The trauels of certaine Englishmen into Africa, Asia, Troy, Bythinia, Thracia, and to the Blacke Sea And into Syria, Cilicia, Pisidia, Mesopotamia, Damascus, Canaan, Galile, Samaria, Iudea, Palestina, Ierusalem, Iericho, and to the Red Sea: and to sundry other places. Begunne in the yeare of iubile 1600. and by some of them finished in this yeere 1608. The others not yet returned. Very profitable to the help of trauellers, and no lesse delightfull to all persons who take pleasure to heare of the manners, gouernement, religion, and customes of forraine and heathen countries.

Apparant Truths.

And first of al it séemeth to me a manifest truth, that Ierusa∣lem (that now it) standeth in the same place where the old Ierusalem did: not in euery respect for length b bredth, but with some difference: for whereas we read in the Gospell, that they crucified our Sauiour Christ at Golgotha▪ without the Citie, néere whereunto there was a new Sepulcher wherein neuer man lay, and therein they laid his blessed body. Now both Mount Caluari•• where Golgotha (that is, The place of dead mens skuls was) and the Sepulcher (at least wise the place where the Sepulcher was) are all enclosed within the wals of

the City, which were built by Sultan Solyman, or Sultan Selim. So that, although some difference there be; yet it is not so great but that a man may boldly affirme, that part of this City is now in the same place where the old Ierusalem stood; and a part thereof somewhat remooued.

Yet some (who haue neuer béene there) haue presumed to af∣firme, that no man knoweth the place where old Jerusalem stood, and that no signe of the City is to be séene. But that the place is still the same, it is manifest by the situation thereof, which is described in the Scripture to haue beene néere vnto these mountaines, Moriah, Syon, Caluarie, Mount Oliuet, Be¦than••a, and Be••••p ••age; and not far••e from Bethl••hem: which Mountaines and places are there still to be séene, and called still by the same names.

And whereas they say no signe of the City is to bée séene, grounding their assertion upon a place of Scripture falsly appli∣ed, and say that Christ promised to destroy Ierusalem, and not to leaue one 〈◊〉〈◊〉 vpon another that should not be ouerthrow∣en: If they read the place Luke 21. 6. they shall finde that spoken of the Temple which they apply vnto the City. And I doe verily pe••swade nay selfe, that euen in Jerusalem that now is, there are stones vpon stones yet leaft, which we••e neuer o∣uerthrowen since the first building of the City: for on the foun∣dation of the wals in many places (especially towards Mount Oliue••) there are yet stones to be seene, which both for quantity and quality may be thought to haue beene there euer since the beginning: for they are of huge length and bredth, and of a blacke colour; like whereunto I neuer saw any in any other place of all my trauels. And ouer these old stones, the vpper part of the wals are a new building, differing both in colour and quantity from the foundation stones.

But of the Temple it is true which our sauiour Christ spake Luk. 21. 6. For when as the Prophets denounced Gods iudge∣ments vnto the Iewes, vnlesse they repented, they flattered themselues in their sinnes, and cried, Templum Domini, Tem∣plum Domini, The Temple of the Lord, The Temple of thy Lord. But through their prophanation, they made the Temple of the

Lord a Denne of Théeues. They cried, Lord, Lord, but they did not his will on whom they cried. For swéet grapes, they yeelded sowre; for hearty and sincere seruice, hypocriticall and painted shewes of Religion. Their glory was in the externall beauty of their materiall Temple: They wondred at the stones and goodly buildings, at the gorgeous furniture and pretious gifts, wherewith it was both outwardly and inwardly ador∣ned and enriched. Whereupon our Sauiour (to take away the cause of this vaine hope, and foolish ioy) tooke occasion thus to Prophecie of that glorious Temple: Are these the things that you looke vpon? The daies will come wherein there shall not be left a stone vpon a stone, which shall not bee destroied. This Prophecie was as euidently accomplished as it was made: for thirty eight yéeres after they had crucified Christ, their promi∣sed Messias, the Lord of glory; God raised vp the seruants of his wr••th Vespatian and Titus, Emperours of Rome, who besee∣ged, conquered, and razed their Ierusalem, made hauocke of the people as of dogges, murdered eleuen hundred thousand, man, woman, and childe, of that cursed Nation. Then was fulfilled they cry of those crucifiers, His blood be vpon our heads, and vp∣on our children. It hath béene, and shall be for euer.

Yea the violence of the Romans procéeded further, and pulled downe the Temple, and laid it flat with the ground, insomuch that (according to the expresse words of our Sauiours Prophe∣cie) they left not one stone vpon another. The Iewes sundry times, hauing obtained leaue of Iulian the Apostata, attempted to build it vp againe, but it would not be; for what their hand builded in the day, the hand of the Lord (most miraculously) hurled downe, and burnt with lightning by night, the founda∣tion thereof being shaken with earth-quakes. And at this pre∣sent day there is built in the place thereof a Muskia or Turkish Church, whereunto no Christian may haue accesse. It is not in the forme of Salomons Temple, but after the manner of their Turkish buildings: Not for the seruice of the true God, but of the false Prophet Mahomet.

Vnto the truth also of sundry other particulars (which they shewed vs) doe I subscribe. And first of all, that at Beth-lehem,

sixe miles from Ierusalem, is the very place where our Saui∣our Christ was borne: although now (honoris gratia) they haue made it more beautifull, being built of marble, at the cost of Queene Helena the mother of Constantine, (whome some report to haue béene an English woman, borne at Colechester) who hath there also erected a stately Church, which to this day is ve∣ry well kept. They told vs also that S. Hierome dwelt there, which cannot be denied.

From Beth-lehem we rode seuen miles further, to the desart of Ziph or wildernesse of Iudah, where Dauid hid himselfe when he was persecuted be Saul. We went also to the hill Countrie of Iudea, where the virgine Mary saluted Elizabeth the wife of Zacharias, mother of Iohn Baptist being great with child, and at her salutation the babe sprung in her belly.

From thence wee rode further to the wildernesse of Iudaea, where Iohn Baptist preached; and in the middle of the de∣scending of a mountaine, they shewed vs a chamber hewen out of a liuely rocke foure square, with a dore and a window, and a place for his bed and table, by which place there issueth a fine spring of water out of the rocke, at which place we dranke of the water.

From thence returning to Ierusalem, they shewed vs (in the way to Gaza) the water where Philip Baptized the Eunuch, Act. 8. 38.

At our returne to Ierusalem, they brought vs to mount Oli∣uet, from whence our Sauiour Christ ascended into Heauen, being from Ierusalem a Sabboth daies iourney, not two miles.

From the mount of Oliues, we went to Bethania and Beth∣phage, which are now ruinous villages. There are many figge trées still growing about these two villages, and many Oliue trées about the mount of Oliues: wee cut off some of the bran∣ches and carried some sprigs with vs.

Néerer Ierusalem, they shewed vs mount Sion and the mount Mo••••••h, on which Abraham offered his sonne Isaac; we saw also the valley of Iehosaphat, and the valley of Iehinnom and the brooke Cedron which is now in the Sommer time a drie chan∣nell. Some part of the tower of Sylo and the poole Syloam, and

the potters field bought with the thirtie pieces of siluer which Iudas had for betraying his master Christ; called Acheldama: which to this day is a place to bury strangers in.

Ascending vp Acheldama, we entred into a porch, and looked downe into a vault, where wee saw many dead bodies; couered onely with their winding sheet knit at the head and foot, with∣out any coffin: and some of their shéets were so white, that they séemed to vs to haue beene buried but few daies before we came.

The valley betwixt Acheldama and mount Syon, is called the vale of Iehinnom.

The valley of Iehosaphat is thrée miles in length, reaching from the vale of Ieh••••nom to a place without the Citie; which they call the Sepulcher of the Kings.

Lastly, they brought vs to mount Caluarie, to the place where Christ was crucified, ouer which there is now erected a stately building with many Iles, Chancels, or little Chapels, in it for sundry Nations, which were al there at that present time as we were, and lodged there on Saterday at night before Palme Sunday.

We entred into this Temple to sée the Sepulcher on Satur∣day after dinner, and came not foorth vntill Monday about ele∣uen of the clocke, for there are lodgings adioining vnto it, into which we entred through the highest Chancell or Chappell.

Before wee were admitted hereunto, euery man paied nine Shekines to see the Sepulcher, which money the Syniacke: or chiefe Ruler of the citie hath, who is a Turke. Into the Sepul∣cher we went but one at a time with our guide; the entrance thereinto is lowe and narrow. The place it selfe is but the length of an ordinary Sepulcher, it is now as high as an Altar or table, of faire marble stone, and there are lampes continually burning night and day.

That this Sepulcher standeth in the same place as the Sepul∣cher did wherein the bodie of our Sauiour Christ was laid, wée made no doubt, because it was agréeable to the circumstances of Scripture whereby the place is described.

But I asked our guide whether any part of the selfesame se∣pulcher wherein the blessed bodie of our Sauiour was laid,

were to be séene there? Hee answered me, that some part of it was at Rome, and some other part of it lay inclosed vnder that Altar; but not to be seene.

And further he told me, that at the first, after the resurrecti∣on of our Sauiour Christ, all the whole Sepulcher was to bee seene for many yeeres space, vntill strangers (who came to vi∣site it) began to breake off péeces and to cary them away: then it was inclosed with barres, and to be séene through the barres, but not to bée touched, as some Sepulchers in Saint Pauls Church in London are.

Yet they saw inconueniences héerein, in that many vsed to cast into it the first haire of their children, and some candles, and other things as an offering thereunto; so that the place could not be kéep neate. Wherefore Quéene Helena caused it to bée inclosed in such sort as it now is, and couered it with Marble.

But whether any part of the selfe same Sepulcher were vn∣derneath the same or not; it gaue me content that I had seene the selfe same place where the Sepulcher of our blessed Sauiour was; as I in heart did then, and do still perswade my selfe it is.

Many superstitious Papists exept on their knees to the Se∣pulcher, mumbling vp their praiers vpon heads as they went, according to the definition of Poperie, which is rightly defined by Baptista Mantuanus, to be a Religion:

Quae filo insertis numerat sua murmura baccis.

Poperie is a religion which vseth to patter, Aue Mar•• vpon beads, and the Pater noster.

Not far from thence is the Sepulcher of Godfroy of Bul••oyn•• and King Baldewyn, who conquered that countrey in the yéere 1098. And both of them lie there buried, with the whole proportion of their bodies in stone, with these Epitaphs about them.

An ••nscription written about the Sepulcher of Godfroy of Bulloyne at Ierusalem.

Hic iacet inclytus Godfridus de Bul'ion, qui totam hanc terram ac∣quisi••it cultui diuino, cuius anima requiescat in pace. Amen.

That is,

Heere lieth famous GOD••ROY of Bulloine, who got all this Land to the worship of God, whose soule resteth in peace. Amen.

And néere vnto it, about King Baldwines Tombe, these ver∣ses are written:

Rex Baldewinus Iudas alter Machabaeus, Spes patriae, vigor Ecclesiae, virtus vtriusque, Quem formidabant, cui dona, tributa ferebant, Caesar Aegypti Dan, ac homicida Damascus; Proh dolor, in modico clauditur hoc Tumulo▪

The same in English:

Another Iudas Machabaeus (King Baldwyn) heere doth rest, His Countries hope, the Churches strength, The vertue both possest: Whom murtherous Damascus fear'd, Egyptian Caesar Dan, Brought gifts and tribute: yet (alas!) This small Tombe holds this man.

This Godfrey of Bulloine was the first proclaimed Christi∣an King of Ierusalem, who refused to be crowned there, saying, that it was vnfit that the seruants head should there be crow∣ned with gold, where the Masters head had béene crowned with thornes.

Ierusalem is gouerned by Turkes, but inhabited by Christi¦ans of sundry Nations, whereof some come onely to visit and superstitiously to worship there, and so returne into their coun∣tries. Others come thither to dwell, and exercise their manu∣all arts, with a purpose there to die, thinking that they shall sooner goe to heauen if they die there, than in any other place.

There were at Ierusalem (when we were there) Christians of sundry Nations, especially Armenians, whereof some are called Georgians, and some Iacobites. Their Patriarke was not there, but least sicke, at Aleppo; but in his place he sent an Armenian Bishop.

There were also many Greekes, Chel••alines, Nostranes o••

Nazaritans, Cofties, and Abassens or Aethiopians of Prestar Iohns Country, whereof some of them dwelt néere vnto Catadupa, which is a place in Aethiopia, where the fall of the riuer Nilus maketh such a noise, that the people are made deafe therewith that dwell néere it: Besides many Italians, Frenchmen, Dutch∣men, and vs fiue Englishmen.

Many Turkes also visited the Sepulcher of Christ; for they both thinke and speake very reuerently of Christ. And though they doe not beleeue to be saued by Christ, yet they say hée was a great Prophet, but that Mahomet was greater. And vsual∣ly when they haue ended their Ceremonies at Meccha, at their returne they visit the Sepulcher of Christ at Ierusalem. For they haue an opinion, that vnlesse they visit the Sepulcher of Christ, and the Holy Land, as well as the Sepulcher of Maho∣met, their pilgrimage to Mecha were to no purpose, nor accep∣table to God.

But I saw not one Iew in all Ierusalem; for they are so hate∣full to the Christians there, that they seldome come thither.

Notes

• 〈…〉〈…〉.
• Ziph.
• Iudea.