the voyage. Rather than following the normal practice of going south to the tropics and west with the trade winds, Argall, aboard Mary and John, sailed west from the Azores to the Bermuda area, then almost due west to the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. This voyage took only nine weeks and six days, including two weeks becalmed (compared to the three to five months of previous fleets), enabling the English to save on provisions and to also avoid hostile Spanish ships. Upon his arrival at Jamestown, Argall found the colonists in dire straits, since in April an infestation of rats had been discovered, along with dampness, which had destroyed all their stored corn. He resupplied the colony with all the food and wine he could spare (which Smith bought on credit), and also brought the news that the company was being reorganized and was sending more supplies and settlers to Jamestown along with a new governor. Argall then returned to England at the end of the summer of 1609. His unexpected help was significant, in that it came to the colony at one of the most critical moments in its history, as it preceded the Starving Time, and without the provisions Argall had left, the colony may have been totally destroyed. Third supply mission On May 23, 1609, King James issued a new charter for the company to allow for reorganization and additional capital. Company treasurer Thomas Smythe organised a major supply mission, with the goal to rescue the failing settlement. It consisted of nine ships, between 500 and 600 passengers, including women and children, livestock and enough provisions to last a year in "the largest fleet England has ever amassed in the West". Newport, as vice-admiral, commanded Sea Venture, the new flagship of the company, which had been specially built for the purpose. It was considerably larger than the other eight ships, and carried a large proportion of the supplies intended for the colony. Also aboard the flagship were Admiral George Somers, William Strachey, Sylvester Jourdain, Ralph Hamor, and Thomas Gates, people notable in the early history of English colonization in North America. On June 2, 1609, the fleet departed Plymouth, England. The ships were: Blessing with Captain Gabriel Archer and Captain Adams Catch (pinnace) with Master Matthew Fitch Diamond (second largest) with Captain John Ratcliffe and Captain William King Falcon (third largest) with Captain John Martin and