Massacre'd in Florida by the Spaniards They promised to the Prince of Orange by Count Lodowick his Brother whom they had loaded with Honours and Caresses a considerable supply of Men and Money and the Sovereignty of Zealand Utrecht and Friezland and that they would joyn the other Provinces to France The Prince of Orange upon these great hopes and appearances which proved false refused a very advantageous and secure Treaty which the Emperour offered him from the part of the King of Spain and sent Forces under the Command of his Brother-in-Law the Count de Bergues to make an Attempt upon Gueldres and Over-Yssel The Count took Zutphen and several other places His Brother Count Lodowick was to make a considerable effort on the side of Hainault where he surprized Mons the Capital of that Province which diversion hindred the Duke of Alva from retaking the Cities of Holland and Zealand that had newly declared against him and which he might easily have done at a time when they were unprovided of forces and necessaries for their defence But nothing incensed the Duke of Alva so much as the surprizing of Mons which he resolved to recover at any rate leaving every thing else to apply himself wholly to this seige which gave time to the revolted Cities to draw breath and furnish themselves at Leisure with Men and Ammunition The brave Defence of Count Lodowick assisted by Mounsieur de la Nove bras de fer and many of the French Nobility made the Siege of Mons very long and difficult The Spaniards fired above 20000 Canon-shot against it In the mean time the Prince of Orange who had retired into Germany had raised a greater Army than his first to enter into Brabant where the Cruelty and Exactions of the Duke of Alva made him hope for better Success than he had in his first Invasion This Army was to be paid with the money the French Court had promised to supply him with Thus the Prince believed with reason that the Spanish Forces would not be able to defend the Low-Countries attack'd on so many sides by Land whilest by Sea they were gauled by the Counts de la Mark Sonoy Treton the Brothers Boisols and Bertel Entens his Lieutenants in Holland and Zealand where they had great Success as I shall afterwards declare The Spaniards were never in so great danger of losing the Netherlands as at that Conjuncture The hopes of the Prince were not groundless and in all probability the Spaniards had been quite driven out of the Low-Countries if France had made good its promises Thus this great Man who had so many Strings to his Bow parted from Germany with a great Army to enter into the Low-Countries when he found all People driven to despair by the Tyranny of the Duke of Alva and ready to receive him with open arms First he was received into Ruremonde where he passed his Army over the Bridge into Brabant Louvain gave him a sum of money and Malines opened its Gates to him which cost that poor City very dear The Duke of Alva was absent at the Siege of Mons which he resolved to take and the Prince designed to relieve as well to save so important a Place as to deliver his brother Lodowick from the danger he was in But Mr. de Genlis who marched from France to the relief of the place with 7000 Horse and Foot having been defeated and taken Prisoner by Frederick de Toledo who had gone out to meet him upon the secret intelligence which he received from the Court of France of his marching towards Mons and the condition of his Forces The Prince having attempted in vain to raise the Siege for the Duke of Alva had intrenched himself so strongly that 't was impossible to force his lines and at the same time understanding by the discharging of the great Guns and other signs of rejoycing in the Camp of the Massacre of St. Bartholomew where Admiral de Chatillon and all his principal friends had been kill'd and having no hopes from the French who had deceived him but on the contrary having all the reason in the world to be apprehensive of so great a Kingdom which had declared against his party and religion he advised his brother Lodowick to make an honourable Composition which was granted him and he himself retired by small Marches towards the Rhine In this retreat he was in great danger of being kill'd by the Enemies and his own Soldiers For the German officers talked of arresting him to secure the payment of their arrears which they were promised should be paid at their arrival in Brabant where he expected to receive the money the French had promised him But this eloquent and engaging Prince appeas'd the mutiny by assuring them 't was not his fault and satisfied them with promises and the little ready money he had On the other side he was in great danger of his Life at Malines 800 Spanish Horse who had chosen men mounted behind them entered into his Camp by night and pierced as far as his tent and would have killed him as he slept if a little dog who lay in his Bed had not waked him by scratching his face with his claws the greatest part of the Spaniards being cut off he marched strait on to the Rhine where he disbanded his Army at Orsay and went through Over-Yssell to Utrecht and thence to Holland and Zealand which had declared for him all except Middleburg and Amsterdam in the following manner Whilest the Prince of Orange was a Refugee in France and Germany and wandring from Province to Province William de la Mark Boissols Siegneurs de Lumay Sonoy Treton the Boissols Entens and others who acted under the Orders of the Prince turned Pirates and practised the trade a long time with great Success till having no longer a retreat in the Ports of England which Queen Elizabeth denied them at the instance of the Duke of Alva and for Fear of making the Spaniards her Enemies the Count de la Mark and the rest designing to seize a Port in North-Holland or Friezland were obliged by the contrary Winds to put in for shelter with 30 great and Small Ships into the Isle of Vorn in Holland where the Brill is which they took by surprize having found it without a Garrison which was sent to punish Utrecht for refusing to pay the tenth penny This Count de la Mark was a rash and a cruel man He swore never to shave his Beard nor Head till he had revenged the death of Count Egmont and Horn. When he had surprized the Brill which signifies Spectacles in the Flemish Tongue he had himself painted in a large piece with the Duke of Alva behind whom he stood and put Spectacles on his Nose by way of Derision it being a term of Contempt in Holland to say a man wants light He put ten pieces of Money in his colours in hatred of the Imposition which the Duke of Alva had
transcribed before I presented an Original to Monsieur de Noyers SIR I Am extreamly concerned that my Endeavours have had no better Success and that Monsieur de Lalen is detained for such slight Reasons If he had made a quick return 't would not have been difficult to surprize this place There are now but 300 Men in Garrison many of whom are old and can scarce go and as many disabled and can make no Defence besides the 28 or 30 Portugese and Catalonians who have promised us their Assistance and above 70 Officers who are Prisoners Philippine where there is a Garrison of Dutch is but four hours March from us All the Country between this Place and that is under Contribution Their Parties come up to the very Gates of the City and many of them enter upon several Pretences For they carried off lately a Horse from the middle of the Market-place by a cunning Stratagem in the Presence of all the World The Covetousness of the Governor the Count de Salazar gives all People a free Entrance into the Castle that he may sell off his Wine at the greater Gain which by a particular Privilege pays no Excise to the King And a Measure which costs fifteen pence in the City is worth but six pence in the Castle Here are still five or six thousand Burghers and Strangers Men and Women who drink without being search'd or examin'd If you will consider all these Circumstances and reflect upon what happened at the Surprize of Amiens and Breda you will find a fairer Occasion and a greater Probability of Effecting this To hasten so important an Affair I waited on Monsieur de Noyers who was at that time at Chaume en Briè with the King to taâ—…e care of the Preservation of Monsieur le Cardinal de Richelieu who stayed behind at the Bourbon Waters in great Suspicion of his Master and many of those who were about him But this Minister having assured me that he would give the necessary Orders about this Affair and commanded me to speak to no Man of it I retired easily perceiving by his Looks and Discourse that he did not relish this Proposal however advantageous it was when it came from a Man to whom he had such an Aversion He never acquainted the King with it for fear he should reward and consider Monsieur de Rantzau for so important a Service The Campaigne being at an End the Spaniards according to their usual Custom reinforced their Garrisons among others that of the Castle of Ghent with the Troops of their Army which changed the Face of Affairs and made the Execution of this Enterprize impossible The same Year that Breda was surprised by the Spaniards the Duke of Anjou pursuant to his Engagement with the States of the Provinces came from Chateau Thierry with 10000 Foot and 4000 Horse to the Relief of Cambray besieged by the Duke of Parma who raised the Siege Not long before the Viscount de Turenne who was afterwards the famous Duke de Bouillon Henry de la Tour the Counts of Ventadour and de la Fenillade and four other Lords having run the Risque to pass through the Army of the Duke and throw themselves into the Place were made Prisoners and forced to pay a great Ransom At that time the States-General assembled at the Hague declared the King of Spain to have forfeited the Soveraignty of the Netherlands broke his Seal and Arms and commanded all People to acknowledge him no longer for their Prince and take the Oath of Fidelity to them The Beginning of this Decree runs thus That a Prince is appointed by God Almighty the Head of his People to defend them from Oppression as a Shepherd to keep his Flock and that when a Prince oppresses them they may choose another Lord to govern them in Iustice according to their Privileges The rest is nothing but a long Narration of the Cruelties and Infractions of their Privileges by the King and his Ministers which obliged them to have Recourse to another Prince At the same time the Duke of Parma took Tournay from the States notwithstanding the vigorous Defence of Mary de Lalain Princess D'Epinoy Sister to Emanuel de Lalain Seigneur de Montigny one of the chief Malecontents She gave great Proofs of her Courage in this Siege encouraging the Soldiers and Burghers to a gallant Resistance and exposing herself so much in the most dangerous Places that she received a Harquebuss Shot in her Arm. This Lady who deserves a Place among the Heroines died the Year after at Antwerp extreamly regretted by the States-General for her Courage and Firmness to maintain their Party Immediately after the Duke of Anjou passed into England to have the Advice of Queen Elizabeth and to endeavour to accomplish his Marriage with that Princess a Contract being made and Rings having been presented on both sides But the Queen having found out some Excuses to hinder it contented her self with supplying him with Money for his Voyage into the Netherlands and sending with him my Lord Leicester Admiral Howard both Knights of the Garter and 100 other Lords and Gentlemen of Quality who carried with them a Train of 500 Men. An Dom. 1582. He repassed from England into Zealand aboard the Ships of this Princess arrived at Flushing and because of the great Cold went a foot to Middlebourg the Capital of Zealand which is a League from thence where he was received and treated very magnificently The Prince of Orange and Epinoy went to meet him and going aboard the 50 Ships provided for them arrived at Antwerp where this great City received him with surprizing Pomp and Splendour All the Keys were lined with the Burghers in Arms most part very richly dress'd and with gilt Arms Triumphal Arches were erected in all parts very richly adorned with fine Inscriptions This Prince marched under a Canopy of Cloth of Gold from the Port to the great Piazza where a Theatre was built with a Throne upon it There the Prince having cloathed him with the Ducal Cap and Mantle of Red Crimson Velvet lined with Ermins he sware publickly in the presence of the States and the Officers of the City and an infinite Concourse of People from all parts to see so extraordinary a Sight That he would religiously observe the Treaty concluded with them and the Privileges of the Provinces and govern not by his Will but by Iustice and Equity Afterwards the States and the Magistrates of Antwerp swore Fidelity and Obedience to him as their Sovereign Prince But this publick Rejoycing was interrupted by an Attempt made on the Prince of Orange One Iauregny a Spaniard of Biscay Factor to a Merchant called Anastre spurred on by the Reward promised in the Proscription fir'd a Pistol at him loaded with one Ball which struck him under the Right Ear and went out through the Left Cheek breaking several of his Teeth At first they believed the French to be the Authors of this Attempt but the
each day continually so that when Count Mansfeldt said one day to a Trumpeter whom P. Maurice had sent him That he admired his Master who was a young Prince full of heat and courage would always contain himself within the covert of his own retrenchments the Trumpeter answered him That his Excellency of Nassau was a young Prince who desired to become one day such an old and experienced General as his Excellency of Mansfeldt was at present The year following he took the great and famous Town of Groninghen Capital of the Province he likewise took and retook Rimbergues and seized upon Maeurs and the Grave Towns belonging to his own Patrimony having by the death of several Spaniards revenged the public injuries and those of his Private Family The Reputation of Prince Maurice was very much increased by the long and memorable defence of Ostend where the Spaniards having lost more than Threescore Thousand Men in a Siege that continued above 3 Years and exhausted their Treasures by the expence of above two Millions at last became Masters of a bit of ground which might seem to be a burying place rather than a City At the time of this loss Prince Maurice was so happy and diligent that to return it with Usury in a few days he seized upon the Town of Sluise in Flanders which was of more consequence than Ostend that had cost so many Men so much Time and so vast a Treasure upon which Theophilus says very well in the Ode he made for the Prince of Orange Much time and many years the Spaniards spend Before their Forces gain Ostend But Sir when you resolve to seize a Town Few Days suffice to beat its Bulwarks down Each Day of yours much more importance bears Than all that space of time which mortal Men call Years This Ode did not displease Prince Maurice and tho he was naturally an Enemy to Flattery and Vain glory yet he recompenced this Poet with a Chain of Gold and his Medal to a very great value But this Prince showed at the battle of Newport where he overcame the Arch-Duke Albert that he knew as well how to defeat a numerous and well appointed Army in open field as to defend places or else to force and surprize them The Arch-Duke and the Duke d'Aumale were wounded in the fight Francis Mendoza Admiral of Arragon Maister de Campe was taken Prisoner with a great many other Commanders and even the Arch-Dukes Pages whom Prince Maurice sent him back very civâ—…illy without any Ransom All the Cannon the Baggage and above 100 Cornets and Colors remained in the hands of the Conqueror who saw above 6000 Enemies dead upon the place and had all other marks of a full and entire Victory which made several People say because this great Success happened upon the 2d day of Iuly that the Fortune of the House of Nassau was changed seeing that 300 years before upon the same day of Iuly the Emperor Adolphus of Nassau had lost his Life and Empire near Spire in a Battle against Albert of Austria and that the same day Maurice had revenged the disgrace of his Ancestors by the defeat of the Arch-Duke Albert who was a Descendant from the former Albert of Austria A little before the fight there was a dispute of Honor between Prince Maurice and Prince Henry Frederick his younger Brother who was then but 17 Years old for when the Elder desired him to retire into some place of Safety that in case of any misfortune he might defend his Family and his Country Prince Henry being offended said he would run the same fortune with himself and live or dye by him Prince Maurice showed that no ill success could daunt his courage for the Resolution he had taken to give Battle was not altered notwithstanding that the night before the Arch-Duke had defeated the Count Ernest whom the Prince had sent to seize a pass with 2 Regiments of Foot and 4 Troops of Horse that were all cut off and several Colors with 2 pieces of Cannon taken It is remarkable that the Prince to take away from his Army all hopes of a retreat and to show his Men that they had nothing to trust to but their Arms made all those Vessels that brought them into Flanders to be sent away for which he was much commended by the Admiral of Arragon as the thing which had gained him the Victory by the necessity that was laid upon his Soldiers to fight boldly as having no prospect of Life but in the defeat of the Spaniards so he told his Men before the fight that they must either overcome the Enemy or drink up all the water in the Sea There came out at that time a magnificent Inscription upon this Battle in honor of Prince Maurice which is this Anno 1600 secunda die Iulij Mauricius Aransionensium Princeps in Flandriam terram hospitem traducto exercitu cum Alberto Archiduce Austriae conflixit copias ejus cecidit Duces multos primumque Mendosam coepit reversus ad suos victor signa hostium centum quinque in Hagiensi Capitolio suspendit Deo Bellatori In the year 1600 the 2d day of July Maurice Prince of Orange having brought his Army into Flanders then possessed by his Enemy fought with Albert Arch-Duke of Austria slew his Forces took several Commanders and especially Mendoza then returning Conqueror to his Country he hung up 105 of the Enemies Colors in the Councel House at the Hague to the Honor of God the Disposer of Victory This was not his first Essay of a Field Battle for otherwise he might have passed for one that was good only at the taking of Towns but he had long before forced the Duke of Parma to raise the Seige of Knotsemburg over against Nimiguen having defeated 7 Troops of his best Cavalry a disgrace which the Duke lessen'd by the necessity laid upon him by Orders from Spain to go and succor Roan In the year 1594 he had likewise at the Battle of Tournhout defeated and slain the Lord de Balancon Count de Varax General of the Artillery of Spain who commanded a body of 6000 Foot and 600 Horse of which besides the General above 2000 were left upon the place with several Prisoners of Note amongst whom a Count of Mansfeldt was one there were 38 Ensigns taken with the Cornet of Alonzo de Mondragon which were all hung up in the great Hall of the Castle at the Hague for a perpetual Memorial And upon this occasion I shall here relate how an Ambassador of Poland being come from King Sigismond to exhort the States General to reconcile themselves to the King of Spain whose Power he magnified so far as that sooner or later it would entirely subdue them and speaking as if he would frighten them with lofty words full of Vanity and according to the Eloquence of his Nation Count Maurice who was then present at this Harrangue upon his going out of the Assembly led the Ambassador
proper time and place but in all appearance his reasons upon examination were not thought valid for he was condemned to perpetual imprisonment after he had been degraded at Utrecht in a very ignominious manner 'T is true all the world was surprized that the French so easily abandon'd a place of that importance and strength and which was in so good a condition to defend it self for there were Two thousand Nine hundred and thirty Souldiers in the Garrison who wanted no provisions besides that the French ever since they had rendred themselves Masters of it had fortified it extremely But whatever was the cause of it whether some divisions arising between them and the Swissers as some people imagine or something else which we don't know his Highness who to encourage the Souldiers by his own example exposed his person to all dangers both in the Trenches and upon the Batteries carried the Town in four days having only 100 men slain outright and about 200 wounded whereas the Enemy lost abundance more which is quite contrary to what happens in all other Sieges Nor was he less careful to preservehis conquest than he was to acquire it to this purpose having given all necessary orders to repair the Fortifications and placed a sufficient Garrison in in it he made Count Coningsmark a brave experienced Captain Governour of the Town and then returned to the Hague to prepare himself for some greater designs For after the States of the United Provinces had made a stricter alliance with the King of Spain and the Emperor to defend themselves mutually against France their common Enemy by which they were obliged to assist one another conjointly with all their forces after this triple alliance I say in consequence of which the Imperial Army consisting of about Twenty Thousand Foot and Ten Thousand Horse was already on their March the Prince of Orange to perform something remarkable before the season was over caused his Army to advance to Rosendael in Brabant and following it soon after himself he joyn'd with the Count de Monterey who without the least difficulty yielded to him the preheminence and command of the whole Army But finding that the Prince of Conde had changed his post upon the news of the two Armies being joyn'd and that he had so well intrenched himself that it was impossible to attack him he advanced higher and joyn'd the Imperial Army commanded by Montecuculi between Andernach and Bon. In his march he summoned Rhinbeck to surrender which thro the perswasion of a Burgher who encouraged the rest to make resistance being refused he commanded the Sieur de Walkenburg to take two Regiments of Dragoons and two of Infantry and to make an assault which they did with that vigour that the Souldiers entring the Town put all to the Sword and hang'd up the Burgher who had so ill advised them as to make an opposition The Confederates being now joyn'd it was resolved to attack Bonn. The better to effect this the Marquis d' Arsentar was dispatched to Kessenning to take his quarters there and on the next day Montecuculi lodged the Imperialists at Goedesbourg His Highness went to post himself with all his forces at Rynford and General Spork who commanded the Imperial Cavalry planted himself on the other side of the City near Westerwaldt Bonn is a considerable City called by the Romans Iulia Bonna scituate upon the Rhine within four Leagues of Colen As it was then in the hands of the Elector and the French they had placed in it a Garrison of two Thousand men under the command of Lantsberghen and had provided it with all ammunitions of war with Twenty four piece of Cannon planted upon the Walls and Ramparts The Confederates not thinking themselves sufficiently paid for the loss of Mastricht by the retaking of Naerden resolved to render themselves Masters of Bonn. The Pr. of Conde durst not hinder them in person but sent the Mareschal d' Humieres with a body of five Thousand Horse to oppose them and to endeavour to throw some relief into the Town in the beginning of the Siege To put this in execution he advanced as far as Birchem from whence he sent a party of an Hundred Horse who pretending that they belonged to the Duke of Lorrain passed through the midst of the Imperialists without being stopt by any of the Centinels and so got safe into the City But another Hundred hoping to meet the same success as they passed by his Highness's Quarters found the Centinels not so credulous as their Brethren were so they were all cut in pieces or made Prisoners which news coming to the ears of five Hundred more who had hid themselves in a neighbouring Wood upon the same design they fled with the greatest precipitation imaginable At this time General Spork detached a body of five Thousand Horse to go and meet the French which the Mareschal being informed of he sounded a retreat and went back to Utrecht On the other side the Bsiegers having finished their Batteries and made their approaches gave but little or no rest at all to the besieged and after they had made three Mines ready to spring they prepared to give a general assault Nevertheless the Generals of the Confederates being willing to spare their own People and hoping to make themselves Masters of the place by gentler methods sent to summon the Governor afresh remonstrating to him that he had no hopes of being relieved that they were ready to spring three Mines that to be farther satisfied of the truth of this matter he might if he so pleased send one of his own men to behold them and that in case of longer resistance they were resolved to put all to the Sword without giving quarter to any whom they found in arms This message so effectually frighted the besieged that after a few days siege they demanded Articles and surrendred the same day upon the ordinary conditions viz. to go out with Drums beating Colours flying without carrying any provisions or ammunition with them except two pieces of Cannon There went out of the Garrison a Thousand five Hundred men the rest being either slain or wounded All the Germans who were in this number immediately deserted and listed themselves in the Emperour's service The City being taken his Highness retired to Vesseling and from thence marching lower with his Army and that of the Imperialists for he commanded both ever since the departure of Montecuculi for Vienna till the arrival of the Duke de Bournonville he took the two Castles of Brevel and Sechuich the latter of which had a Garrison of two Hundred French commanded by a German who perceiving that the Soldiers after they were summon'd to surrender resolved to hold it out to the last bethought himself of a stratagem to make them alter their opinions for having commanded the French to go down into the lower Court under a pretence to defend it when he saw them all there he drew the Draw-bridge upon
to see if he would not be willing to hazard a battle in open field Being therefore advanced within five or six mile of the French Camp they did all that in them lay to make him leave his strong scituation but 't was to no purpose for the Prince whether he had received orders from the King or this was his own proper sense of the affair would by no means quit it And now the Confederate Army finding that all their efforts were in vain resolved to attack some important place not doubting but the Prince would leave his post to come and relieve it and so they should bring their designs about This resolution being taken the Prince of Orange decamped from Senef and marched strait on the side of Bins The Imperialists had the Vanguard the Hollanders the Main Body and the Spaniards the Rear and because the passage was narrow the Cavalry marched on the left the Infantry in the midst and the Artillery with all the baggage on the left also and to secure their march the Prince de Vaudemont still kept behind with four Thousand Horse and some Dragoons The Prince of Conde being informed of their March and knowing perfectly well the difficulty of the ways through which the Confederates were to pass took care to range his Army in order However not thinking it safe for him to engage the whole Army of the Confederates he suffer'd the Vanguard with a considerable part of their Main Body to pass some leagues before and when he saw they were too far advanced to return soon enough he believed he might now fall upon the Rear Thus the Prince came out of his Trenches and attack'd Vaudemont's Horse who seeing himself in a Country where the Horse could do no great service by reason of the Hedges and Ditches sent presently to the Prince of Orange for two Battalions of his best Foot while he with his Horse kept the Enemy in play His Highness sent him three under the command of young Prince Maurice of Nassau who as soon as they came up were placed on the other side of Senef all before the Horse in a four square body And now the whole Army of the Prince of Conde being come out of their Trenches 't was judged convenient to send for the Troops that were on the other side of the River that runs by Senef and then they placed the three Battalions that before were posted in the Wood directly against the Bridge of Senef over which the French were to pass They were no sooner got thither but the French attack'd 'em all at once Horse Foot and Dragoons Tho they began this attack with wonderful vigor yet they were not able to force the Enemy from his Post so that they were forced to draw off and make a Bridge over the River somewhat higher Having by this means joyn'd all their forces together the Confederate Horse ranged themselves behind the Infantry but so that they might come upon occasion to their relief In the mean time the Foot fired so warmly upon the French that passed the River that abundance of them were killed but the Confederates being unhappily straitned for want of ground and the French setting upon them as they came out of the Wood on all sides their Foot was obliged to retreat being overwhelmed by the excessive number of their Enemies which was the reason that they lost several of their principal Officers Young Prince Maurice who commanded the Brigade was made a Prisoner with several Officers more and Coll. Macovits was killed As soon as the Infantry of the Confederates was retired the French fell with great vigour upon the Horse commanded by the Prince de Vaudemont and the Prince of Conde began to range his Army in form of battel commanding his Foot to march secretly under the covert of the Hedges and Bushes The Confederate Horse had orders to charge them and as they were going to do it found the way was so hollow between the Enemy and them that they were obliged to turn about to the right and joyn the rest of the Army lest the Enemy perceiving their retreat should charge them in the Flank The French observing this turn'd to the left and made so much hast to charge this body of Horse that Prince Vaudemont had only time enough to range his three Battalions to endeavour to make head against the Enemy This first onset proved unlucky to the Confederates for the three Commanders in chief of this Brigade were taken Prisoners with several other Persons of Quality as the Duke of Holstein the Prince de Solmes and Monsieur de Langerac and many more were there slain Whatever care was taken to make these four Battalions rally again it could never be effected for away they ran without making the least discharge upon the Enemy Prince Vaudemont gave convincing proofs of an extraordinary valour but all his efforts were to no purpose The Prince of Orange likewise discovered an undaunted bravery behaving himself in all respects like an Old experienced General for he got before these affrighted Troops with his Sword in his hand and endeavoured by all sorts of perswasions and by his own example to encourage them to renew the fight exposing himself frequently to the danger of being killed or made a Prisoner but he was not able to stop them till they met a body of Spanish Horse posted at the bottom of a little Hill between them and the Village of Fay. Another Party of these Runaways joyn'd themselves to sixteen Battalions commanded by the Duke de Villa Hermosa who marched at the head of his Troops to oppose the French who pursued them and did every thing that could be expected from a person of his valour and conduct in the miserable condition that things were then in The rest of the Confederates rallied togather with a body of Foot posted likewise at the Foot of the same Hill On the other side the Prince of Conde who had advanced so far in pursuing the fugitives fell with that fury upon the Spanish Horse and the Foot whom he chased that the Marquis d' Assentar was forced to send for four other Regiments from the Foot of the Hill to reinforce his Cavalry Which the Prince of Conde observing he ordered five or six Battalions to advance immediately with a Brigade of Horse and dividing his Troops on the right and the left he charged the Cavalry of the Confederates in the Front and put them in disorder The Marquess did all he could by his own example to rally his men and begin the Battel afresh till at last being wounded in seven places he was killed at the head of his own Troops The Cavalry being thus in disorder he attempted to break his way through four Battalions of Foot that were come to their relief and put them in great confusion notwithstanding the conduct of the Duke de Villa Hermosa and Prince Vaudemont who used all the means imaginable to make them rally They likewise disordered
treatment they received the day before durst attempt nothing the Prince of Conde having only left some Dragoons in his old Quarters and got above three hours march before lest the Confederates should pursue him This was the issue of this bloody battel wherein the Confederates were beat at first altho they got the victory at last For on the Enemies side there were seven thousand men killed upon the spot without reckoning the wounded whom the Prince of Conde left in the neighbouring villages to the number of more than fifteen hundred On the side of the Confederates the whole list of those that were slain wounded made Prisoners and deserted did not amount in all to above six Thousand five Hundred besides that abundance of their men after they had been dispersed on one side and t'other in the hurry of the Engagement returned to their Colours 'T is commonly reported that a Letter of the Prince of Conde to the King of France was intercepted wherein he acquaints him that after he had made a general review of his Army he found it in a very deplorable condition that he had lost the flower of his Infantry and the better part of his Horse and in fine did not look upon himself to be strong enough to hazard a second battel In effect besides three Regiments Seven Hundred Swissers of the Guards and the Swiss Regiment of Molandin were intirely defeated An infinite number of Officers of note were slain amongst whom were the Marquess de Chanvalon de Clemerant de Bourbon and d' Iliers three Counts two Cornets of the King's Guards more than Forty Officers of the Guards du Corps Forty three Officers of the King's Regiment Fourscore Officers of the Queen's Guards Nine Collonels Eight Lieutenant Collonels and Majors and a Hundred and Sixty five Captains without reckoning the subaltern Officers So that the Prince of Conde did not without reason complain that he had lost abundance of brave Officers in this bloody dispute and a certain truth it is that if he had not had the advantage in the beginning of the Fight his Army had been entirely defeated Amongst several other Standards a white one was carried to Brussels and hung up with a great deal of solemnity in the Church belonging to the Carmelites This Standard was embroider'd with Gold and Silver bearing a Sun in the Zodiac with these proud words Nihil obstabit eunti Nothing shall stop my Course The day after the battel his Highness marched with the whole Army by the way of Mons and put them in quarters at S. Guillain where he received five Regiments of new Recruits and the Imperialists retired to Queverain where they stayed without doing any considerable action till the eleventh or twelfth of September In the mean time General Rabenhaupt undertook the Siege of Grave which was one of the most memorable Sieges that had happened for a long time as well for the scituation of the place the strength of the Garrison the great abundance of Ammunition and Provisions as for the furious attacks and assaults of the Besiegers and the vigorous resistance of the Besieged And that which renders it still more famous is that it could never be ended till the arrival of the Prince of Orange who soon determined it The Garrison consisted of Fourscore and eleven Companies of Foot who made in all four Thousand men and of Nine Troops of Horse The Sieur de S. Louis an old experienced Captain commanded the Cavalry and the Marquess de Chamilly a valiant and expert Commander was Governor of the Town where were four Hundred and fifty pieces of Cannon a Hundred of which were mounted upon the Ramparts besides an infinite quantity of Powder Corn Granadoes and all sorts of Provisions for here the French had laid up all that they carried away from those places they first conquered and afterwards abandoned General Rabenhaupt laid Siege to this place which extremely incommoded all the Neighborhood with Twenty Regiments of Foot and some Horse which were soon after reinforced with two Regiments of Foot and two Hundred Horse commanded by Don Iohn de Pimentel and a Regiment of Foot of the Prince of Courland and two Regiments of Horse of the Elector of Brandenburg under the command of General Spaen Coll. Hundebeck posted himself behind the great Dike on that side which lay nighest the Velp Coll. Golstein on the side towards Overyssel The Brandenburg Cavalry posted themselves higher towards the Est to hinder any relief from coming into the Town And the General himself approached near the Castle de Vegesak The place being thus environ'd on all sides the Siege was pushed forward with as much violence on the side of the Besiegers as it was vigorously defended by the Besieged In the mean time his Highness and the Imperialists that were quarter'd upon the Frontiers of Henault having recovered the disorder of the last battel were thinking how to perform some remarkable action Upon this consideration as soon as the Grand Convoy was arrived from Brussels with the Spanish Army consisting of eight Thousand Foot without reckoning the Horse and Dragoons the Prince of Orange decamped with the whole Army on the 12th of September and passed the River Hayne near Tournay and Aeth and marched from thence to Oudenarde In the interim two Regiments of Foot and two Thousand five Hundred Horse near Ghent were sent to break the Bridges of Deinse and Harlebike upon the River Ley with orders after that to rejoyn the Army That Evening the same Regiments brought abundance of Barges laden with all sorts of Ammunition and Provisions and five Hundred Pioneers who were ordered to advance by the way of Oudenarde and were followed by a body of two Thousand five Hundred Horse that posted themselves that evening before the Town and shut up all the passages leading to the Garrison on that side The Prince of Orange and the Count de Souches arrived at the same time and took each of them their quarters the Prince in the Abby of Ename and the Count on the other side the River at Leupegem and Elare and the Spaniards câ—…mmanded by the Duke de Villa Hermosa posted themselves at Beverem and Moregem There were in the Town four Hundred Germans six Thousand Swissers a Thousand French and four Hundred Horse commanded by the Sieur de Rosquaire The Confederates having finished all their Works made themselves Masters of the Counterscarp when the Prince of Conde having decamped from before Beaumont began to approach with his whole Army which consisted of forty Thousand men and resolved to give battel to the Confederates in case he could not otherwise relieve the place It was therefore his Highness's advice to get all things in readiness and meet the Enemy that was fatigued and spent with so tedious a March But this resolution had no effect because Count Souches was not to be found all that day and thus the Army was constrained to keep within their Trenches In the mean
the least thoughts of a Peace So that during the winter his Highness was sufficiently employed to get his Army ready against the opening of the Campaign for it was an easy matter to foresee that there would be occasion for very considerable forces to oppose the common Enemy as soon as the season was approached The French on their part began before the midst of April to make a review of several of their Troops under Mareschal de Crequi near Charleville and Mareschal d' Humieres was in the Field with a body of fifteen Thousand men near Courtray putting all the Country to contribution because the Spaniards were not strong enough to resist them Before the Prince of Orange could come and join the Duke de Villa Hermosa which he did at Cambron on the 26th of April the Mareschal de Crequi had blocked up Conde with an Army of sixteen Thousand men Upon the receit of this news the King of France parted immediately from Paris and was soon after followed by the Duke of Orleance who brought with him a reinforcement of ten Thousand men The place was so furiously attack'd and batter'd on all sides that unable to hold out any longer they were constrained to surrender at discretion altho the Prince of Orange was advanced as far as Granville to relieve it The King of France having given orders to repair the Fortifications of Conde and to place a Garrison of 3000 men in the Town commanded the Duke of Orleance to besiege Buchain This was a small Town but exceeding strong scituate between Cambray and Valenciennes and defended the communication between those two places for this reason it had a good Garrison under the command of a Governor who had the reputation of a brave and prudent Captain But the Duke with such an Army did not find the Siege to be a work of great difficulty and so much the less because the King of France who commanded the Army in person was not far from him and all this while kept the Dutch and Spanish Army in breath The Prince who was now encamped in view of the Enemy near Valenciennes and was resolved to attack him the day following in case Bouchain had not been taken would not quit his Post till the French King had decamped first and having sent a considerable number of Horse and Foot to seize all the passes and bridges upon the River Dender hinder'd him from ravaging the Country of Alost About the beginning of Iune the King returned to Paris and gave the command of his Army in the Spanish Netherlands to Mareschal de Schomberg and the Prince of Orange encamped before Maestricht On the other side the Mareschal to make a powerful diversion sent Humieres with 15000 men to besiege Air a place of prodigious strength for it is encompassed with a deep Morass and excellent Fortifications on three sides so that it can be entred only at one way which was defended by a Fort called St. Francis having five Bastions two Half-Moons and a very deep Ditch Nevertheless all this did not hiâ—…der him from making himself soon Master of the Fort the Governour not having men enough to oppose the great numbers of the French who threw such a prodigious quantity of Bombs and Granadoes into the place that most of the houses were afire So that the Burghers having without the Governours privity demanded to capitulate he was obliged to surrender the Town which nevertheless he did on very honourable conditions that were easily agreed to by the French because they were informed that the Duke de Villa Hermosa was on his way to attempt to raise the Siege All this while the Prince of Orange never stirr'd from before Maestricht which he had invested with his own Army and the Troops of the Confederates to each of whom he assigned their proper quarter Amongst the rest of these Troops the English under Col. Fâ—…wick Col. Widdrington and Col. Ashley to the number of two thousand six hundred then without reckoning the Volunteers and Reformades presented a Request to his Highness wherein they petition'd him to assign them a particular quarter and that they might be commanded separately that so if they behaved themselves like valiant men they might have all the honour and if otherwise all the shame to themselves it not being reasonable that they should suffer for the faults of other men This the Prince readily granted and gave them a separate post over against his own Regiment of Guards under the Command of Col. Fenwick the eldest Collonel of the three and they were as good as their word as they really made it appear by their desperate attacques where they signalized themselves by their extraordinary valour as long as the Siege lasted And in truth never was Siege carried on with greater vigour and resolution than this was the Prince continually encouraging the Souldiers with his presence till he received a slight hurt in his arm by a Musquet-shot but two things hindered them from taking the Town which might otherwise have fallen into their hands First the River was so low that the Prince was forced to stay some days till his Cannon came from Ruremond for want of water In the second place the forces he expected from the Bishop of Munster and the Dukes of Lunenburg came not to his relief On the other side Schomberg having received express orders to succour the Town and for that purpose having marched as far as Tongres his Highness summoned a Council of War to consider what was to be done in this conjuncture where after they had reflected upon the present condition of the Army which was extremely lessen'd and fatigued and found it was impossible to shut up the passes and avenues to the City on the side of Wick and that the French would infallibly throw some relief into it notwithstanding all their endeavours to the contrary In short after they saw their Horse cou'd not subsist any longer in the Trenches for want of forrage it was unanimously resolved to raise the Siege So the Prince commanded the Horse to join Count Waldeck and sent the Artillery Ammunition and Provisions with the sick and wounded to Ruremond by water keeping his Foot in a posture of fighting till the Vessels were out of all danger Soon after this judging the Campaign was ended for this year he left his Army under the Command of Count Waldeck and returned to Holland to assist at the General Assembly of the States He gave them an account of the last expedition which so highly satisfied them that the President congratulated him upon the score of his happy return and in the name of the whole Assembly thanked him for the extraordinary pains and fatigues he had undergone for the safety of the Republic The Campaign being thus finished all the world was in great hopes that a Peace wou'd be soon concluded but as it is a much easier matter to kindle a fire than to extinguish it a Peace like this where so many
different interests and parties demanded to be satisfied was not to be so speedily concluded as those persons who impatiently wished for it did imagine The very preliminaries of this numerous Assembly at Nimeguen cou'd not be regulated in the compass of one winter and notwithstanding all the instances and application of the King of Great Britain those that reasoned solidly saw well enough that the Peace was in no great readiness Nor were their conjectures vain for no sooner was the year 1677 begun but tho it was the depth of winter the French marched directly into the Spanish Netherlands so that in a short time all the places about Valenciennes Cambray and St. Omers were covered with the Enemies Troops and these three Cities were in a manner blocked up at a distance The French openly boasting that they wou'd make themselves Masters of two important places before the Spaniards were in a condition to take the Field Valenciennes was the first place that was invested with a Army of 50 or 60 thousand men under the command of the Duke of Luxemburg and the Count de Montal and four days after the King himself arrived in person in the Camp There was in the City a Garrison of 2000 Spanish Walloon and Italian Foot with about 1000 Horse and Dragoons commanded by the Marquis de Risburg Brother to Prince d'Epinoy TheKing after his arrival view'd the posts gave orders for the Trenches to be opened and set up Batteries In fine the siege was so vigorously pushed on in a few days that the French were advanced as far as the Glacis of the Counterscrap and a Horn work that was one of the best defences the City had But the King not being willing to lose time in taking all the Out-works regularly order'd an Assault to be made on the Horn-work in four different places all at once by eight in the morning and to facilitate this enterprize alarmed the Besieged all the night with throwing of Bombs Granadoes and Carcasses which had the desired effect For after a short dispute the French enter'd the Town losing no more in this expedition than only Count de Barlemont a Collonel of the Regiment of Picardy three Musqueteers six Granadiers and some Souldiers The King having thus carried Valenciennes sate down before Cambray with part of his Army commanded by the Duke of Luxemburg and order'd the Mareschal d'Humieres to invest St. Omers with another part Cambray is one of the oldest Cities in the Low Countries built ever since the time of Servius Hostilius but the Castle was built by Charles the Fifth upon which account the Spaniards took great care to preserve it There were in Garrison fourteen hundred Horse four Regiments of Foot besides two Companies of old Spanish Souldiers under the command of Don Pedro de Laval the Governour The Cathedral was in so great veneration for the beauty of the structure that the Canons came out of the Town and presented a Petition to the King wherein they requested him not to fire at the Church which he freely granted The lines of Circumvallation were no sooner finished but the King commanded an Assault to be made on the two Half-moons on the Castle side which the French having soon made themselves Masters of they immediately began to undermine the Ramparts this put the Besieged into such a consternation that they desired to Capitulate and surrendred the Town on very honourable Conditions But tho the Town was lost the Castle held â—…ut still for the Governour taking advantage of the Cessation of Arms gave orders in the mean time to have some Cannon and other necessary provisions got ready commanded all the Horses to be slain only reserving ten for each Company and thus retired into the Castle with all his Souldiers before the French had the least suspicion of it being resolved to sell the Castle dearer than he had done the City The King was obliged to cease for some time not only because the French Pioneers were repulsed by the Besieged in a Sally they had made to prevent their approach but also because he was informed that the Prince of Orange was marching to the relief of St. Omers he sent the Duke of Luxemburg with a great part of his Army to reinforce his Brother the Duke of Orleance who had set Siege to that City and had already finished his Batteries For the news of the great success which the French King had at Valenciennes and Cambray and the Siege of St. Omers had so mightily alarmed the United Provinces that the Prince of Orange was forced to take the Field before the rest of the Confederates were ready to joyn him He assigned Ipres for the general Rendezvous of his Army which was composed of Dutch and some other Troops drawn out of the Spanish Garrisons and began his March on the 7th of April and on the 9th arrived at St. Mary Capel where he was informed that the D. of Orleans lay encamped on the great road to St. Omers and had only left a few Regiments in the Trenches to keep the City blocked up The straitness of the ways which he was to pass made his March very tedious so that after he had marched all the next day he advanced no farther than a small River called Pene on the other side of which he perceived the Enemy drawn up in battle The Prince having consulted his Guides and those that knew the Country they all assured him that there was no other passage than this to go to Bacque which they looked upon to be the only place by which St. Omers might be reliev'd Upon this consideration he resolved to pass the River and set upon the Enemy and having ordered some new Bridges to be made and repaired those that the French had broke down he accordingly passed it on the 11th of April by break of day so that all were got over before the Enemy was aware of them But when he had passed it with his Troops he was very much surprized to find that there was another River still between the French and him encumbred with Trees and Hedges altho those that were acquainted with the Country had assured him of the contrary so that he found himself strangely embarass'd as not having in the least expcteed this second Obstacle But this did not hinder him from making himself Master of the Abby de Pienes but in the mean time the Enemy having received a reinforcement of fifteen Thousand men came to attack the Abby where the Prince's Dragoons were posted who being supported by some Regiments of Foot received them so warmly that they were forced to retire After this the Prince set fire to the Abby least the Enemy should post themselves there At the same time the French advanced slowly with the right Wing of their Army to charge the Prince's left Wing in the Flank which was covered with abundance of Hedges where were likewise posted two Battalions The Prince perceiving that the Enemy had received some new
moreover the mighty esteem they had of so glorious an Alliance and their sincere resolution to cultivate the ancient Friendship and good Correspondence which had always been and was between his Britanic Majesty and them This answer arriving at London on the 14t h of November which was his Highness's Birth-day the Marriage was celebrated at eleven at night but with so little noise that the People knew nothing of it till the next morning when they gave all public testimonies of their joy by Ringing of Bells and Bone fires But amidst all this rejoycing and feasting the Prince knowing how necessary his presence was in Holland made all possible expedition to arrive thither He parted from London on the 29th of November with his Princess and landed at Terheyde from whence he went to Hounslaerdyk where they tarried some time till they made their public Entry into the Hague which was a few days after performed with extraordinary Magnificence But I pass all these ceremonies over in silence in order to come to matters of greater importance Towards the beginning of the year 1678 tho it was the midst of Winter the French King made such mighty preparations of War that all Europe was alarmed at them but particularly Holland and the Consederates This made the King of Great Britain send the Earl of Feversham to his Most Christian Majesty with a project of Peace by which Charleroy Aeth Oudenard Courtray Tournay Conde Valenciennes St. Guillain and some other Towns were to be surrendred to the Spaniards and the King of France to keep all the Franche-Comte in his possession but he would not hearken to it and as for the King of England he was as unwilling to abate any thing in his propositions Which obliged his Britannic Majesty to sent orders to my Lord Hyde his Ambassador at Nimeguen to make a strict alliance with the States-General which being concluded he dispatched My Lord Montague into France to press the King to accept his terms and gave out Commissions at the same time for raising an Army but the French King rejected these conditions of Peace and made great provisions for the war on all sides but especially in his new acquisitions in the Low Countries Upon which the King of England recalled the Troops he had in the service of France which besides their other ill treatment were sent home without their pay The King of Great Britain held firm to his resolution and summoning a Parliament communicated to them the late alliance he had made with Holland for the public benefit and repose of Christendom protesting he was resolved to force the French King to a Peace and therefore desired them to furnish him with a summ of Money necessary for such a design The Lower House thanked his Majesty for the great care he took of the Protestant Religion in marrying his Niece to a Protestant Prince beseeching him not to consent to any conditions of Peace with France unless they were better than those at the Pyrenean Treaty To which the King having consented the Commons after a long deliberation resolved to equip a Fleet of Fourscore and ten Men of War and to raise an Army of 29870 Land Men and nominated Commissioners to compute the expence Whilst these things lay under debate the French King who was sensible what designs the Consederates were forming against him resolved to render them all ineffectual by being before hand with them For this effect he left Paris on the 7th of February and marching by the side of Mets entred Flanders no one being able to determine where the storm would fail All the World was of opinion that the design was upon Mons or Namur or some other place of like importance and Ghent which never expected to be attack'd had so weakned itsGarrison by drawing out their men and distributing them in other places that the French King who knew this very well sate down before it on the 1st of March with an Army of Threescore orFourscore Thousand men It was impossible for a City of so large a compass which had not above four or five Hundred Soldiers in Garrison besides the Inhabitants to defend themselves long against a vain-glorious Prince who valued the taking of a Half-moon more than the loss of a Thousand men and who by his assaults and batteries had extreamly weaken'd it So Ghent was forced to surrender nine days after it was besieged from thence the Enemy came before Ipres but that City being much stronger than Ghent and besides furnished with a better Garrison the Besiegers met so warm an opposition there and lost so many Officers and Soldiers before they took it that the King put the greatest part of his Army immediately into Garrison and returned to Paris whether he thought his Army sufficiently harrass'd by these two Sieges or whether he thought he had humbled his Enemies enough to incline them now to accept his own proposals of a Peace or lastly whether he was afraid of the English who had sent considerable Forces into Flanders For about this time the D. of Monmouth was arrived at Bruges with three thousand Horse and Foot which the K. of Great Britain had sent to re-inforce the Prince of Orange's Army and the Parliament was so earnestly bent to pursue the War against France that they petitioned the King to declare open War against it promising to stand by him with their lives and fortunes and to furnish him from time to time with sufficient summs to carry on so generous an undertaking In the mean time all the world was astonished to â—…ear that the French King had intirely abandon'd Messina and all Sicily The more able Politicians imagined that now there were no hopes of a Peace since this Prince had abandon'd his Conquests in Italy as he had lately done those in Holland for no other end but that he might the better compass his designs upon Spain and the Empire But others said it was an infallible sign he was not so strong as he pretended to be and that what he had done was rather out of meer necessity than for any other end However it was the Parliament of England were of belief that France was resolved to continue the War in Germany and the Low Countries and therefore to stop his Career granted his Majesty a Poll-bill and by the same Act prohibited the Importation of all French commodities King Charles who was desirous to enter into a League with the Empire Spain and the United Provinces would oblige them to make the same prohibition in relation to French goods in their own respective Dominions But while the Hollanders were demurring upon the last point believing that such a prohibition would ruine their trade an unexpected accident fell out that changed the whole face of affairs The King of France after his return to Paris seeing his Britannic Majesty was resolved to support the Interests of his Nephew the Prince of Orange particularly since his Voyage into England and his Marriage
Barneveldt she took part with the latter and used all her Endeavours to save his Life having founded her good Opinion of him upon his having been one of the chiefest Confidents of the Prince her Husband This Princess was my Father's greatest Support in his Long Embassy and rendred him always agreeable to the House of Orange This was a Favour which at that time he stood mightily in need of for the Court would suffer no person there but one that stood fair in the Opinion of that Family This Protection was so much the more advantageous and necessary to him because there were several Persons of Quality in France that were Brothers-in-Law or Cousins to Prince Maurice who used all their Endeavours to render him suspected and to have him recalled from that Employment which was the most considerable that could be hoped for from France in that Conjuncture All Europe was then in a profound Peace so all Embassies at other Courts lay dead and had no Action stirring that was considerable That of Holland only was of Importance by reason of the War which on their part was managed under the Conduct of that Famous Captain Count Maurice and in Flanders by the great General Ambrose Spinola a Genoese The English Scotch Danes Swedes the Germans those that were Protestants and the French went thither to learn the Rudiments of War under the Count and the Germans the Italians the Sicilians the Polanders and the Spaniards that were Catholicks did the same under the Marquess so it seemed as if all the whole Christian World was met in this little Corner of the Earth to learn how to fight against one another France then maintaining divers Companies of Foot and some Troops of Horse in that Countrey being very much interested in what concerned the Good of the United Provinces who then Employed the Arms of the Spaniards their ancient Enemies and having likewise very often an Occasion for the Assistance of the Dutch Men of War the Embassador had continually some matter of Importance to write to Court and to dispatch his Couriers thither Besides the King every year gave large Sums to the Hollanders for the Payment of the French Troops and the Embassador besides the Allowance for his Employment and his Pensions from Court had moreover fourscore thousand Livres a year as Treasurer in Holland and all the Money went through his Hand Besides the great Profit of this Employment there was likewise much Honour and Pleasure in the Service for all the French Nobility when they came from the University went to learn the Art of War under Prince Maurice as heretofore they had done in Piedmont under the great Mareschal Brisac In Winter the Hague was full of French Lords and Gentlemen who to honour their King and the Person of his Minister used to accompany him to his Audience of the States-General and it not being possible to provide Coaches for two or three hundred Gentlemen and Officers that sometimes came together the Embassador himself used to march on Foot at the Head of so splendid a Company and his Coach to follow after empty I shall spend no more time upon the Concerns of my Fathers Embassy or his Obligations to the Princess Louise of Orange but return to my principal Matter and relate what I know concerning Philip Prince of Orange eldest Son to William of Nassau by his first Wife Anne of Egmont PHILLIP WILLIAM Prince of Orange Philip William of Nassau Prince of Orange and Eleanor of Bourbon his Wife THis Prince was Godson to King Philip the Second and when Prince William his Father was forced to take Arms in his own Defence he studied in the Colledge of Lovaine where amongst other priviledges it is not permitted to arrest any person upon what account soever Notwithstanding this Iohn Vargas a Spaniard accompanied with several Souldiers of the same Nation took him thence by force pursuant to an Order from the Duke of Alva in spite of all the clamours of the Rector of the University who complaining vehemently and in good Latin that their Priviledges were violated was answered by Vargas very incongâ—…uously in this Barbarous expression Non curamus Privilegios vestros The Prince of Orange his Father complained of it by Publick Manifesto's which set forth the Cruelty of the Spaniards and proved that there were neither Laws nor Priviledges nor Innocence of Age that could exempt any person from their Tyranny This poor Child was carried Prisoner into Spain at 13 years old and shut up in a Castle in the Country where he could have no Education and where he pass'd the greatest part of his time in playing at Chess which the Governour of the Castle had taught him Towards the end of his Imprisonment which was about 30 years they allow'd him a little more Liberty This Prince was naturally Complaisant his Body sat and wore a very large Beard Being carried young into Spain he continued a Catholick so the Spaniards to justifie this unjust detention said they had brought him thither only to preserve him from the poyson of Heresie and to keep him in security from it During his stay in Spain the Captain who guarded him having spoke much to the disadvantage of Prince William his Father this generous Son push'd on by affection for his Father which animated him to resentment took him about the middle threw him out of the Window and broke his Neck He thought that so bold an action would bring him into trouble and indeed upon this occasion there were different advices given in King Philips Council but at last it was resolved to use mildness and indulgence in this encounter Gabriel Osorio a young Gentleman who was present at the action having reported it in favour of the Prince said the Governour had been wanting in his respect towards him so this death was allowed to his just resentment The Prince thought himself so obliged to Osorio for this favorable representation which he had made of him that he ever after kept him near his Person and bestow'd on him a great many favours At last King Philip II. either moved by so long a Captivity or weary of punishing the pretended Iniquity of the Father upon the Son that was Innocent or rather hoping that his deliverance would raise jealousies and divisions amongst the Brothers of the House of Orange as the escape of Monsieur de Guise from the Castle of Tours had caused amongst the heads of the League resolved to release him after so long an Imprisonment Then Count Maurice shewed upon this occasion that he had a Soul that was wholly disinterested and let him enjoy all the Estates which were then in his Possession as Breda and other places and Madam the Countess of Holoc his Sister by Father and Mother used him very generously making him a Thousand fair Offers and rich Presents upon his arrival in the Low Countries where they two met at Cleves but Count Maurice for fear of being suspected satisfied himself with
long Combat where abundance of persons of France England and the Low Countries ran from all parts to see from the shore so extraordinary a spectacle The greatest part of so powerful a Fleet was burnt destroyed or separated and those which escaped put themselves under the covert of some English Vessels and so retreated into the River of Thames or some Port in Flanders The Spaniards lost above 7000 men that were burnt or drowned besides 2000 who were made Prisoners by the Hollanders This Victory was very great and memorable for there were 40 large Vessels sunk burnt or taken and amongst others the great Galeon of Portugal called Mater Tereza was burnt which was 62 foot broad and had 800 men on board who all perished This Tromp was the Father of Count Tromp who was engaged in the King of Denmark's service and gained great advantages over the Swedes In the year 1641 Prince Henry Frederick married his only Son Prince William to the Princess Mary of England eldest Daughter to Charles I. King of Great Britain and Madam Henrietta of France and this Marriage was celebrated with a great deal of Pomp and Magnificence The year 1645 was remarkable for the taking of the important Town of Hulsh in Flanders which was carried in spite of the Spaniards who could neither put succors into it nor make Prince Henry raise the Siege This Prince during the space of two and twenty years that he had the Government in his hands was remarkable for his wife and moderate conduct Because the Princess Louise de Coligny his Mother had maintained Barnevelt's Party some people thought that the Prince following his Mothers inclinations would re-establish that Party and recall such of them as had been banished and among others Mr Grotius But this Prince like a good Politician thought it better to let things continue in the posture he found them in than to embroil'em afresh by bringing a prevailing party upon his back I have seen Mr. Grotius in a great passion upon this occasion and he has spoke very ill of the Prince accusing him of Ingratitude and of having no respect for those who had been Friends to his Mother Prince Henry was very rich but instead of finding any support from England he was forc'd to help King Charles in his necessity with all his ready Money The greatest part of which has been repaid by the King of England since his Restauration to his Nephew the Prince of Orange Henry Frederick died the 14th of March 1647 and was buried with a great deal of State Besides his Children that we have mentioned before he left a Natural Son remarkable for his Valor his name was Mr. Zulestein Collonel of the Dutch Infantry who died at the attack of Vorden Prince William of Orange laid the Foundation of the Commonwealth of the United Provinces and was their first Founder his eldest Son Maurice secured and established this Commonwealth by his Victories which forced the Spaniards in the Treaty of Truce for 12 years to acknowledge the United Provinces for a free State and Henry Frederick Brother to Maurice and Grandfather to the present King of England by the continuation of his Conquests at last forced the Spaniards to renounce entirely the right which they had pretended to that Country so that we may say with reason and justice that this illustrious Father and his two generous Sons who have imitated his Vertues are the Founders of this Commonwealth which sends Ambassadors that are covered before the most powerful Kings in Christendom even before the King of Spain himself whose Vassals they were about 100 years ago Henry Frederick had for his devise this word Patriaeque Patrique intimating thereby that he thought of nothing but serving his Country and revenging the Death of his Father WILLIAM II Prince of Orange THE LIFE OF WILLIAM II. Prince of Orange THis Prince was born in the year 1626 the States General were his Godfathers and by the appointment of his Father was called William after the name of his Illustrious Grandfather In the year 1630 this young Prince was declared General of the Cavalry of the Low Countries and the year following the States granted him the Survivorship of the Government of their Province He was no sooner of Age to bear Arms but he followed his Father to the Army and was present at the Siege of Breda giving great proofs of his Courage though but 13 years old Immediately upon the death of his Father Frederick Henry he took the Oath of Fidelity to the States for the Government of which they had granted him the Reversion All Europe was in a profound Peace upon conclusion of the Treaty at Munster which was done the next year after Prince Henry's death The States considering the vast Debts they had contracted by the extraordinary Expences they had been obliged to make resolved to retrench all unnecessary ones having a great number of Troops in their pay that were of no use now the War was at an end they proposed to disband a considerable part of them William the Second who had succeeded in all the Places of the Prince his Father and knowing very well that nothing but the Army could support the credit of the Places he was possessed of made a strong opposition to this design of the States General He represented that it was against all the Rules of Policy to disband Troops who had been so faithful to the Provinces and that France or Spain might make use of this opportunity to fall upon their Common-wealth in a time when they could not be in a condition to defend themselves The States who were already resolved to break 120 Companies to make some sort of satisfaction to the Prince offered to continue the ordinary Pay to the disbanded Officers The Prince agreed to this proposal but the Province of Guelders and the City of Amsterdam opposed and protested against it for several reasons They who were in the Prince's Interests advised him to visit the principal Cities of the Netherlands to perswade the Magistrates to take a Resolution of leaving not only the Officers but the Troops in the same condition they were in before the War that they might be in a readiness to serve where-ever there was occasion Pursuant to this advice the Prince having sent for the principal Collonels of the Army went in person to four or fiveCities of Holland The Burghers of Amsterdam who were well assured that the Prince would visit them too and apprehending his presence would cross the Resolutions they had taken desired him by their Deputies to put off his intended Journey to this City for several Reasons which they gave him Haerlem Medemblic and several other places followed the Example of Amsterdam The Proceedings of these Cities was so considerable an Affliction to the Prince and incensed him so much that in a meeting of the States General he resented it with inexpressible concern He endeavoured to insinuate to them by a great number of Reasons
recruits on that side sent three fresh Battalions to support his own as likewise to guard the plain that was behind the Hedges But the two first Regiments basely quitted their Post upon the first approach of the Enemy so that the other three Regiments that were sent to their assistance having not sufficient time to adjust themselves and seeing the two first Battalions run away betook themselves to their Heels and breaking into their own Squadrons that stood there to cover them occasioned an extraordinary confusion Upon this the French Cavalry coming to advance and being supported by the Infantry that made perpetual firing the Prince's Squadrons were beaten back but they did not go far and soon rallied again and poured so vigorously upon the French that they made them fly in their their turn In the mean time the Enemy's Foot being advanced above and having possessed the Hedges where the Prince's men were posted before they cou'd not possibly make a long resistance nor hinder the rest of the Foot from being attacked in the Flank as well as the Front So that the Foot after they had done their duty extremely well saw themselves obliged to quit their post and the Prince repassing the Rivet retir'd in very good order to Steenword and from thence to Poperdingue the Enemy having been so rudely handled by Count Waldeck who commanded the Prince's Right Wing that they had no desire to pursue him And this was the issue of the battel at Mont cassel The Prince having retired in this manner as we have related it the French King pursued the Siege of the Cittadel of Cambray with all imaginable vigor and it fell out very unfortunately for the besieged that a Bomb set fire on one of their Magazines where the Granadoes and other warlike Provisions lay and utterly consumed it However the besieged continued to defend themselves bravely and recompenced their loss in some manner by the death of the Marquess de Renel one of the French King's Lieutenant Generals who was slain by a Cannon-shot from the Castle But at last the French having made several breaches and the Governour of the Cittadel being wounded they were constrained to yield to the great number and continual attacks of the Enemy and to surrender the Castle which was done on very honorable conditions To return to the Duke of Orleans altho victorious he was so afraid lest the Prince should once more attempt to throw relief into St Omers that he durst not quit the field where the battle was fought but kept himself upon his guard for eight days successively But when he received the News that his Highness had passed the Canal of Ghent with all his Forces he returned before the Town which he besieged with his whole Army and after a gallant resistance which cost him several of his best Officers they were forced against their will to surrender upon good terms After the taking of these places the French heat began to be somewhat abated and those that were so forward to attack others were now content to act on the defensive all the rest of the Summer and durst never put it to the hazard of a battle altho it was often presented to them So that after several tedious marches and counter-marches on both sides and the Confederates ineffectual laying Siege to Charleroy which for several weighty considerations they thought expedient to raise the Prince returned to the Hague being accompanied by the Earl of Ossory Don Carlos the Duke of Albemarle and several other Persons of Quality After he had given the States General an account of the last Campaign with the reasons that obliged him to raise the Siege of Charleroy and not to attack the Enemy who were not only superior to him in number but posted to the greatest advantage Their High and Mightinesses thanked him for his conduct and indefatigable pains humbly beseeching him still to continue his zeal for the public Interest A little after his return to the Hague several of the English Nobility arrived at the Prince's Court who in an Assembly of the States General gave them to understand that his Unkle the King of Great Britain earnestly desired him to make a Voyage into England in hopes that his presence there would not a little contribute to the Peace then in agitation which would be of such mighty advantage to the Republic Thus his Highness took his leave of the States and of all theColledges on the 17th of October and being accompany'd by the Earl of Ossory Monsieur d' Odyk the Count de Nassau and several other persons of condition he embarqued at Hellevoetsluys in one of his Majesties Yatchs and arrived at Harwich on the 19th about ten in the morning where the Duke of Albemarle and the Master of the Ceremonies attended him in the King's Coaches and conducted him the same evening to the King and his Royal Highness at Ipswich who received him with all the testimonies of a particular kindness and affection On the 23d he arrived with the two Royal Brothers at Whitehall and was lodged in the Duke of York's apartment who retired to St. Iames's What was at first nothing but a bare surmize was soon after confirmed by the King himself For on the first of November his Majesty acquainted the Council with his design to marry the Prince of Orange to his Royal Highness's eldest Daughter declaring that he hoped this Alliance would facilitate the accomplishment of a General Peace which his Majesty was resolved to advance as far as the Interest of his Kingdoms did engage him After this the whole Council went in a body to compliment the Princess and afterwards the Prince the rest of the Nobility did the same after their example The Prince of Orange acquainted the States with it by an Express giving them to understand that after he had maturely weigh'd the reasons which might incline him to marry he thought he could not make a better choice than the Princess Mary that he had already demanded her in Marriage of the King and his Royal Highness her Father who immediately gave their consent that he judged it advisable to inform them of it expecting their approbation of the Match with all speed that he might the sooner repair to them for the service of his Country Hereupon the States General were assembled and seriously considering the reasons of State upon which this Marriage was founded with the great advantages it might produce as for instance a confirmation of that strict Union that was between the King of Great Britain and the States of the United Provinces the establishment of the ancient House of Orange and the conclusion of the Peace so earnestly desired I say after they had seriously considered all this but especially the happy choice his Highness had made of a Princess who besides her natural sweetness possessed all the virtues that a Husband could desire testified their approbation by a public Edict in terms full of joy and satisfaction declaring
to retire in some disorder The Prince had Castrau before his right Wing which the Duke had gained in great precipitation and it was happy for him that this place was as hard to be got to as the other he quitted In the mean time his Highness whom these difficulties did not discourage had no sooner drawn out his Army to battel but he was resolved to beat the Enemy out of his new post and sending for his Artillery ordered it to play upon the French who were posted a little higher on one side of a Cloister near St. Denys which the Duke of Luxemburg thought he might defend well enough with his Cannon But it was impossible for them to sustain the shock of the Confederate Dragoons who beat them from this Post and made themselves Masters of the Cloister while General Collier advanced on the side of the Abby and seconded by General Delwick broke through the narrow ways and mounting these horrible precipices with an invincible courage routed the Enemiy who for some time made a vigorous resistance in their lines In the midst of this engagement the Prince accompanied by the Duke of Monmouth who fought by his side all the day and encouraged with his good success cried out follow me follow me to encourage those Regimens that were to second the first Both sides were very liberal of their Powder and Ball and all the Regiments of the left Wing seconded one another till night with the same vigour and resolution Count Horn on his side approached nearer with his Cannon and ordered it to play on the French Battalions in the Valley where he caused a terrible slaughter From thence his Highness advanced with speed to Castrau which was attack'd by the Spaniards on the side of the right Wing where the Prince's Regiment of Guards led the Van under the command of Count Solmes who being seconded by the Duke of Holstein's Regiment and by the English forced the Enemies at last to quit the place The Regiment of Foot Guards continued in action with the French for the space of five hours and pursued them a quarter of a League through fields and precipices 'T is certainly a thing hardly to be believ'd that men should be capable of making such brave efforts in places so extremely disadvantageous and several persons who have viewed and examined them since say there are few places in the world naturally so strong The Earl of Ossory did wonders with his English at a small distance from the Foot Guards where the French lost abundance of Men. But the Prince in the heat of the Action advanced so far that he was in great danger of being lost had not Monsieur Onwerkerk come seasonably to his relief and killed an adventurous Captain that was just going to let fly a Pistol at him The Cavalry did nothing all this while by reason of the uneven scituation of the place so that all the execution lay upon the Infantry and Dragoons Night put an end to the dispute by the favour of which the Duke of Luxemburg made his retreat without noise and retired towards Mons and covered himself with a Wood on one side and a River on the other leaving to his Highness as marks of Victory the Field where the Battle was fought the greatest part of the wounded abundance of Tents and Baggage with a world of Powder and other Warlike Ammunition The States General receiving the News of so great a Success sent Commissioners to the Prince to congratulate him for the victory he had gained with so much Glory and Reputation and for the signal Actions by him performed in this last Battle to the great hazard of his life And to testify what a value they set upon his preservation they presented Monsieur Onwerkerk who had so generously opposed himself to the danger that threatned his Highness with a Sword whose handle was of massy gold a pair of Pistols set with gold and a whole Horse Furniture of the same metal The Prince of Orange having thus obliged the Duke of Luxemburg to retire had without question pushed his point and thrown relief into the Town but as he was consulting how to effect it word was brought him that the King of France and the States General had accommodated all differences The success of this Battle hasten'd the conclusion of the Treaty between Spain and France which was signed on the 17th of September to the great praise of the King of England who having joyn'd the terrour of his Arms to the authority of his Mediation had for his recompence the satisfaction to see the peace and general welfare of Europe given as a Portion with his Neice while the two great Alliances between France and Holland and between Spain and France were the and happy effects of the conjugal Alliance between his Highness and the Princess Mary of England The war being thus ended between France and the United Provinces his Highness had time now to breath himself after the fatigues and hurries of the last Campaigns for after the Ratification of the Peace and the Restitution of Mastricht to the States the King of France no more disturbed the Low Countries with the terrour of his Arms so that when his Highness had reformed all those innovations that had been introduced by the French when they were Masters of the Country the people began to enjoy the repose and tranquillity they had so long desired But matters were not so soon adjusted between the Kings of France and Spain By the Treaty concluded between the two Crowns it was agreed that Commissioners should meet at Cambray to regulate any disputes that might happen about the limits This was in the Year 1679. But after several tedious contests occasioned by the excessive pretentions of the French who demanded whole Provinces in the nature of dependances to be delivered into their hands the war was like to have kindled afresh till at last by the unwearied Mediation of the States General a Treaty was signed at the Hague on the 29th of Iune 1684 after which his most Christian Majesty having accommodated all differences with the Emperour by some other Articles of the same Nature a Truce of twenty years was agreed upon which being ratified tho not without some delays on the side of the Spaniards all those devastations and ravages that for the course of several years had ruin'd the finest Country in Europe began to cease In the midst of all these negotiations which the States seldom or never treated of but in the presence of the Prince of Orange whom they still consulted in the most difficult affairs his Highness show'd an extraordinary generosity for when every one was minding his particular Interests he neglected his own and preferr'd the peace and welfare of his Country to that reparation he might justly expect for the great losses he sustain'd in his own Demains For while the King of France burnt and ravaged the Low Countries in order to force the Spaniards to accept his offers a great part of the Prince's patrimony in Brabant underwent the common calamities The same thing happen'd when Luxemburg and the Franche-Comte came to change their Masters Prince d'Isenguyn supported by the authority of France exposed to Sale by sound of Trumpet all the Lands Furniture and Goods of his Highness as having been adjudged to him by a formal Decree of the Parliament of that Country The Provinces of Gueldres Zealand and Utrecht made great complaints in his Highnesses name but were not able to get satisfaction done him Nor suffer'd he less injustice in the Principality of Orange where the Walls of his Capital City were demolished the University disfranchized the Inhabitants barbarously plundered forced to send the young Students home to their Parents and forbidden to educate any of the Reformed Religion for the future all which was directly contrary to the Faith of the late Treaty But when the States represented the great injustice of this procedure the Court of France return'd them no other answer save only this viz. That they had good reasons for what they did As soon as the Truce was confirmed the States were of opinion they might now disband their supernumerary forces and the Deputies of Amsterdam wou'd without any further delay reform the recruits they had made the year before but all the members coming to this conclusion that nothing ought to be done without the advice of the Prince of Orange his Highness upon the mention of this proposal assured them that no one more earnestly desired the ease of the people than himself but however he wou'd never consent till their affairs both at home and abroad were in a better posture of security to leave the Country naked and defenceless The States were soon perswaded to follow this advice and accordingly resolved to keep their Troops as long as the necessity of their affairs demanded it And now from the conclusion of the Peace till the year 1688 when his Highness made his wonderful Expedition into England we have nothing remarkable in this Prince's History What was the success of that prodigious Descent and by what means the ensuing Revolution was carried on which has occasioned so mighty an alteration in this Western part of the World as it is sufficiently known to every English Reader So a just narration of all the surprizing incidents requires a person of more leisure and greater abilities than my self FINIS ☞ Excuse the man and don 't pronounce his doom Poor Soul he left his Calepine at Rome * According to the new Stile which I have all along followed with my Author * A great and stately City upon the Scheld built as 't is commonly pretended by the Emperour Valentinian * Sir W. Temple in his Memoirs represents this matter otherwise for there we are told that K. Ch. the 2d was so far from courting the Prince to come to visit him that he was apprehensive of his arrival