79 - Concerning the message which the king sent to his envoys, and how they found out in England that he had been made king

Summary

You will do well to recall that at the outset of these events, when, before he became king, the Master took charge of the kingdom as its ruler and defender, he sent his envoys to request the King of England to give the opportunity to troops from his kingdom, should they wish to do so, to go and assist the Master, at the latter's expense, in the war in which he was engaged. They were also to say that, if his uncle the Duke of Lancaster wished to come and claim the kingdom of Castile, which was rightfully his, then they would offer him every assistance by land and by sea and in whatever way he wished. You will remember too that the envoys he sent for this purpose were the Master of Santiago, Fernando Afonso de Albuquerque, and the Chancellor of the Great Seal of the Realm, Lourenço Eanes Fogaça. They had left Lisbon on the last day of March, 1383, though they had been preceded by others. You will also recall the answer that was sent back.

Later on, in Coimbra, when the Master was raised up as king, he sent a further message and a letter of proxy to these messengers, who were still occupied in England in dealing with these matters, by which he granted them sufficient authority to negotiate with the King of England, the Duke of Lancaster, and indeed, with other people regardless of their rank and status, about such alliances and friendly agreements as they deemed to be of profit and service to his kingdom and personal honour. Moreover, he confirmed everything that he had done previously and all that they might do in future, as well as other similar matters, as necessary.

The messengers spoke with the King of England about these matters, explaining to him all that the people had achieved and held to be good, and how the Master, their liege lord, had been raised up as king by both the noblemen and the common people of the realm, and how they had sent envoys to the Holy Father, entreating him to confirm the Master's election and to approve all that they had done in bringing this about.