Letter from the King, 25/Jan/1533

(...) I wrote you saying how had for my service that this India fleet went in two waves, that is, four naos in this first [fleet] and three in the other; and that, in this first one, went as captain general dom Goncalo Coutinho, and with him Dom Joao Pereira, and Dom Francisco de Noronha, and Diogo Brandao, and by some things that I have respecting this matter, I want that the said Dom Joao goes as captain general of the said last three naos, and that the nao, in which he would have gone with Dom Goncalo goes any that gets vacated (...)


Letter from the King, 26/Jan/1533

(..) I have as for my service that the said fleet goes divided in two armadas, with two captain generals, that is, four naos in one, and three in the other; and the four will sail first, those would b the two [ships] of Jorge Lopes, that should be more readier, because they did not leave the shipyard, and the other two [ships] being two of mine, the newest ones, that are more readier; and in these I have for good that will go as captain general Dom Goncalo Coutinho that, for the qualities he has in him, will know how to serve me in that capacity, and with him will go Dom Joao Pereira and Dom Francisco Noronha in my two [naos], and Diogo Brandao in [the nao] of Jorge Lopes and his; I beg you much that, with the earliest brevity and hastiness possible, you order the said four naos to be ready, in order to sail, with the help of Our Lord, within the month of February on entering March, if they can, so that they can have to time to sail to to cape Guardafui, as you have written me that it should be done.And if it goes in there Goncalo, you will tell him from me that, in order to please him, I have for good to send him as captain general of these four naos until India, but he will go without any pay. And the said Dom Goncalo will go in the returned [nao] of Jorge Lopes, or in one of the two new naos, whatever looks the best to serve as admiral ship. And dom Joao will go in the other. And in theseI order you much that you haste as much as possible, and I will have the their Orders made and I will send them together with the letters, so that they cannot get delayed, and I have already sent message to the said Dom Joao and Dom Francisco to get ready to go(…)


Letter from the King, Évora, 5/Feb/1533

(...)I thank you much the news that you have sent me telling me how those naos are already so ready that they can depart in early March Their captains for them are already there [Lisbon] all except the one for the nao in which returned Diogo Lopes de Sousa, I will tell you on a later letter, if it is he who will go in it, if it will be Nuno Furtado (...)


Letter from the King, Évora, 10/Feb/1533

Regarding the nao Bom Jesus, the one you tell me was destined to dom Francisco de Noronha, this, it seems, was not done as you you have said, going the Cirne as admiral ship. You will to dom Francisco, from my part, that he is to go in the nao that you will give him, because we will not see in it any disrespect, and that he must be happy to go in the nao that you will give him, and also because I also order it to be so and I have it for my great service, and so I have it for good to be so, and that the distribution list of masters and pilots that you have made shall not be changed, because it looked very well made and I want it to be followed as it is (...)


Letter from the King, Évora, 16/Feb/1533

I saw what you have told me concerning the values [embarked] in this armada, and by the account that you make 70.000 cruzados should go on all seven ships, and because, by the letters that Nuno da Cunha [India governor] writes, as you know there is a great shortage of money for all the expenses that were made, and because we cannot have a money shortage for the embarkment of goods [the cargo from India to Lisbon] and to pay some debts to people that are there; I will have for my great service that 80.000 cruzados shall go, because all of them will be necessary.I trust you to arrange the said 80.000 cruzados in currency and that you try your best that no less than that will go;And in these four naos those 45.000 cruzados will go; and, if you can make it 50.000, I will have great pleasure in that, divided equally by all naos, because they will go earlier, and in the other three will go 30.000 cruzados, and by this way you will order it done, because I have for my service (...)


Letter from the King, Évora, 11/Mar/1533

(...) Fernao de Alvares told me how you wrote him, describing how the four naos sailed Friday, the seveb days of this month, and left the mouth [of the Tagus river] and went into high seas with very good weather (...)