Ralph Fitch

Ralph Fitch (* before 1583; † 1611 ) was an English traveler. In 1583 he traveled with John Newberry by order of Queen Elizabeth on the land route to India , visited Basra and Ormuz , where they were arrested by the Portuguese and sent to Goa . They finally reached the mogul's court near Agra . Fitch separated from Newberry and traveled alone through India for two years. From 1586–1591 he traveled to Burma , Ceylon and Cochin before returning to England in 1591. The knowledge of his travels contributed significantly to the establishment of the English East India Company .

Works

• Aanmerklyke Reys van Ralph Fitch, Koopman te Londen, Gedaan van Anno 1583 dead 1591. Na Ormus, Goa, Cambaya, Bacola, Chonderi, Pegu, Jamahay in Siam, en weer na Pegu: van daar na Malacca, Ceylon, Cochin, en de geheele Kust van East India. Nu aldereerst uyt het Engelsch vertaald. With beautiful figures, in a popular register. Leyden, Van der Aa, 1706 (Important / special trip by Ralph Fitch, merchant to London, made from 1583 to 1591. To Hormus, Goa, Cambaya, Bacola, Chonderi, Pegu, Jamahay in Siam, and on to Pegu, from there to Malacca, Ceylon, Cochin, to the entire coast of East India. Now first narrated / translated from English. With beautiful pictures and a complete register. Leyden, Van der Aa, 1706.)

literature

• John Horton Ryley: Ralph Fitch: England's pioneer to India and Burma; His companions and contemporaries with his remarkable narrative told in his own words. London, 1899
• Michael Edwardes: Ralph Fitch - Elizabethan In The Indies. London, England Faber and Faber 1972
• Cecil Bear: Elizabethan Venture. London HF & G Witherby Ltd. 1953