lies From Spaine By a letter of Diego Peres chiefe Postmaster of Logrono dated the second of September 1588. 2 THe newes of Englande is confirmed here by a letter of the Gouernour of Roan He writeth he hath in his power the chiefe Pilot of captaine Drake and that hee knoweth that all the English armie remained ouerthrowen hauing sunke two and twentie shippes and taken fourtie d and imprisoned Francis Drake hauing giuen them chase almost as hie as e Abspurge and slaine many by the sword and likewise sayeth that there was found in captaine Drakes shippe a piece of ordinance of fiue and twentie foote long which discharged a shotte of a hundreth weight at once made of purpose with one onely shot to sinke our Spanish Admirall and it pleased God although shee was somewhat battered yet was she repaired againe and ouerthrewe the English armie A Packe of Spanish lies From Spaine Copie of a letter that Iohn Gamarra wrote from Roan the xxxi of August of the same yeere 3 THe English haue lost aboue xl ships in one encounter where they coulde not flie which was in f Luxaten a Hauen in Scotland to the which place since the departure of the Spanish armies frō Calleis the English armie folowed and supposing they went to take that Hauen they got before ours to defend the entrance we seeing them so neere the English fleete and that they coulde not retire as they alwayes did when they pleased to the English Hauens they set vpon them so valiantly that they sunke xx of their ships and they tooke xxvi whole and soūd and the rest seeing their destruction fled away with great losse of men and their ships very much battered with this they say the Spanish armie tooke the Hauen where they are very well lodged as euery one affirmeth and so the newes is here I pray God giue them good successe wee vnderstande by the Post come from Calleis that in Englād it is forbidden vppon paine of death and losse of goods that no body doe write newes from thence to any place which confirmeth the newes aboue A Packe of Spanish lies From Spaine Coppie of a Letter that Pedro de Alua did write from Roan the first of September of the same yeere 4 I Do not write newes of the Spanish armie because they are diuers and woulde gladly write the very trueth Nowe by the newes which runneth from diuers places as Calleis Deepe and Hollande and presumptions from England other places it is holden for certaine that they haue fought with the English broken their heads hauing sunke many of their ships and taken others the rest which they say were xxvii ships returned very much battered to the Riuer of Lōdon which are all those that coulde escape There goeth with this Post another Post of Iorge Seguin of Calles which saith that certaine Masters and Mariners of Zeland did affirme to the Gouernours of Calleis Mounsier de Gorden that our fleete is in a Hauen or Riuer in Scotland called e Trifla where they say there may ride two thousand Ships this is that which cōmonly is currant here A Packe of Spanish lies From Spaine Aduise from London which the Embassadour of our soueraigne Lord the King resident in Paris had from thence 5 BY newes frō London of the xxvi of August it is knowen for most certaine from persōs of credit that the Queenes Admiral general was arriued in the riuer of London with xxv ships onely without his Admiral ship h which was taken by our Admiral Saint Iohn it is well knowen in Engāld that to hide the losse of their Admiral ship they say he put himselfe in a smaller ship the better to folow our armie it is knowen for certaintie that he saued him self in a boat when he lost his ship That Drake for certaintie is takē or slain The same is cōfirmed by the way of Holland by a Pinnasse of theirs And from Austerland that the Queene commanded vpon paine of death that no body shoulde speake of her fleete and that there was great sorow in those parts of England and that the Queene had in the field thirty thousād raw souldiers betwixt Douer Margate that i the Catholiks vnderstanding that al their fleete was dispersed moued a certaine mutinie which forced the Queene to go herselfe into the fielde and for certain it is knowen that there is not brought in to England neither ship nor boate of ours more then the ship of Don Pedro valdez that our fleete was gone in to Scotland and arriued in a Hauen called k Trapena Euxaten A Packe of Spanish lies From Spaine By a letter of the chiefe Post master of Burdeux written to the French Embassadour the 2. of Sept. 1588. 6 AFter that I had written this here is arriued a Scottishman which saith that all the Spanish fleete is arriued in Scotland that the Scottishmen haue taken armes against the English A Packe of Spanish lies From Spayne Relation of that which hath passed till this day the fifth of September 1588. till three of the clocke in the after noone knowen by the relations and aduise come to his Maiestie from the happie fleete whereof is Generall the Duke of Medina in the conquest of England 7 THat vpon the thirtieth of Iuly without seeing any sayle of the enemies in the sea hee came to the Channell sixe leagues from Plimmouth where vnderstanding the enemies were hee gathered together and set in order all the fleete and sayling the first of August there was discouered some sayles of the enemies the which the second day were nombred to bee lx saile of which the Duke tooke the wind passed
songs and if he knewe how false his verses were when he published them it were to be wished that hee had his eyes restored to see his lyes and then his tongue cutte out that vttered them and his eyes cleane plucked out of his head that he should neuer see any more written lyes As for his eares it were good to haue them open to heare men call him iustly a notable blinde lyar A Condemnation of the Spanish lies From England 2 THe Gouernour of Roan is accompted a worthy noble man and therefore he shall do wel to make this report of him to bee knowen for a lie for so surely he knoweth it to be that there was neuer either a chiefe Pilote or the value of a boy of Captaine Drakes taken and brought to him as a prisoner The Gouernours of Bollen and Calleis can informe the Gouernour of Roan how false a report it was that the English Armie remained ouerthrowen afore Calleis the English armie fought with the Spanish chased the Spanish as a brace of Greyhounds would a herde of Deere the Spaniards ships were beatē spoyled burnt sunke some in the maine seas afore Dunkirke some afore Flushing and the rest chased away so as they fledde continually afore the English Nauie in their best order for strēgth without daring to abide any fight yea some one of the English shippes fought with 3. of their Galleasses the Spaniards neuer attēpting to board any English but as many of them as coulde saile away fled with all their sailes were followed by the English vntil they were chased out of all the English seas and forced then to runne a violent course about Scotland and so to Ireland where a great number of their ships are drowned their men taken and many killed by the sauage people for their spoyle and the English Nauie vpon good consideration left them when they sawe them so hastily to flie desperatly into the Northren daungerous Seas where the English Nauie did very certainely know that there would be no safety for them to folow the Spanish Why durst any report that 22. English shippes were sunke and 40. were taken when in trueth there was not any one of the English shippes sunke or taken A strange disposition to forge such great lyes whereof there was no ground nor colour If any one or two of the English had bene sunke a lyar might haue put the nomber of 20. for 2. and excused the lye by error of figuring but of none in nomber no nomber can bee made but by falshood The Gouernour of Roan being a man of great honour and vertue ought to reuenge this shamefull lye made vpon him for Lucian neuer did in all his lyes vse more impudencie then these Spanish lyars doe report of him d If Drakes shippe were taken if there was such a piece of ordinance of such a length in what Port is that shippe in whose possession is that piece Drake is returned with honour his shippe called the Reuenge is in harborow ready for a reuenge by a newe seruice no shippe lost no ordinance missing e The foolish lyar maketh mention of Abspurg in Scotland in all Scotland is no such place in Germanie is a countrey called Habspurg but any wager may be layd that none of the Spanish came euer thither Euery line or euery sentence conteineth a lye The Duke him selfe is returned let him confirme this vntrueth that he ouerthrewe the English armie it can not be imagined that hee being a person of so great honour will allow so notorious a lye to be taken for a trueth for if he had such a victorie why did hee not land to conquere England why did he neuer enter into any part of England why did hee neuer cary any Ensigne of England into Spaine to shew as very many of the Spanish were brought into Englande A condemnation of the Spanish lies From England 3 ALl this is likewise as full of lyes as lines Iohn Gamarra may be what he is but if there be such a man and that hee wrote as is mentioned except hee bee a professed member of the Deuill to forge lyes hee knoweth that he wrote falsly f Hee noteth also a Hauen in Scotlande called Luxaten none such was euer knowen there In Vtopia there may bee such a one no Spaniard can saye that they tooke any Hauē in Scotland it is altogether vaine otherwise to reproue this but al that is reported are lyes so let Gamarra repent or follow the Deuill his master the father of malicious lyes A condemnation of the Spanish lies From England 4 THis Pedro Alua coulde bee content to send lies but he is more warie in the auowing of them hee reporteth lyes as hee saith that came from other places But of all other places none coulde make a truer report then Calleis where the Gouernour and all the inhabitants saw the Spanish armie mightily beaten by the English and it was affirmed by men there of great iudgement that neuer was seene by any man liuing such a battery so great for nomber so furious and of so long continuance as the English made against the Spanish Calleis sawe the Spanish armie first driuen from their ancres with fire they sawe the greatest Galliasse of the Spanish whereof was Commander that worthy noble man Moncada spoyled himselfe slaine in the Galliasse by the English Calleis did see the next day that the English Nauie fought and did beate the Spanish Armada from viii of the clocke in the Morning vntill 4. in the afternone without any ceasing Calleis sawe the Spanish hoyse vp al their sayles flie as fast as winde could driue the English to follow and pursue them and yet Calleis saw a sufficient Nauie of England left afore Dunkirke able to master all the Shipping that the Duke of Parma had prouided g The last part of this report is a like lye to the other there is no such Port in Scotland called Trifla neither did any of the Spaniards take succour in any Hauen nor yet could haue done by reason of the contrary windes A condemnation of the Spanish lies From England 5 HEre followeth the Mountaine of lies It is reason that if there were lyars in London they should send them to Mendoza for so Mendacia are of more price with him then true reportes and so was he accustomed when he was Ambassadour in Englande to buye more lyes because hee liked them better then truethes If one should make a Section or anatomie of this Mountaine and body of lyes there is no piece nor ioynt to be found sound h The Admirall Shippe which was called the ARKE ROYALL was safely brought home by the Lord Admiral of England L. Howard he neuer changed her shee is thanked bee GOD safe with other the Queenes Royal Shippes she is able with the Lorde Admirall to match in fight with the Duke of Medina or any Prince of Christendome in any ship that the King of Spaine hath This is not spoken
for ostentation but Gods fauour is assured to Englande in the Iustice of the quarell against any Inuadour i If there were a mutinie of Catholikes they should haue bene hanged or punished but it was not knowen that one Catholique did stir this Summer with hand or tōgue to mooue offence neither was any one imprisoned or otherwise punished k The last line is a lye with like errour as the former for there is no Hauen in Scotland called Trapena Exaten This Mendoza was very curious to forge a strange name as it appeareth hee had read of some such in Peru or in new Spaine A condemnation of the Spanish lies From England 6 THis Scottishman I thinke hath no name a manifest lye it was that Scottishmen had taken Armes against the English Such a lie did Mendoza publish some yeres past that the king of Scots had besieged and wonne Barwicke I trust he remembreth now how false a lye it was but yet he hath no grace as it seemeth to forbeare frō forging of lyes for his chollerike appetite But a manifest trueth it is that the King of Scots at the time meant made a generall Proclamation that no Scottishman should victuall any Spaniard for that the King did knowe they came to haue conquered both England and Scotland And on the other side the King by Proclamation commaunded that all succours should be giuen to the Armie of England as being the armie of his Sister and confederate and the Prince whom he knew to be inuaded most iniustly Many Scottishmen might at Burdeaux haue reported this for a truth A condemnation of Spanish lies From England 7 AL these vntrue newes are sayde to haue come from the spanish Fleete to the Kings Maiestie By this tyme is it sure that the Duke of Medina can tell the King his Master some other contrary matters for else he had no cause to flie about Scotland and Ireland l He also wil not say that eyther three Galiasses foure Galleōs of England were sunk or that euer hee coulde see one ship or one boat of England sunk He can tell the King with great griefe that hee neuer had fortunate day from his cōming from the Groine till he returned with the losse of as many shippes men victuals treasure and ordināce as might haue made a good armie by sea and great pitie it is for Christendome that both that which is lost and that which remaineth had not beene vsed by the King Catholik against the Infidels and not with ambitiō on to imploy such kinde of forces to inuade Christian countreys therewith who if he would liue in peace with them would be readye to ioine their forces with his to dilate the fines of Christendome forbeare spending of Christian blood amongst Christians m This Noble man was killed with a smal shot in the Galleasse where in very trueth hee remayned in defence of the Galleasse and sought not to flie away as a great nomber did n If it be meant the xii of August the vntruth is apparant for there was neuer fight after that afore Calleis which was the xxix of Iulie Stilo antiquo and the 8. of their August o It is very true that the Spaniards ships to make themselues light to flie did cast away their boates they threw their Moiles and horses into the seas A condemnation of the Spanish lies From England 8 THis that is sayd of the Dukes grapling with Drakes ship and taking of him captiue and many other Noble men of England is like all the rest of the lyes The Duke after hee went from Calleis towards Scotland neuer came neere to offer fight with any English shippe neuer turned backe to the English that followed him but fledde away as winde and sayle could serue him If he had this fortune thus falsely reported it is sure that hee would haue brought both Drake and some of the Noble men home with him into Spaine to haue beene presented to the king and not to haue gone home to his owne house without sight of the King But in truth there was not one Noble man or Gentleman of any Marke that went to the sea that was either slaine or taken all are liuing and are as willing by Gods fauour to aduenture their liues as euer they were against any of the Queens enemies whē she shal cōmand them And where these newes did much content the King it is likely that if he thought them true he was glad thereof for so had his Maiestie cause but hee is thought too wise to haue thought that after hee vnderstoode that the Duke and all his armie had fled from the coast of Flanders England that euer they were like to haue any victorie of the English No contrariwise the King and all his wise Counsellours had cause to lament the dangers whereunto of necessitie his Armada should fall by passing the dangerous coastes Ilandes monstruous rockes of Scotland Ireland of more danger for his Nauie to passe then to haue passed frō Lisborne to the Moloccas and home againe It is to be thought that if the Empresse gaue the secretarie Ydiaques any rewarde for the newes as it is likely shee did she may iustly require it againe frō him and giue him charge not to bring her Maiestie nor the King his master any such notorious lyes hereafter for if he vse it often he is vnworthie to be Secretarie to so great a King Jmprinted at London by the DEPVTIES of Christopher Barker Printer to the QVEENES most excellent Maiestie 1588. ZACH. 8.26 These are the things that ye shall doe Speake ye euery man the trueth vnto his neighbour EPHES. 4.25 Wherefore cast off lying and speake euery man trueth vnto his neighbour for we are members one of another