Selected quad for the lemma: death_n
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A46314
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A Journal of the war with Holland, since His Most Christian Majesty's departure from Paris, until his return with a continuation of what happen'd after the Kings return into France / translated out of French.
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1673
(1673)
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Wing J1109; ESTC R1988
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75,113
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194
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29. the King leaving Amerongen went and encamped at Zeist and Stotwegen where Grotius had Audience and made his Proposals for a Peace but without success for the King would not admit of them so that being acquainted with the Kings Pleasure he prepar'd for his departure the next day Monsieur de Turenne open'd his Trenches before Nimegen where the besieg'd behaved themselves like Men that intended to defend themselves resolutly but without making any sally The Marquis de Ranes drew out 70 Dragoons of the Regiment Royal to strengthen the Garrisons at Montfort and Isselsteing and march'd with them himself to visit those places and give such Orders as he should find necessary for the defence of them The Count de la Mark was left sick at Vtrecht The 30. Nothing extraordinary was done at the Kings Camp which lay at Zeist and Stotewegen M. de Turenne proceeded on in his approaches before Nimegen where the besieged still defended themselves very vigorously The Marquis de Rochefort went out betimes to view and take notice what Forces lay upon the River that goes from Vtrecht to Amsterdam After Dinner Grotius return'd to Vtrecht and thence to Amsterdam to acquaint the States with the Kings pleasure as it related to a Treaty of Peace which was now diversly talked of The first of July His Majesty lay still and rested where he did before and so continued until the 10th The Marquis de Louvois and of Pouange came to Vtrecht after dinner The King in Person review'd his whole Army very strictly and then issued out severe Prohibitions to hinder any of his Army 's wandering from their own Colours upon pain of certain death without mercy so that whoever should offend they should all be hang'd and not hope that any should be put to the Lot for their Lives with command likewise to all Officers That they should bring in every Night to the Commander of each Body the names of all such as had been absent from their Companies It was now reported That a pail of fresh Water was worth 12 Stivers at Amsterdam which are equal to 15 French Sols The second of July the Cardinal of Bouillon came to Vtrecht where he was almost crowded to pieces by Roman Catholicks who followed after him as an Angel sent from Heaven praying him with much earnestness to Bless and Consecrate the Churches of the Town The Archbishop of the place himself desir'd it of him with much importunity in the name of all the People but he desir'd to be excused till he should have order to do it from the King The Marquis de Ranes and the Chevalier de Bouflers Camp-master to the Regiment Royal of Dragoons going over from Vtrecht to His Majesties Camp which lay but two Leagues distant were ordered to send two Companies of the said Regiment to the Count de Lorge who was about four Leagues thence drawing towards Arnhem with a flying Squadron which made M. de Bouflers return post to Vtrecht from whence he sent two Companies that of de la Faye and that of de la Rouillardiere Monsieur who 2 or 3 days before had joyn'd with the Kings Army after the taking of Zuâ—phen went to Vtrecht where he din'd with the Chevalier de Lorraine who treated him very splendidly The night following there chanced to be a Fire in the Town which burnt down two Houses and we were told That one of the 36 Burgomasters of Amsterdam who had been one of the 3 that had been against the giving up the Town to the King when the Inhabitants would not resolve to acknowledge the Prince of Orange as the most part of the rest had done we heard I say that this Burgomaster had received a Musket-shot from a Sentinel for not answering in time when he was asked Who goes there and that he was in great danger of death by it And that the Sea finding no opposition since the Count Maurice's cutting down the Banks did come into the Country with a dreadful impetuosity and had already overwhelmed a great part of the Country which lay between us and Amsterdam The Count de Chamilly whom M. de Turenne had ordered to march towards Gennep and Grave and make himself master of them arrived before Gennep thinking the Inhabitants whom the Dutch Garrison had forsaken would without difficulty have yielded it up but found not what he expected for a Colonel belonging to the Brandenburger being ordered to put some Forces into it and keep it as belonging to the Elector his Master having performed his Orders refused to give it up to Monsieur de Chamilly The truth is this little Town which is not extraordinarily strong and lies upon the Meuse between Ruremonde and Grave had formerly belong'd to the Duke of Brandenbourg but having been taken from him and long possest by the Hollander it was now no more reckoned to be his Wherefore M. de Chamilly resolving not to be put off sent him word That unless he would be gon and leave the place to him he would certainly put all his Men to the Sword and hang him without mercy But the Colonel being not mov'd at this Threat the Count de Chamilly made his Troops immediatly prepare to assault the place but then the Colonel searing a dismal Halter which he foresaw would be his fate if he stood out any longer sent us word That rather then disgrace his Family with being hang'd he would consent to any thing to avoid such an ignominious death wherefore he desired to be used as an Officer of the Duke of Brandenbourgs who having not as yet declared himself ought not to be reckon'd nor used as an Enemy he therefore desired he might freely march off and return to the place from whence he came and earnestly entreated M. de Chamilly that least he should be hang'd at his return for not maintaining the place he would give him an Certificate under his Hand that he was ready to give an Assault to the place and had threatned to hang him before he yielded it up which having been granted him he retir'd into the next Garrison as well satisfied as if he had gained some great Victory or done some memorable exploit So that the Count Chamilly presently ordered his Men to enter the place and then marched towards Grave whose Garrison was retir'd and which was now in the possession of the Sieur Cleodore who by order from M. de Turenne kept the place with 40 or 50 Maistres The third the Marquis de Louvoys went and visited the Town-house of Vtrecht and commanding the Maps of the Country to be brought him informed himself of the number bigness and other qualities of the Channels which compass'd the Prince of Orange's Camp that being before-hand instructed in these matters he might be ready to go and attaque him in case a Peace were not concluded It must be confess'd that the prudence and conduct of the Marquis de Louvois are almost incredible he hath manag'd things in this Campagne
to the Island of Bommelle Before Zutphen the Canon was in a condition to play by break of day and did the Enemy considerable dammage An hour before day the besieg'd tried to give a false Alarm but it succeeded not as they hop'd for the Chevalier de Lorraine who had not stirred from that Trench discovered their design and kept the Soldiers in due order At 2 in the morning Monsieur de Rochefort who had return'd to Amersfort left it again to go with all his horse as well those who came the last night as those which were in the Town before and encamp'd at the Gates of Vtrecht between the Town and the Enemy The Marquis de Ranes stayed at Amersford with his Royal Regiment of Dragoons and in the evening caus'd all things necessary for an Assault to be carried upon the works that they might be ready in case of need About nine in the morning the same day the Sieur Hotain a Colonel of the Munster Troops who then commanded a flying Party came before the Town and summon'd it but understanding it was already possest he commanded his Army to make a halt and gave order that 800 horse and 500 Dragoons which he commanded should refresh themselves Afterwards he desir'd he might come in and salute the Governour which he did and breakfasted with him he and 3 or 4 more of his Company He confirm'd the news of Deventer and of the deaths of M. de Gerzey and M. de Beaufort Camp Master to a Regiment of horse who in a sally which the Enemy made beat them back into the Town but having engag'd himself beyond possibility of retreating receiv'd a great many wounds of which he dyed on the place as well as the sieur Mallet a Captain of horse in the same Regiment and the sieur Mauvoisiniere his Lieutenant The same person affirm'd he had newly made himself Master of Elbairg and Harderwick which are two little Towns above Campen near Zuiderzee After breakfast as he took leave he said he was going to raise contribution of all the places that depended upon those two Towns and that he had taxed the Peasants at a Patagon which is equal to a French Crown for every Hearth and then was returning to Harderwick A party of the Colonel Regiment of Dragoons being sent to Waningen took it and stayed there some days as well to refresh themselves as to stay till there should come thither a body of foot Waningen is a pretty Town about the bigness of Meaux in Brie situated in an uneven Country On the upper side of it there lyes a heath of 4 or 5 leagues extent in the narrowest place on the other side there are very good Pastures intermingled with some Arable land which is very fruitful This town lying in the midst of many others the States thought it unnecessary to fortifie but left it in its ancient condition so that it hath hardly any Fortification besides its rampart The same day a Swiss Drummer who had been at Amsterdam to carry news of some Prisoners to their Relations and to desire them to send them money to pay their ransom brought back word that he had been brought before Count Maurice and mightily question'd by him that his Army within their Retrenchments did not seem to contain above 4000 men that they seem'd much dismay'd and that all the fierceness which he strove to put on could not hide his concern when he heard in what condition the Kings Army was and that the Count had taken order to let him see as little as might be of the disorder and slenderness of his Army Let us therefore give them a little leasure to take heart again if they can and leaving a while the continuation of our Journal let us rejoyce with the whole Kingdome of France at our Great Monarchs fortunate Progress and the Birth of a Prince which GOD hath now sent Him A JOURNAL OF THE War with Holland THE SECOND PART ALTHOUGH Men naturally love change and novelties carry still with them somewhat of delight yet there are some things that immediatly disgust us particularly those that are forc'd upon us As God at our Creation made us free so is there nothing more repugnant to our natures then to be forced or constrain'd to any thing or deprived of that lov'd liberty to which we were born This it was which made the Philosophers say that nothing which is violent or forced could be of long continuance because such things directly oppose our nature whose power cannot long be withstood it being nothing but the Will of God impress'd upon his Creatures We ought not then to think it strange that those who have from their youth been brought up under one kind of Government should find a great deal of difficulty in weaning themselves from that and accustoming themselves to live under another seeing it is natural to us so to do and the very irrational Creatures do as much by instinct as we see every day in Horses who if they have been us'd to the Saddle cannot without much difficulty be brought to draw and Dogs that have been us'd to hunt will not without much trouble be brought to couch when their game is in view It is a common saying that a Monkey will never leave his Apish tricks and that a Fox will ever love Geese to his last and so it is with Men for those who have liv'd under a Monarchical State are very hardly brought to be contented with Democracy and all men think that kind of Government best under which they themselves have been brought up So that though the French yoake be much less greivous to the Subject then that which the States have laid on the People of Holland amongst whom the very Servants pay Taxes out of their wages yet we had great reason to watch very carefully over those whom we had now lately conquer'd upon the account of what we mention'd before least Nature should prevail in them as it usually doth in other Creatures But good Fortune which hath always attended the French Arms and that peculiar blessing which Heaven hath bestow'd on our King of being equally both fear'd and belov'd where ever he goes had taken care to make our suspicions groundless by inspiring into the People of those Countreys as strong inclinations and as much love towards his Majesty as was to be found in the hearts of his most Loyal French Subjects and we did very remarkably discover in many of them so greedy and earnest a desire of seeing us that in many places they were even afraid least we would not come and take their Towns and I have been told they desir'd nothing so much as to become his Majesties Subjects and fear'd nothing more then not to be so The timely course that all the Province of Vtrecht took doth sufficiently justifie what I have said and it is likewise certain that had not the States gone in good time to Amsterdam the Inhabitants of that great Town