William Bolton

William Bolton, from Warwick, was a British trader in Madeira between 1695 and 1714. He is known to us now because of his extensive correspondence with his trading partner, Robert Heysham, a merchant banker in the City of London.

A 1663 British Ordinance exempted Madeira and the Azores from the requirement that goods shipped from British ports should go in British vessels. British merchants established themselves in Funchal, creating a tradition that continues to this day. Bolton arrived in Madeira in 1695 and is believed to have left in 1714. There was a lively market for Madeiran wine (which was not then the fortified wine we know today), both in England and America. There was also good demand from visiting ships as wine protected against scurvy.
 

Bolton imported cloth and grain, as well as furniture, clothes, leather, glass, and small manufactured items. With Heysham’s financial backing he exported wine and brandy and sugar-preserved fruit to England, the West Indies and America and imported sugar from Barbados, salted cod from Newfoundland, and whale oil and timber from New York and New England. Many of the transactions involved a “triangular” arrangement with Heysham’s brother in Barbados. He did not hesitate to criticise his trading partners when they sent poor-quality or unsaleable goods, but the relationship continued to flourish.

Bolton reported on the merchant and military ships that called at Madeira, giving details of their origin, destination, cargo, name, type, and captain. He relayed to Heysham news of shipping lost and battles that took place. His letters placed orders with Heysham and complained when shipments sold badly. His letters also made provision for his relatives in England.

Additionally, he reported on the quality and quantity of the vintage, the market and probable price, as well as the weather. He had little to say about the Madeiran people or politics, although he was exiled temporarily in 1696 and sent to Lisbon after a rival laid false information (according to Bolton) against him, which led to his imprisonment for forty-eight hours in Funchal followed by deportation. In Lisbon he was able to persuade the authorities that he had been victimised, and six months later he was back in Funchal. After that he did all he could to keep on the right side of the authorities, asking Heysham to send clocks that he could give as presents to the Governor.

We know Bolton as the result of a bookseller from Leicester buying the papers of a country library, among which were around 225 of his letters. These were bought and transcribed by André Simon, the prolific writer on wine. The Bolton Letters: The Letters of an English Merchant in Madeira, 1695-1714 volume 1: 1695-1700, was published in 1928. The second volume, covering the later letters, was never published by Simon. He gave the typescript to Graham Blandy, of the Blandy family in Madeira, who produced a second volume going up to 1714  and sold copies in mimeographed form to raise funds for the Holy Trinity Church in Funchal. Apart from his letters there is no further information about Bolton such as when he left Madeira or when he died.