Free Admiral by Dudley Pope Page A

canoe among the tortured mangrove roots almost blocking a creek like rheumatic fingers; watching the Spanish king trying to avoid seeing the representatives of the Fuggers or the Welsers or the Strozzi, the bankers, and making desperate promises like any of his bankrupt subjects, that he would cut back expenditure – but all the time the Spanish army in the Netherlands was eating up money…
    Aurelia wondered whether the Spanish kings ever used the enormous wealth they were digging from the ground over here to build in Europe great cathedrals or galleries or found universities, commission artists, sculptors or musicians, encourage writers and poets; or if they used all the money to harass the Protestants…
    “Where is the bullion being stored?” Ned asked.
    Leclerc’s face lit up. “Ah, now we approach the heart of the matter. This is like an artichoke; one peels off a leaf at a time, savouring each piece but knowing that as one approaches the centre the next piece will be even tastier.”
    Ned sat motionless, his eyes on Leclerc although Aurelia knew he was not seeing him.
    “I must paint in some of the background,” Leclerc said. “First, whence comes the bullion with which we are concerned. The Spaniards long ago took all the gold, silver and gems from the natives here in the big islands of Hispaniola and Cuba: now they have to mine. Most of the silver is coming from a place called Potosi, up in the mountains along the west coast. They carry the ingots down to the port of Arica and then ship it about two thousand miles north to Panama.
    “It is cast into cones – like sugar loaves – each weighing about seventy pounds; or into wedges of usually about ten pounds; or cakes or discs, of a pound or two. All these castings are of the purest silver, stamped with the royal arms.
    “Coins are minted usually at Potosi or Lima, most of them as pieces of eight, or dollars, but some are doubloons. And of course there are ‘cobs’ as you English call them, from the Spanish cabo de barra , ‘cut from the bar’. They look crude coins – some have only half the royal arms stamped on them – because they’re made by a hammer and die. Still, the silver is the right quality and weight, which is what matters.”
    Ned held up a hand to interrupt Leclerc. “Have we any idea how much silver is usually shipped to Spain each year?”
    “Silver – yes, but not gold, which goes out by way of Mexico. The only figures I have are for 1640, when they shipped out a registered consignment worth 256,114,000 pesos.”
    “Pesos, pieces of eight, ducats, escudos, reals,” Diana grumbled, “we have enough sorts of money in the West Indies, and I don’t understand any of them!”
    Coles laughed and pointed to Leclerc. “You’ve picked the right man: cross between a banker and a counting house clerk he is. Come on, Jean-Pierre!”
    Leclerc gestured modestly, dismissing Coles’ description, but Thomas said: “Come on, tell the ladies!”
    “Well, let’s begin with one English pound. That is roughly equal to one Spanish doubloon or one French pistole. Now, take an English crown, four to the pound or five shillings. That is worth a French crown or a little more than a Spanish piece of eight, whether minted in Potosi, Mexico or Seville.”
    Diana said, “You were talking of pesos…”
    “Ah, yes, with the Spanish one might be talking in Spanish or Portuguese terms. The smallest coin is usually the maravedi. Three hundred and fifty of them are worth an escudo and three hundred and seventy-five will get you a ducat.
    “But let’s think in terms of reals, pesos and pieces of eight. The real is worth – well, between sixpence and sevenpence in English money. If you have eight reals, you have a ‘piece of eight’, which is worth – well, four or five shillings in English money. A ‘piece of eight’ is also a dollar and also a peso!”
    Aurelia was frowning. “The amount registered – what does ‘registered’