graue and learned Prelate, my very good lord the Bishop of Chichester, and L. high Almner vnto her Maiestie; by whose friendship and meanes I had free accesse vnto the right honor my L. Lumley his stately library, and was permitted to copy out of ancient manuscripts, these two iournals and some others also. After these Friers (thought not in the next place) foloweth a testimonie of Gerardus Mercator, and another of M. Dee, concerning one Nicholas de Linna an English Franciscan Frier. Then succeedeth the long iourney of Henry Earle of Derbie, and afterward king of England into Prussia & Lithuania, with a briefe remembrance of his valiant exploits against the Infidels there; as namely, that with the help of certaine his Associates, he vanquished the king of Letto his armie, put the sayd king to flight, tooke and slew diuers of his captains, aduanced his English colours vpon the wall of Vilna, & made the citie it selfe to yeeld. Then mention is made also of Tho. of Woodstock his trauel into Pruis, and of his returne home. And lastly, our old English father Ennius, I meane, the learned, wittie, and profound Geffrey Chaucer, vnder the person of his knight, doeth full iudicially and like a cunning Cosmographer, make report of the long voiages and woorthy exploits of our English Nobles, Knights, & Gentlemen, to the Northren, and to other partes of the world in his dayes. Neither haue we comprehended in this Volume, onely our Trades and Voiages both new and old; but also haue scattered here and there (as the circumstance of times would giue vs leaue) certaine fragments concerning the beginnings, antiquities, and grouth of the classical and warrelike shipping of this Island: as namely, first of the great nauie of that victorious Saxon prince king Edgar, mentioned by Florentius Wigorniensis, Roger Houeden, Rainulph of Chester, Matthew of Westminster, Flores historiarum, & in the libel of English policie, pag. 224. and 225. of this present volume. [Footnote: _Original_ edition.] Of which Authors some affirme the sayd fleet to haue consisted of 4800. others of 4000. some others of 3600. ships: howbeit (if I may presume to gloze vpon the text) I verily thinke that they were not comparable, either for burthen, strength, building, or nimble stirrage vnto the ships of later times, and specially of this age. But howsoeuer it be, they all agree in this, that by meanes of the sayd huge Fleet he was a most puissant prince; yea, and some of them affirme together with William of Malmesbury, that he was not onely soueraigne lord of all the British seas, and of the whole Ile of Britanne it selfe, but also that he brought vnder his yoke of subiection, most of the Isles and some of the maine lands adiacent. And for that most of our Nauigators at this time bee (for want of trade and practise that way) either vtterly ignorant or but meanely skilfull, in the true state of the Seas, Shoulds and Islands, lying between the North part of Ireland and of