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was fent to fea with a fleet of ninety fhips of war, A. C, 1672... befides forty frigates and firefhips, and Cornelius De Wit acted on board as deputy from the States. Their intention was to prevent the junction of the French and English fleets; but this was already effected. They lay at anchor in Solebay, to the number of one hundred and thirty fhips of the line. The duke of York commanded in chief; the earl of Sandwich acted as admiral of the blue; and the French fquadron was conducted by the marechal De Etrées. They rode at anchor in such disorder, that the earl of Sandwich represented to the duke the danger of their being attacked in that posture; but his advice was neglected, and the answer he received was fuch as implied a fufpicion of his courage. Piqued at this reflection, he refolved, in case of an engagement, to conquer or perish. On the twenty-eighth day of May, the Dutch admiral bore down upon them fo fuddenly, that they were obliged to cut their cables with the utmost precipitation, in order to form the line; and the whole fleet was in fuch confufion, that the ships ran foul of one another. The earl of Sandwich made hafte to weather the headland, and oppofed himself to the enemy that the duke might have time to reduce the rest of the fleet into order. He fustained a moft furious attack from the braveft of the enemy. He repulfed the fhip of Van Ghent, after that admiral had been killed in the engagement: he destroyed another large fhip which attempted to board him; he funk three firefhips before they were near enough to grapple with his rigging. Though fix hundred of his men were either killed or wounded, and his fhip was dreadfully shattered by the shot of the enemy, he still continued to ply his artillery without ceafing, until another fireship ran him. aboard on the quarter. Even then he might have escaped into another veffel; but the

duke's

A,C. 1672. duke's farcafm had made fuch an impreffion upon his mind, that he chofe rather to die than furvive the lofs of his fhip, which, being blown up, he and every person on board were deftroyed. In the mean time the duke of York was attacked by De Ruyter; and they engaged each other fo clofe for two hours, that the Dutch admiral afterwards declared this was the most obftinate of two and thirty actions in which he had been concerned. The duke's fhip being difabled, he was obliged to move his flag on board of another, and his divifion was in danger of being overpowered; when Sir Jofeph Jordon who fucceeded Sandwich, came to his affiftance. The battle being thus reftored, continued till night, when the Dutch retired. Victory declared for neither fide, though it was claimed by both nations. The French fquadron was very little engaged; and, in all probability, the marechal De Etrées had orders to keep off, that the two maritime powers might deftroy one another.

king in the

vinces.

Progress of Lewis had by this time invaded the territories of the French the States-general on the fide of Germany. He United Pro- paffed the Meufe at Vifet, reduced Orfoi, Burck, Wefel, Emerick, and Rhinbeg, almost without oppofition. Then he advanced to the banks of the Rhine, which his horfe paffed by fwimming, while his infantry croffed it in boats; and a few Dutch regiments that appeared on the other fide, retired with precipitation. Marechal De Turenne took the ftrong fort of Skink in a few days; Arnheim, Knotzembourg, and Nimeguen, furrendered to him at the first fummons. Lewis entered Doerbourg without refiftance: his forces reduced Harderwick, Amersfert, Campen, Rhenen, Viane, Elberg, Zwol, Cuilemberg, Wageninguen, Lochem, and Woerden. Marechal Luxembourg, with the troops of Munfter, poffeffed himself of Groll and Deventer. Utrecht fent deputies with

offers

offers of fubmiffion to the French king. The mar- A, C, 1672. quis of Rochefort furprised Naerden, within three leagues of Amfterdam. Fourteen ftragglers appearing before Muyden, received the keys of the town from the magiftrates; but the caftle was preferved by a female fervant, who raised up the drawbridge, and the French ftragglers were afterwards expelled: the cannon of this fortrefs commands the entrance to the harbour of Amfterdam. The

prince of Orange, at the head of his raw difcouraged troops, was obliged to retreat into the province of Holland before the victorious enemy, whose rapid progrefs overwhelmed the people with confternation and defpair. Lewis had now fubdued the three provinces of Guelderland, Overyffel, and Utrecht, and threatened the reft with immediate fubjection. The populace, and all those who had opposed the Louveftein party, inftead of exerting themselves for the prefervation of their liberties, exclaimed against the penfionary, for having neglected the means of defence. They reviled him as the partizan of France; the author of all their calamities, and looked upon the young prince of Orange as the only perfon who could fave them from deftruction. In the midft of this defpondence, the magistrates of Amfterdam acted up to the noble example of their ancestors: they obliged the burgeffes to keep watch and ward; the people were armed and regularly paid; fome useless ships were repaired, and furnished with artillery for the defence of the city; and the fluices being opened, the whole neighbourhood was laid under water. The other towns followed their example; fo that the whole province of Holland was overflowed.

The fevere

terms pre

Notwithstanding thefe precautions, the nobles were still so much influenced by their fears, that when the ftates met to deliberate upon the deplor- Lewis. able fituation of the commonwealth, they voted

No 72.

G

that,

scribed by

A. C. 1672 that, provided their religion, liberty, and fovereign power, could be faved, every thing elfe fhould be furrendered to the conqueror. Amfterdam declared against treating with the foe; but this oppofition being over-ruled, they sent ambassadors to deprecate the wrath, and implore the compaffion of the French and English monarchs. They offered to cede Maestricht, and all the frontier towns lying without the limits of the feven provinces, to Lewis, and accommodate him with a large fum to defray the expence of the war. The French king demanded that the commodities of France should be imported duty-free into Holland; that the ftates would permit the free exercife of the catholic religion, fhare the churches between them and the proteftants, and appoint regular falaries for their 'priefts; that they fhould cede to him all the frontier towns of the republic, together with Nimeguen, Skink, Knotzembourg, part of Guelderland, the -ifles of Bommel and Voorn, and the forts of St. Andrew, Louveftein, and Crevecoeur; that they fhould pay twenty millions of livres for the expence of the war; fend a yearly embaffy to Paris, with a golden medal, as an acknowledgment that to him they owed the preservation of that liberty which his predeceffors had enabled their ftates to acquire; that they fhould give entire fatisfaction to the king of England; and, within ten days, fignify their affent to these proposals: in which cafe he would evacuate his conquefts.

Their envoys difpatched to London met with a very harsh reception from the court, though they excited the compaffion of the people. Charles himfelf began to be uneafy at the rapid progress of his ally. He forefaw that the entire conqueft of Holland would be a formidable acceffion of power to Lewis, who might forget his engagements, and think it his intereft to leave the king of England

in dependence upon his fubjects: befides, he was 4.C. 1672 eager to share the spoils of the Dutch republic.. He difmiffed their ambaffadors, and fent the duke of Buckingham, with the earls of Arlington and Hallifax, to negotiate with Lewis on the prefent pofture of affairs. They repaired to Utrecht, where the French king refided with his court, renewed the league between him and Charles; and inferted a claufe, that no peace fhould be made with Holland, but by common confent. Then they produced Demands of their master's demands upon the states, importing, the English. that the Dutch fhould do honour to the English flag, without any limitation; banish all the king's enemies and calumniators; pay a million sterling towards the charges of the war, as well as ten thousand pounds yearly for liberty to fish on the British feas; fhare the trade of the Eaft Indies; inveft the prince of Orange with the hereditary dignity of ftadtholder; and deliver into the king's hands the ifles of Walcheren, Cadfant, Gorée, and Voorn, together with the town and caftle of Sluys, as fecurity for the performance of articles.

declared

These cruel demands reduced the people of Hol- The prince land to defpair. The Orange faction took this of Orange opportunity to inflame their refentment against the stadtholder, penfionary and his brother, who became the objects of popular hatred and execration. They demanded the repeal of the perpetual edict, by which they had engaged upon oath, that they would never acknowledge the prince of Orange as ftadtholder. The two brothers ftill continued to oppose the repeal, from motives of true patriotifm. At length the populace broke through all reftraint. By an infurrection at Dort, the burgomafters were compelled to fign a repeal of the edict. The people at Amfterdam, Rotterdam, Middleburgh, and the Hague, rofe in arms against their magiftrates, and obliged them to declare in favour of the prince of Orange.

G 2

John

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