had many woollen garments meant for trading in any destination they might have ended up in. It has therefore been posited by historians that Willoughby and his crew died not from exposure to the elements, but from carbon monoxide poisoning. The surrounding bay would have had ample supplies of sea coal and it was likely that men would have been sent out to gather material to keep them warm, and any combustion of sea coal in an enclosed area could easily have led to their deaths in a small ship hold. At any rate, Willoughby sent out scouts in various directions with the instruction to return after three days travelling if they had not found any human contact. All of these journeys failed. Chancellor was luckier. He penetrated the White Sea, where the local fishermen were amazed by the great size of his Western-built ship. He reached the harbour of Nikolo-Korelsky Monastery on the Northern Dvina river (near the present-day Arkhangelsk, which would be eventually founded in 1584 to service the growing trade). The region had just recently been added to Muscovy, and when Tsar Ivan IV heard of Chancellor's arrival, he immediately invited the exotic guest to visit Moscow for an audience at the royal court. Chancellor made the journey of over to Moscow through snow- and ice-covered country. He found Moscow large (much larger than London) and primitively built, most houses being constructed of wood. However, the palace of the Tsar was very luxurious, as were the dinners he offered Chancellor. The Russian Tsar was pleased to open the sea trading-routes with England and other countries, as Russia did not yet have a safe connection with the Baltic Sea at the time and almost all of the area was contested by the neighbouring powers of Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Swedish Empire. In addition, the Hanseatic League had a monopoly on the trade between Russia and Central and Western Europe. Chancellor was no less optimistic, finding a good market for his English wool, and receiving furs and other Russian continental goods in return. When he returned to England in 1554, he had letters from the Tsar with him, inviting English traders and promising trade privileges. Chartering of the Muscovy Company The Company of Merchant Adventurers to New Lands was rechartered as the Muscovy Company by Mary I of England in 1555,