Barbary trade and the five-ship expedition of 1598

Contacts from the Armada helped Adams obtain work with the Barbary Company. Senior navigation and fleet responsibilities increased his experience and standing. Overseas trade also offered a route to wealth for someone of his background. His later letter recalls roughly eleven or twelve years serving Barbary merchants and his hiring in 1598 as chief pilot of a five-ship Dutch expedition. The letter connects that choice with applying his navigational knowledge to the Asian trade. A suggested earlier search for the Northeast Passage remains uncertain.