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The Embassy of Sir Thomas Roe to the Court of the Great Mogul 1: INTRODUCTION.

The Embassy of Sir Thomas Roe (Foster) 1

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English

Contents

INTRODUCTION.

1.1.1

"Toward the end of this present yeere 1614, viz. in the beginning of January, his maiesty, at the request of the East India company, sent Sir Thomas Roe, knight, Ambassadour to the great Maghoore, whome some corruptly call Mogall .... vnto whome this Ambassadour had commission to make and contract a league between his Maiesty and his Subiects for commerce and Traffique in his Dominions, and to procure and establish a factory for our nation in sundry parts of his Dominions, as well Seaports as Inland Townes, with other instructions yet vndiscouered. Hee is the first that euer was imployed in this hie Nature to any of those so farre remote easterne princes." — Stow's Annals, continued by Edmond Howes (London, 1615), p. 945. THE early attempts of the English to establish themselves in India have been to some extent narrated in two previous volumes of the Society's series. In The Hawkins' Voyages, edited by Sir Clements Markham in 1878, will be found an account of the arrival of the first English ship at Surat, in August, 1608 : the journey to Agra of its captain, William Hawkins, to present a commendatory letter from King James, and to solicit trading privileges : his encouraging reception by the Great Mogul : and the consequent alarm and intrigues of the Portuguese representatives, resulting in the virtual dismissal of Hawkins in November, 1611. The narrative is continued in the extracts from the India Office Records given in The Voyages of Sir James Lancaster (1877).

1.1.2

From these we learn the arrival at Surat, in September, 1611, of the ships of the Sixth Voyage under Sir Henry Middleton: the indecision and double-dealing of the local authorities, culminating in an absolute refusal of trade: Middleton's consequent departure (after embarking Hawkins and his companions), and his retaliation upon the Surat traders in the Red Sea: the coming (September, 1612) of Thomas Best with a fresh fleet, all unaware of the difficulties with his predecessor: his favourable reception, due, it would seem, to the terror inspired by Middleton's proceedings: the conclusion of a trading agreement with the local officials, confirmed in general terms by a farmán from the Court: the repulse of an attack made upon the English by a Portuguese fleet from Goa: and finally Best's departure for Achin (January, 1613), leaving Thomas Aldworth to take charge of the factory at Surat, and Paul Canning to go up to Agra, carrying fresh letters and presents for the Great Mogul.

1.1.3

Thus far, as we have said, the reader is already acquainted with the course of events; and little more was known to the East India Company itself in June, 1614, when Best, upon his return, related in detail his proceedings. His glowing report of the prospects of the trade, and of the privileges he had obtained, confirmed the Company in its resolution to push matters vigorously in this direction. Already, in the preceding February, a fleet of four ships had been despatched to Surat under the experienced leadership of Nicholas Downton; and it was now determined to prepare a fresh expedition to be set forth by Christmastide. William Keeling, who had taken part in the First Voyage, and had commanded the Third, was placed in charge of the new fleet, with the Dragon as his flagship; to Christopher Newport, of Virginia fame, the successful leader of the Twelfth Voyage, was assigned the Lion; Walter Peyton, who had been master of Newport's ship in the same voyage, was promoted to the charge of the Expedition; and Christopher Harris was appointed to command the Peppercorn. The fleet was the finest and best-equipped that had yet been sent out by the Company; it had a leader who was second to none in all the qualifications for command, and who was, moreover, invested with powers such as had never been conferred on any of his predecessors. But it was to enjoy a still greater distinction; for it was to carry out to India an ambassador from King James himself.

1.1.4

On September 7, when the preparations for the despatch of the fleet were in full swing, the Governor of the Company, Sir Thomas Smythe, brought forward a proposal which had probably been debated for some time in private by the principal members of the Court, viz., the advisability of sending "one of extraordinarye partes to reside att Agra to preuent any plottes that may be wrought by the Iesuites to circumvent our trade" and to obtain such a confirmation of trading privileges as would place the English commerce on a firm and enduring basis. One of the articles of Best's agreement stipulated that an English representative should be allowed to reside at the Mogul Court, and the experience of the last few years had completely demonstrated the desirability that this representative should be someone of standing sent expressly from England. In November, 1613, Aldworth, writing from Ahmadābād, had expressed a hope that "their might a suffitient man be sent in your first shippes that may bee Resident in Agra withe the Kinge, and sutch a one whose person may breade regarde, for they here looke mutch after greate men;" while another factor, William Biddulph, wrote from Surat to the same effect. The Governor was evidently in favour of the adoption of such a course; but when the matter came to be debated, considerable opposition was manifested. Some doubted the advisability of taking such a step until the results of Downton's expedition were known;

1.1.5

others considered that "a meere merchaunt" (such had, in fact, been sent out in that fleet in the person of William Edwards) would be quite sufficient and less expensive; others again hinted a fear that his Majesty, who must necessarily be consulted if a royal ambassador were sent, would "putt vpon them" some courtier who would contemn their authority and deal with their men and goods at his pleasure. The question was anxiously debated at several meetings before a resolution was arrived at. At last, however (on October 7, 1614), "the former reasons were againe reiterated and amplyfied, and all inconvenyences and obiections fullie considered and argued," and the despatch of "an Embassadour of extraordinarye Countenance and respect .... was resolued of by erection of hanndes as most necessary." The next question—who should be chosen for the post—gave rise to another prolonged discussion. Sir John Brooke was proposed, but rejected on the ground of his weak health. "One Master Bailie" was next considered, and passed by. In the end "none were esteemed soe fittinge for that seruice as Sir Thomas Roe, yf hee may bee had;" and the Governor, whose nominee he seems to have been, was requested to treat with him as to the terms on which he would accept employment. A happier choice could not have been made. Roe was in the prime of life, "of a pregnant vnderstandinge, well spoken, learned, industrious, and of a comelie personage" (Court Minutes, September 7, 1614);

1.1.6

his commanding presence and dignified bearing were useful qualifications for a mission to an Eastern court; while in the still more important matters of judgment and tact he was equally well equipped. Sprung from a noted city family, he combined the shrewdness, readiness of resource, and business ability which had raised his ancestors to fortune, with the culture and experience obtained by a varied training in most favourable circumstances. Of his earlier life there is not much to record. He was born at Leyton in 1580 or 1581, the son of Robert Roe, and grandson of Sir Thomas Roe (lord mayor in 1568). In 1593 he was entered at Magdalen College, Oxford. His father died while Roe was still a minor, and his mother married into the Berkeley family. Probably by the influence of his new relatives, after spending some time "in one of the inns of Court or in France or both" (Wood's Athenæ), he was made an Esquire of the Body to Queen Elizabeth. Her Majesty's death did not hinder his advancement at court, for two years later he was knighted by her successor. The young courtier formed close friendships with Prince Henry and his sister Elizabeth (afterwards Electress Palatine and titular Queen of Bohemia); both seem to have been much attached to Roe, and in after-years the unhappy princess kept up a constant and intimate correspondence with "Honest Tom" (as she called him), and profited much by his devoted attention to her interests.

1.1.7

Under the patronage of the Prince, Roe sought experience of the adventurous sort which was then in fashion. Equipping a couple of pinnaces, he set sail in February, 1610, on a voyage of discovery to Guiana, in the course of which he is said to have penetrated three hundred miles up the little-known river of the Amazons, and to have examined the coast from the mouth of that river to the Orinoco, reaching England again in July, 1611. Soon, however, a cloud came over his fortunes. The Prince, from whose favour he might have hoped for much, died in November, 1612; and a few months later, the Princess's marriage took away his other patron. After spending some months on the Continent, Roe resolved to enter public life; and in the "Addled Parliament" of 1614 he sat as member for Tamworth. But though "he was one of those men who, if James had been well advised, would have been the very first to be selected for high office," his enlightened views were little likely to commend themselves to that monarch; and thus left with no prospect at home of reconciling his loyalty and affection for the royal family with his duty to the nation, it was to foreign service alone that Roe could look for a career of usefulness.

1.2.1

There were other reasons also why he was glad to accept employment of this nature. His fortune, which was probably in the first instance but moderate, seems to have been by this time seriously impaired. "I esteeme it an infinite mercy of God," he wrote later from India, "that when I had fully ended and wasted my patrimony and saw no way but scorne (the reward of folly), before I suffred disgrace hee vndertooke mee, and, beeing as it were new borne, hee restored mee to a new Inheritance and sett me right, for I doubt not but to equall my wastes." Further, he had contracted a secret marriage with a lady of good social position (see p. 254): a step which made it all the more prudent for him to take a post which offered a comfortable salary, together with a chance of displaying his diplomatic talents and of thus recommending himself to the notice of the government.

1.2.2

The offer of the East India Company came, therefore, in good season; and no difficulty was experienced in arriving at an agreement. Roe's salary was fixed at six hundred pounds a year, of which one half was, at his request, to be put into the Company's stock. For the expenses of his outfit the Court bestowed upon him five hundred marks; a similar sum was advanced from his first year's salary "to satisfie som debtes which he oweth abroad;" and 100l. was lent for the purchase of plate for his table. Except a chaplain and a chirurgeon, whom the Company provided at the cost of 50l. and 24l. per annum respectively, Roe was to engage his own retinue, receiving for their wages an allowance of 100l. a year, with a grant of 30l. towards the cost of their liveries. Diet and other household expenses were to be charged to the Company, unless the Mogul should make an allowance for this purpose. Finally, Roe was strictly bound to forbear all private trade himself, and to hinder it as much as possible in others; also to abstain from interference with the Company's factors in matters of merchandise.

1.2.3

All that now remained to be done was to obtain the royal sanction. This was readily given, King James approving both the Company's choice of an ambassador and the arrangements made for his mission; "houlding yt a good ground for him to worke vpon yf occasion should be to treate with the Spanyards concerning the East Indies, or else with the Flemynges." Roe was accordingly furnished with letters of credence, a royal missive to the Great Mogul, and detailed instructions for his guidance. The latter, it may be mentioned, included directions as to the reply he was to give if asked why the Portuguese aggressions in Asia were not actively resented; and also a recommendation to impress upon the Asiatic monarch, "by way of discourse," the greatness of King James and the naval strength of his kingdom, which "Maketh vs even a Terrour to all other Nations; Concluding all with this happines, that Wee be not onlie absolutelie obeyed but vniversally beloued and admyred of all our People."

1.2.4

All being ready, on February 2, 1615, Roe embarked with fifteen followers in the Lion at Tilbury Hope. Some time was spent in the Downs, and again at Portland, waiting for a wind, so that it was March 6 before they lost sight of the Lizard. The six months' voyage to Surat was uneventful, and to Roe exceedingly tedious. Apparently, in order to satisfy some of the wiseacres of the Court, the commanders had been warned not to allow Roe to encroach upon their authority, and he found himself, therefore, excluded carefully from their deliberations. "I liue to myselfe, as an Alien among the Tribes, as if the water were not my element," he wrote to the Governor of the Company (Addl. MS. 6115, f. 52). Roe could not help feeling and resenting this suspicious attitude, and he was consequently in a critical mood for the greater part of the voyage. He amused himself, however, by taking observations on his own account, and making notes of such tidings as came to his ears, "as poore men build their howses of reeds and canes for want of timber." The situation was, in fact, a delicate one; and with men less tactful than Roe and Keeling it might easily have brought about a quarrel. The latter, however, showed the ambassador every consideration consistent with obedience to his instructions, and Roe acknowledged in handsome terms his correct behaviour. The ships touched at the Cape, at the Comoro Islands, and at Socotra.

1.2.5

At the first of these stopping-places they fell in with the Merchant's Hope, one of the vessels of Downton's fleet of the preceding year, now on her way back from Surat to England with a lading of chintzes and indigo. She brought news of important events, as well on the Indian coast as at the Mogul Court. Soon after Best's departure from Surat, as already recorded, Canning started upon his mission to the Court. He reached Agra on April 9, 1613, and delivered the presents and royal letters of which he was the bearer. But the influence of the Jesuits and of the anti-English party among the nobles proved paramount; the Mogul and his minister disdained to treat with one who, by his own confession, was merely a merchant; and Canning found himself slighted, and his petitions for a grant of privileges and an answer to King James's missive ignored. Six weeks later he was carried off by sickness, and Thomas Kerridge was despatched from Surat to take his place. He experienced an equally unfavourable reception. Mukarrab Khán, the former Viceroy of Gujarat, to whom he was referred, met his representations with complaints of Middleton's exactions in the Red Sea, and with demands for compensation. The Portuguese agents spent freely, and backed up their presents by threats of retaliation should the English be permitted access to the trade.

1.2.6

"For good successe," wrote Kerridge to Aldworth, in September, 1613, "I haue smale hope exceptt shippinge come this yeare as well to curbe the Portingals as to affright this people, whome nothinge butt feare will make honest;" and he waited only for orders from his superior to abandon his fruitless mission. Suddenly, however, when the prospect appeared most hopeless, an ill-advised move on the part of the Portuguese brought about a complete change. A native vessel returning from the Red Sea with a rich freight was met off Surat by a Portuguese fleet; and, in spite of the fact that she was provided with the usual pass, she was captured and carried off. Apparently this was intended to frighten the Mogul into dismissing the English intruders; but it was presuming too much upon his patience, and the incensed monarch at once imprisoned all the Portuguese in his dominions and despatched Mukarrab Khan to besiege Damán. At this juncture (October, 1614) Downton arrived in Swally Road with his fleet—"four gallant shipps with four hundred gallant men," as Aldworth wrote joyfully to Kerridge (O. C. No. 170). Mukarrab Khán at once applied to the English commander for his co-operation against the common enemy. His credit was involved in the speedy capture of Damán, on the fortifications of which his clumsy artillery could make no impression;

1.2.7

and he was anxious, therefore, that the English ships should go "batter the castle." He was willing to promise, in return, any concessions the English might desire, and he urged with much force that the quarrel was really due to the presence of their vessels. The situation was a difficult one. On the one hand, the triumph of the Portuguese would undoubtedly mean the exclusion of the English from the Mogul's dominions; while their previous attack upon Best's fleet seemed a sufficient justification for measures of reprisal. On the other, Downton's errand was a peaceful one, and he knew that his employers would disapprove of his risking their ships and goods by any warlike operations which were not absolutely necessary; moreover, his commission from the king strictly forbade acts of unprovoked aggression against the Portuguese, and should he aid the infidels to capture one of their fortresses, he must expect that bitter complaints would be made by the Spanish Court; so that, alike in the event of success or failure his position might well become serious. Downton, though a capable seaman and a painstaking and reliable commander, was naturally diffident in matters of this kind; while his feeble health probably had its influence in preventing him from adopting a bold policy. A refusal was therefore returned to Mukarrab Khan's demand, and Downton made it understood that he should confine himself strictly to standing on the defensive.

1.2.8

Mukarrab Khan, indignant at this reply, put for a time every obstacle in the way of the English trade, and made overtures to the Dutch at Masulipatam. Soon, however, the intelligence that the Viceroy of Goa was preparing an armament to attack Surat convinced him of the impolicy of driving away his only friends; and he therefore made Aldworth "large promises of future good respect," and paid a visit to Downton, to whom he was very gracious. A fortnight later, a score of small vessels—the advance-guard of the Portuguese flotilla—arrived; and these were followed shortly after (January, 1615) by the Viceroy himself with a formidable array. Mukarrab Khan, intimidated by these forces, and feeling little reliance on English help, made overtures for peace; but fortunately the Viceroy, convinced that victory was within his grasp, rejected the proferred terms as insufficient. The fight that followed has been several times narrated. The English position amongst the sandbanks of the roadstead, though it had many drawbacks, neutralised to some extent the superiority in numbers of the Portuguese. An attempt to carry the Merchants Hope by boarding was repulsed with great loss; and subsequent endeavours to destroy the English vessels by means of fireships were frustrated by Downton's vigilance and adroit manoeuvring.

1.2.9

Finding at last that he could make no impression upon his opponent's fleet, and not daring to leave his ships exposed to their attacks while he sent his men up the river to attack Surat, the Viceroy was forced to abandon the attempt and to retire baffled. Downton remained until March 2, when the fleet set sail: the Hope for England, and the rest for Bantam. Meanwhile, William Edwards, the chief of the newly-arrived factors, had been despatched to Court with a new letter from King James and a fresh batch of presents, in the hope that, under altered circumstances, he would succeed in obtaining the formal grant of privileges for which Kerridge had pleaded in vain.

1.3.1

Such was the intelligence received by Roe at Table Bay. There was little more to learn when the ships cast anchor in Swally Road (September 18, 1615). Edwards was still at Court, where, owing partly to the Mogul's gratification at the presents he brought and partly to the impression produced by Downton's victory, he had met with a very promising reception. No peace had been concluded, though a preliminary agreement between Mukarrab Khán and a Portuguese representative had been submitted to the Mogul for ratification, and hostilities were for the present suspended. Surat was now nominally under the rule of Prince Khurram, the Mogul's favourite son, who had committed its government and the care of its rising revenues to one of his confidants, named Zülfikár Khán. The latter, however, was not more favourably inclined towards the English than his predecessors; while a powerful party at Court, including the Prince and Mukarrab Khán, made no secret of their preference for the Portuguese. There was thus ample scope for the abilities of the ambassador, whose difficulties commenced from the moment of his landing. He had wisely determined to take a high tone from the first, and to insist upon being received with the respect due to his office. This was the more necessary, as hitherto the English representatives had made no attempt to assert their dignity;

1.3.2

indeed, the latest, Edwards, had "suffered blowes of the porters, base Peons, and beene thrust out by them with much scorne by head and shoulders without seeking satisfaction, and .... carried himselfe with such Complacency that hath bredd a low reputation of our Nation" (Roe to Smythe, January 24, 1616). Small wonder was it that upon the announcement of the arrival of yet another "ambassador," making high claim to respect, the natives "laughd one vpon another" (p. 45), or that the Governor of Surat felt himself at liberty to flout the new-comer and rifle the merchants' goods at his pleasure, regardless of protests and threats. Finding that no offer was made to bribe him into civility, he threw manifold obstacles in the way of the ambassador, and employed every artifice to humiliate and embarrass him. The story of the contest between the two furnishes most amusing reading. The victory rested with the Englishman, whose cool and resolute fence proved more than a match for the Oriental cunning of his adversary; and when Roe set out on his journey to the Court, the Governor humbly desired his friendship, and offered him "anything he would demand." The situation of the English had, in fact, been changed by Roe's arrival in a way that completely justified the despatch of the embassy. Never, perhaps, were his countrymen so near expulsion from this, their only foothold in the Mogul's dominions—and expulsion would have meant reprisals which might well have made an irreparable breach.

1.3.3

The draft treaty which was being pressed upon Jahángír by the advocates of the Portuguese stipulated for the absolute exclusion of the English from all parts of his empire. On October 18 arrived a farmán from the Prince, ordering "that the English should dischardge one ship and haue a Monthes staye, in trade, but no residence in the Towne;" and although it was afterwards found expedient to disavow these instructions, there can be no doubt that they were issued, and would in other circumstances have been obeyed. Roe, nothing daunted, resolved to hasten his journey to Court, and to ascertain from the king himself whether he was disposed to meet the reasonable demands of the English. If not, Roe would "returne to our shipes with expedition, having aduertised the Mogull That as he was Lord of his owne land and might doe his pleasure, and had forsaken the amytie of a Prince who had desired yt in faire and Honorable tearmes, for the Portugalls who made him tributary, to his eternall dishonor, So he would fynd by experience the king my Master would be lord of all these seas and Ports to the prejudice of his subjects, in spight of those in whom he now trusted" (p. 75). Fortunately, this extreme measure was not required.

1.3.4

The news that a real ambassador from the English king had arrived with presents roused the curiosity and cupidity of Jahángír himself, and a letter of reproof to the Governor was followed by a safe-conduct for Roe, "in all things very fauourable (except chardges)," which made his opponent look "very blancke" and enabled the ambassador to quit Surat in triumph. He arrived at Ajmere on December 23, 1615, the journey having taken close upon two months. On his way up country, he paid a visit at Burhánpur to Sultan Parwíz, the Mogul's second son, who was nominally in command of the army operating against the forces of the Deccan kings; and from him Roe obtained a farmán authorising the English to establish a factory in that city. The journey was made in much discomfort. At Burhánpur, fever laid hold of the ambassador, and shortly after his departure thence, for two nights (he wrote) "I was soe neare death that my owne company gaue me ouer; but God raysed me a little" (Roe to Keeling, Addl. MS. 6115, f. 64). Even when he had reached the Court ("with as much dainger of dayly death as euer any man did, being carried all the way of my Iourny and soe layed in my bed"), for a whole week he lay prostrate; and it was not until January 10, 1616, that he was able to present himself at the darbár. The monarch to whom he was now introduced is known to history by the high-sounding title of Jahángír ("World-Grasper," or "Conqueror of the World").

1.3.5

He had been on the throne of Hindustan a little more than ten years, having succeeded his father, the great Akbar, in 1605. Some characteristics were common to both father and son—the love of hunting and other sports, the painstaking administration of justice, the considerate bearing towards strangers—but in other respects there was a great contrast between them. Of Akbar's administrative ability, as of his military skill, Jahangir had not a trace. Both monarchs interested themselves in religious discussions; but while Akbar had been actuated by a sincere desire to find a faith which should reconcile the clashing tenets of the creeds around him—"a temple neither pagod, mosque, nor church"—Jahángír, though even in drink he would "dispute of the lawes of Moses, Jesus and Mahomett," felt but a languid interest in such questions, and his tolerance was the outcome not of reason but of indifference. What in the father had been the eager workings of a mind desirous of embracing and utilising information of all kinds, became in the son a childish curiosity which (as evinced in his extraordinary diary) found as much satisfaction in watching the birds of his aviary, or counting the number of cups of wine he drank, as in hearing of the weightiest matters of state. But, on the whole, despite his drunkenness, his occasional lapses into cruelty, his weak-minded submission to the influence of his wife and of his favourite son, the portrait of Jahangir drawn by Roe is not unfavourable.

1.3.6

He was uniformly kind and courteous to the ambassador ; and his gracious behaviour on this occasion greatly pleased and encouraged Roe, who notes exultantly that he was treated " with more fauour and outward grace . . . then euer was showed to any Ambassador, eyther of the Turke or Persian or other whatsoeuer." It is evident that the king was favourably impressed by Roe's demeanour ; and, indeed, his attitude during the whole period of the latter's stay in the country showed his personal esteem and liking for the ambassador, combined, it must be owned, with a total indifference to the objects of his mission. But however well-disposed the monarch himself might be, Roe soon found that there were other persons to be reckoned with whose good-will it was not so easy to secure. The Conqueror of the World was the slave of a woman — his consort, Niir Mahdl, or Niir Jahdn, as she was afterwards styled. Her father, Itimdd-uddaula, and her brother, Asaf Khdn, had a large share in the administration of affairs ; while her niece (Asaf Khdn's daughter) was the wife of Sultdn Khurram, the Mogul's favourite son, who afterwards succeeded to the throne under the title of Shah Jahdn.

1.3.7

All these personages were at this time in close alliance, their special aim being to strengthen the prince's influence and advance his interests against those of his elder brothers — Sultan Khusrū, who since his rebellion (1606) had been kept a close prisoner, and Sultān Parwīz, who (as already stated) was nominally in command of the army in the Deccan. Unfortunately, Roe did not at first perceive, or else failed to estimate correctly, the strength of the power behind the throne. Confident in the good-will of the king, he hoped to override, if necessary, all opposition; and the parsimony exercised by the Court in his stock of presents, contrasting with the lavish supply sent with his predecessor, effectually prevented him from making friends in the only way friends could be made at the Mogul Court. Even for the king himself Roe had to draw upon his own slender store, and he was absolutely destitute of presents fit to be offered to the Queen, or sufficient to satisfy the inordinate expectations of her brother. To the Prince he paid a visit of compliment and delivered a present, though "not in the name of his Majestie, it beeing too meane;" but at the first interview he hinted an intention of appealing to the Mogul if speedy satisfaction were not given for the wrongs suffered at Surat.

1.3.8

The veiled threat was hardly likely to be palatable to the Prince, whose "proud nature" is especially noted by Roe, and whose prepossession against the English mission had probably been increased by the representations of Zülfikár Khán, and the complaints from the Surat officials, not only of the loss of trade caused by the exclusion of the Portuguese, but also of the riotous behaviour of the English seamen.

1.4.1

For the present, however, no animosity was shown, and Roe set about his negotiations with great hope of success. One of the earliest objects of his solicitude had been the attitude of the Portuguese. As long as such attacks as those of 1612 and 1615 were possible, it was necessary to keep the whole of the English fleet at Surat for one ship's lading, at an expense of time and money which seriously reduced the profits of the trade. Could Roe have had his way, the challenge of the past year at Swally would have been answered at Goa, for "the offensiue (he wrote to the Company) is both the nobler and the safer part" (p. 99). But his present errand was one of peace, and he had therefore, while still at Surat, addressed a letter to the Viceroy (couched, it is true, in somewhat imperious terms) offering him "comprisure" in the intended treaty with the Mogul, and threatening reprisals if the Portuguese persisted in their hostility. The letter was ignored; but gradually the question lost its urgency. The conclusion of peace (in a very informal fashion) between the natives and the Portuguese and the resumption of commerce dissipated Roe's dream of joint action against the Viceroy's forces; the latter, crippled by want of supplies from home, attacked in the West by the Persians, in the East by the Dutch, could initiate no vigorous action against the intruders at Surat; while the English had gained all that was pressingly wanted, when they were no longer actively molested.

1.4.2

For past offences, they revenged themselves on the Portuguese shipping whenever an opportunity occurred ; and perhaps they were not altogether sorry that " the warr was left open for both at sea " (p. 96), and thus a legitimate excuse provided for prize-taking. As already stated, the authorities at Goa made no response to Roe's peremptory summons ; but he had still to feel their influence at Court. At his first interview with the Prince, the latter had promised him " a firmaen for Suratt effectually ;" when, however, the document was received, it was found to be contingent on Roe's signature of an undertaking to allow the Portuguese vessels to trade at that port without molestation. To this the ambassador refused to agree, partly because he feared a treacherous attack if the Portuguese ships were allowed to ride among the English, and partly because he deemed it dishonouring to give such an undertaking unless a similar assurance was required from the Viceroy. To the refusal it was answered he " should then haue no firmaen for Suratt ;" and an appeal to the good offices of Asaf Khan led to the discovery that he was " the author of this deuice and an earnest disputer for the reasonablenes therof." Roe was for a while irresolute as to his best course of action ; but after waiting some time, and making several ineffectual attempts to obtain his desire, he determined to bring the matter to the notice of the King. The result was not altogether fortunate.

1.4.3

A preliminary conversation regarding the curiosities which the English could bring excited the Mogul's cupidity, and on hearing the ambassador's vague reference to wrongs which, if unremedied, would force them to quit the trade, he " grew suddenly into Choler, pressing to know who had wronged vs, with such show of fury that I was loath to follow yt." Roe attempted to appease him by saying (through his bungling interpreter) that he would seek justice from the Prince ; but Jahangir conceived that he was accusing the latter, and, calling for his son, rated him soundly in the presence of the Court. With the aid of a Persian nobleman, Roe succeeded in making his meaning clear, and an animated discussion then took place between him and "the Portugalles syde," in which (he says) "I explayned myselfe fully concerning them ; and .... wee wear very warme." At last Asaf Khán interposed to quiet the dispute, and it was agreed that the ambassador should submit his demands in writing, "and if they were found reasonable the king would firme them." This arrangement opened the way to a proposal by which Roe hoped to place the position of his countrymen on a safe and lasting basis, and at the same time to avoid these dangerous controversies with the Prince, by obtaining a general concession, which would apply to Surat as to any other ports where the English might settle, and which, as emanating from the Mogul himself, could not be overridden by any lesser authority.

1.4.4

Farmáns, however favourable, were of little use ; they were partial in their application, being, in most cases, a definite order to some particular official ; and they were liable to be superseded at any moment by fresh commands in a contrary sense. What the ambassador desired was something of a more permanent nature — a solemn treaty between his royal master and the Great Mogul, securing definite privileges to the English merchants, and binding "the high and mighty king of India" to the due and faithful performance of its conditions. Such a treaty — intended, in fact, to be on a par with the "capitulations" obtained by the European nations in Turkey — Roe now drew up and presented for consideration. It provided for the free access of the English to all ports belonging to the Great Mogul, including those of Bengal and Sind, and the free passage of their goods without payment of any duty beyond the usual customs; they were to be allowed to buy and sell freely, to rent factories, to hire boats and carts, and to buy provisions at the usual rates ; while other articles were directed against the confiscation of the effects of deceased factors, the obnoxious claim to search the persons of the merchants on going ashore, the opening of presents intended for the king, delays in the custom-house, and other similar abuses.

1.4.5

On the part of the English, Roe was willing to engage that they should not molest the ships of other nations, " except the enemyes of the said English, or any other that shall seeke to injure them," and that their factors, while residing ashore, should " behaue themselves peaceably and Ciuilly ;" that they should do their best to procure rarities for the Great Mogul, and should furnish him (upon payment) with any goods or "furniture of warr" that he could reasonably desire ; and that they should assist him against " any Enemy to the Common Peace." The Portuguese were to be admitted to "enter into the said Peace and leauge," should they be willing ; but if they did not do so within six months, the English were to be permitted to treat them as enemies and make war upon them at sea " without any offence to the said great King of India." This scheme for " a good and perfect loue, leauge and peace to endure for euer " was referred by the Mogul to Asaf Khán, through whom all business relating to the English had to pass. After some demur, he appeared to approve the draft, at least with some verbal amendments ; and meeting the English envoy one day at the darbár, he told him that the articles " were ready for the seale."

1.4.6

Meanwhile fresh matter for controversy had arrived in the shape of the long-expected particulars from Surat of the sums extorted by the local officials, especially by the Governor, Zülfikár Khán, who had been recalled to Court in consequence of Roe's complaints, but " with our goodes extorted by force [had] made his Peace" (p. 157). These Statements were sent to Asaf Khan, who as usual promised complete satisfaction. Seeing, however, no sign of progress, Roe took the Prince "some powrfull wyne and in the strength therof desired Justice." He received "an open promise for effectual satisfaction" upon all points, except the infliction of personal punishment on the Governor, a demand which he found it would be wiser to forgo; and so he went home "well Content with this, it beeing the best Morning that euer wee had in India." Within a few days the Prince had signed two farmans, one authorising the residence of the English at Surat and their free passage inland, the other ordering redress for the abuses they had suffered. These Roe gladly received, and despatched to Surat.

1.4.7

Matters went on quietly for another month, which was passed for the most part in negotiations over the sum claimed by Roe from Zulfikar Khan in repayment of his exactions. After much haggling, the latter offered 17,000 mamudis in full discharge: but Roe, acting on the information supplied to him from Surat, rejected this as insufficient. Later on he was mortified to discover that the account sent up by the factors was incorrect, and that the amount offered in settlement was after all a reasonable one. No opportunity was lost, either, of pressing Asaf Khan for the signature of Roe's "articles from the King, which were of most consequence:" but the minister, while full of promises and artful excuses, seemed determined to delay matters indefinitely.

1.5.1

Soon Roe's prospects grew still more gloomy. The Mogul, finding that no more presents were forthcoming, had lost interest in the demands of his foreign visitor; the Prince, already irritated by the relentless way in which his favourite was being pursued, was still more angered by some scenes at Court over an English runaway, in which he had been entirely discomfited; and, to crown all, some Portuguese merchants, who had arrived "with many rarietyes to sell the king and with rich Presents from the Vizeroy of Goa," had made handsome gifts to Asaf Khán and other influential persons, and were consequently in high favour. The English "were for a tyme eclipsed," and the general attitude of the courtiers towards the new-comers gave Roe food for deep reflection. On June 1 he was informed by a message from Asaf Khán that, upon the complaint of the Prince, the King had forbidden him to present himself at Court; and hints were not wanting that some of the Prince's turbulent soldiery might take occasion to revenge his open braving of their chief. Nothing daunted, Roe assumed a careless attitude. The threat of violence he treated with scorn;

1.5.2

while to Asaf Khán's offers of help, provided he would compound with Zülfikár Khán, he replied that he would not "giue away the Companyes Monny for good lookes: The world was wyde enough: we gott not soe much by this trade as wee would buy it with too much Iniurye," he would await the king's answer a few days longer, "and accordingly eyther resolue of longer residence or prepare to retyre myselfe and my Nation toward our Port to seeke better entertaynment." Roe was, in fact, seriously considering the advisability of thus bringing matters to a decisive issue, when the solution of the deadlock came from an unexpected quarter. Mukarrab Khán, hitherto an enemy of the English, thinking he saw a chance of currying favour with them "in hope of the first sight of raretyes from England," took an opportunity of telling the Mogul the reason why the English envoy came no more to Court. Jahángír promptly denied having issued any order for his exclusion, and desired Mukarrab Khán to inform him to that effect. Roe's new friend was most anxious that he should rely upon him rather than upon Asaf Khán; but the ambassador, knowing the power of the latter, judged it unwise to break with him, and accordingly accepted with seeming cordiality the assurances of friendship which Asaf Khan made to him on hearing of Mukarrab Khan's overtures.

1.5.3

The mourning caused by the death of a favourite granddaughter of the Mogul delayed Roe's audience, but on June 25 he presented himself at Court, and "was receiued by the King after the ould manner, no difference, without taking any Notice of my absence." Negotiations were resumed, all the more urgently because Zulfikar Khan was soon to depart with the Prince for the Deccan war. By July 9 an agreement had been reached; but this was followed by fresh evasions and delays, and it was not until August 5 that Roe was able to record that "this long and troublesome busines is finished." The full amount demanded had not been obtained, but the loss was trifling; and to have forced the favourite of the all-powerful Prince to disgorge his exactions was a notable success for English diplomacy, and a salutary warning to other Governors. The Prince seemed to have forgotten his resentment, and treated the ambassador with reasonable civility. Even the "propositions for priuiledges" were said to have been acceded to; and a fresh proposal from Roe that the English should pay a yearly sum of Rs. 12,000 in satisfaction of all customs due from them at Surat (p. 210) was courteously debated, though in the end it was allowed to drop. From the King himself he "neuer receiued so much grace and fauour ... as at this tyme, which all men tooke notice off and accordingly altered their fashions toward" him (p. 212); and Asaf Khan was full of "complements of frendship and loue."

1.5.4

A characteristic incident lightens the pages of the Journal at this point. Roe had presented to Jahangir a choice miniature, painted by Isaac Oliver, which gave him "extreame content," and, "confident that noe man in India could equall yt," the ambassador had agreed to a wager that he would be able to distinguish it from any copies the Court painters could produce. When, however, the matter came to the test, he found that the native artists had succeeded beyond expectation, and it was only with difficulty that he was able "to discerne which was which." The King was "very merry and loyfull and craked like a Northern man" (p. 225). He insisted on the ambassador presenting the painter with a suitable reward; gave Roe his choice of the copies that had been made, "to showe in England wee are not so vnskillfull as you esteeme vs;" and, as a further mark of favour, presented him with his portrait.

1.5.5

August brought fresh matter for the exercise of Roe's diplomacy, for news came that a Dutch ship had arrived at Surat, and that her crew spoke of a further fleet expected from Holland. It was clearly to the interest of the English to get rid of these troublesome competitors, "who would both out-present, out-bribe, and out-buy vs in all things" (p. 228); yet Roe was unwilling, for many reasons, to show open hostility, more especially as the arguments he had used against the Portuguese monopoly would then be turned against himself. Ingeniously, if somewhat disingenuously, he endeavoured to compass his object by instilling into the minds of Asaf Khan and the Prince a suspicion that the real object of the Dutch was to plunder native shipping in revenge for injuries previously sustained at Surat and Burhánpur: that in any case they would be disorderly and unruly, "so that if his highnes could be quiettly ridd of them, it were a happines and ease to him" (p. 236). The intrigue was not entirely successful. The fear that, if repulsed, the Dutch would retaliate by capturing the ships then due from the Red Sea induced the native authorities to permit them to leave a few factors, with a stock of merchandise, at Surat "vntill the Princes answere and resolution were knowne;" and the footing thus obtained was made good in January, 1618, when a deputation waited upon Jahángír and the Prince at Ahmadábád, and obtained a grant of privileges "vpon as good tearmes almost as wee" (pp. 459, 469).

1.5.6

Five months had now passed since Roe had presented for consideration the details of his proposed treaty. He had made every effort to obtain its ratification, yet no answer—either yea or nay—had been returned. Urged to action by the approach of the new fleet from England, he resolved to wait no longer for this general concession, but to secure at least a temporary grant from the Prince, "whose Port wee were att, and with whom was our greatest busines." His overtures were well received. Stipulating only that "whatsoeuer toyes came to bee sould might be first showed to him," the Prince agreed to all the privileges demanded, and a farmán embodying these was ordered to be drawn and sealed without delay. Thus the immediate necessities of the English were provided for, and the incoming fleet might safely land their goods and drive their trade without fear of the hindrances and abuses which their predecessors had suffered. Meanwhile, renewed tokens of the Mogul's esteem had roused fresh hopes in Roe's breast. At the beginning of September, Jahángír celebrated his birthday with great pomp. With his usual considerateness he had ordered that the English envoy should be invited to witness the ceremony of weighing the monarch against gold and other things; but, owing to a mistake of the messenger, Roe attended at the wrong time, "and soe missed the sight." In the evening, however, after he had retired to rest, he was sent for in great haste.

1.5.7

A few days previously, he had incautiously shown the King's painter, "for the arts sake," a miniature he had, depicting—if we guess rightly—the lady whom he had espoused prior to his departure from England. The news had reached the Mogul's ears, and he was all agog to see the miniature, thinking, probably, that it had been purposely kept from his sight lest he should expect to be presented with it. Roe found him "sitting crosse leggd on a little throne, all cladd in diamondes, Pearles and rubyes .... his Nobilitye about him in their best equipage, whom hee Commanded to drinck froliquely, seuerall wynes standing by in great flagons." The miniature was no sooner seen than coveted, and the ambassador, after a faint resistance, was forced to present it. He was then asked to join in celebrating the anniversary, and, after he had pledged the monarch in some wine, was invited to accept the gold cup, with cover and stand, in which it had been served. Jahángír's gracious demeanour on this occasion (he "sent me woord hee more esteemed mee than euer any Francke .... which his Publique and many graces I found presently in the fashion of all his Nobilitye") encouraged Roe to press Ásaf Khán for the signature of the desired "articles," "assuring him his Maiestie could giue mee no present so acceptable;" and Ásaf Khán promised to meet his wishes without delay.

1.6.1

Two days later the answer arrived; but it was far from being the one he expected. "I receiued my Articles back from Asaph chan, who tooke now att last many exceptions, and margined them with his Pen in most Insolent sort, scorning that any man should article att all; saying it was sufficient for mee to receiue a firmaen from the Prince, who was lord of Suratt, and, for lycence to trade at any other Port, of Bengala or Syndu, it should neuer be granted; but in Conclusion pretended the length and forme to be such as would offend the king. Some Articles hee consented too, and to them, beeing reducd to the forme of a firmaen, hee would procure yt sealed." This reply appears to have taken Roe by surprise; yet, after all, there was small cause for astonishment. Quite apart from the fact that a concession of the kind desired was quite repugnant to Oriental ideas of sovereignty, there were other reasons which placed it out of the question. As Roe at once saw, the main objection was that the articles were so drawn "that I should nott much neede the Prince, and if wee disliked wee might refuse his Gouerment." It was a point of honour with Khurram that his administration of Surat should not be interfered with; and he and his supporters were resolved that nothing should be granted which would in any way lessen his authority. As for the English demand for leave to frequent other ports, this, it was feared, would involve a diminution of the customs of Surat;

1.6.2

and it threatened, besides, to extend to Bengal and Sind the dissensions between the rival European nations which had already worked so much mischief in Gujarát. Perhaps, too, we may add a further consideration—that it was held to be derogatory that the Mogul should sign a treaty with the representative of an obscure and distant country, especially on matters relating almost entirely to trade. "Neyther will this overgrowne Eliphant," wrote the ambassador bitterly, "descend to Article or bynde himselfe reciprocally to any Prince vpon terms of Equalety, but only by way of fauour admitt our stay so long as it either likes him or those that Gouerne him" (Letter to the English Ambassador at Constantinople, August 21, 1617: Addl. MS. 6115, f. 207). Indeed, there is nothing more striking to a present-day reader than the indifference towards Europeans displayed by the King and his ministers. Jahángír's memoirs, while duly chronicling the arrival of missions from Persia and other neighbouring countries, and minutely noting many trivial details, make no direct allusion to the English ambassador. Though Jahángír himself was courteous and considerate, his son did not conceal his contempt for the foreign traders; while Asaf Khán's masterful insolence — as here exemplified — was equally hard to endure.

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