148 Charles II in Holland.-Peace with Portugal [1660-2

of his ancestors placed de Witt and the States party in Holland in a dilemma. Their hostility to the interests of the House of Stewart in its hour of humiliation and distress had been marked; but the Grand Pensionary was too supple a statesman not to be able to accommodate himself to the complete change in the situation. Charles was at Breda when the invitation reached him to return to England. The States General, the States of Holland, and de Witt himself, vied with one another in their deferential attitude and in their adulation of the povertystricken exile of yesterday, who had now become a powerful King. His reception at the Hague was magnificent. When he set sail from Scheveningen, he was solemnly escorted to the beach by the members of the States of Holland and of the States General. Profuse promises of eternal friendship were exchanged. But the States party knew that the change boded them no good. It was significant that, on his public visit to the States of Holland, Charles handed to the Grand Pensionary a declaration signed by himself, commending to their care" the Princess my sister and the Prince of Orange my nephew, two persons who are extremely dear to me." It was nothing less than a demand for the rescinding of the Act of Seclusion, which indeed speedily followed. De Witt, however, despite the efforts of the Princess Royal, steadily declined to allow the young Prince to be appointed to the civil and military posts held by his ancestors. In many parts of the country, even in Holland itself, there were strong movements in favour of William III being at once nominated Captain- and Admiral-General. But de Witt would not consent to this. The States of Holland, however, at his advice, by a unanimous vote, agreed to regard the young Prince as their ward and to educate him at the public expense. William, who had hitherto been under the ban of the ruling authorities, was thus placed in a position which virtually implied the ultimate reversion to him of his ancestral dignities.

Peace with Portugal was one of the results which flowed from the restoration of Charles II, whose marriage with a Portuguese princess led him to take a friendly interest in the settlement of this protracted dispute. After many delays a treaty was at length signed, August 6, 1661, though it was not ratified until the following year. By this treaty the Dutch abandoned all claims in Brazil, subject to an indemnity of 8,000,000 florins to be paid in sixteen years. They were further compensated by being left in possession of their conquests in the East Indies. De Witt had to use all his firmness and skill in the accomplishment of this diplomatic task. He had to face the opposition of Zeeland and Gelderland and the wiles of the English ambassador, George Downing. He had finally to force the hands of the procrastinating Portuguese Government by the threat of the immediate dispatch of a Dutch fleet to Lisbon.

Thus in 1662 all outstanding difficulties and quarrels with foreign Powers appeared to have been removed, and an era of peaceful develop

1662-5]

Disputes with England

149

ment and progress to lie before the Dutch Republic. The issue was to be far otherwise. An understanding with France had been arrived at (April 27, 1662), and an offensive and defensive alliance concluded, a pledge for the maintenance of which seemed to be assured by the sending of Count d'Estrades, already well known in the Netherlands, as ambassador to the Hague. Between him and John de Witt the closest ties of friendship and confidence were soon established. With England, however, the relations of the United Provinces were strained from the outset of Charles II's reign, and there was a constantly growing irritation between the two countries, in spite of the efforts made by de Witt to remain on friendly terms. The part, indeed, which the Grand Pensionary took in the delivering up of the three regicides, Burghstead, Corbet and Okey, led to a charge being made against him of cowardice and subserviency. It was all, however, of no avail. Downing, a very master of intrigue, was secretly hostile to the Republic, and used his diplomatic opportunities to aggravate the differences arising from the maritime and commercial rivalry of the two nations. The English Government refused to modify in any way the Act of Navigation, or its claims to the sovereignty of the seas. A prolonged dispute arose as to the indemnity to be paid for the seizure of two English trading vessels in the East Indies. There was a controversy of long standing about the rights of the English and Dutch East India Companies to the possession of the island of Pularoon in the Moluccas. A more serious grievance arose from the seizure, in February, 1664, of some of the Dutch possessions on the west coast of Africa by an English expedition, commanded by Robert Holmes, on behalf of the Royal African Company, of which the Duke of York was patron. Such a flagrant violation of the law of nations in time of peace could not be passed by. As the complaints of the States General to the English Government were met by evasions, it was resolved in all secrecy to order de Ruyter, who was cruising in the Mediterranean with a squadron of twelve ships, to proceed to the coast of Guinea, and reconquer the lost possessions. In October came a still worse piece of news from the West Indies, to the effect that another English expedition, sent out under the auspices of the Duke of York, had taken possession of the Dutch colony of New Netherland on the river Hudson, and had changed the name of the capital from New Amsterdam to New York. The States General again protested in the strongest terms; but nothing was done rashly to provoke hostilities. De Witt was earnestly desirous of maintaining the peace, but the war party in England was all-powerful; and already in December it was clear that nothing but the declaration of war was wanting to make the rupture complete. This followed in March, 1665, and the two nations once more found themselves engaged in a fierce struggle for the mastery of the seas.

The Dutch were far better prepared than in 1653, and the Admiralties vied with each other in building ships and providing equipment.

150 The Second English War. The Bishop of Münster [1664-7

The want of an Admiral-General was supplied by the immense diligence and zeal of de Witt, who had taken pains to make himself thoroughly acquainted with all the details of naval administration; and who personally, with the Commissioners appointed by the States General, visited all the ports and superintended the preparations. Inferior in some respects to the splendidly equipped and disciplined fleet of England, the Dutch navy could at least boast that in Michael Adrianszoon de Ruyter it possessed a leader second to none in the whole history of sea warfare. An account of the naval campaigns of 1665, 1666, 1667 is given in another chapter. It is sufficient here to say that, while the heroic courage and determination exhibited on both sides have never been surpassed, victory on the whole inclined to the side of the English though the final dazzling exploit of de Ruyter in sailing up the Medway and burning the English ships at their anchorage before Chatham has perhaps impressed the popular imagination more than any of the great battles, in which so much skill and endurance were called forth.

The conduct and calmness of the Grand Pensionary throughout the vicissitudes of the struggle all authorities — enemies as well as friendsagree in praising. With imperturbable serenity he faced all the diffi culties and changes of fortune, and inspired others with the patriotic faith and courage which animated himself. Not content with the enormous labours involved in the direction and control of the diplomatic financial, and domestic affairs of the Republic, he on more than on occasion himself accompanied the fleets to sea and exposed his person freely to all the dangers of the campaign, instilling into officers and me the strength of will and unremitting energy which were apparent in al his actions. At no time in his splendid career did John de Witt mor conclusively show his possession of rare qualities as a leader of men.

But though the navy had been raised to a high state of efficiency and was able to hold its own against the superior maritime strength o England, it was far otherwise with the army, whose numbers and training had been allowed to fall far below the requirements of safety. Charles I had concluded a secret alliance with the Bishop of Münster, who had grievances against the States for their refusal to admit his pretensions t the lordship of Borkelo. Force had even been employed to prevent hin from asserting his claims. The Bishop now (September 19, 1665 declared war and crossed the frontier at the head of an army of 18,00 men. There was no organised force to oppose him, and no commander in-chief. William Frederick of Friesland had died (October 31, 1664 from the results of an accident and had been succeeded in his stac holdership by his young son, Henry Casimir II, under the guardianshi of his mother. In this emergency the States offered the command to Joa Maurice of Nassau-Siegen, distinguished as Governor of Dutch Brazi who had latterly been Governor of Cleves for the Elector of Brander burg. A considerable part of Drente and Overyssel was overrun by th

1666-7] Dutch alliance with France. Peace of Breda 151

Münster troops before effectual means of resistance could be prepared. De Witt, however, secured the assistance of a body of French troops, and another force of subsidised troops raised in the Brunswick-Lüneburg dominions under the command of Count George Frederick of Waldeck. By these measures the danger was averted and the Bishop compelled (April 18, 1666) to conclude a peace by which he relinquished all his claims on Borkelo. Already in the beginning of 1666 de Witt had begun to feel his way to opening negotiations with England for peace. While neglecting nothing to draw closer the bonds of alliance with France, who had declared war against England (January, 1666), and to secure the friendly co-operation of Denmark and Brandenburg against possible danger from Sweden or Münster, the Grand Pensionary was sincerely anxious to relieve the Netherlands from the tremendous burden which the cost of the war and the cessation of commerce imposed on the Provinces, especially upon Holland. He knew that England was likewise suffering heavily from the same causes, and he was resolved to spare no effort to promote a good understanding between the two nations. With this object in view he proposed, after consultation with the Princess Dowager of Orange, to the States of Holland that they should take charge of the education of William III, as "Child of State"; and the proposal was carried into effect, April 9, 1666. A commission was now appointed, with the Grand Pensionary himself at its head, whose duty it was to see that the young Prince was thoroughly instructed in the principles of the Reformed religion and in the good and wholesome rights, privileges and maxims of the State. A similar proposal, it may be remembered, had been made in 1660; but the sudden death of the Princess Royal a few months later and the unfriendly attitude of the English King had caused it to remain a dead letter. Exactly a year after the passing of this resolution, the plenipotentiaries of the Powers were slowly gathering at Breda for the peace negotiations. The result of the meeting was not encouraging; there was endless haggling over all the old grievances and causes of quarrel, and in the middle of June no sort of progress had been made. The delay led to de Ruyter's humiliating expedition to Chatham, when the sound of the Dutch guns was heard in London (June 22). This surprising success led to the speedy conclusion of peace (July 31, 1667), on terms which, though showing moderation on the part of de Witt, were far more favourable to the Dutch than could at an earlier period have been thought possible. The Navigation Act remained in force, but was qualified so far as to admit goods from Germany and the southern Netherlands carried in Dutch vessels; while the question as to the saluting of the English flag was left untouched. As regards the East and West Indies the principle of uti possidetis was adopted, the date fixed being May 10, 1667. This gave New Netherland to England and Pularoon to the States, who also acquired the colony of Surinam and the island of Tobago, which had been conquered by a

152 The" Eternal Edict."-France invades Holland [1667

squadron under the command of the Zeelander Abraham Crynssen (February, 1667).

The signing of the treaty was followed by measures being taken on the part of the Province of Holland to maintain its supremacy in the Union. Serious and widespread movements had for some time been on foot for the overthrow of the States party and the conferring of the posts of Stadholder and Captain-General on the Prince of Orange. To prevent such a consummation, the States of Holland passed (August 5) unanimously what was known as the "Eternal Edict." It decreed that no Captainor Admiral-General of the Union could be at the same time Stadholder of a province in Holland itself the office of Stadholder was for ever abolished. This strong step was followed by the trial of the Sieur de Buat, a French officer in the service of the States, before the Supreme Court of Holland for treasonable correspondence, as an Orange agent, with the enemy. Buat was condemned to death and executed (October 11).

No sooner was peace concluded with England than the Republic found itself confronted by a new danger from the ambition of its former ally, the King of France. The causes which led to the "War of Devolution" need not be again recounted here. On May 21, 1667, Louis XIV crossed the Belgian frontier with an army of 50,000 men. It was not an invasion, but a state entry of the new ruler of the "Spanish" Netherlands (for Queen Maria Teresa accompanied the expedition) into her inherited dominions. The Spanish Governor, Castel-Rodrigo, was in no position to oppose such a force; and in the course of three months the long line of frontier fortresses fell, almost without resistance, into the hands of the French. The conquest of the whole of the southern Netherlands appeared imminent. Great was the alarm of the Dutch at such a prospect. It had long been a fixed principle of their statesmen, "Greet France as a friend, not as a neighbour"; and de Witt, whose policy it had always been to cultivate the goodwill of France, was fully alive to the vital importance of having a barrier State between the United Provinces and the powerful military monarchy ruled by Louis XIV. He was in a most difficult position. The Dutch Republic, which had just emerged exhausted from one great war, could not venture to oppose by force with only Spain as an ally— the ambitious schemes of the French monarch. To do so would be to court disaster. With d'Estrades at the Hague, and through van Beuningen at Paris, he entered into negotiations, with the aim, if possible, of discovering some compromise which would satisfy the King and at the same time avert in some measure the danger which threatened the States. All his efforts were in vain. His only hope lay in forming a coalition against France; and he turned to England and Sweden. In September John Meerman was sent on a special embassy to England, and negotiations were opened with the Swedish envoy Dohna, at the Hague. The fall of Clarendon and the rise to power of Arlington