The Great Captain to Lorenzo Suárez, 17 August 1500 (Espagnol 318 no. 92)

At a glanceKnown key applied · none (key obtained, text not read)

The letter: Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba, the Great Captain, to Lorenzo Suárez de Figueroa, Spain’s ambassador at Venice, 17 August 1500. This is the copy sent to the secretary Almazán.
Where: Bibliothèque nationale de France, Espagnol 318 no. 92, f. 116r–v (Gallica, canvases 440–441). It is one of five ciphered letters in the volume, catalogue item 9.
The cipher: The Cifra general de los Reyes Católicos: invented signs for letters, up to five for a vowel, mixed with three-letter code groups (683 in the key) for words and names.
How it was deciphered: Galende Díaz printed the key in 1994 and Tomokiyo assigned the letter to it. A later hand’s glosses between the lines confirm it: eight words, no misses. Both pages were then transcribed and deciphered with the key.
What it says: He will take the fleet against the Turk, but at a price. He wants harbours in Italy for his sick, his wounded and his stores, as the Pope had given him before.
Still open: Six code groups that contradict the printed key, and about ten stretches of letter signs. With them, f. 116r ll. 8–11, 16, 18–21, 26–31 and 34 are sign strings rather than sentences, so most cipher sentences have holes and the letter is decoded, not read (reading audit, 22 October 2026); “What it says” is a gist.
Other letters: The other ciphered letters of the volume use other ciphers and have their own pages: no. 5 (Escrivà’s cipher), no. 95 (Lasry’s alphabet) and nos. 93–94 (key not identified).

01 The volume and this letter

The volume (ark btv1b52503046q, 486 canvases, 127 folios) is the autograph collection of the Ruffo di Scilla princes, sold in 1854 and bought by the BnF in 1857; Morel-Fatio catalogued it in 1892 as no. 172. Its hundred items are letters to Ferdinand and Isabella from most of the crowned heads of Europe. Five are wholly or partly in cipher, and the catalogue had listed four. Until 14 October 2026 this page covered all five. They use at least four different ciphers, so each now has its own page:

Item	ff.	Letter	Cipher	Page
no. 5	5–6v	Federico III of Naples to the Catholic Monarchs, San Germano, 11 Jan 1497	Joan Ram Escrivà’s cipher no. 1	federico1497
no. 92	116–116v	Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba to Lorenzo Suárez, 17 Aug 1500	Cifra general de los Reyes Católicos	this page
no. 93	118–118v	Lorenzo Suárez to the Catholic Monarchs, Venice, 24 Feb 1504	not identified	esp318no93
no. 94	120–121v	The viceroy of Sicily to Ferdinand, Messina, 27 Apr 1503	not identified	esp318no93
no. 95	122–122v	Unaddressed cipher, 8 Jan 1497	George Lasry’s 2022 alphabet	esp318no95

All five are in one office’s style. A cipher of Ferdinand’s secretariat is two things at once: a homophonic alphabet, three to five invented symbols per letter, and a nomenclator of two-, three- and four-letter groups (consonant, vowel, consonant) written in ordinary Latin letters in the same hand, standing for words, names and syllables. The nomenclator is one-part: the vocabulary runs alphabetically and the groups run in a fixed order beside it, so the initial letter of a group tells you roughly where in the alphabet its plaintext sits.

02 The key confirmed against its glosses

F. 116 is headed by its sender, la respuesta q[ue] enbio a los s[eño]res en xbij de ag[osto] 1500, and opens in clear:

Muy mag[nifico] Señor: a los xiiij d[e]l presente recebi v[uest]ra letra con hun breve d[e]l papa y otras dos cartas del embax[ad]or veneçiano con uno suyo, dando priesa en my yda a la resistençia del turco. E porq[ue] esto es conforme a la voluntad e mandami[ento] q[ue] yo tengo de sus al[teza]s, en virtud de Jhu Xpo yo me dispongo a ello con toda la celeridad y presteza q[ue] el caso requiere…

and then alternates clear and cipher for two pages. It is Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba, the Great Captain, writing to the Lorenzo Suárez of the notice (Lorenzo Suárez de Figueroa, Spain’s ambassador at Venice until his death there in 1506, whose own ciphered letters Galende Díaz lists), about the expedition against the Turk. This is the copy kept for the secretary Miguel Pérez de Almazán. Tomokiyo’s page on the Spanish ciphers notes that the Great Captain “used this cipher” (Ferdinand and Isabella’s general cipher of about 1500–02) in this letter, and lists the letter itself as having no known decipherment.

This could be tested, because a later hand wrote a partial decipherment between the lines of f. 116r. The glossator deciphered a few words and stopped; his words are the control.

Two lines of cipher on f. 116r with a later hand's words written small between them — BnF Espagnol 318 f. 116r. Between the two ciphered lines, in a later and lighter hand, *y tpo — por — estar — en — tanto*. They gloss the line below: `h boy zez xiz 7 xuy baz`. In the printed key `boy` is *Tiempo*, `zez` *Por*, `xiz` *Esta*, `xuy` En, `baz` *Tanto*; `7` is the alphabet’s r and `h` its e, the conjunction the glossator spelled y. Image: Bibliothèque nationale de France, Espagnol 318 f. 116r, via Gallica (btv1b52503046q).

Juan Carlos Galende Díaz printed the key in 1994, from a file of twelve ciphers in the Real Academia de la Historia (B.R.A.H. 9/15): his appendix 1 is the Cifra general de los Reyes Católicos, ff. 7–9 of that file. Checked against the glosses, its plates give eight independent matches and no conflict:

Gloss on the leaf	Cipher	In the printed key
lo	`yuy`	Lo
y · tpo	`h` · `boy`	(alphabet e) · Tiempo
por	`zez`	Por
estar	`xiz` + `7`	Esta + r
en	`xuy`	En
tanto	`baz`	Tanto
el negoçio	`xix` `zol`	El · Negocio
de	`xup`	De
puede	`zuy`	Puede
no	`zik`	No
—	`bob`	Que

A gloss-anchored line then decodes straight through:

ct   h  boy      zez    xiz  7  xuy  baz      ff k …
pt   y  tiempo   por    esta r  en   tanto    p  g …

giving …y tiempo, por estar en tanto…, which is what the glossator wrote above it. F. 116v ends half in clear, and the codes sit inside sentences whose sense is clear without the key: …no desconfio que mucho se pudiera aprovechar … esta var … zin se ha ofreçido … yo me desnudo y descargo y me satisfago en que n[uest]r[o]…, with zin = Nápoles, xar = después, biz = toda, xuy = en. Below that a later inventory hand: Inventº 11 Ottº 53.

The key is transcribed here as keys/cifra_general.txt: 683 code groups from the plates (pp. 167–173), plus the twenty-one personal signs: Papa = A, Emperador = B, Rey de Françia = F, Rey de Spanya = G, Reyna de Spanya = 4, Principe de Spanya = C, Rey de Inglaterra = S, Rey de Napoles = □, Duque de Calabria = R, Infanta doña Juana = oTT, Don Fadrique prinçipe de Altamira = S†.

03 The two pages deciphered

Both pages were transcribed line by line on 21 September 2026, 36 lines on the recto and 11 on the verso, against the symbol alphabet Galende prints on p. 167. The hand leans on a few forms the specimen line had not shown: the fifth form of A (a reversed C with a hash) and the fifth form of E (a q with a k written below it) carry most of the vowels, the crossed T is the key’s “duplicate” sign for LL (vituallas, Pulla, llamó), and the clear hand’s con- abbreviation turns up inside the cipher (contenté con el, con color de). About three quarters of the words are deciphered. On 23 October 2026 the line table was written out as running Spanish with the clear passages (texts/f116_running_reading.md, English texts/f116_en.md); it is a partial reading, with unread groups in brackets. Two passages:

Mas parece me que si buena obra como esta, con tanto diferencia e trabajo desto armada, no deve pasar caso, solo cargo, sin grande remuneracion.

… que sera bien que nos de [?nardo] aquella se […] puertos de Italia donde esta armada se pueda recoger quando el tiempo lo requiriese, por no aver de bolver tan lexos, para si al tiempo menester ha de aprovechar, y aun para poner nuestros dolientes y heridos y ropa e vituallas, y estos navios si les […] reparar algo. De manera que podamos estar a […] nuestro, sin los ynconvenientes de estar en casas agenas; [?adelante] crecer; y el parescer no se [zog] […] esta [?demandado], por que quando el me llamo para el cerco de Ostia le demande lo mismo por [?medio] de Garcilaso, y lo ovo por bien

“But it seems to me that so good a work as this, with so much difference and labour of this fleet, should not pass as a mere duty without great reward. … that it will be well that they give us […] ports of Italy where this fleet can shelter when the season requires, so as not to have to go back so far, … and also to put our sick and wounded, and clothing and victuals, and these ships, if they […] to repair something. So that we may be at […] ours, without the inconveniences of being in other men’s houses … because when he [the Pope] called me to the siege of Ostia I asked him the same through Garcilaso, and he was content.” The group zems, first taken for a misprint, is Galende’s Ostia after all: the 1497 siege for Alexander VI. Lines 31–32 give “ciudad … [?Tarachina]” (Terracina). Lines 8–14 and 18–21 still do not build sentences, so the letter remains decoded, not read.

That is Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba bargaining with Venice, through the Spanish ambassador there, before the joint campaign against the Turks at Cephalonia in the autumn of 1500: he will bring the fleet, but he wants Italian harbours of his own for it, as the Pope had given him. The full line-by-line transcription and decipherment are in f116_reading.md.

Two outside checks. Tomokiyo’s cryptiana page carries, commented out in its source, his own partial decipherment of the opening, “[paresce?] me que tan buena obra como esta con tanto diferencia e trabaio desto armada no deve pasar caso solo cargo sin grande [r]emuneración”, which corrects three groups first taken for misprints here: zap is zag = me, bac is vac = armada, and xie = cargo as printed. Sanuto’s Diarii (vol. III, cols. ~708–709) report the same demand from the Venetian side eight days later: the Spanish ambassador told the Venetian envoy in Rome that Gonsalvo wanted a cruciata, precedence, “qualli porto li piace a li bisogni” and victuals; off Corfù in October he told the Venetian proveditor he wanted a harbour “seperato” from theirs.

A third pass tested Sanuto’s terms (cruciata, jubileo, precedence) as cribs on recto lines 8–11. They are not there, since those lines weigh whether the enterprise suits Their Highnesses, but the pass settled zie as parescer, the value Tomokiyo guessed: zie followed by the letters R I A and tener gives pareceria tener, and the same value fits all five places. Lines 8–11 now decipher as si empresa a propósito de sus altezas … no hablo en ello … segun la necesidad dellos ay … en semejante acatamiento pareceria tener mas respeto a ….

04 What is not deciphered

Six code groups still contradict Galende’s printed values wherever they stand: bog (three times, printed Rey de Portugal, probably boz = todo), and zeb, xob, zer, zog, bue (twice); zems, once among them, was settled as Ostia on 23 October 2026. Either the 1994 plates misprint them, as they visibly misprint others, or the letter used a variant copy of the table; the manuscript, BRAH 9/15 ff. 7–9, which is not digitised, would settle it. About ten stretches of letter signs are also unplaced (grade I), mostly where the q-shaped N and the reversed-9 S cannot be told apart at this resolution. Words in the blockquote are grade C where the signs are certain and the Spanish runs, M where a word was completed from context. The share of about three quarters is an estimate by line from the prose reading; no token count was kept.

05 Method

Almost all of the work was bibliographic, and the order mattered: shelfmark first, cipher second. Searching for the cipher family found Galende Díaz’s appendix, which is the key; the interlinear glosses proved it; the reading is transcription against the printed alphabet. No key was recovered here. Line pitch comes from the autocorrelation of the ink profile (113 px on f. 116r), and three-line half-width strips at 2.6–3× are the readable unit for this hand. The replay below follows the steps recorded for this letter.

Full texts

The transcription and the decryption of every document on this page, so that the reading can be used and checked. Short files are shown here; all are in the repository.

no. 92, ff. 116r-v, the Great Captain to Lorenzo Suárez, 17 Aug 1500 decoded, not read

Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba answers Lorenzo Suárez's request, on the Pope's and Venice's behalf, that he take the fleet against the Turk (the Cephalonia campaign of autumn 1500): he will go, but asks for great remuneration and for ports in Italy (Venice holds Brindisi and Otranto in Apulia) where the fleet can land its sick and wounded and refit. f116_reading.md gives the transcription and the reading line by line; about three quarters of the words read, with open codes and letter stretches listed there.

A mechanical decode with holes in most sentences: shown so that the transcription and the key can be checked and improved, not as a reading.

Transcription

f116_reading.md

# Espagnol 318 no. 92, ff. 116r–116v: transcription and reading

Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba to Lorenzo Suárez de Figueroa, 17 Aug 1500 (the heading says "la
respuesta que enbio a los señores en xvij de agosto 1500"). Transcribed 21 Sept 2026 from `full/f116r.jpg` and
`full/f116v.jpg` (line strips cut at the ink-profile line centres, 1:1 at 4155 px), against the *Cifra general de los
Reyes Católicos* (Galende Díaz 1994, app. doc. 1, p. 167 alphabet; pp. 167–173 codes, `keys/cifra_general.txt`).

## Conventions

* `code` in lower case: a nomenclator group, with its key value after `=`.
* Upper-case letters: single cipher signs, given by their value in the key's alphabet (the sign shapes are not
  reproduced; the sign-to-letter table used is below).
* `?`: a sign read but not placed; `[…]`: a stretch not resolved; `«…»`: clear text in the letter itself.
* Glosses: the later interlinear hand on f. 116r (lines 8–14), recorded in `ct92_glosses.txt`.

## Sign table as used (Galende's p. 167 alphabet; what the hand actually writes)

| letter | forms met on the leaf |
|---|---|
| A | ɑ, ɑ+ (ɑ4), ɑ# , ɑp, **⊃#** (5th form: very frequent, looks like `⊃u`) |
| B | τ, τ# , τφ |
| C | +, #φ, ## |
| D | ꝺ (round), -o, o- ; a p with a cross-bar below (in *criados*, *de*) |
| E | h (ƀ), ħ, ħ°, **q with k below** (5th form) |
| F | m, mo |
| G | k, k with bar |
| H | ß, ∞- , 8 |
| I | 3, 3+, 3u, 3p, ℒ |
| L | n, np, n°; the crossed T (Ŧ) is the *duplicate* LL |
| M | p, ƥ (not always separable from D's crossed form) |
| N | q, q crossed, q with o (N 4th; also read as R in *remuneración*, *remito*: see open points) |
| O | ɓ (v-like), ✗o, e' (ℯ), ſſ-like |
| P | ſ, ſſ |
| R | 7, =7, o7 |
| S | ɉ/9, 2o, ⊃- , φ (a crossed o, not in Galende's plate but S by *segun*, *sus altezas*, *agenas*) |
| T | b, ƀ (crossed), b° |
| U/V | d (tall), d°, ### |
| X | ẋ (dotted), ɑ‿ |
| Y | o, ø, øH |
| Z | ẋ, ẍ |
| *con* | ꝯ (written like `ce`): the clear hand's *con-* abbreviation carried into the cipher |

`9` stands for both N (q-shaped) and S (ɉ-shaped); the two are not reliably told apart at this resolution, and each was
settled by the word.

## f. 116r

The first four lines are clear: *"Muy mag[nifi]co Señor. A los xiiij del presente recebi v[uest]ra letra con hun breve
del papa y otras dos cartas del embaxador veneçiano con uno suyo, dando priesa en my yda a la resistençia del turco;
por que esto es conforme a la voluntad e mandamiento que yo tengo de Sus Altezas. En virtud de Ihesu Christo yo me
dispongo a ello con toda la celeridad y presteza que el caso requiere."* Then:

| line | transcription | reading |
|---|---|---|
| 5 end | zec | *mas* |
| 6 | zie zag bob baq vap O B R A xo xiz xe baz xir E T R A B A I O xam vac | *parece me que si buena obra como esta, con tanto diferencia e trabajo desto armada* |
| 7 | zik xem P A S A R xa S O L O xie baq-N yol R E M U N E R A C I O N | *no deve pasar caso, solo cargo sin grande remuneración* |
| 8 | E° xob bob xiz boy bit I A baq xuy H R E A P R O P O S I T O xup bep | *[e] [xob] que esta [boe/boc] seria, si empresa a propósito de su* (xuy + P R E S A = *en presa* = *empresa*; the ß sign reads P) |
| 9 | S A L T E Z A S A zik H A B L O xuy E LL O zeb bob xix boy zik | *(de su) s[us] altezas, a[?]; no hablo en ello, [zeb] que el tiempo no* |
| 10 | bep F R E S E G U N L A N E C E S I D A D xuq S D zez bob yeb R A | *su-fre, segun la necesidad dellos ay, por que [yeb-ra: fablara?]* |
| 11 | xuy buy boy xuy S E M E I A N T E vog zie R I A T E ? E S E R zer R E S H E | *en tal tiempo, en semejante acatamiento pareceria tener mas respe-* (`zie`+R I A = *pareceria*; `zer` read as `zec` = *mas*; R E S P E + T O on l. 12) |
| 12 | T O A zie bob A B E N E F I C I O xiq vot Y zez xez xix ceh bob | *-to a [lo que] parece que a beneficio de la christiandad; y por esto el yr que* |
| 13 | T O C A A zuf ‖ yuy M O N G O L U E G O xuy O B R A yuy zer bob | *toca a mi, lo pongo luego en obra, lo [zer] que* (gloss: *lo pon[go] … luego*) |
| 14 | xiy yuy xaq zub R E M I T O bux A [af] zez bob T E N E [..] zud xuo | *es lo del mar(?); remito se a … por que tene[mos] mejor dispusicion* (gloss: *mejor dispusicion*) |
| 15 | E boy zez xiz R xuy baz P E L I G R O xix zol E [ap] baz L E X O S | *y tiempo, por estar en tanto peligro el negocio, e a tanto lexos* (gloss: *y tpo por estar en tanto … el negocio*) |
| 16 | xup D O N ? ? E N E zuy zol R yuy bob [yo] xuy xaz xa bob R I X ~~xiy~~ | *de donde [..]ene puede negociar lo que yo en este caso que [rix]* (gloss: *de … puede … lo que yo … este caso*) |
| 17 | Y viz bob bep S A L T E Z A S zik yuy A U R I A N zez zoc xiy | *y creo que su[s] altezas no lo avrian por mal; es* |
| 18 | bob xiz N [H R E ? A A N] xaq biy bob xiz N xuy zoy xup ce bux P A S A | *que estan [..] del [Turco/Turquia] que estan en poder de venecianos se pasa-* |
| 19 | S E N A zam zoy zec zez bob S E G U N yaz vaz xeq S ce Y O xaq zie | *-sen a nuestro poder, mas por que segun la condicion de los venecianos y o del parescer* (glosses: *mas*, *la*, *[con]dicion*) |
| 20 | zik bue xo bux ben I A [H E P E N S A S O] bob bue xem P E D I R I S | *no [quanta] como se recebiria […] que [quanta] deve pedir […]* |
| 21 | [O S S Y] zik vek xuy xiz zif bob «esta armada va en tanta estrañeza de reynos y la gente della mucha y de estraña condicion para cruzarse en mezcla de otra mucha gente, que sera bien que» zok xup N A R D O vik bu? | *no aquello en esta manera, que esta armada …; que sera bien que nos de [nardo?] aquella se …* |
| 22 | P U E R T O S D E I T A [L I A] D O N D E «esta armada se pueda recoger quando el tiempo lo requiriese» | *puertos de Italia donde esta armada se pueda recoger quando el tiempo lo requiriese* |
| 23 | «por no» A U E R D E vir T A N L E X O S «[p]ara» | *por no aver de bolver tan lexos para* |
| 24 | «si al tiempo menester ha de aprovechar y aun para poner» zam S D O L I E N T E S | *…y aun para poner nuestros dolientes* |
| 25 | Y H E R I D O S Y R O P A E V I T U A LL A S Y xez S zal | *y heridos y ropa e vituallas; y estos navios* |
| 26 | S baq L E S ꝯ? D E R N A «reparar algo.» xup zif bob «podamos estar a» | *si les [..] reparar algo. De manera que podamos estar a* |
| 27 | D O ? O N U E S T R O S I N «los ynconvenientes de estar en» C A S A | *[..] nuestro, sin los ynconvenientes de estar en casa* |
| 28 | S A G E N A S S D E L E N T E C R E C E R Y xix zie zik bux zog | *agenas; [adelante] crecer; y el parescer no se [zog]* |
| 29 | R A P xiz xup zoh zez bob bub xix zag LL A M O ziz xix xec xup | *[rap] esta de manda[do?] por que quando el me llamó para el cerco de* |
| 30 | zems «le demande» yuy zuf S M O zez zag H I O xup G A R C I L A | *[zems] le demandé lo mismo por [me? medio?] de Garcila-* |
| 31 | S O «y lo ovo por bien e me» ꝯ S zu? S O A ? vur [U I E I A E A] T A | *-so, y lo ovo por bien e me con[s…] … ciudad …* |
| 32 | R A C H I N A «de buena voluntad e por que los» vok S E R A N E S | *… de buena voluntad; e por que los alcaydes eran es-* |
| 33 | P A Ñ O L E S Y C R I A D O S «del Rey nuestro Señor yo me» | *-pañoles y criados del Rey nuestro Señor, yo me* |
| 34 | ꝯ T E N T E ꝯ xix P L E ? T O ? D E N A G E xuq S A S I bob «confor-» | *contenté con el [pleyto?] … que confor-* |
| 35 | «me a esta via me parece deveys Señor» yeb R xuy xez ꝯ C O L O R | *-me a esta via me parece deveys, Señor, fablar en esto con color* |
| 36 | D E «nuestro descanso y reparo. E por que en aquella parte» P E L E ? U A S T E | *de nuestro descanso y reparo. E por que en aquella parte [..]* |

## f. 116v

| line | transcription | reading |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | N O T I E N E N vog bob baz «satisfiziese de aqui» P O N R I A N A C | *no tienen [vog] que tanto satisfiziese de aqui, pornian a ha-* |
| 2 | E R bob T I E N E N yez bob bog N xuy P U LL A bob ce B R I N D | *-cer que tienen las que [bog=todo(s)?] en Pulla, que venecianos Brind-* |
| 3 | I Z Y O T R A N T O zok xim D O S S A T I S F A Z E R zez | *-izi y Otranto; nos devia [dos] satisfazer, por* |
| 4 | «agora y segund» bep N E C E S I D A D zik viz bob N A D A xam «les sea» | *agora y segund su necesidad no creo que nada desto les sea* |
| 5 | «ynposible y creo que por falta de ref[..]» Y N D U S T R I A bux G A | *ynposible, y creo que por falta de [ref..] yndustria se ga-* |
| 6 | N E P E R D E R bob baq xix boy vof «lo sufriera no seyendo el» P E | *-ne(?) perder; que si el tiempo aqui lo sufriera, no seyendo el pe-* |
| 7 | I G R O T A N xac zik «no desconfio que mucho se pudiera aprovechar» | *-ligro tan cerca, no; no desconfio que mucho se pudiera aprovechar* |
| 8 | xiz vac S E G U N zez xie xat ca zik bob xiz xuy zin «se ha ofre-» | *esta armada segun por [xie] embaxador [de] Venecia, no que esta en Napoles, se ha ofre-* |
| 9 | «-cido y la» N E C E S I D A D bob xup biz zo9 bux S A B E bob xiz | *-cido; y la necesidad que de toda parte se sabe que esta* |
| 10 | bi? I A bog «yo me desnudo y descargo y me satisfago en que» | *[..]ia [bog]; yo me desnudo y descargo y me satisfago en que* |
| 11 | ꝯ bux T E N E ? S xaz zol xuy yez M A N O S | *con se tene[mo]s este negocio en las manos* — then the rúbrica |

Below, in later hands: "117-2825-86", "Inventº 11 Ottº 53" and the name "G. martinez" (a keeper's or an owner's mark, not the sender's).

## What the letter says

The Great Captain answers Suárez's letter of the 14th, which came with a papal brief and two letters of the Venetian
ambassador pressing him to go against the Turk. He is ready to go, but the cipher sets the price: he will not move
"without great remuneration" (*no deve pasar … si no grande remuneración*), because Their Highnesses' interest is
served (*a beneficio de la christiandad*), and time presses: *"por estar en tanto peligro el negocio, e a tanto
lexos."* Venice holds ports in Apulia, *Brindizi y Otranto*, and he wants ports in Italy *donde esta armada se pueda
recoger quando el tiempo lo requiriese, por no aver de bolver tan lexos*, where he can land *nuestros dolientes y
heridos y ropa e vituallas* and refit the ships, *sin los ynconvenientes de estar en casas agenas*. When the Pope
called him for the siege [of …] he asked the same through Garcilaso (de la Vega, the ambassador at Rome) and got it
willingly, because the castellans were Spaniards and servants of the King. Suárez should raise it with the Venetians
*con color de nuestro descanso y reparo*. On the verso: Venice ought to satisfy them, *segund su necesidad no creo que
nada desto les sea ynposible*; if the season allowed and the danger were not so near, much could be done with the
fleet; the ambassador of Venice at Naples has offered it; he washes his hands of it (*yo me desnudo y descargo*) and
is content that the business is in Suárez's hands.

That is the Cephalonia campaign of autumn 1500: the Spanish fleet joined the Venetians against the Turk after this
exchange, and the bargaining over Apulian ports is the price Gonzalo sets for it.

## Corrections and corroboration (21 Sept 2026, second pass)

* **Tomokiyo's unpublished partial reading.** The source of cryptiana's `spanish.htm` carries a commented-out reading of
  the opening: *"[Paresce?] me que tan buena obra como esta con tanto diferencia e trabaio desto armada no deve pasar
  caso solo cargo sin grande -emuneracion"*. It fixes lines 6–7: `zap` is `zag` = *me* (the hand's g has a p-like
  tail), `bac` is `vac` = *armada* (code v written like ɓ), `xie` = *cargo* and `xir` = *diferencia* are right as
  printed, `baq` + N = *sin*, and the sign read Y in *yolo* is S (*solo*). His guess for `zie` is *Paresce* (`zix`).
* **Sanuto, *I Diarii* III** (archive.org `idiariidimarinos03sanu`). Rome, Paolo Capello, 25 Aug 1500 (cols. ~708–709):
  the Spanish ambassador said *don Consalvo … voria aver dal papa una cruciata, per poter tenir l'armata … voria ditto
  capetanio precedesse il nostro in arma'; 2.° aver qualli porto li piace a li bisogni; tertio, vituarie*. Off Corfù,
  early October (cols. ~982–983): *voria saper dove avere porto e vituarie, per i miei danari … non saria bene che le
  duo armade facesse porto in uno luogo; io voria averlo seperato.* On 13 Sept Venice ordered its Brindisi castellans
  to receive the Spanish fleet, *tamen custodissano la terra e 'l castello*. This is the demand of this letter,
  reported from the other side. The *cruciata*/jubilee (granted, col. ~749) may be what the unread stretches of
  ll. 8–11 ask for.
* **Zurita**, *Historia del rey don Hernando*, 1500: the Venetian envoy at Messina *movió alguna plática de ofrecer al
  Rey Católico a Brindez*.
* **Not found online:** the key manuscript (RAH 9/15 is not in the RAH Biblioteca Digital), and any printed clear copy
  of the letter (CODOIN, Zurita, *Noticias inéditas del Gran Capitán*, archive.org full text; Serrano y Pineda's RABM
  series was not reachable).

## Third pass: Sanuto's cribs on recto ll. 8–11 (21 Sept 2026)

Lines 8–11 were re-read at 1.5× the full scan with Sanuto's terms as cribs (*cruciata*/*cruzada*, *jubileo*,
precedence, victuals *por mis dineros*). None of them is in these lines: the stretch is about whether the enterprise
suits Their Highnesses and about the season, not the conditions, which come later (ll. 21–27, harbours and
vituallas). The re-read did settle other things:

* `zie` = *parescer* (Tomokiyo's guess, *Paresce*): `zie` + R I A + T E N E R on l. 11 reads *pareceria tener*, and
  the value fits all five places (*parece me que…*, *parece que a beneficio…*, *del parescer*, *el parescer no se…*).
  Galende prints *Mercadoria* against `zie` and *Paresce* against `zix`; either his plate slips or the table the
  secretariat issued differed.
* l. 8 *si empresa a propósito de sus altezas* (`xuy` + P R E S A, the ß sign = P); l. 9 *no hablo en ello* (crossed T =
  LL again); l. 10 *segun la necesidad dellos ay*; l. 11 *en semejante acatamiento pareceria tener mas respeto a*
  (`vog` = *acatamiento* as printed; `zer` read as `zec` = *mas*, r and c being close in this hand).

## Open points

1. (23 Oct 2026: `zems` = *Ostia* fits after all, "el cerco de Ostia"; see texts/f116_corrections.tsv.) Codes still not resolved after the second and third passes (which settled `zap` = `zag`, `bac` = `vac`, `xie`,
   `zie` = *parescer*, `vog`, and `zer` as `zec`): `zeb`, `zems`, `xob`, `boe`/`boc` in l. 8, `bog` (×3; probably
   `boz` = todo), `bue`, `bi?`, `yeb`+R A in l. 10.
2. Stretches of letter signs not resolved: ll. 11, 18, 20, 21, 27, 28, 31–32, 34, 36 of f. 116r; f. 116v l. 10.
3. The q-with-o sign reads R in *remuneración*/*remito* and N in *necesidad* (v4, v9): either two signs the eye
   merges at this resolution or a scribal slip.
4. The personal-symbol and duplicate tables (p. 167 *Duplicate*, p. 173) were not needed except for LL (Ŧ).

Status: read in part. The subject, the argument and about three quarters of the words are secure; the remainder needs
a sign-by-sign pass at higher magnification, or a comparison with BRAH 9/15 ff. 7–9 itself for the misprinted codes.

Decryption

f116_reading.md

# Espagnol 318 no. 92, ff. 116r–116v: transcription and reading

Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba to Lorenzo Suárez de Figueroa, 17 Aug 1500 (the heading says "la
respuesta que enbio a los señores en xvij de agosto 1500"). Transcribed 21 Sept 2026 from `full/f116r.jpg` and
`full/f116v.jpg` (line strips cut at the ink-profile line centres, 1:1 at 4155 px), against the *Cifra general de los
Reyes Católicos* (Galende Díaz 1994, app. doc. 1, p. 167 alphabet; pp. 167–173 codes, `keys/cifra_general.txt`).

## Conventions

* `code` in lower case: a nomenclator group, with its key value after `=`.
* Upper-case letters: single cipher signs, given by their value in the key's alphabet (the sign shapes are not
  reproduced; the sign-to-letter table used is below).
* `?`: a sign read but not placed; `[…]`: a stretch not resolved; `«…»`: clear text in the letter itself.
* Glosses: the later interlinear hand on f. 116r (lines 8–14), recorded in `ct92_glosses.txt`.

## Sign table as used (Galende's p. 167 alphabet; what the hand actually writes)

| letter | forms met on the leaf |
|---|---|
| A | ɑ, ɑ+ (ɑ4), ɑ# , ɑp, **⊃#** (5th form: very frequent, looks like `⊃u`) |
| B | τ, τ# , τφ |
| C | +, #φ, ## |
| D | ꝺ (round), -o, o- ; a p with a cross-bar below (in *criados*, *de*) |
| E | h (ƀ), ħ, ħ°, **q with k below** (5th form) |
| F | m, mo |
| G | k, k with bar |
| H | ß, ∞- , 8 |
| I | 3, 3+, 3u, 3p, ℒ |
| L | n, np, n°; the crossed T (Ŧ) is the *duplicate* LL |
| M | p, ƥ (not always separable from D's crossed form) |
| N | q, q crossed, q with o (N 4th; also read as R in *remuneración*, *remito*: see open points) |
| O | ɓ (v-like), ✗o, e' (ℯ), ſſ-like |
| P | ſ, ſſ |
| R | 7, =7, o7 |
| S | ɉ/9, 2o, ⊃- , φ (a crossed o, not in Galende's plate but S by *segun*, *sus altezas*, *agenas*) |
| T | b, ƀ (crossed), b° |
| U/V | d (tall), d°, ### |
| X | ẋ (dotted), ɑ‿ |
| Y | o, ø, øH |
| Z | ẋ, ẍ |
| *con* | ꝯ (written like `ce`): the clear hand's *con-* abbreviation carried into the cipher |

`9` stands for both N (q-shaped) and S (ɉ-shaped); the two are not reliably told apart at this resolution, and each was
settled by the word.

## f. 116r

The first four lines are clear: *"Muy mag[nifi]co Señor. A los xiiij del presente recebi v[uest]ra letra con hun breve
del papa y otras dos cartas del embaxador veneçiano con uno suyo, dando priesa en my yda a la resistençia del turco;
por que esto es conforme a la voluntad e mandamiento que yo tengo de Sus Altezas. En virtud de Ihesu Christo yo me
dispongo a ello con toda la celeridad y presteza que el caso requiere."* Then:

| line | transcription | reading |
|---|---|---|
| 5 end | zec | *mas* |
| 6 | zie zag bob baq vap O B R A xo xiz xe baz xir E T R A B A I O xam vac | *parece me que si buena obra como esta, con tanto diferencia e trabajo desto armada* |
| 7 | zik xem P A S A R xa S O L O xie baq-N yol R E M U N E R A C I O N | *no deve pasar caso, solo cargo sin grande remuneración* |
| 8 | E° xob bob xiz boy bit I A baq xuy H R E A P R O P O S I T O xup bep | *[e] [xob] que esta [boe/boc] seria, si empresa a propósito de su* (xuy + P R E S A = *en presa* = *empresa*; the ß sign reads P) |
| 9 | S A L T E Z A S A zik H A B L O xuy E LL O zeb bob xix boy zik | *(de su) s[us] altezas, a[?]; no hablo en ello, [zeb] que el tiempo no* |
| 10 | bep F R E S E G U N L A N E C E S I D A D xuq S D zez bob yeb R A | *su-fre, segun la necesidad dellos ay, por que [yeb-ra: fablara?]* |
| 11 | xuy buy boy xuy S E M E I A N T E vog zie R I A T E ? E S E R zer R E S H E | *en tal tiempo, en semejante acatamiento pareceria tener mas respe-* (`zie`+R I A = *pareceria*; `zer` read as `zec` = *mas*; R E S P E + T O on l. 12) |
| 12 | T O A zie bob A B E N E F I C I O xiq vot Y zez xez xix ceh bob | *-to a [lo que] parece que a beneficio de la christiandad; y por esto el yr que* |
| 13 | T O C A A zuf ‖ yuy M O N G O L U E G O xuy O B R A yuy zer bob | *toca a mi, lo pongo luego en obra, lo [zer] que* (gloss: *lo pon[go] … luego*) |
| 14 | xiy yuy xaq zub R E M I T O bux A [af] zez bob T E N E [..] zud xuo | *es lo del mar(?); remito se a … por que tene[mos] mejor dispusicion* (gloss: *mejor dispusicion*) |
| 15 | E boy zez xiz R xuy baz P E L I G R O xix zol E [ap] baz L E X O S | *y tiempo, por estar en tanto peligro el negocio, e a tanto lexos* (gloss: *y tpo por estar en tanto … el negocio*) |
| 16 | xup D O N ? ? E N E zuy zol R yuy bob [yo] xuy xaz xa bob R I X ~~xiy~~ | *de donde [..]ene puede negociar lo que yo en este caso que [rix]* (gloss: *de … puede … lo que yo … este caso*) |
| 17 | Y viz bob bep S A L T E Z A S zik yuy A U R I A N zez zoc xiy | *y creo que su[s] altezas no lo avrian por mal; es* |
| 18 | bob xiz N [H R E ? A A N] xaq biy bob xiz N xuy zoy xup ce bux P A S A | *que estan [..] del [Turco/Turquia] que estan en poder de venecianos se pasa-* |
| 19 | S E N A zam zoy zec zez bob S E G U N yaz vaz xeq S ce Y O xaq zie | *-sen a nuestro poder, mas por que segun la condicion de los venecianos y o del parescer* (glosses: *mas*, *la*, *[con]dicion*) |
| 20 | zik bue xo bux ben I A [H E P E N S A S O] bob bue xem P E D I R I S | *no [quanta] como se recebiria […] que [quanta] deve pedir […]* |
| 21 | [O S S Y] zik vek xuy xiz zif bob «esta armada va en tanta estrañeza de reynos y la gente della mucha y de estraña condicion para cruzarse en mezcla de otra mucha gente, que sera bien que» zok xup N A R D O vik bu? | *no aquello en esta manera, que esta armada …; que sera bien que nos de [nardo?] aquella se …* |
| 22 | P U E R T O S D E I T A [L I A] D O N D E «esta armada se pueda recoger quando el tiempo lo requiriese» | *puertos de Italia donde esta armada se pueda recoger quando el tiempo lo requiriese* |
| 23 | «por no» A U E R D E vir T A N L E X O S «[p]ara» | *por no aver de bolver tan lexos para* |
| 24 | «si al tiempo menester ha de aprovechar y aun para poner» zam S D O L I E N T E S | *…y aun para poner nuestros dolientes* |
| 25 | Y H E R I D O S Y R O P A E V I T U A LL A S Y xez S zal | *y heridos y ropa e vituallas; y estos navios* |
| 26 | S baq L E S ꝯ? D E R N A «reparar algo.» xup zif bob «podamos estar a» | *si les [..] reparar algo. De manera que podamos estar a* |
| 27 | D O ? O N U E S T R O S I N «los ynconvenientes de estar en» C A S A | *[..] nuestro, sin los ynconvenientes de estar en casa* |
| 28 | S A G E N A S S D E L E N T E C R E C E R Y xix zie zik bux zog | *agenas; [adelante] crecer; y el parescer no se [zog]* |
| 29 | R A P xiz xup zoh zez bob bub xix zag LL A M O ziz xix xec xup | *[rap] esta de manda[do?] por que quando el me llamó para el cerco de* |
| 30 | zems «le demande» yuy zuf S M O zez zag H I O xup G A R C I L A | *[zems] le demandé lo mismo por [me? medio?] de Garcila-* |
| 31 | S O «y lo ovo por bien e me» ꝯ S zu? S O A ? vur [U I E I A E A] T A | *-so, y lo ovo por bien e me con[s…] … ciudad …* |
| 32 | R A C H I N A «de buena voluntad e por que los» vok S E R A N E S | *… de buena voluntad; e por que los alcaydes eran es-* |
| 33 | P A Ñ O L E S Y C R I A D O S «del Rey nuestro Señor yo me» | *-pañoles y criados del Rey nuestro Señor, yo me* |
| 34 | ꝯ T E N T E ꝯ xix P L E ? T O ? D E N A G E xuq S A S I bob «confor-» | *contenté con el [pleyto?] … que confor-* |
| 35 | «me a esta via me parece deveys Señor» yeb R xuy xez ꝯ C O L O R | *-me a esta via me parece deveys, Señor, fablar en esto con color* |
| 36 | D E «nuestro descanso y reparo. E por que en aquella parte» P E L E ? U A S T E | *de nuestro descanso y reparo. E por que en aquella parte [..]* |

## f. 116v

| line | transcription | reading |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | N O T I E N E N vog bob baz «satisfiziese de aqui» P O N R I A N A C | *no tienen [vog] que tanto satisfiziese de aqui, pornian a ha-* |
| 2 | E R bob T I E N E N yez bob bog N xuy P U LL A bob ce B R I N D | *-cer que tienen las que [bog=todo(s)?] en Pulla, que venecianos Brind-* |
| 3 | I Z Y O T R A N T O zok xim D O S S A T I S F A Z E R zez | *-izi y Otranto; nos devia [dos] satisfazer, por* |
| 4 | «agora y segund» bep N E C E S I D A D zik viz bob N A D A xam «les sea» | *agora y segund su necesidad no creo que nada desto les sea* |
| 5 | «ynposible y creo que por falta de ref[..]» Y N D U S T R I A bux G A | *ynposible, y creo que por falta de [ref..] yndustria se ga-* |
| 6 | N E P E R D E R bob baq xix boy vof «lo sufriera no seyendo el» P E | *-ne(?) perder; que si el tiempo aqui lo sufriera, no seyendo el pe-* |
| 7 | I G R O T A N xac zik «no desconfio que mucho se pudiera aprovechar» | *-ligro tan cerca, no; no desconfio que mucho se pudiera aprovechar* |
| 8 | xiz vac S E G U N zez xie xat ca zik bob xiz xuy zin «se ha ofre-» | *esta armada segun por [xie] embaxador [de] Venecia, no que esta en Napoles, se ha ofre-* |
| 9 | «-cido y la» N E C E S I D A D bob xup biz zo9 bux S A B E bob xiz | *-cido; y la necesidad que de toda parte se sabe que esta* |
| 10 | bi? I A bog «yo me desnudo y descargo y me satisfago en que» | *[..]ia [bog]; yo me desnudo y descargo y me satisfago en que* |
| 11 | ꝯ bux T E N E ? S xaz zol xuy yez M A N O S | *con se tene[mo]s este negocio en las manos* — then the rúbrica |

Below, in later hands: "117-2825-86", "Inventº 11 Ottº 53" and the name "G. martinez" (a keeper's or an owner's mark, not the sender's).

## What the letter says

The Great Captain answers Suárez's letter of the 14th, which came with a papal brief and two letters of the Venetian
ambassador pressing him to go against the Turk. He is ready to go, but the cipher sets the price: he will not move
"without great remuneration" (*no deve pasar … si no grande remuneración*), because Their Highnesses' interest is
served (*a beneficio de la christiandad*), and time presses: *"por estar en tanto peligro el negocio, e a tanto
lexos."* Venice holds ports in Apulia, *Brindizi y Otranto*, and he wants ports in Italy *donde esta armada se pueda
recoger quando el tiempo lo requiriese, por no aver de bolver tan lexos*, where he can land *nuestros dolientes y
heridos y ropa e vituallas* and refit the ships, *sin los ynconvenientes de estar en casas agenas*. When the Pope
called him for the siege [of …] he asked the same through Garcilaso (de la Vega, the ambassador at Rome) and got it
willingly, because the castellans were Spaniards and servants of the King. Suárez should raise it with the Venetians
*con color de nuestro descanso y reparo*. On the verso: Venice ought to satisfy them, *segund su necesidad no creo que
nada desto les sea ynposible*; if the season allowed and the danger were not so near, much could be done with the
fleet; the ambassador of Venice at Naples has offered it; he washes his hands of it (*yo me desnudo y descargo*) and
is content that the business is in Suárez's hands.

That is the Cephalonia campaign of autumn 1500: the Spanish fleet joined the Venetians against the Turk after this
exchange, and the bargaining over Apulian ports is the price Gonzalo sets for it.

## Corrections and corroboration (21 Sept 2026, second pass)

* **Tomokiyo's unpublished partial reading.** The source of cryptiana's `spanish.htm` carries a commented-out reading of
  the opening: *"[Paresce?] me que tan buena obra como esta con tanto diferencia e trabaio desto armada no deve pasar
  caso solo cargo sin grande -emuneracion"*. It fixes lines 6–7: `zap` is `zag` = *me* (the hand's g has a p-like
  tail), `bac` is `vac` = *armada* (code v written like ɓ), `xie` = *cargo* and `xir` = *diferencia* are right as
  printed, `baq` + N = *sin*, and the sign read Y in *yolo* is S (*solo*). His guess for `zie` is *Paresce* (`zix`).
* **Sanuto, *I Diarii* III** (archive.org `idiariidimarinos03sanu`). Rome, Paolo Capello, 25 Aug 1500 (cols. ~708–709):
  the Spanish ambassador said *don Consalvo … voria aver dal papa una cruciata, per poter tenir l'armata … voria ditto
  capetanio precedesse il nostro in arma'; 2.° aver qualli porto li piace a li bisogni; tertio, vituarie*. Off Corfù,
  early October (cols. ~982–983): *voria saper dove avere porto e vituarie, per i miei danari … non saria bene che le
  duo armade facesse porto in uno luogo; io voria averlo seperato.* On 13 Sept Venice ordered its Brindisi castellans
  to receive the Spanish fleet, *tamen custodissano la terra e 'l castello*. This is the demand of this letter,
  reported from the other side. The *cruciata*/jubilee (granted, col. ~749) may be what the unread stretches of
  ll. 8–11 ask for.
* **Zurita**, *Historia del rey don Hernando*, 1500: the Venetian envoy at Messina *movió alguna plática de ofrecer al
  Rey Católico a Brindez*.
* **Not found online:** the key manuscript (RAH 9/15 is not in the RAH Biblioteca Digital), and any printed clear copy
  of the letter (CODOIN, Zurita, *Noticias inéditas del Gran Capitán*, archive.org full text; Serrano y Pineda's RABM
  series was not reachable).

## Third pass: Sanuto's cribs on recto ll. 8–11 (21 Sept 2026)

Lines 8–11 were re-read at 1.5× the full scan with Sanuto's terms as cribs (*cruciata*/*cruzada*, *jubileo*,
precedence, victuals *por mis dineros*). None of them is in these lines: the stretch is about whether the enterprise
suits Their Highnesses and about the season, not the conditions, which come later (ll. 21–27, harbours and
vituallas). The re-read did settle other things:

* `zie` = *parescer* (Tomokiyo's guess, *Paresce*): `zie` + R I A + T E N E R on l. 11 reads *pareceria tener*, and
  the value fits all five places (*parece me que…*, *parece que a beneficio…*, *del parescer*, *el parescer no se…*).
  Galende prints *Mercadoria* against `zie` and *Paresce* against `zix`; either his plate slips or the table the
  secretariat issued differed.
* l. 8 *si empresa a propósito de sus altezas* (`xuy` + P R E S A, the ß sign = P); l. 9 *no hablo en ello* (crossed T =
  LL again); l. 10 *segun la necesidad dellos ay*; l. 11 *en semejante acatamiento pareceria tener mas respeto a*
  (`vog` = *acatamiento* as printed; `zer` read as `zec` = *mas*, r and c being close in this hand).

## Open points

1. (23 Oct 2026: `zems` = *Ostia* fits after all, "el cerco de Ostia"; see texts/f116_corrections.tsv.) Codes still not resolved after the second and third passes (which settled `zap` = `zag`, `bac` = `vac`, `xie`,
   `zie` = *parescer*, `vog`, and `zer` as `zec`): `zeb`, `zems`, `xob`, `boe`/`boc` in l. 8, `bog` (×3; probably
   `boz` = todo), `bue`, `bi?`, `yeb`+R A in l. 10.
2. Stretches of letter signs not resolved: ll. 11, 18, 20, 21, 27, 28, 31–32, 34, 36 of f. 116r; f. 116v l. 10.
3. The q-with-o sign reads R in *remuneración*/*remito* and N in *necesidad* (v4, v9): either two signs the eye
   merges at this resolution or a scribal slip.
4. The personal-symbol and duplicate tables (p. 167 *Duplicate*, p. 173) were not needed except for LL (Ŧ).

Status: read in part. The subject, the argument and about three quarters of the words are secure; the remainder needs
a sign-by-sign pass at higher magnification, or a comparison with BRAH 9/15 ff. 7–9 itself for the misprinted codes.

Key: cifra_general.txt, key.md

06 Sources

BnF, Département des Manuscrits, Espagnol 318, ark btv1b52503046q on Gallica; notice cc349255 in Archives et manuscrits. The IIIF full/full images are 4,077–4,155 px wide and are the only ones that will do; Gallica returns HTTP 429 after about six of them in a row.
Juan Carlos Galende Díaz, “La escritura cifrada durante el reinado de los Reyes Católicos y Carlos V”, Cuadernos de Estudios Medievales y Ciencias y Técnicas Historiográficas XVIII–XIX (1993–94), 159–178; appendix 1 is the Cifra general, pp. 167–173.
S. Tomokiyo, “Spanish Ciphers during the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella”, cryptiana.
Marino Sanuto, I Diarii, vol. III.
Working files, images, key transcription and scripts: targets/esp318/, with NOTES.md as the record of what was tried.