See also:

• RALPH (d. 1122)

RALPH See also:

• FITCH, JOHN (1743–1798)
• RALPH FITCH (fl. 1583-1606)
• FITCH, SIR JOSHUA GIRLING (1824-1903)

FITCH (fl. 1583-1606)  , See also:

• LONDON

London See also:

• MERCHANT (O. Fr. marcheant, modern marchand; from Lat. mercari, to trade, merx, goods, merchandise)

merchant, one of the earliest See also:

• ENGLISH

English travellers and traders in See also:

• MESOPOTAMIA (Mevoaora)

Mesopotamia, the See also:

• PERSIAN
• PERSIAN, SYRIAN, EGYPTIAN AND TURKISH

Persian Gulf and See also:

• INDIAN

Indian Ocean, See also:

• INDIA
• INDIA, FRENCH

India proper and Indo-See also:

• CHINA

China . In See also:

• JANUARY

January 1583 he embarked in the " See also:

• TIGER
• TIGER (Felis tigris)

Tiger " for See also:

• TRIPOLI
• TRIPOLI (Tarabulus el-Gharb, i.e. Tripoli of the West)
• TRIPOLI, or TARABULUS (anc. Tripolis)

Tripoli and See also:

• ALEPPO (native Haleb)

Aleppo in See also:

• SYRIA

Syria (see See also:

• SHAKESPEARE, WILLIAM (1564-1616)

Shakespeare, See also:

• MACBETH

Macbeth, See also:

• ACT (Lat. actus, actum)

Act I. sc . 3), together with J . Newberie, J . Eldred and two other merchants or employees of the See also:

• LEVANT

Levant See also:

• COMPANY

Company . From Aleppo he reached the See also:

• EUPHRATES (Babylon. Purattu, Heb. Perath, Arab. Frdt or Furst, Old Pers. Ufratu, Gr. Eb4 parrls)

Euphrates, descended the See also:

• RIVER

river from Bir to Fallujah, crossed See also:

• SOUTHERN

southern Mesopotamia to See also:

• BAGDAD, or BAGHDAD

Bagdad, and dropped down the See also:

• TIGRIS (Old Persian Tigrd, Diklat of the cuneiform inscriptions, Hiddekel of the Old Testament, Diglath of the Targum, Digla of the Arabs)

Tigris to See also:

• BASRA (written also BUSRA, BASSORA and BASSORA)

Basra (May to See also:

• JULY

July 1583) . Here Eldred stayed behind to See also:

• TRADE (O. Eng. trod, footstep, from tredan, to tread; in M. Eng. the forms teed, trod and trade appear, the last in the sense of a beaten track)
• TRADE, BOARD OF

trade, while See also:

• FITCH, JOHN (1743–1798)
• FITCH, RALPH (fl. 1583-1606)
• FITCH, SIR JOSHUA GIRLING (1824-1903)

Fitch and the See also:

• REST (O. Eng. rest, reste, bed, cognate with other Teutonic forms, e.g. Ger. Rast, Riiste, rest, and probably Gothic Rasta, league, i.e. resting or stopping place)

rest sailed down the Persian Gulf to Ormuz, where they were arrested as spies (at Venetian instigation, as they believed) and sent prisoners to the Portuguese See also:

• VICEROY (from O. Fr. viceroy, mod. viceroi, i.e. Lat. vice, in place of, and roy or roi, king)

viceroy at See also:

• GOA

Goa (See also:

• SEPTEMBER (Lat. septem, seven)

September to See also:

• OCTOBER

October) . Through the sureties procured by two See also:

• JESUITS

Jesuits (one being See also:

• THOMAS
• THOMAS (c. 1654-1720)
• THOMAS (d. 110o)
• THOMAS, ARTHUR GORING (1850-1892)
• THOMAS, CHARLES LOUIS AMBROISE (1811-1896)
• THOMAS, GEORGE (c. 1756-1802)
• THOMAS, GEORGE HENRY (1816-187o)
• THOMAS, ISAIAH (1749-1831)
• THOMAS, PIERRE (1634-1698)
• THOMAS, SIDNEY GILCHRIST (1850-1885)
• THOMAS, ST
• THOMAS, THEODORE (1835-1905)
• THOMAS, WILLIAM (d. 1554)

Thomas See also:

• STEVENS,
• STEVENS, A
• STEVENS, ALFRED (1818-1875)
• STEVENS, ALFRED (1828-1906)
• STEVENS, HENRY (1819—1886)

Stevens, formerly of New See also:

• COLLEGE (Collegium)

College, See also:

• OXFORD
• OXFORD, EARLS OF
• OXFORD, EDWARD DE VERE, 17TH EARL
• OXFORD, JOHN DE VERE, 13TH EARL OF (1443-1513)
• OXFORD, PROVISIONS OF
• OXFORD, ROBERT DE VERE, 9TH EARL OF (1362-1392)
• OXFORD, ROBERT HARLEY, 1ST

Oxford, the first Englishman known to have reached India by the Cape route in '579) Fitch and his See also:

• FRIENDS, SOCIETY
• FRIENDS, SOCIETY OF

friends regained their See also:

• LIBERTY (Lat. libertas, from liber, free)

liberty, and escaping from Goa (See also:

• APRIL

April 1584) travelled through the See also:

• HEART
• HEART, LUNG

heart of India to the See also:

• COURT
• COURT (from the O. Fr. court, Late Lat. cortis, curtis, a popular form of class. Lat. cohors, gen. cohortis; the mod. Fr. form tour is due to the influence of the Lat. curia, the word used in medieval documents to translate " court " in the feudal sense)
• COURT, ANTOINE (1696-176o)

court of the See also:

• GREAT

Great See also:

• MOGUL, MOCHAL, or MIGHAL

Mogul See also:

• AKBAR, AKHBAR

Akbar, then probably at See also:

• AGRA

Agra . In September 1585 Newberie See also:

• LEFT

left on his return See also:

• JOURNEY (through O. Fr. jornee or journee, mod. Fr. journee, from med. Lat. diurnata, Lat. diurnus, of or belonging to dies, day)

journey overland via See also:

• LAHORE

Lahore (he disappeared, being presumably murdered, in the See also:

• PUNJAB

Punjab), while Fitch descended the See also:

• JUMNA, or JAMUNA

Jumna and the See also:

• GANGES (GANGA)

Ganges, visiting See also:

• BENARES

Benares, See also:

• PATNA

Patna, Kuch See also:

• BEHAR, or BIHAR

Behar, See also:

• HUGLI, or HOOGHLY

Hugli, See also:

• CHITTAGONG

Chittagong, &c . (1585-1586), and pushed on by See also:

• SEA (in O. Eng. sae, a common Teutonic word; cf. Ger. See, Dutch Zee, &c.; the ultimate source is uncertain)
• SEA, COMMAND OF THE

sea to See also:

• PEGU

Pegu and See also:

• BURMA

Burma . Here he visited the See also:

• RANGOON

Rangoon region, ascended the Irawadi some distance, acquired a remarkable acquaintance with inland Pegu, and even penetrated to the Siamese Shan states (1586-1587) . See also:

• EARLY
• EARLY, JUBAL ANDERSON (1816-1894)

Early in 1588 he visited Malacca; in the autumn of this See also:

• YEAR

year he began his homeward travels, first to See also:

• BENGAL
• BENGAL, BAY OF

Bengal; then See also:

• ROUND (O. Fr. rond, Lat. rotundus, the Fr. is the source also of Du. rond; Ger., Swed., Dan. and Nor. rond)

round the Indian See also:

• COAST (from Lat. costa, a rib, side)

coast, touching at See also:

• COCHIN
• COCHIN, DENYS MARIE PIERRE AUGUSTIN (1851L'Evolution de la vie (1895); Le Monde exterieur (1845); Contre les barbares (1899)

Cochin and Goa, to Ormuz; next up the Persian Gulf to Basra and up the Tigris to See also:

• MOSUL

Mosul (See also:

• NINEVEH (Heb. m}'?, in classical authors Nivos, Ninus; LXX. Ntsetni, Nnveun: Assyrian Nind or Ninua)

Nineveh); finally via Urfa, Bir on the Euphrates, Aleppo and Tripoli, to the Mediterranean .

He reappeared in London on the 29th of April 1591 . His experience was greatly valued by the founders of the See also:

• EAST
• EAST, ALFRED (1849- )

East India Company, who specially consulted him on Indian affairs (e.g . 2nd of October 'boo; 29th of January '6o'; 31st of See also:

• DECEMBER (Lat. decent, ten)

December '6o6) . See See also:

• HAKLUYT, RICHARD (c. 1553—1616)

Hakluyt, See also:

• PRINCIPAL

Principal Navigations (1599), vol. ii. See also:

• PART

part i. pp . 245-271, esp . 250-268; Linschoten, Voyages (Itineraris), part i. ch. xcii . (vol. ii. pp . 158-169, &c., Hakluyt See also:

• SOC

Soc. edition) ; Stevens and See also:

• BIRDWOOD, SIR GEORGE CHRISTOPHER MOLESWORTH (1832– )

Birdwood, Court Records of the East India Company1599–1643 (1886), esp. pp . 26, 123; See also:

• STATE
• STATE, GREAT OFFICERS OF

State Papers, East Indies, &c., 1513–1616 (1862), No . 36; See also:

• PINKERTON, ALLAN (1819–1884)
• PINKERTON, JOHN (1758–1826)

Pinkerton, Voyages and Travels (1808–1814), ix . 406-425 .