ABSTRACT
The King sent for two valiant and cunning men in whom he had all confidence, the Prior of the Hospital and Captain Affonso Furtado, and entrusted them with the difficult mission. Everything was to be done in the strictest secrecy, and this expedition was to be carried out without arousing the suspicion as to the intentions of the King, whether at home or abroad. The King also had very fine liveries made in the fashion and colours of his house for all those who were about to embark. When all was ready, the ambassadors having taken their leave of the King, the galleys put to sea. Having left Lisbon with all this luxury, they came before the city of Ceuta. The embassy to the Queen of Sicily met with no success, for she wished to wed the heir to the throne of Portugal and not an Infante. She accordingly rejected the King's proposals as the King had foreseen and desired.
