Philip de Brito Establishes Himself at Syriam 1

There was at this time in the service of the King of Arracam a Portuguese named Felippe de Brito Nicote, ² a rich and honourable man, and the Captain of many Portuguese, whom he had brought with him to Pegu. He had already rendered the King valuable service, having twice restored him to his throne, when he had been driven from it by his rebellious subjects, and in all his wars had proved himself the ablest of his Captains. As a reward for all that he had done, the King made him Governor and lord of the kingdom of Pegu, ³ such as it was, with permission to build at Syrião (which is a port on the shores of the same kingdom, where its rivers, including that which flows from Tangu, empty themselves into the gulf which is called Machario ⁴ ) a fortress and stockades as a defence against his enemies, and to gather around him all the Pegus who came to him from the jungles or elsewhere to live under his protection and rule. Felippe de Brito made the most of his opportunities. He began by erecting that year, 1599, ⁵ a stockade of wood, and before the end of the year 1602 he had completed the building of a stone fortress, well equipped with guns and munitions, and very favourably situated for defensive purposes. At the same time he laid out a town and built houses for the people of the kingdom of Pegu, who began to come from divers parts to live in peace and security under his rule. In October, 1603, the town contained fourteen or fifteen thousand inhabitants, all engaged in cultivating the land. Their numbers are increasing, and there is good hope that the town will become a populous city, and that this will lead to the re-peopling of the whole kingdom.