Cruise Through History: Itinerary 1 - London to Rome

By Sherry Hutt

Cruise through History is a collection of short stories grouped by the sequence of many popular cruise itineraries, rather than by country, or period of history. An enjoyable cruise itinerary, particularly for the first-time cruise traveler, is the itinerary that includes the ports of Western Europe. This volume of stories to enhance the trip inclu

• Language: English
• Publisher: Digby Creations
• Release date: Sep 4, 2014
• ISBN: 9781942153016

Book preview

As the modern day traveler embarks on a cruise from a port outside of London, like Dover or Southampton, amid all the signposts of the current era, such as motorized wenches, warehouses, tourist shops, information stations and food venders, it is hard to imagine what sites greeted the traveler of 400 years ago. The London docks were a busy place in the late 1500s and the early 1600s. The physical vestiges of late sixteenth century activity are hardly visible today.

Travel routes from London to Europe, Northern Africa, around the North Sea, and even to the new world, were well established by the sixteenth century. Most of this travel was focused upon conquest of new lands, the establishment of religious outposts in the crusades, or trade and exploration of new trade opportunities. There were very few tourists at the time, that is, people who wanted to expand their horizons through travel.

This is the story of a cruise for education and adventure that embarked from London in 1583, and took a group of five comrades on an eight year and four month odyssey. The cruise ended in 1591, for those who were able or chose to return. During that time they traveled to places unknown or little known to Englishmen. The travelers passed through present day Iraq and Iran, down the Persian Gulf to Ormuz, then around India to Burma and Thailand before those returning came back by sea and land for more than three years.

Along their journey the travelers were imprisoned as spies, one was likely murdered upon his return overland, and others chose to remain in far-away places. One traveler returned to London to record the tales of his odyssey. This is the story of the amazing adventures on the cruise of Ralph Fitch and his traveling companions, John Newberry, John Eldred, William Leedes, and James Story.¹

Origins of Tourism

The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people who travel to and stay in places outside their usual environment for more than twenty-four (24) hours and not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business, and other purposes not related to the exercise of an activity remunerated from within the place visited.² The term tourist was not widely used until the nineteenth century. It was then that a growing middle class, those other than gentry or royals, had disposable income after the industrial revolution and could exercise the discretion to travel for enjoyment, education, health, and curiosity. Destinations typical of mid-nineteenth century British tourists were sea-side inns and Swiss ski lodges.

Credited with being the oldest travel company in the world, Cox and Kings was established in 1758.³ The company namesake, Richard Cox, was the first regimental travel agent for His Majesty’s Armed Forces of Brittan to gain credibility for professional travel services. In Cox’s time regimental agents not only arranged for troop travel, but also provisioning and clothing. The Cox and Cox Company eventually expanded into banking and shipping, in addition to arranging travel.

Tourism historians place the earliest known travel for leisure tourism back to the Babylonian and Egyptian times, several millennia before the current era.⁴ There was a public museum of historic antiquities that dates to the sixth century BCE in Babylon.⁵ Of course people traveled great distances to receive the wisdom of the Oracle at Delphi in Greece. Some of the first known travel books cover Athens, Sparta, and Troy, and date to the fourth century BCE. The Greek, Herodotus, is credited with being the first travel writer.⁶

The Romans at the cusp of the current era enabled broad tourism as they controlled the known world from England to Syria. Roman garrisons of the first century BCE to the first century CE made travel not only safe, but also convenient, as there was a commonality of currency, language, and hospitality at inns. As Roman baths from Bath, England to Pergamum, Turkey exemplify, Romans were big proponents of spa travel.

The traveler of the late sixteenth century had more options on land than merely walking or riding a horse. The introduction of the sprung coach made travel-for-hire available over great distances and was widely used in England. This was not traveling in comfort by any means. The sprung coach was an earlier iteration of the metal spring coach and was not one in which there were shock absorbers. The early roads were better suited to horse travel than for coaches. The best means of travel, and the only means for an English gentleman to see the world, was by ship.

At the beginning of the seventeenth century, young Englishmen of position were expected to complete their education with a grand tour, lasting several years. Usually such tours extended across the European continent. For the truly adventurous, travel to India was a destination. The Mughal kings were proponents of travel to India as they enticed visitors with their beautiful palaces and gardens. For the enterprising traveler of the 1600s, who had no regard for time, cost, or discomfort, India and the Far East beckoned.

Cruise Travel Circa 1583

The voyage in this story began on the Tiger.⁷ It was a Dutch ship of popular design in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, similar to the well-known Mayflower. Although the Tiger sailed from London to the east in 1583, it was later used to cross the Atlantic and bring settlers to the new world.

A ship such as the Tiger could be in service for fifty years unless it met an untimely fate, such as a storm, battle, or fire. The Tiger made four trips to the New World from 1611 to 1613, when it was destroyed by fire in the New York harbor.⁸ In its final voyage, the Tiger was under the command of the daring and experienced explorer, Adrian Block. It was accidently burned while being loaded for a return to Holland in the fall of 1613.⁹ Considering that ships were made of wood, caulked with tar, and the sails and rigging were hemp, sometimes cotton, a ship could easily burn, ignited by sparks from fall fires in nearby shacks. Salvage from the Tiger was immediately repurposed on a smaller ship, used to sail the Hudson River.

The Tiger was about 130 tons and about 82 feet in length. The ship had six cannons at the time of its demise by fire and would have had a crew of 18 to 20 sailors. The exact dimensions are not well known, as part of the ship was excavated in 1916, during construction of the New York subway system. Charred ribs of the hull were found below what became train tracks. When the remainder of the site was excavated in 1975, to build the World Trade Center, nothing more definitive was discovered. The lack of further archaeology of the Tiger gives credence to the reports of use of salvageable portions of the ship for new construction in 1614.

For the five travelers in this story, travel from London to the eastern edge of the Mediterranean would have taken a month by sea. Their Dutch ship was sleek and not as top-heavy as its predecessors. The ships had retractable topmasts, so that the two main masts could stand double above deck. The ships were considered fast when not laden with cannons. The stern of the ship had either a wrap around open balcony, or one enclosed for officers quarters. The main steering lever was on deck, not yet replaced with a ship’s wheel. Although most ships of the time suffered from infestations of fleas, ticks, and woodworms, the Tiger was the epitome of travel, fit for a gentleman’s Grand Tour. The ship embarked from London with space for 100 passengers, 20 crew, their luggage, and provisions.

The Stylish Traveler’s Trunk

Fitch and his companions embarked with several trunks of clothing and personal supplies, in preparation for a long trip. They had ample means to be outfitted in style. The manly adventurer of the late sixteenth century dressed sensibly in layers.¹⁰ To avoid a need for mending or wearing moth eaten garments, a few changes of clothing were necessary.

The first layer of travel attire was an undershirt, hemp for warm weather and wool for the cold, covered by a doublet. The anticipated itinerary included a variety of climates, so wool and cotton or hemp undershirts and stockings were basic needs. English gentlemen preferred doublets that were close fitting, possibly quilted, with a low square or oval neckline, as the old v-slit to the waist went out of style with high heeled shoes for men. The sleeves of the doublet left many options for high fashion, with puffy shoulders and elbows, sometimes with under fabric of contrasting colors, the most favored.

The top layer worn by travelers was a jerkin (jacket), close fitting, with a high waist and a long skirt. The jerkin could be open to a v-neck or laced across and gathered at the waist in a girdle, or just loosely fastened for comfort at sea. Some jerkins had long sleeves appropriate for the evening chill on deck.

On the ship a long gown could be worn over other clothing for added warmth, but on land the favored choice was a dashing cloak over the jerkin. Breeches and stockings were worn together, sometimes with a garter below the knee. On land substantial shoes were preferred, especially the dashing look of boots, with a turn down at the top to reveal an attractive woven lining.

A large saucer shaped hat, with a large brim, was preferred to a cap by stylish gentlemen. In addition, an under-cap, close to the head, was advisable for the cold windy seas. Gloves were worn cut off at the knuckle to expose rings.

The traveling adventurer packed his shaving gear. Hair was worn shoulder length, with short fringe across the forehead. The travelers left London as clean-shaven gentlemen normally did. Later, they were enticed to grow facial hair, as it was convenient. They also found it delightful to fit in with the locals in exotic places. It was not unusual for Englishmen of the time to blend in by wearing the dress and large fur hats of locals.

Five Travelers

Not much is recorded about Ralph Fitch and his four traveling companions prior to their departure from London in 1583. Their story begins with their joint departure on the Tiger. They are best remembered for the impact that their travels had on the development of the English East India Company upon their return.

Ralph Fitch was born in 1550, and died in London in 1611. He was thirty-three years old when he embarked on the Tiger, not then suspecting that he would become among the first Englishmen to travel so far through India and Southeast Asia. Fitch was a merchant desirous of pushing the outer reaches of the known travel routes to enable the establishment of new contacts and trading opportunities. His trip was financed at least in part by the Levant Company, which had plans to exploit trade relationships in the Far East. The trip did much to advance Fitch’s career.

James Story was an artist. When the band of travelers was imprisoned in Goa, an island off the coast of India controlled by the Portuguese, two Jesuits were instrumental in their release. Story chose to stay in that part of India with the Jesuits. He is not known to have returned to England. According to his letters, he stayed with the religious order in the College of St. Paul at Goa, thinking that he would become a Jesuit. However, he and the Jesuits had a disagreement about his position in the order, so, Story left to open an art studio in the city. He married the daughter of a local merchant. His story ends in Goa.

William Leedes was a jeweler. No doubt he was seduced to travel by the precious stones known to be available in India. When the four travelers parted with Story, they headed toward Agra in north-central India. Here they visited the court of the Mughal emperor, Akbar, at Fatehpur Sikri. Even today travelers visit the area to purchase loose stones of exceptional quality. Leedes decided to remain at the court of the emperor. He became a court jeweler.

John Eldred was the first to quit the traveling party, while they were still on well-trod turf. When the others sailed off down the Persian Gulf, Eldred remained behind in Basra, Iraq. Eldred was an enterprising fellow. In Basra he teamed up with a new companion, William Shales. Together they formed a small company, purchased seventy small boats, filled them with trade goods and headed back to England.

From Eldred’s journals it is known that he and his business partner hired fourteen men to drag the heavily laden boats up river, taking forty-four days to travel to Bagdad. From there they joined a camel caravan with other merchants and traveled forty days more to Aleppo, Syria. The caravan traveled mostly in the early morning and rested out of the sun in tents by early afternoon. They ate well on the trip as they traveled with a herd of sheep and had camel-loads of dates, onions, honey, rice and butter. The English consul in Aleppo greeted Eldred. Aleppo was a well-established English outpost by 1584. Eldred made repeated trips between Basra and Bagdad before returning to England in March 1588, to cash in on his merchant exploits.¹¹ He and Fitch were the only ones of the original party to return to England.

John Newberry was the leader of the group of five, at least initially. He was given letters of introduction on their behalf from Queen Elizabeth to a shah in India, a king in Cambodia, and an emperor in China, should they enter that territory. Newberry parted company with the group once they were released from prison in Goa. He decided not to travel with Fitch further east, but to return to England. Newberry went west, retracing some steps overland. He was never heard of again. When Fitch returned to England and learned that Newberry had not preceded him there he asked about his friend. It was believed that Newberry died in India, the apparent victim of robbery.

The Levant Company

The Levant refers to Turkey. In the early part of the sixteenth century English merchants enjoyed robust trade with Turkey. In 1553, the first Englishman to trade in Turkey, Anthony Jenkinson, established a trading site at Aleppo, with his safe passage granted from Ottoman Turkish Sultan Suleiman the Great.¹² It was enduring trade relationships such as this that were envied by Napoleon 250 years later.¹³

Expanding trade relationships in the Levant had been constricted for the English due to increased competition from the Venetians and Portuguese. In 1580, several London merchants requested that Queen Elizabeth I grant them a crown chartered company with exclusive rights to do business in the Levant. They were interested only in trade and had no desire to develop colonial control of the area. By unifying English efforts, the English hoped to better compete with the Italians and Portuguese.

The Levant Company was chartered in 1581, and continued in operation until 1825. During that time the company established trading centers, known as factories, in Aleppo, Constantinople, Alexandria and Smyrna. By 1588, the Levant Company was converted to a regulated monopoly with shares of stock. The Company obtained goods in Turkey and returned following established trade routes in the islands and ports of the Mediterranean. At each port goods were traded for additional items. Under this plan the Levant Company could bring an assortment of goods home to London with increased profits from each transaction along the way.

The prime proponents and directors of the Levant Company were Sir Edward Osborne and Richard Staper. They had revived the efforts of Jenkinson by independently establishing relationships with the Turkish Sultan in 1578. These two men assembled Fitch and his four fellow travelers, financed their travels to some extent, and obtained the letters of introduction to foreign royals from the Queen of England.

Since the thirteenth century, Venetians dominated trade in the Levant. They were the ones to profit by bringing Turkish goods to the English market. Sir Edward and Staper wanted an English company to compete for trade in spices, glass, cotton and, most important, for silk previously garnered by Italy, Spain, and France.¹⁴ Under the 1581 grant from the Queen, the Levant Company had seven years to show that it was profitable. Thus in 1583, exploring the realm of possibilities in the Levant was a critical move for the Company.

Between 1585 and 1590, the Levant Company had nineteen ships making twenty-seven voyages for trade goods. The ships would leave from London loaded with pewter and tin. They would return with spices, raw silk, currants, oils, medicines, cotton and wool cloth, soap, carpets, anise and seeds. At its height, the Company employed about 800 men. It paid approximately £12,000 in import duties to the Queen during that time.

Despite the success of the Levant Company, the founding directors were faced with a political battle at the time they sought to renew their charter in 1588. There were other smaller companies seeking to dissolve their exclusive status, particularly the London based Venice Company. The Venice Company did not have the high overhead of maintaining ports in Aleppo and Constantinople, but it paid much higher export duties in Venice than applied to goods from the Levant. A broad range of trading options would allow the Venice Company to return stable profits.

The timely return of Eldred to London, and the encouraging reports from Fitch, helped to give a substantial boost to the continued exclusive charter granted to the Levant Company. The Merchants of Levant and the Venice Company became one company, the Merchants of Levant.¹⁵ Sir Edward Osborne and associates were in control of the combined trading operations.

Route of the Travelers

The five travelers originally planned to sail the extent of the English trading domain to Syria. That route would take them to Aleppo and then overland to Baghdad and Basra, following trade routes established by the Italians. They then hoped to go beyond the reach of other English merchants to reach Ormuz and possibly Goa. Those trading destinations were well established by the Italians, but not the English. Fitch, the most ambitious of the travelers, wanted to see how far to the east beyond India he could attain. Although he did not reach China, he did go farther into Southeast Asia than had prior Englishmen.¹⁶

The first portion of the journey began in February 1583, and ended as planned in April at Aleppo. True to plan the travelers reached Syria in May. Traveling down the coast of France, around the Iberian Peninsula, and to the eastern edge of the Mediterranean Sea passed without incident. Such travel was so commonplace in the time that none of the travelers commented on the events of the first three months.

The travelers landed at Tripoli, Lebanon, then within Syria, and spent seven days on a caravan to Aleppo. Aleppo was a major crossroad for trade to and from all points east. The English were well established there. Eldred described Aleppo as a point of convergence for Jews, Tartars, Persians, Armenians, Egyptians, Indians, and many different kinds of Christians, all who enjoy liberty of conscience.¹⁷

Over the next month, the five travelers went overland from Aleppo to Bir, at the head of the Euphrates River, and down the river to Al-Fallujah, in Iraq. Fitch wrote that the boats for the sixteen-day journey to Al-Fallujah (Felugia or Feluchia) could only be used once, as the water was so fast it jarred the boat construction. They traveled in groups of boats, should one break apart in the rapids. It was also important to have constant watch over the boats at night as Arabs would swim out to them and steal the goods.¹⁸ They next went overland to Baghdad located on the Tigris River. The overland trip from Al-Fallujah to Baghdad (Babylon) took one day.

From May to July 1583, the five travelers sailed down the Tigris River to Basra, at the head of the Persian Gulf. One of their sights along the way was the Tower of Babel, then a pile of bricks and palm canes. Oddly, it loomed larger in the distance that it was upon close approach. Eldred described the tower as high as the stonework of St. Paul’s steeple in London.

In two days travel from Baghdad, the group passed a site the Moors called, the mouth of hell. It was a hole in the ground from which spewed boiling pitch, used by the locals to waterproof their boats. Since the internal combustion engine had not yet been invented, the find was of no commercial interest to the travelers.

Basra was an Arab bastion for a millennium. In 1583 it was controlled by Turks. The Turks had never been able to drive the Arabs from the place. The Arabs continued to control trade in drugs and spices coming from Ormuz. Fitch described the Arabs as nomadic. He was fascinated by their wives who wore blue gowns, with rings of copper and silver in their ears, noses, and around their legs. Eldred was captivated by the great opportunities for trade, including in white rice and dates. He chose to purchase all that he could for an immediate return trip.

Leaving Eldred behind in Basra, the four sailed down the Persian Gulf to Ormuz (Hormuz). Their boats leaked a great deal as the boards of palm were merely sewn together with the husks of coconuts. They passed the island of Bahrain, where there were impressive pearls. They were not impressed by Ormuz, which Fitch recorded to be, the most arid and barren island in the world, as it produces nothing but salt.¹⁹

The Portuguese found more use for Ormuz than salt mining. They considered the location a favorable one in which to maintain a garrison of troops. Unfortunately for the travelers in this story, in addition to the letters of introduction that Newberry carried from Queen Elizabeth I to royals they might meet, he also carried letters from Don Antonio, the pretender to the throne of Portugal, who was then in exile in England. A Venetian merchant, who considered the travelers on behalf of the Levant Company to be future competitors, knew of the letters from Don Antonio. He denounced the travelers to the Portuguese as spies. In September 1583, the four Englishmen were thrown into a Portuguese jail and treated as criminals.

Eventually, the Portuguese decided to send the four travelers to the Portuguese stronghold in Goa, along with a load of 124 horses. The addition of horses made the voyage unbearable for the Englishmen, but the cargo was not added just to taunt them. Ships carrying horses were not charged import duty in Goa.

The two-month trip to Goa, India was made as involuntary guests of the Portuguese. The four were shipped from Ormuz, across the Tropic of Cancer to the city of Diu, which sits at the tip of the Kathiawar Peninsula, the western shoulder coast of India. Traveling due east from Diu, their transport landed at Damān, north of Bombay. The remainder of the voyage went southward along the west coast of India to the island of Goa.

Fitch learned a great deal during this portion of the trip. He wrote of the control the Portuguese held over the nomadic Moors. He also wrote of the great diversity of trade goods that changed hands in the small ports. He also learned that if there were famine, the people would sell their children into slavery.

Arriving at their point of imprisonment in Goa, Fitch wrote of the palm tree, the most profitable tree in the world, yielding fruit, oil, sugar, vinegar and leaves for thatching roofs or brooms and wood for ships.²⁰ Fitch was also impressed by the respect of the Indians for all living things and their reverence for cows. People were burned at death so as not to contaminate the earth with their bodies. He was duly impressed by the hospitals for dogs, cats, and birds.

The island of Goa was full of gardens and orchards. Their prison was no garden. The travelers were fortunate to live as prison slaves for only a month before attaining the status of house arrest on December 22, 1584. Their benefactor, who posted a bond for their release, was Father Stevens, an English Jesuit.

House arrest was not entirely undesirable for a traveler seeking to learn about the area and its people. The respite in the ordeal was short lived. In April 1585, the four travelers learned that there were additional charges being brought against them that could seal their eternal fate as slaves.

Early in the morning of April 5, they moved quietly out of Goa, to a place across the river. At this point, James Story decided to remain with the Jesuits, possibly to become part of their order. The remaining three travelers, Fitch, Leedes, and Newberry, walked for two days in great fear, having no guide and not daring to trust anyone.

Escaping from imprisonment Fitch, Newberry, and Leedes traveled east across India, toward the Bay of Bengal and the port town of Masulipatan. They passed through small towns where the locals traded diamonds with the larger world. They passed through other towns where the people lived in seemingly primitive society. Eventually they arrived close to Agra, at the court of the Mughal emperor Akbar at Fatepur Sikri.

On this portion of the odyssey, the travelers walked overland, crossing rivers sometimes so swollen from the rains that they had to swim for their lives. Fitch described Agra as a great and populous city built of stone, with large handsome streets. He wrote in his diary that Fatepoor (Futtipoor not the Fatehpur further southeast) had an even larger population, but was not as grand a city as Agra. In Fatepoor, the emperor Akbar was thought to have 1,000 elephants, 30,000 horses, 1,400 tame deer and 800 concubines.

In September 1585, Fitch, Newberry, and Leedes went their separate ways. Fitch and Newberry left Fatepoor for Agra. Leedes remained with the court of the emperor as a jeweler. He was given a house, five slaves, a horse and a daily allowance to pay for his needs.

At Agra, Newberry went north and Fitch went south. Newberry traveled across the Punjab plains at the foot of the Himalayas on his way to Lahore, which is today on the India-Pakistan border. There he disappeared, presumed robbed and murdered in the Punjab.

Fitch’s plan was to continue down the Jumna (Yamuna) and Ganges Rivers. From Agra, Fitch traveled the Ganges southeast to Allahabad on a convoy of boats with cargoes of salt, opium, lead and carpets. He reached Allahabad in November 1585, in time to see the completion of Akbar’s great fort.

Fitch next traveled to Benares (Varānasi) and Patna, where he recorded wildlife consisting of tigers, partridges, and turtledoves. The presence of gold in Patna was overwhelming. Fitch was curious to learn about the beggars who never cut their hair or fingernails and never spoke. He also noted the religious men at the Ganges who said prayers for those who came to bathe in the river.

Fitch next traveled to the base of the Himalayas hoping to learn of possible trade opportunities in Tibet. Some of the place names in Fitch’s journal are hard to match to names known today and other places recorded were small insignificant towns, not much regarded on maps. It is thought that he traveled to Bhutan and perhaps into China. At some point Fitch headed south through the West Bengal region and came within a short distance of Calcutta, to the Hugli (Hooghly) River.

By November 1586, Fitch had passed through East Bengal and sailed to present day Myanmar, then and again known as Burma, through the Bangladesh port of Chittagong. For most of 1587, Fitch remained in the Yangon (Rangoon) region of southern Burma, sailing the Irrawaddy (Irawadi or Ayeyarwady) River that runs to Mandalay. Fitch reached the Siamese Shan territory and the Thai kingdom of Lanna, now part of Burma.

At this point there is confusion in Fitch’s diary. At least one recent scholar believes that an interim author embellished the record, creating confusion. There is no confusion regarding accounts of riding elephants in Siam (Thailand).

As Eldred was landing back in London in 1588, Fitch was headed to the Malay Peninsula and Malacca (Melaka), just north of Singapore. Malacca was the site of another of the great Portuguese fortresses, from which the Portuguese controlled travel to the Far East. This would become the farthest extent of Fitch’s travels.

Fitch was unable to breech Portuguese security and gain access to the South China Sea. During his efforts he learned about trade with China and the Spice Islands, the Moluccas. Unable to go further, Fitch decided to return home. Notably, some historians have traced place names in Fitch’s diary that would put him in Sumatra, before he headed back north to India.

In late March 1588, Fitch headed back toward England, reaching London on April 29, 1591. His return route took him first to Bengal, then down the coast of India, reaching Ceylon (Sri Lanka) the following March. In Ceylon he noted the presence of high quality cinnamon. He then sailed around Cape Comorin, the southern tip of India, before being halted for eight months at Cochin waiting to arrange further travel. From there he went back to Goa, where he does not record fearing imprisonment. Evidently, traveling alone and without obvious trading desires, Fitch was not deemed a threat by the Portuguese. By this time his former traveling companion, who had remained in Goa, James Story, had parted with the Jesuits and married the daughter of a local merchant.

Fitch went from Goa to Ormuz, retracing his route up the Persian Gulf to Basra. Fitch sailed up the Tigris to Nineveh (Mosul), up the Euphrates to Urfa, Bir, and then to Aleppo. From there he went to Tripoli, Lebanon, where he sailed the Mediterranean west to the Atlantic. The remainder of the return trip was familiar to Fitch and uneventful.

Fitch’s Legacy

Fitch did not return home with the trade booty of Eldred, but he did stake out trade sites in India and beyond. Within a decade of his return, the journey of Fitch became the focus of a new and eventually larger company, the English East India Company. Fitch became an advisor to the fledgling company. Conquering trade in the Levant was the challenge of the sixteenth century, while dominating trade with India and China became the challenge of the seventeenth century for England. As sometimes happens with tourists, the enjoyment of travel spawns a new vocation. So it was for Ralph Fitch.

William Shakespeare in Act 1, Scene 3, of Macbeth, immortalized Fitch’s journey when the first witch cackles about a sailor’s wife, Her husband’s to Aleppo gone, master of the Tyger.

A major treasure of the modern world exists in Bayeux. Western European and British history, and that of all nations impacted by their rule of law, began in Bayeux in 1066. A curious, creative, entertaining and possibly enigmatic record of the events of 1066 can be seen in the Bayeux tapestry.

There are several intertwining stories emanating from the tapestry: the often repeated story of the conquest of England by William; the patronizing story of conquest as depicted in the tapestry; the story behind the conquest; the story of the creation of the tapestry; and the story of the tapestry’s millennium of survival. Throughout all these stories there runs a common thread (pun appropriate). In each story the half-brother of William the Conqueror appears. This flawed figure, Bishop Odo of Bayeux, will serve as the centerpiece this story, that of Odo and his brothers, the story of the Bayeux tapestry.

Odo and His Brothers, the Early Years

The story of Odo and his brothers begins with his half-brother William and ends with his nephew Robert II. William may be best known as William the Conqueror, the hero of 1066, and a king of England. He founded the Palace at Westminster, which stands today as the home of the United Kingdom Parliament. William is credited with beginning the rule of law in England. He stabilized its government for the next millennium. Before all that, he was modestly known as William the Bastard.

William’s mother, Herleva, was known to be a beautiful woman, the daughter of a lowly tanner. She had no royal blood. Legends from the time include tales of how Robert I, the Duke of Normandy, spotted Herleva one day and was so taken with her that, although he could not marry her, she became his long and well adored mistress until he died. Herleva and Robert had two children: William and Adelaide. Robert was a good father to William and Adelaide. At his death an arrangement was made for Herleva. A minor count was enticed to accept the beautiful woman with two children, with the added incentive of some prime land. Thus, Herleva was married to Herluin of Conteville. Together they had two children: Robert and Odo.

Despite the fact that William was the love child of his mother, and Odo was the legitimate royal, who aspired to a life in the church, Odo was devoted to William. It could have been the adoration of brotherly love. More likely, Odo recognized in William the ability to achieve the ambitious desires of both brothers.