Although it is often said that the courts of kings are full of men but void of friends, Your Majesty knows well that he may count the members of the Family Howard amongst his truest friends and most loyal confidantes. Indeed, it is on account of the amity between us that I venture in this letter to dispense with the frivolous formalities and proceed directly to the purpose of this message.
Trusting that Your Majesty’s education, [even if provided by Reformed preachers rather than Jesuit instructors], has been such as to furnish a Prince of Orange with some familiarity with St. Augustine’s comparison of pirate and emperors -- Your Majesty, I imagine, will appreciate with some mirth the suggestion that his Calvinist tutors would encourage the reading of works such as On Grace and Free Will by the Bishop of Hippo – some distinction is necessary, particularly in these times of war, to differentiate between the criminal activity of piracy and the legitimate action of privateering.
Convention has recognised the lettre de marque as the legal instrument whereby such a distinction is established. Indeed, in many cases, the difference between a pirate and a privateer rests in no small measure upon possession of a piece of paper. The former, a pirate, granted swift execution for his crimes, and the latter, a privateer, entitled to treatment as a prisoner of war – all based upon a letter.
The Honourable East India Company has secured numerous such letters for her vessels operating in the Orient, and has by these documents secured those seas from Your Majesty’s rivals whilst simultaneously safeguarding the crewmen who serve aboard the many sailing ships that ply the waters of Hindoostan.
But it is the matter of the war with France which remains foremost in my mind. In order to render to Your Majesty whatsoever assistance in prosecuting to completion the quarrel with King Louis – indeed, to resist with every sinew the hegemonic ambition of the French – I have commissioned, equipped and maintained a ship-of-the-line, the Sophia, with the intent to engage the enemy.
Prior to such an engagement, however, certain considerations vis-à-vis the legality of such actions must be examined. In keeping with the tradition of Sir Francis Drake – who served under my ancestor, Charles Howard, against the Spanish – the disruption of the enemy merchant marine as well as the capture of enemy vessels remains a profitable and beneficial undertaking.
Nevertheless, it would be unseemly for a nobleman, most especially the foremost in the peerage, and of nearest proximity to the Blood Royal, to engage in the crime of piracy. That is, if the activity were to be regarded as piracy. Alternately, if the attack and capture of enemy vessel by private individuals were to be sanctioned by the Crown it could no longer be regarded as a violation of the law, but as an exercise of rights granted under the law. These rights find expression in the aforementioned letters of marque.
