Guillaume Le Testu
Encyclopedia
Guillaume Le Testu, also called Têtu, (c. 1509 or 1512 - April 29, 1573) was a 16th century French corsair, explorer and navigator during the Elizabethan age. He was a successful privateer during the early years of the French Wars of Religion
. In 1573 he and Sir Francis Drake
attacked a Spanish mule train escorting gold and silver to Nombre de Dios
on the Atlantic coast of Panama, and he was subsequently killed following his capture by the Spanish.
He was one of the foremost cartographers of his time, being one of the last students to be taught at Dieppe
, and is one of the authors of the Dieppe maps
. Many of his maps are distinguished by a high degree of sophistication and extensive detail, his work influencing future generations of navigators and explorers over the course of the next century. His work was also used by Admiral Gaspard de Coligny
and French Huguenots hoping to establish themselves in Brazil
, Florida
, the Caribbean and even Terra Australis
; however these attempts were abandoned following Coligny's assassination in 1572 and Le Testu's own death the following year.
or Grasse, Provence
. He studied cartography
at the famed school of Dieppe
and later left on a series of exploration missions throughout the Atlantic. In his charts, Guillaume depicted the inhabitants and wildlife by drawings of unicorns and other legendary beasts. The swan-like creatures and flightless birds also appearing on the continent have been compared to the black swan
and the cassowary
found in Australia and parts of the East Indies. He was known often to use such traditional cartographers' imagery in his work, for example, showing the African continent populated with snakes 700 feet (213.4 m) long, as well as basilisk
s, satyrs and other creatures such as the "Blemmyae", men with no heads, and the "Cynocephalics", or dog-heads.
to create a map of the Americas, particularly where the French were trading. In June 1551, he sailed to Brazil
on both an exploration and reconnaissance mission from Henry II, charting as far as the Rio de la Plata
. His ship, the Salamandre, reached as far south as 26 latitude a fair distance past present-day Rio de Janeiro
. In late December, he became involved in a firefight with two Portuguese ships near Trinidad
and sustained heavy damage to his ship, although he was successful in mapping much of the South American coastline by the time of his return to Dieppe in July 1552.
He was later involved in the founding of a French colony near Rio de Janeiro
in 1555 and, the following year, was appointed a royal pilot upon presenting to Henry II an atlas of the world containing 56 maps he had personally drawn by hand on his previous expeditions. This atlas was dedicated to his mentor and patron Admiral Gaspard de Coligny
, who had become leader of the Huguenots only three years earlier. This manuscript was pieced together using a collection of charts from French, Spanish and Portuguese sources supplied by Coligny. Included in this atlas was a southern continent which, at the time, had yet to be discovered. He explained his theory, commenting,
The next several years saw the outbreak of the French Wars of Religion
, civil wars between the Huguenots and Catholics; in 1567, Le Testu sided with the Protestant Huguenots, conducting privateering raids for two years before his capture by the Catholics. He would remain imprisoned for over four years until he was released by order of King Charles IX
, due to public interest on his behalf.
near Cabo de Cativas in Panama
. He was in command of the 80-ton warship Havre (or the New Haven) with a crew of seventy; although it is unknown what was Le Testu's mission in the area, he may have been there under Italian sponsorship. He reportedly presented to Drake a scimitar
, formerly belonging to the condottiero Piero Strozzi
, as a gift on behalf of Coligny. It was during this meeting, having brought news of the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre
, that he offered to join Drake in a final raid against a Spanish mule train en route to Nombre de Dios
before leaving the area.
He and Drake sailed their combined fleet to the Rio Francisco. Le Testu and Drake landed with their men just east of Nombre de Dios. Le Testu had 20 men under his command while Drake himself led 15 men and a number of his Cimarron
allies. As their ships sailed off, with orders to return for them in four days, the party headed inland to a spot two leagues south of the city, arriving on April 29, where they awaited the Spanish mule train. It was soon after their arrival that the party heard bells in the distance signaling the arrival of the caravan. Cimarrons scouts also warned of their approach reporting the size of the caravan consisting of almost 200 mules each carrying up to three hundred pounds of treasure. Drake had chosen the spot for the ambush, believing the Spaniards to be at their most vulnerable as they were nearing their destination after traveling through miles of jungle, to take the mule train off guard in a surprise attack. They drove off the Spanish guards, although at a cost of several Cimarron and Frenchmen.
The attack was a complete success with nearly 30 tons of gold and silver discovered by Drake and Le Testu. Between 80,000-100,000 pesos in gold were taken by the privateers: in fact, there was so much treasure that the privateers were unable carry all the silver off and buried what remained. Le Testu's share came to £20,000. He was seriously wounded during the first assault however, choosing to rest until he was able to travel, and was left on the road with two of his men staying behind with him. As the rest of the party continued to meet the scheduled rendezvous with their fleet, they discovered a Spanish fleet waiting for them instead. Drake was forced to construct a raft and sail out to an island roughly three leagues offshore, where he contacted his own ships. Safely aboard with his crew once more, he sent a rescue party back for La Testu. When his men finally came back, they reported that Le Testu and his men had been caught by Spanish soldiers and executed. One of the men had been tortured to recover most of the buried silver before he too was killed. The French privateer was beheaded and his head taken back to Nombre de Dios where it was displayed in the marketplace.
Drake's men had managed to find some silver which had been missed, which they brought back to split between the English and French crews before sailing back for Europe. The surviving French later complained the English had taken the majority of the proceeds, however.
Le Testu's plans for an expedition to Terra Australis may have been communicated to Drake and his associates and assisted in the formulation of the plan for Drake's voyage to the South Sea and round the world (1576–1578).
, known on his maps as Jave la Grande
or Great Java, and located southward of the Moluccas
in his earliest work. In 1895, Edward Jenks referred to a chart in the British Museum attributed to the year 1542, “believed to have been at one time the property of a man named Rotz, a French sailor who passed some part of his life in England”. Jenks said: “this fact gives some colour to the claim put forward by the French, that their countryman, Guillaume le Testu, was the true discoverer of Australia. The claim is based mainly upon the fact that Testu’s name appears on a map dated 1555, on which a southern continent, styled Jave la Grande (“Great Java”), is outlined. But this fact, of course, merely proves that Testu had heard of such a country, and guessed whereabouts to look for it. The outline is certainly not sufficiently correct to convince us that he had personally explored the coast. Le Testu's Cosmographie Universelle (1555) and world atlas (1556) are both in the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris. Le Testu dedicated his 1555 atlas, which contained twelve charts of the Terre Austral, to Coligny, who subsequently supported a proposal from Francesco and Andrea d'Albagno for an expedition to that land to make a French settlement there. Le Testu explained his charts of La Grant Jave [Java Major] and La Terre Austral [Terra Australis] in text accompanying them:
French Wars of Religion
The French Wars of Religion is the name given to a period of civil infighting and military operations, primarily fought between French Catholics and Protestants . The conflict involved the factional disputes between the aristocratic houses of France, such as the House of Bourbon and House of Guise...
. In 1573 he and Sir Francis Drake
Francis Drake
Sir Francis Drake, Vice Admiral was an English sea captain, privateer, navigator, slaver, and politician of the Elizabethan era. Elizabeth I of England awarded Drake a knighthood in 1581. He was second-in-command of the English fleet against the Spanish Armada in 1588. He also carried out the...
attacked a Spanish mule train escorting gold and silver to Nombre de Dios
Nombre de Dios
Nombre de Dios is a city on the Atlantic coast of Panama in the Colón Province.Founded as a Spanish colony in 1510 by Diego de Nicuesa, it was one of the first European settlements on the Isthmus of Panama. It is the oldest continually populated town in Panama and the America mainland...
on the Atlantic coast of Panama, and he was subsequently killed following his capture by the Spanish.
He was one of the foremost cartographers of his time, being one of the last students to be taught at Dieppe
Dieppe, Seine-Maritime
Dieppe is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in France. In 1999, the population of the whole Dieppe urban area was 81,419.A port on the English Channel, famous for its scallops, and with a regular ferry service from the Gare Maritime to Newhaven in England, Dieppe also has a popular pebbled...
, and is one of the authors of the Dieppe maps
Dieppe maps
The Dieppe maps are a series of world maps produced in Dieppe, France, in the 1540s, 1550s and 1560s. They are large hand-produced maps, commissioned for wealthy and royal patrons, including Henry II of France and Henry VIII of England...
. Many of his maps are distinguished by a high degree of sophistication and extensive detail, his work influencing future generations of navigators and explorers over the course of the next century. His work was also used by Admiral Gaspard de Coligny
Gaspard de Coligny
Gaspard de Coligny , Seigneur de Châtillon, was a French nobleman and admiral, best remembered as a disciplined Huguenot leader in the French Wars of Religion.-Ancestry:...
and French Huguenots hoping to establish themselves in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, the Caribbean and even Terra Australis
Terra Australis
Terra Australis, Terra Australis Ignota or Terra Australis Incognita was a hypothesized continent appearing on European maps from the 15th to the 18th century...
; however these attempts were abandoned following Coligny's assassination in 1572 and Le Testu's own death the following year.
Early life
Guillaume le Testu was born sometime around 1509, either in Le Havre, NormandyLe Havre
Le Havre is a city in the Seine-Maritime department of the Haute-Normandie region in France. It is situated in north-western France, on the right bank of the mouth of the river Seine on the English Channel. Le Havre is the most populous commune in the Haute-Normandie region, although the total...
or Grasse, Provence
Grasse
-See also:*Route Napoléon*Ancient Diocese of Grasse*Communes of the Alpes-Maritimes department-External links:*...
. He studied cartography
Cartography
Cartography is the study and practice of making maps. Combining science, aesthetics, and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality can be modeled in ways that communicate spatial information effectively.The fundamental problems of traditional cartography are to:*Set the map's...
at the famed school of Dieppe
Dieppe, Seine-Maritime
Dieppe is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in France. In 1999, the population of the whole Dieppe urban area was 81,419.A port on the English Channel, famous for its scallops, and with a regular ferry service from the Gare Maritime to Newhaven in England, Dieppe also has a popular pebbled...
and later left on a series of exploration missions throughout the Atlantic. In his charts, Guillaume depicted the inhabitants and wildlife by drawings of unicorns and other legendary beasts. The swan-like creatures and flightless birds also appearing on the continent have been compared to the black swan
Black Swan
The Black Swan is a large waterbird, a species of swan, which breeds mainly in the southeast and southwest regions of Australia. The species was hunted to extinction in New Zealand, but later reintroduced. Within Australia they are nomadic, with erratic migration patterns dependent upon climatic...
and the cassowary
Cassowary
The cassowaries are ratites, very large flightless birds in the genus Casuarius native to the tropical forests of New Guinea, nearby islands and northeastern Australia. There are three extant species recognized today...
found in Australia and parts of the East Indies. He was known often to use such traditional cartographers' imagery in his work, for example, showing the African continent populated with snakes 700 feet (213.4 m) long, as well as basilisk
Basilisk
In European bestiaries and legends, a basilisk is a legendary reptile reputed to be king of serpents and said to have the power to cause death with a single glance...
s, satyrs and other creatures such as the "Blemmyae", men with no heads, and the "Cynocephalics", or dog-heads.
Explorer and privateer
In 1550, he was commissioned by King Henry IIHenry II of France
Henry II was King of France from 31 March 1547 until his death in 1559.-Early years:Henry was born in the royal Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, near Paris, the son of Francis I and Claude, Duchess of Brittany .His father was captured at the Battle of Pavia in 1525 by his sworn enemy,...
to create a map of the Americas, particularly where the French were trading. In June 1551, he sailed to Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
on both an exploration and reconnaissance mission from Henry II, charting as far as the Rio de la Plata
Río de la Plata
The Río de la Plata —sometimes rendered River Plate in British English and the Commonwealth, and occasionally rendered [La] Plata River in other English-speaking countries—is the river and estuary formed by the confluence of the Uruguay River and the Paraná River on the border between Argentina and...
. His ship, the Salamandre, reached as far south as 26 latitude a fair distance past present-day Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
. In late December, he became involved in a firefight with two Portuguese ships near Trinidad
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and numerous landforms which make up the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the southernmost island in the Caribbean and lies just off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. With an area of it is also the fifth largest in...
and sustained heavy damage to his ship, although he was successful in mapping much of the South American coastline by the time of his return to Dieppe in July 1552.
He was later involved in the founding of a French colony near Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
in 1555 and, the following year, was appointed a royal pilot upon presenting to Henry II an atlas of the world containing 56 maps he had personally drawn by hand on his previous expeditions. This atlas was dedicated to his mentor and patron Admiral Gaspard de Coligny
Gaspard de Coligny
Gaspard de Coligny , Seigneur de Châtillon, was a French nobleman and admiral, best remembered as a disciplined Huguenot leader in the French Wars of Religion.-Ancestry:...
, who had become leader of the Huguenots only three years earlier. This manuscript was pieced together using a collection of charts from French, Spanish and Portuguese sources supplied by Coligny. Included in this atlas was a southern continent which, at the time, had yet to be discovered. He explained his theory, commenting,
The next several years saw the outbreak of the French Wars of Religion
French Wars of Religion
The French Wars of Religion is the name given to a period of civil infighting and military operations, primarily fought between French Catholics and Protestants . The conflict involved the factional disputes between the aristocratic houses of France, such as the House of Bourbon and House of Guise...
, civil wars between the Huguenots and Catholics; in 1567, Le Testu sided with the Protestant Huguenots, conducting privateering raids for two years before his capture by the Catholics. He would remain imprisoned for over four years until he was released by order of King Charles IX
Charles IX of France
Charles IX was King of France, ruling from 1560 until his death. His reign was dominated by the Wars of Religion. He is best known as king at the time of the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre.-Childhood:...
, due to public interest on his behalf.
Raid on Nombre de Dios and death
On March 23, 1573, Le Testu unexpectedly encountered Sir Francis DrakeFrancis Drake
Sir Francis Drake, Vice Admiral was an English sea captain, privateer, navigator, slaver, and politician of the Elizabethan era. Elizabeth I of England awarded Drake a knighthood in 1581. He was second-in-command of the English fleet against the Spanish Armada in 1588. He also carried out the...
near Cabo de Cativas in Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
. He was in command of the 80-ton warship Havre (or the New Haven) with a crew of seventy; although it is unknown what was Le Testu's mission in the area, he may have been there under Italian sponsorship. He reportedly presented to Drake a scimitar
Scimitar
A scimitar is a backsword or sabre with a curved blade, originating in Southwest Asia .The Arabic term saif translates to "sword" in general, but is normally taken to refer to the scimitar type of curved backsword in particular.The curved sword or "scimitar" was widespread throughout the Muslim...
, formerly belonging to the condottiero Piero Strozzi
Piero Strozzi
Piero Strozzi was an Italian military leader. He was a member of the rich Florentine family of the Strozzi.-Biography:Piero Strozzi was the son of Filippo Strozzi the Younger and Clarice de' Medici....
, as a gift on behalf of Coligny. It was during this meeting, having brought news of the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre
St. Bartholomew's Day massacre
The St. Bartholomew's Day massacre in 1572 was a targeted group of assassinations, followed by a wave of Roman Catholic mob violence, both directed against the Huguenots , during the French Wars of Religion...
, that he offered to join Drake in a final raid against a Spanish mule train en route to Nombre de Dios
Nombre de Dios
Nombre de Dios is a city on the Atlantic coast of Panama in the Colón Province.Founded as a Spanish colony in 1510 by Diego de Nicuesa, it was one of the first European settlements on the Isthmus of Panama. It is the oldest continually populated town in Panama and the America mainland...
before leaving the area.
He and Drake sailed their combined fleet to the Rio Francisco. Le Testu and Drake landed with their men just east of Nombre de Dios. Le Testu had 20 men under his command while Drake himself led 15 men and a number of his Cimarron
Cimarron
Cimarron is the title of a novel published by popular historical fiction author Edna Ferber in 1929. The book was adapted into a critically acclaimed film in 1931 through RKO Pictures. In 1960, the story was again adapted for the screen to meager success by MGM...
allies. As their ships sailed off, with orders to return for them in four days, the party headed inland to a spot two leagues south of the city, arriving on April 29, where they awaited the Spanish mule train. It was soon after their arrival that the party heard bells in the distance signaling the arrival of the caravan. Cimarrons scouts also warned of their approach reporting the size of the caravan consisting of almost 200 mules each carrying up to three hundred pounds of treasure. Drake had chosen the spot for the ambush, believing the Spaniards to be at their most vulnerable as they were nearing their destination after traveling through miles of jungle, to take the mule train off guard in a surprise attack. They drove off the Spanish guards, although at a cost of several Cimarron and Frenchmen.
The attack was a complete success with nearly 30 tons of gold and silver discovered by Drake and Le Testu. Between 80,000-100,000 pesos in gold were taken by the privateers: in fact, there was so much treasure that the privateers were unable carry all the silver off and buried what remained. Le Testu's share came to £20,000. He was seriously wounded during the first assault however, choosing to rest until he was able to travel, and was left on the road with two of his men staying behind with him. As the rest of the party continued to meet the scheduled rendezvous with their fleet, they discovered a Spanish fleet waiting for them instead. Drake was forced to construct a raft and sail out to an island roughly three leagues offshore, where he contacted his own ships. Safely aboard with his crew once more, he sent a rescue party back for La Testu. When his men finally came back, they reported that Le Testu and his men had been caught by Spanish soldiers and executed. One of the men had been tortured to recover most of the buried silver before he too was killed. The French privateer was beheaded and his head taken back to Nombre de Dios where it was displayed in the marketplace.
Drake's men had managed to find some silver which had been missed, which they brought back to split between the English and French crews before sailing back for Europe. The surviving French later complained the English had taken the majority of the proceeds, however.
Le Testu's plans for an expedition to Terra Australis may have been communicated to Drake and his associates and assisted in the formulation of the plan for Drake's voyage to the South Sea and round the world (1576–1578).
Le Testu's Charts of Jave la Grande and Terra Australis
Le Testu was one of the first to introduce the theory of a large southern continentTerra Australis
Terra Australis, Terra Australis Ignota or Terra Australis Incognita was a hypothesized continent appearing on European maps from the 15th to the 18th century...
, known on his maps as Jave la Grande
Jave la Grande
La grande isle de Java was, according to Marco Polo, the largest island in the world: his Java Minor was the actual island of Sumatra, which takes its name from the city of Samudera situated on its northern coast....
or Great Java, and located southward of the Moluccas
Maluku Islands
The Maluku Islands are an archipelago that is part of Indonesia, and part of the larger Maritime Southeast Asia region. Tectonically they are located on the Halmahera Plate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone...
in his earliest work. In 1895, Edward Jenks referred to a chart in the British Museum attributed to the year 1542, “believed to have been at one time the property of a man named Rotz, a French sailor who passed some part of his life in England”. Jenks said: “this fact gives some colour to the claim put forward by the French, that their countryman, Guillaume le Testu, was the true discoverer of Australia. The claim is based mainly upon the fact that Testu’s name appears on a map dated 1555, on which a southern continent, styled Jave la Grande (“Great Java”), is outlined. But this fact, of course, merely proves that Testu had heard of such a country, and guessed whereabouts to look for it. The outline is certainly not sufficiently correct to convince us that he had personally explored the coast. Le Testu's Cosmographie Universelle (1555) and world atlas (1556) are both in the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris. Le Testu dedicated his 1555 atlas, which contained twelve charts of the Terre Austral, to Coligny, who subsequently supported a proposal from Francesco and Andrea d'Albagno for an expedition to that land to make a French settlement there. Le Testu explained his charts of La Grant Jave [Java Major] and La Terre Austral [Terra Australis] in text accompanying them:
The present Figure contains a part of Jave la Grande [Java Major], which is situated in the southern part in the Temperate Zone. The inhabitants of it are Idolaters, ignorant of God, and in it grows Nutmeg with Cloves, and several other kinds of fruits and spices... This is La Grant Jave [Java Major], and La Petite Jave [Java Minor] in which there are eight Kingdoms. The men of these two Countries are Idolaters and wicked. Several manner of spices grow in these two Regions, such as Nutmeg, Cloves, and other spices... This Land is part of the so-called Terra Australis, to us Unknown, so that which is marked herein is only from Imagination and uncertain opinion; for some say that La Grant Jave [Java Major] which is the eastern Coast of it is the same land of which the western Coast forms the Strait of Magellan, and that all of this land is joined together... This Part is the same Land of the south called Austral, which has never yet been discovered, for there is no account of anyone having yet found it, and therefore nothing has been remarked of it but from Imagination. I have not been able to describe any of its resources, and for this reason I leave speaking further of it until more ample discovery has been made, and as much as I have written and annoted names to several of its capes this has only been to align the pieces depicted herein to the views of others and also so that those who navigate there be on their guard when they are of opinion that they are approaching the said Land... This piece is a part of the Southland or Terra Australis, from Imagination situated under the Frigid Zone, forasmuch as some are of the opinion that the Land of the Strait of Magellan and La Grande Java [Java Major] are joined together. This is not yet known for certain, and for this Reason I am unable to describe its Resources.
Further reading
- Anthiaume, Albert. Un pilote et cartographe havrais au XVIth siècle. Paris: Imprimerie nationale, 1911.
- Albert-Marie-Ferdinand Anthiaume, "Un pilote et cartographe havrais au XVIe siècle: Guillaume Le Testu", Bulletin de Géographie Historique et Descriptive, Paris, Nos 1-2, 1911.
- Lemonnier, Léon. Sir Francis Drake. Paris: Le Renaissance du livre, 1932.