TO THE READER.

THE author of these Memoirs began early to distinguish himself in martial affairs, otherwise he could not have seen such variety of actions, both by sea and land. After the last Dutch war he went into Flanders, where he not only served under the command of his highness the prince of Orange, whilst he was generalissimo of the Dutch forces, but likewise all the time he reigned king of Great Britain. Most of the considerable passages and events, which happened during that time, are contained in the former part of this book.

In the year 1705, the regiment, in which he served as captain, was ordered to embark for the West Indies; and he, having no inclination to go thither, changed with an half-pay captain; and being recommended to the earl of Peterborough by the late lord Cutts, went with him upon that noble expedition into Spain.

When the forces under his lordship's command were landed near Barcelona, the siege of that place was thought by several impracticable, not only for want of experienced engineers, but that the besieged were as numerous as the besiegers; yet the courage of that brave earl surmounted those difficulties, and the siege was resolved upon.

Our author having obtained, by his long service, some knowledge of the practic part of an engineer, and seeing at that critical time the great want of such,

C. M.

с

readily acted as one, which gave him the greater opportunity of being an eyewitness of his lordship's actions; and consequently made him capable of setting them forth in these his Memoirs.

It may not be, perhaps, improper to mention, that the author of these Memoirs was born at Ewelme in Oxfordshire, descended from an ancient and an honourable family. The lord Dudley Carleton, who died secretaty of state to king Charles I., was his great uncle; and in the same reign his father was envoy at the court of Madrid, whilst his uncle, sir Dudley Carleton, was ambassador to the states of Holland; men in those days respected both for their abilities and loyalty.

MEMOIRS

OF

CAPTAIN CARLETON.

In the year one thousand six hundred and seventy-two, war being proclaimed with Holland, it was looked upon, among nobility and gentry, as a blemish not to attend the duke of Yorka aboard the fleet, who was then declared admiral. With many others, I, at that time about twenty years of age, entered myself a volunteer on board the London, commanded by sir Edward Sprage, vice-admiral of the red.

The fleet set sail from the buoy of the Nore about the beginning of May, in order to join the French fleet, then at anchor in St. Helen's road, under the command of the count de Estrée. But in executing this design we had a very narrow escape: for De Ruyter, the admiral of the Dutch fleet, having notice of our intentions, waited to have intercepted us at the mouth of the river, but by the assistance of a great fog we passed Dover before he was aware of it; and thus he miscarried, with the poor advantage of taking only one small tender.

A day or two after the joining of the English and

a Afterwards James II. By the treaty betwixt England and France, six thousand of the British troops were to assist the French army against the Dutch. The two fleets of France and England joined the 2nd May. The English consisting of a hundred, and the French of forty sail. The States had seventy-two large ships and

forty frigates.

C. M.

B

French, we sailed directly towards the Dutch coast, where we soon got sight of their fleet; a sand called the Galloper lying between. The Dutch seemed willing there to expect an attack from us: but in regard the Charles man-of-war had been lost on those sands the war before, and that our ships drawing more water than those of the enemy, an engagement might be rendered very disadvantageous, it was resolved in a council of war to avoid coming to a battle for the present, and to sail directly for Solebay; which was accordingly put in execution.

We had not been in Solebay above four or five days, when De Ruyter, hearing of it, made his signal for sailing, in order to surprise us; and he had certainly had his aim, had there been any breeze of wind to favour him. But though they made use of all their sails, there was so little air stirring, that we could see their fleet making towards us long before they came up; notwithstanding which, our admirals found difficulty enough to form their ships into a line of battle, so as to be ready to receive the enemy.

It was about four in the morning of the 28th of May, being Tuesday in Whitsun week, when we first made the discovery; and about eight the same morning, the blue squadron, under the command of the earl of Sandwich, began to engage with admiral Van Ghent, who commanded the Amsterdam squadron; and about nine the whole fleets were under a general engagement. The fight lasted till ten at night, and with equal fury on all sides, the French excepted, who appeared stationed there rather as spectators than parties; and as unwilling to be too much upon the offensive, for fear of offending themselves.

During the fight the English admiral had two ships disabled under him; and was obliged about four in the afternoon to remove himself a third time into the London, where he remained all the rest of the fight, and till next morning. Nevertheless, on his entrance

upon the London, which was the ship I was in, and on our hoisting the standard, De Ruyter and his squadron seemed to double their fire upon her, as if they resolved to blow her out of the water. Notwithstanding all which, the duke of York remained all the time upon quarter-deck, and as the bullets plentifully whizzed around him, would often rub his hands, and cry, Sprage, Sprage, they follow us still. I am very sensible latter times have not been over favourable in their sentiments of that unfortunate prince's valour, yet I cannot omit the doing a piece of justice to his memory, in relating a matter of fact, of which my own eyes were witnesses, and saying, that if intrepidity and undauntedness may be reckoned any parts of courage, no man in the fleet better deserved the title of courageous, or behaved himself with more gallantry than he did.

The English lost the Royal James, commanded by the earl of Sandwich, which, about twelve, (after the strenuous endeavours of her sailors to disengage her from two Dutch fire-ships placed on her, one athwart her hawsers, the other on her starboard side,) took fire, blew up, and perished, and with her a great many brave gentlemen as well as sailors; and amongst the rest the earl himself, concerning whom I shall further add, that in my passage from Harwich to the Brill, a year or two after, the master of the packet-boat told me that having observed a great flock of gulls hovering in one particular part of the sea, he ordered his boat to make up to it; when discovering a corpse, the sailors would have returned it to the sea, as the corpse of a Dutchman; but keeping it in his boat, it proved to be that of the earl of Sandwich. There was found about him between twenty and thirty guineas, some silver, and his gold watch; restoring which to his lady, she kept the watch, but rewarded their honesty with all the gold and silver.

This was the only ship the English lost in this long engagement. For although the Katherine was taken,