living in 16th century england

Chapter 7 Fancy Robert
The tavern was not the Hawkins family property.

Plymouth is a small town jointly managed by several local families, and there was not even a lord in the 16th century.The later Earl of Devonshire had to wait another 100 years.

The so-called sheriff is actually elected.These families are still in harmony under the mutual marriage, controlling everything in Plymouth.

What Matthew didn't know was that more than 100 years later, the local tyrants of Plymouth united in the English Civil War and resisted the siege of the Royalists for four years.

The marriage partner Andrew arranged for Matthew, the family is in the soap business.What is the future of making soap?
The production of soap is very simple, oil and alkaline substances will do.In the UK, sheep oil often turns into soap in the end, and plant ash is everywhere.This industry is an inevitable product of the rise of the wool industry.

It's a pity that people in this era don't take baths very much, so it's just a small business.

Rather than saying it was a marriage, it was better to say that he wanted a reliable source of suet. No matter how he looked at it, Matthew was at a loss.Not only will it sell cheap mutton oil, but it will also sell its hue.

So as soon as he became ambitious, Andrew immediately felt that he was at a loss. How could my future son of a nobleman, who is so awesome, marry a daughter of a small businessman?The marriage fell apart immediately.

Many people often don't talk about methods when facing their own Lao Tzu.What Lao Tzu says to his son often has other reasons, especially in wealthy families.

The entourage poured Matthew a glass of beer respectfully, then put down and stood behind Matthew.

A man in flashy clothes approached: "Excuse me, are you Master Matthew Hawkins? I'm here on request. You can call me Robert."

Matthew looked up and saw that the man was wearing a large, exaggerated hat covered with feathers, tight pants, and brightly colored socks.He wore a shirt with puffed sleeves and a leather vest, and a dagger at his waist.

The first impression is like the king of poker.

Matthew asked curiously, "Have you ever been a mercenary?"

Only mercenaries in the 16th century would dress like this "bird".Many European countries have regulations on dress code.Mercenaries are not included.They are thugs of powerful organizations.

These "golden servants" fought brilliantly, even sacking Rome in 1527.

Robert: "It's not the kind of mercenary you think. I didn't join those organizations. I just spent a few years with some friends."

It turned out to be an adventurer.

Due to the cool appearance of mercenaries, many people will imitate them.It was the leader of fashion in the 16th century.There are more adventurers in this era, and their composition is complex, mainly petty criminals, outlaws, noble children who have been excluded from inheritance, farmers who are unwilling to farm, and so on.

The upper limit of this career is a rich duke, but the lower limit is death with no bones left, which is quite attractive.

This Robert has a lot of experience.

Matthew stretched out a hand and signaled: "Please sit... Would you like a drink?" The entourage immediately took out a glass and put it on the table.

Robert glanced at the follower, seeing that he was just a simple and honest young man, so he didn't care anymore.

He was not polite, he sat down and picked up the jug and poured it himself: "You are younger than I thought, a bit unexpected... What are you wearing, and what is the name of this hat?"

Matthew laughed, "It's just a felt hat and woolen coat."

Robert: "No, no, I don't think I've ever seen this style of... a felt hat."

Matthew picked up the glass: "Don't you think it's similar to your hat style? It's just without the feathers."

Robert quickly understood the meaning of raising his glass, and he also raised his glass: "I like your dress."

Matthew chuckled, and the two clinked a glass. With a crisp "ding", everyone in the tavern turned their heads to watch.Robert suddenly felt that he was even more powerful, and made up his mind to make a set of glassware.

In fact, there is no way for Matthew's clothes. If you want to wear them comfortably, design and tailoring are very important.There are only a few kinds of fabrics in this era. The reason why wool felt and woolen cloth can last for hundreds of years is precisely because they are easy to use, durable, easy to wear, and durable.The latitude of the United Kingdom is equivalent to that of Heilongjiang.Even if a ring of oceans warms up, the temperature will not be much higher.

Matthew: "Have you ever been a sailor? Where have you been?"

Robert: "Yes, but not for a long time. I worked as a bodyguard in the Netherlands. I have also been to Stockholm, France and Iberia. Of course, I have also been to Florence, Venice, and as far as West Africa. I want to go to America , but it didn’t work out.”

This is almost a circle around the coast of Europe?
Matthew took a sip of beer: "Why did you come back?"

Robert: "I've got enough money, I don't need to take any more risks."

Matthew smiled, with meaningful eyes: "Although London is not far away, there are still a lot of homeless people. They hide in the wild mountains and ridges, and road robbery is also very common. They are actually taking risks."

Robert also smiled slowly: "I want to do some business, and the Hawkins family is a good partner. So, I need your trust."

interesting.Matthew said: "I already have a lot of business, and I feel that I am too busy."

Robert: "No, no, no, you don't need to operate~ I want to buy a boat and go to West Africa to do business. The Hawkins family only needs to invest and wait for the share."

Matthew is interested in investing in trading merchant ships?This era should be able to make money, but the risk is not small.

"What business can you do in West Africa?"

Robert: "You should have heard that the Portuguese have been trafficking people these years, and there are quite a few dark-skinned slaves in the Netherlands."

"And I happen to know a wealthy businessman from the Netherlands, and an African chieftain."

Matthew was stunned: "The black slave trade?"

Robert said with a smile: "This vocabulary is good, very accurate."

Matthew was a little confused. He knew about human trafficking, but did slave trafficking already exist in 1509?

Matthew pondered for a moment: "I really want to tell you that I will talk about it when I come back from London, but I must tell you that I will never invest in any human trafficking business."

Robert was a little surprised: "Mr. Hawkins...can I call your name?"

Matthew gestured with his hand.

"Matthew... can you tell me why?"

Matthew: "People have principles. Although I am not a moral gentleman, human trade has exceeded my bottom line."

Robert: "That's right...but I mean...why not the first sentence?"

Matthew picked up the beer: "Businessmen should also be principled. Paying attention to credibility is the most important principle."

Robert nodded: "I understand. But Matthew, I think you may have misunderstood the profession of a businessman."

Matthew shrugged: "So I said yes. I can only promise that I will stick to these principles."

Robert raised his glass, followed suit with Matthew, and said with a smile, "Just let me know when you're ready to leave. No matter what, I'll accompany you to London."

"In view of your frankness, I also want to tell you the truth. I do have enough money, but if something happens, I will lose everything. So, I just want to share the risk."

In the age of great voyages, shipwrecks and shipwrecks are common occurrences, which are commonplace.

Matthew nodded, this is a successful adventurer.Buy a new ship, fill it with cargo and supplies, and hire sailors.There are not hundreds of pounds that can't be saved.

During the Tudor Dynasty, it cost about 100 to 100 pounds to buy a small ship of about 200 tons, depending on the specific situation.No matter how big the ship is, the average tonnage is about 1 to 2 pounds.However, please note that the pound sterling at this time was 15.55 grams of gold, while the gold coins issued by Florence at the same time were only 3.5 grams.

Basically, Henry VII's 100 pounds can be counted as 20 RMB.

Smaller ships are also available, but the smaller the tonnage, the more dangerous the ocean voyage.Risks skyrocket.As a result, the Spanish American fleet later stipulated that it only accepted ships with a weight of more than 100 tons and a crew of no less than 32 people.

In the early 16th century, 100 tons was a good tonnage.Even in the later period, there were not many large-tonnage ocean-going merchant ships.

In the era of great navigation in the 16th century, the tonnage of sailing ships was a large number of small ships (below 150 tons), many medium-sized ships (below 500 tons) and a few large sailing ships (below 1000 tons).There are also larger ones, which will increase in the late 16th century.

Even in the 19th century, the average tonnage of American ships was only over 200 tons.

For another example, Seville, Spain, can only pass through vehicles with a capacity of less than 450 tons, and no matter how big it is, it will not be able to enter.London is better, but there are records that a large ship ran aground with a load of 900 tons.

Matthew: "If you're fine in winter, welcome to the Hawkins' manor. My brother yearns to go out for adventure, but he's too young to be skilled. You can teach him something practical. I'll pay you a fair price for it." of."

Robert's eyes lit up, this job is too suitable, and he can make money without risk.You can also get acquainted with the Hawkins family.Immediately agree.

After leaving the tavern, Matthew was ready to go back, maybe he could catch up with dinner.

Shipbuilding requires professionals, and of course Plymouth has a shipyard... or a workshop.Not just one.Unfortunately the main business is fishing boats and small sampans.

Shipbuilding in this era depends entirely on the experience of shipbuilders, blueprints?Forget it, even measurements and numbers are not necessarily useful.Slap gesture is the most common way.

Therefore, an experienced boatman must be sought.

Matthew rubbed his chin, his eyes became uncertain, should he poach someone with a high salary?

(End of this chapter)