PASQUALE RAGUSEO
--DISCOVERY OF THE AMAZON
Adam S. Eterovich
croatians@aol.com
Pasquale Raguseo, Captain 1545: In a study on the Discovery and
Colonization of the Amazon in Brazil
during the 1540’s the Spanish Crown best expressed the attitude towards Ragusan-Dubrovnik
ships, captains and mariners and their acceptance in Spanish fleet operations:
“Your
Highness will probably have to make some special dispensations (in Orellana's favor] because he is very
seriously handicapped by a shortage of pilots and masters, for the reason that,
since it [i.e. the expedition) is for an unfamiliar country, he can not find
any competent pilots or masters, particularly any who are natives of these
realms, and he has a Ragusan-Dubrovnik
as master of the flagship, and
with him, seamen from his country, and some Levantines, and the majority of the
remainder of the seamen that he has are Flemings and Germans and [only] a few
Spaniards; he did have a few Englishmen and Portuguese, whom we compelled him
to discharge.
But
these explanations did not convince the royal officials, particularly as they
could plainly see that pilots and shipmasters were still lacking; that the
majority of the sailors still available, after they (the officials) had caused
to be discharged those who turned out to be Englishmen and Portuguese, were
Flemings and Germans; that the Master of
the flagship was a Ragusan, with
whom they did not dare to use the same procedure, aware as they were that if
they did so there would not remain on the ships a single person capable of
keeping them under.control."
Croatians
were either identified as Ragusans (Dubrovnik), Venetians, Levantines,
Hungarians-Ungria, Esclavons, Schiavone or many corruptions of Ragusa.