their Industry and Art in Trading are become so excessive Rich and Potent that they began to Insult and would needs be Arbitrators to their Neighbouring Princes and States and encroach upon their Territories and Dominions This drew upon them that fatal War before-mentioned by which they were sorely weaken'd and brought so low that except GOD by a more than ordinary Providence had protected and appeared for them they had certainly been ruinated and never able to recover themselves again however their Pride hereby was much abated And as Luxury and Lasciviousness are the sad Effects of Prosperity as well as Pride so such Vices in a Body Politick and Commonwealth as do corrupt the Radical Humours by abating the Vigour of the Vital Parts do insensibly tend to the Consumption and Decay of the whole That this Commonwealth hath much recovered its Strength may clearly appear if we consider what great Things they have effected since the little time they have enjoyed Peace They have in less than 7 Years built about 40 gallant Ships of War They have laid out vast Sums of Treasure in refortifying Narden Maestricht Breda the Grave and many other Places They have paid vast Sums of Money to their Allies for their Auxiliary Troops as also 200000 l. Sterling to the King of England to Enjoy their Peace with him And besides all this their Encrease in Riches and Power may be guessed at by the many stately Houses built within these 5 Years in Amsterdam Rotterdam and other Places to all which we may add to what excessive height the Actions of the East and West-India Company are risen and the Obligations from the States are so esteemed as to Security that they can get as much Mony as they please at 2 per Cent. Not to speak of the exceeding Encrease of their Subjects occasioned by the French King's Tyranny against the distressed Protestants in France Alsace and other parts of his Conquests neither will we speak of other Signs of the Encrease of this Commonwealth as not judging it convenient to commit them to Paper but will now proceed to shew the Method of Living and Travelling in the Dominions and Places of the States which if you do well consider you may see how happy and easy the Government of England is above that of other Nations The Briell in Holland is the usual place where the Pacquet and King's Pleasure-boats bring on such as come to see the United Provinces but of late Helvoet-Sluys is the place the Pacquet comes to as being the more convenient Port Here be sure to furnish your self well with Money From hence you take a Boat to Maesland-Sluys or Rotterdam which if you go in Company with others will only cost you 5 Stivers but if you take one for your self will cost 25 Stivers for Maeseland-Sluce and a Ducatoon to Rotterdam The fifth part of which goes to the States for a Tax they call Passagie Gelt and the other four parts are for the Boat-Men or Schippers who also out of their Gains must pay a Tax to the States so that by Computation you pay a fifth Penny to the States for your Travelling either in Boats by Water or in Wagons by Land As you pass by Maseland-Sluce you will see a very fair Fishing Village to which belong near Two hundred Herring Busses but if you go by the way of Rotterdam you Sail by two old Towns called Flardin and Schiedam Yet let me advise you before you depart from the Briell to take a serious view of it as being the City which in Queen Elizabeth's time was one of the Cautionary Towns Pawned to England The Briell had a Voice among the States but by reason Rotterdam hath got away their Trade by which having lost its former Lustre is now become a Fishing Town only Rotterdam is the Second City for Trade in Holland and by some is called Little London as having vast Traffick with England insomuch that many of the Citizens Speak good English There are in this City two considerable Churches of English and Scotch And how great a Trade they drive with the King of England's Subjects is evident for in the year 1674 at the opening of the Waters after a great Frost there departed out of Rotterdam 300. Sail of English Scotch and Irish Ships at once with an Easterly Wind And if a Reason should be demanded how it comes to pass that so many English Ships should frequently come to that Haven It is easily answered because they can ordinarily Load and Unload and make returns to England from Rotterdam before a Ship can get clear from Amsterdam and the Texel And therefore your English Merchants find it Cheaper and more Commodious for Trade that after their Goods are arrived at Rotterdam to send their Goods in Boats Landward into Amsterdam This City is Famous as being the place where great Erasmus was Born whose Statue of Brass stands erected in the Market-place And although the Buildings here are not so superb as those of Amsterdam Leyden or Haerlem yet the places worth the seeing are first the great Church where several Admirals lie stately Entombed here you see their Admiralty East-India and Stadt-Houses together with that called Het Gemeen Lands Huis From Rotterdam you may for five Stivers have a Boat to bring you to Delft but before you come thither you pass through a fair Village called Overschie where the French and English Youths are trained up in Litterature as to the Latin and Dutch Tongue Book-keeping c. From thence in the same Boat you come to Delft which is Famous for making of Porceline to that degree that it much resembles the China but only it is not Transparent In Delft is the great Magazin of Arms for the whole Province of Holland Their Churches are very large in one of which are Tombs of the Princes of Orange Admiral Tromp and General Morgans Lady and in the Cloister over against the Church you have an Inscription in a Pillar of Brass shewing after what manner William the First that Famous Prince of Orange was shot to Death by a Miscreant Jesuit with his deserved Punishment Delft hath the third Voice in the States of Holland and sends its Deputies unto the College of the States General and to all other Colleges of the Commonwealth They have also a Chamber in the East-India Company as shall be more largely spoken to when we shall come to Treat of the State of the said Company From Delft you may by Boat be brought to the Hague for two Stivers and an half which is accounted the fairest Village in the World both for pompous Buildings and the largeness thereof here the Princes of Orange hold their Residence as also the States General and the Council of State here you have the Courts of Justice Chancery and other Courts of Law Here you see that great Hall in which many Hundreds of Colours are hung up in Trophy taken from the Emperor Spaniard and other Potentates with whom
the People 5. The Preservation of Unity amongst the Neighbouring Princes 6. The clearing of the Sea and the increasing of Trade 7. The Advancement of the Glory of this State 8. The concluding of a firm and lasting Peace While the Fire play'd so finely the Air was full of the crackling Noise and the Buzzes of the several sorts of Fireworks and they continued so very thick that it did in a good measure dispel the Fog which was then very thick At times they lighted Water-Balls Water-Candles Water-Bullets Water-Boats Water-Morters Rats and Dolphins in a Vessel upon the Canal which sputtering and crackling upon the Water gave an Entertainment so great that several Ingenious Men who understood these Matters owned that they had never seen any Thing like it They kindled also some Hundreds of pitch Barrels set round the Scaffold which encreased the light whereby the other Works which play'd all the while were discerned the better It lasted till about Eight and was ended with Twenty five Mortar-shot after which the Cannon were several times discharged The whole was done without any Mischance save only the loss of one Gunner who sweeping a Cannon lost both his Hands and died of his Wounds When His Majesty came to Court the Militia stood in order in the outer Court before the Triumphal Arch viz. Baron Friesem's Regiment of Foot Baron Heyde's Regiment of Horse who having discharged all together went to the Viverbergh to give way to the Train Bands in Arms. Several of the Lords of the States were in the Council Chamber to Countenance this publick Joy The Count de Berka and the Heer Colomma the Imperial and Spanish Ministers testified their Satisfaction by Illuminations before their Lodgings Mijn Heer Schuylenbergh did the same at his own House upon the Viverbergh with Noble Illuminations beautified with several Devices As Regi Gulielmo Reduci To King William returned again Transitque feritque He passes by and strikes Imperat Augustus Augustus Governs Superat Coelestibus alis He mounts with Heavenly Wings Generosus ab Ortu Noble from his Birth These were to be seen some time after Others also gave other instances of their Satisfaction every Man after his own Fancy This was also graced with so vast a resort of People as had never before been seen at the Hague Some coming to see the Solemnity others to see the King once more returned again and Crowned with so much Honour The King well satisfied with all these their Demonstrations of Esteem and Reverence immediately applied himself to Business having first given Audiences of Congratulation to all the Colleges and Deputies of the Cities and to some great Lords and publick Ministers The Elector of Brandenburgh and two Princes of the House of Anspach who came two days before the publick Entry were often with the King and sometimes the Ministers of the other Allies joyned with them It was said That three Ruffians were sent from the French Court to cut off the King and that there were particular Informations given in of their Persons February the 7th in the Afternoon the King went into the Assembly of the States General and took his place as Stadtholder and Captain General and made an Oration to them to this purpose That when His Majesty was last in Council he acquainted their High and Mightynesses with His Intention to go over into England with the Assistance which they were pleased to give Him to deliver that Nation from their Impending Dangers and which in part had befallen them And that God Almighty had so far Blessed Him as that He had brought His Affairs to a Happier Issue then at first He could possibly Wish for for which Reason they offered Him the Crowns of Great Britain and Ireland which He accepted of not out of any Ambition for He was not to be Corrupted with that or Money but only to preserve Religion and Liberty in those Kingdoms and to be able to give the Allies a vigorous Assistance against the Power of France which he had given before in a more particular manner if the Affairs of Ireland had not diverted Him which being now better settled than they were before He was now come over not only to take such Measures with their High and Mighty Lordships as should be most for the advantage of the Confederates but also to perform the Duty of Captain General And that from His tenderest Years He had always a High Regard for that State and should always be ready to give greater Proofs if it were possible how ready He should be to promote their Welfare for which he would joyfully hazard His Life if it might be a means to preserve the Liberty of Europe and to encrease the Felicity of the United Provinces And finally He Recommended Himself to the good Wishes of their High and Mighty Lordships Hereupon the Lord President Thanked His Majesty in their Lordships Name for the Honour which was done unto them by his appearing once more in Person amongst them And he assured him that they were highly sensible of those Obligations which he had Conferred upon them from time to time by engaging in so great dangers so readily for their Sakes And further that they should always Thankfully Acknowledge how much He had done for them wishing Him all Happiness in all His Undertakings promising their Concurrence with His Majesty to the utmost and that they should contribute whatever they were able to advance the common Interest and His Majesties Satisfaction He afterwards made a Speech to the State of Holland and was answered much to the same purpose The Evening before the King visited the Princess of Nassaw Lady to the Hereditary Stadtholder of Friezeland as also the Princess Radzevile and the Princess of Saxe-Eysenach The next day the King Treated the Elector of Brandenburgh the Duke of Norfolk and several other Lords at the House in the Wood and returned in the Evening again to the Hague The Ninth in the Morning the Heer Prielmeyer the Envoy of the Elector of Bavaria had Audience of His Majesty he was Conducted from his Lodgings about Ten a Clock by the Master of the Ceremonies with some Coaches and Six Horses and was received at the Stair-foot by the Swiss Guards placed in Order and received by their Officer at the end of the Guard Room and thence conducted through the Anti-Chamber into the Presence where after he had paid the accoustomed Reverences he made a Harangue in French to this purpose That he was sent by the Elector his Master to Congratulate His Majesties happy Successes and that his Master had begun his Journey as soon as ever he had heard that His Majesty had begun His so that he expected him every Hour to be ready upon the spot to assure His Majesty of his Readiness to serve the common Cause and particularly to second those Glorious Undertakings which His Majesty had so happily begun And for his part he only farther begg'd That his Person might not be unacceptable
AN ACCURATE DESCRIPTION OF THE United Netherlands And of the most considerable Parts of Germany Sweden Denmark CONTAINING A succinct Account of what is most Remarkable in these Countries And Necessary Instructions for Travellers Together with an Exact RELATION Of the ENTERTAINMENT of His Most Sacred Majesty King WILLIAM At the HAGUE Written by an English Gentleman LONDON Printed for Timothy Childe at the White-Hart in St. Paul's Church-yard 1691. THE PREFACE HAVING often Observed that Relations of Travels Voyages c. are generally very Acceptable to the Genius of the English Nation I judged that it might not be altogether Impertinent to give a brief Account of some remarkable Observations made during my Abode in Foreign Countries especially having Travelled for the space of Sixteen Years through Holland Germany Sweden Denmark and other considerable Parts of Europe I easily foresee that it will be soon Objected that after so great a Man as Sir William Temple who hath already Published a full and incomparable Description of the Policy and Government of the States of the United Provinces it would be a vain Presumption to attempt any farther on that Subject However without derogating from his Honour I have here inserted divers particular Remarks not mention'd by him but such as Travellers may make Use of to very good purpose for whose Information this small Essay is chiefly design'd And it will be the more eminently Useful at this time in respect of the great number of English Gentlemen that now Travel that way Wherefore I doubt not but this will be a sufficient Plea to cover me from the Imputation of Vanity and to make it appear that what I have here perform'd is only intended for the publick Service in general and the particular Assistance of those Gentlemen who shall hereafter Travel through these Countries The Lists of the Passage Boats and Wagons in Holland with the Hours of their going off which I have inserted the Traveller will find extreamly Useful As for the Relation of the Kings Voyage to Holland annexed at the end I Confess indeed That it deserves to be Written by an abler Hand but being at that time at the Hague I was induced by Curiosity to take an exact Account of this so extraordinary a Solemnity which I did at first for my own private Use but have now Published it through the importunity of some Friends The Prospects of the Triumphal Arches Pyramids c. are exactly Copied from the Original Draughts taken at the Hague and are the true Representations of them A DESCRIPTION OF HOLLAND With some Necessary DIRECTIONS FOR Such as intend to Travel through the Province of HOLLAND GERMANY c. AS they that confine themselves to their own Country have not the opportunity to see and observe Rarities in other Parts of the World so such as go into Foreign Places rather Wander at Random than Travel who have not the Curiosity to commit to Memory or Writing such Things they meet with both for their own and others Satisfaction as may demonstrate the Fruits of their Travels I confess all Travellers are not of alike Temper some delight themselves in Contemplation of the Curiosities of Arts some are taken with the Varieties of the Works of Nature others speculate with a kind of Reverence the Decays and Ruins of Antiquity others studiously inform themselves with the Transactions of Modern Times others with the Government and Polity others speculate the strange Custâ—â—â— and Fashions of the Places they pass through to be short every one labours to entertain the Reader with those Objects and Rarities of Foreign Parts his Genius and Inclination is most affected with As to my self although during the space of 16 Years Travel I might have enlarged according to the Curiosity and Opportunity I have had in the rehearsal of many rare and exquisite Things very observable yet my chief Aim was to make such Remarks as might most contribute to the common Good of Human Society and Civil Life in taking notice of the Government and Polity of the several States and Dominions where I have been viz. The United Provinces Germany Denmark Sweden and other Countries whose natural Temper and Disposition seemed to me most to sympathize with our English Nation and thereby have an occasion to do some good to my own Country Expect not Reader a like punctualness as to all the forementioned places because very many things which I might have observed are much agreeing and so may be referred to what shall be spoken of the Polity and Government of Holland which for Reasons I shall by and by hint at is the chief End I aimed at in this Treatise We will begin then in the first place with the Commonwealth of Holland and Dominions of the States General which thô for some years were in a declining condition and their Forces exceedingly weakened by reason of that fatal War it managed against England France and the Bishop of Munster unto which if we add the intestine Divisions of those two Factions the Prince of Orange and Lovestein that Politick Body was so totter'd and torn as did threaten its utter and total Ruine But as Bodies whether Natural or Politick after that a violent Fit hath â—ore shaken dissipated and exhausted their Spirits may recover vigor and look lively again if so be the Radical Constitution and Natural Temper be not wholly changed and depraved even so this Commonwealth of Holland hath visibly recovered Strength again and attained its former Force and Lustre We will therefore make some Remarks as to the Defects and Failings observed not only by me but also by others which that famous Commonwealth hath of late years been guilty of which I shall do not out of any Malice or design of Reflection the intention of writing this Treatise being simply to insert those Defaults which the wisest of Authors have always judged necessary not only for the Reformation of this but of all States whatsoever This Commonwealth of Holland hath worthily been the Wonder of all Europe during this last Age and perhaps not to be parallell'd in the Records of former Times for if we consider how many years it was assaulted by the then most Potent Prince of Europe who aspired to no less than the Universal Empire and that how formidable soever he were yet they not only maintained their Pretensions but with uninterrupted Prosperity and Succefsfulness advaâ—â—ed their Trade and spread their Conquests in all the four Parts of the World Rome it self though most famous and victorious yet could not as is beâ—ieved in so short a time do what by this Commonwealth hath been effected In India and Africa they soon forced the Spaniard and Portugueses to yield to them most of their Trade and Possessions And thô England put in for a share yet they were a long while vigorously opposed by the Dutch and to this hour have enough to do to keep what they have gotten so that in less than 100 years this Commonwealth by
But upon removing away the Plates another Dish of Poetry appeared which acquainted them That after that modest and sober way of living they might keep what they had got and lay up something for their Children Then comes in the Third Course made up of all the Rarities of the Season as Partridges Pheasants and all sorts of Fowl and English Pasties with plenty of Rhenish and other sorts of Wine to moisten them this put the Ladies in a Frolick and jolly Humour but under their Plates was found the Use and Application in Verses telling them That to feed after that manner was Voluptuous and Luxurious and would impair their Health and waste their Estates make them neglect their Trade and so in time reduce their stately and new built flourishing City to their old Fishing Town again After this was brought in a Banquet of all sorts of Sweat Meats piled up in Pyramids and delicate Fruit with plenty of delicious Wines and to conclude all a set of Musick and Maskers who Danced with the young Ladies but at parting like the hand writing to Belteshazzar upon the Wall every one had a Printed Paper of Moralities put into their Hand shewing them the Causes of the Ruin of the Roman Commonwealth according to that of the Poet Nullum crimen abest facinusque libidinis ex quo Paupertas Romana perit with an excellent Advice to them That if they did not quit the Buffoonries and Apish Modes of the French and return to the Simplicity Plainness and Modesty of their Ancestors and Founders their Commonwealth could not long last but all the Thanks the good old Burghermaster had for his kind and chargeable Entertainment in thus Feasting his Country-Men was to be Floutted at and Pasquild the Sparks of Amsterdam saying in all places That the old Man being now past the years of Pleasure himself would have none others to take theirs And here I shall put a period to what I thought fit to observe of the States of the United Provinces only I will beg leave to say something to the Hollander by way of Advice viz. That now they are in a prosperous Condition Rich and at Ease they would look back and remember what God in his infinite Goodness and Mercy did for them in the days of their greatest Calamities For my own part I cannot but admire the great Providence of God in preserving them from being devoured by their many Enemies they had in the last War besides their Enemies at home some of which particulars as they then happened give me leave to relate At the time when the French came to Invade the Territories of the States General it then looked as if God had mark'd out the way for the French to March by sending such a wonderful dry Season that the Rivers of the Rhine Beta Wall and other Rivers were Fordable so that the French only waded throw and became so Victorious that in a little space of time what by the Treasons of some and the Ignorance and Cowardise of others intrusted with the Militia and Garisons the French became Masters of above Forty Cities and Garisons at which time there was nothing to be heard of in the States Dominions but Confusion and Misery even in the strong and rich City of Amsterdam it self who at this time beheld the French Army like a mighty Torrent coming within sight of the City and at the same time wanting Water in their Canals and Burghwalls to ply their Sluces and such was the scarcity of Rain that a Pail of fresh Water was worth Six Pence Thus Heaven seemed to frown on them as well as the French Army by the shutting up as it were the Conduits of Heaven and yet a worse thing had like to have fallen out for at the same time the Divisions grew so high amongst the Magistrates in the Stadthouse that it was putting to the Question Whether or no they should not go and meet the French King with the Keys of their City to save it from Fire and Plunder now nothing in all probability could save this rich City from falling into the hands of the French but an immediate hand from Heaven and it had undoubtedly come to pass had not Providence caused the French to make a stand at Muyden two hours from Amsterdam at what time the valiant Roman of Amsterdam Scout Hasselaer like a true Father of his Country opposed the French Party in the Counsel calling out to the Burghers from the Stadthouse to take Courage and rather chuse to die like old Battavians with their Swords in their hands than tamely and treacherously to yield up their City to the Mercy of the French as some of the Magistrates were about to do this so incouraged the Burghers that with great Courage they mann'd the Walls and Heaven then assisting them with a sudden and plentiful Rain that they ply'd their Sluces and dround the Lands round the City three or four Foot high in some places which caus'd the victorious French Army to make a quick retreat as far as Utrecht else they had paid dear for seeing of Amsterdam thus was Amsterdam delivered by the hand of Heaven A Second was when that bloody Duke of Luxemburg who gloried and thanked GOD that he was born without pity or remorse of Conscience took the opportunity of an exceeding hard Frost to march his Army over the Ice as it had been dry ground burning in his way the three fair Villages of Bodygrave Swammerdam and Goudse-sluys acting there a more cruel Tragedy and worse than ever did Turk for they generally save the Country People for Ransom but this cruel Prince caused strong Guards to surround the Villages and burnt Men Women and Children together Thus he began his march with a design to burn Leyden Hague Rotterdam Delft and all the rich Country of Rhineland And this he might have done in all probability for first the Governor of New-sluce who commanded the Post that should have stopt the French treacherously delivered up the Fort without firing a Gun and the handful of Troops then under General Koningsmark were so inconsiderable that they joyned to the Soldiers under Pain and Vin the Governor of New-sluce were not able to make head as could oppose Laxemburg's Army and at the same time the Prince of Orange was with the States Army at Charleroy Now was Leyden ready to meet the French with the Keys of their City and other Cities too for they had neither Fortifications nor Soldiers to man their Walls Thus the whole Country and Cities of Rhineland were like to fall under the Cruelties and Tyrany of the French but GOD a second time sent these People Relief from Heaven first by giving such undaunted Courage to that Great States-man Pensionary Fagel that he forced Coningsmark to rally his Troops together and to make a stand near Leyden offering himself to die at the head of them if there were occasion but GOD reserved him for a further Good to the Commonwealth
Lands and Houses in their Dominions Then they have a Tax on Seal'd Paper and a Tax for Registering Land 〈◊〉 Houses likewise a Tax on Cows Horseâ— Calves and on all sort of Fruit. There are many other Taxes I could name as a Stiver for every Man that goes out or into any City after the Hour of shutting the Gates Also you pay for going over some Bridges and passing through Gates called Tolhek a Stiver for every Person but Coaches Wagons or Horses pay more These I have already named you will say are too many yet I may not forget to tell you that Milk first pays as Milk and again if it be made Butter yea the Buttermilk and Whay pays a Tax likewise for all which a Man would think that a People that stand so much upon maintaining of their Liberty should Mutiny and refuse payment But this seldom happens and if it doth the States punish them very severely I remember that in my time there was a Mutiny at Sardam about paying a new Tax whereupon the States sent a Regiment of their Souldiers and seized the Heads of the Mutineers and hanged up five or six of them at the Towns end and severely whipt eight under the Gallows And in the rich City of Amsterdam if any refuse to pay their Tax the Magistrates send their Officer to pull off their Doors and if they remain long obstinate they send and fetch away the lower Windows of their House and they dare not put up others until they have â—â—id the Taxes However this is observable 〈◊〉 if any Man will swear he is not worth 〈◊〉 he is taxed at then he is free But there are many so proud that they will not let the World know their Condition I knew a Merchant named Ornia who paid during the War for his 200th Penny and other Taxes for his and his Wives Children having had two Rich Wives 14000 Pounds Sterling I also knew an English Anabaptist Merchant who told the English Envoy in my presence That he had paid near 4000 l. Sterling to the War and yet the same Man did Grumble to pay his Majesties Consul a pityful Fee or Consulat-Money on his Ships The reason whereof I once asked him who answered me That the King could not raise a Penny in England without his Parliament and therefore much less could he do it in the States Country Thus these Phanaticks had rather make Bricks without Straw than pay the least Tribute to their Natural Prince's Officer Should we in England be obliged to pay the Taxes that are here imposed there would be Rebellion upon Rebellion And yet after all that is here paid no Man may bake his own Bread or grind his own Corn or brew his Beer nor dare any Man keep in his House a Hand-Mill although it be but to grind Mustard or Coffee I remember one Mrs. Guyn a Coffee-Woman at Rotterdam had like to have been ruined for grinding her own Coffee had not Sir Lyonel Jenkins employed his Secretary Doctor Wyn to intreat the States on her behalf and it was reckoned a grand favour that she was only fined and not banished the City and forfeiture made of all her Goods I remember also a Landlord of mine in Leyden bought a live Pig in the Market and innocently brought it home and kill'd it for which he had like to have been ruined because he did not first send to the Excisemen to excise it and also let the Visitors see that the Pig was free from Diseases At another time a Wine-Merchant coming to give me a Visit told me that he had the rarest Rhenish in the City and that if I would send my Maid to his Cellar with six Bottles they should be fill'd Whereupon I sent the Maid only with two Bottles and charged her to hide them under her Apron but such was her misfortune that the Scouts Dienaers met her and seized her and her Bottles and carried her to Prison which cost the Wine-Merchant 1500 Gilders and had it not been for the strongest Sollicitations made by us he had been ruined So sacred are Taxes here and must so exactly be paid And were they not here so precise it were impossible for so small a Country to subsist And therefore you may hear the Inhabitants generally say that what they suffer is for their Vaderland Hence the meanest among them are content to pay what is laid on them for they say all what is the Vaderlands is ours the Men of War are theirs the sumptuous Magazins Bridges and every thing what is the Vaderlands And indeed in a sense it is so for they have this to comfort them that if it please God to visit them with Poverty they and their Children have the Publick Purse to maintain them and this is one main Reason why they so willingly pay their Taxes as they do for there 's not a Soul born in the States Dominions that wants warm Cloaths and Dyet and good Lodging if they make their case known to the Magistrates And for the Vagabonds that rove up and down the Streets they are either Walloons or other Strangers as pretend to have been ruined by the late Wars I shall now in the next place let you know how excellently the Laws are here executed against Fraud and Perjury and the Intention of Murders which Laws were once much used in England as you shall hear hereafter when I speak of the Duke of Brandenburgh's Court. I shall here instance a few particulars that happened in my time There was a Spark that made false Assignments on the Admiralty who tho' related to many of the Magistrates of Amsterdam had his Head cut off and another who was a Clerk in the Merchants Bank who made false Posts in their Books and had his Head also cut off and all the Portions he had given with his Daughters the Husbands were forced to pay back and all his Houses and Goods were sold at his Door in the open Streets I knew a French Marquis who swore his Regiment was compleat and when the States knew that he had not half his Regiment he likewise had his Head cut off in the Prison in the Hague I also knew a French Pedagogue a Runagado Monk who designed to have Murdered his Master Major Cavellio and his two Pupils young Children of the Majors and afterward to set the House a Fire to colour the Murder he had his Head cut off and set upon a Post with his Body on a Wheel near the Hague I could Name you two other Cheaters who were severely whipt under the Gallows and two under Farmers who designed to run away with the States Money The Cheat of breaking with a full Hand is not so frequent in Holland as in England where some use it as a way to slip out of Business and then to live conveniently afterward upon the Estates of other Men because in Holland they are more severely punished when discovered than in England As on the contrary those that
by sending such a sudden Thaw as was never seen before for in less than ten hours the Ice so sunk and such Floods of Snow came down from the Highlands that the French were fain to make a very disorderly retreat marching up to the middle for haste because on the Banks there could not march above four Men a-breast so they were constrained to leave behind them the greatest part of the Plunder they had robb'd from the Innocent Country People and the nimble Dutch-men on their Scates so long as the Ice would bear them did shoot down the French like Ducks diving under Water so that it cost Luxemburg's Army dear though they had the pleasure to burn the poor People of which the French afterward wickedly made their boast The third was as wonderful as the two others and although I do not believe Miracles as do the Papists yet I say nothing I ever observed looked more like a Miracle than this to wit when the English and French Fleet lay before Scheveling with a design to land and the French ready on their March to joyn with the English and other French as soon as they should land at the same time the Bishop of Munster lying before Groeningen and the French before Gorcom so that now all things looked with a dreadful face for the States yet at this very time God sent a third relief by sending such Mists and wonderful sorts of Tydes as so separated the two Fleets that the English were forced to quit Scheveling Shore and were driven on the side of the Texel Road from whence they were constrained by the season of the Year to retire home And such were the sudden and great Showers of Rain that the Bishop of Munster was forced in disorder to raise his Siege at Groeningen and the French to quit Gorcom I could add many more Observations of the Providences of God to these People as the preserving the Prince of Orange His present Majesty of Great Britain from the many treacherous Designs contrived against him from his Cradle but Moses must be preserved to go in and out before his People Certainly never young Prince endured so many Fatigues as did his Highness in his tender Years of which I was an Eye-witness and had his Highness had the Years and Experience and such a good Disciplined Army as now he hath in the Year 1671. when the French entred the Country his Highness had given them as good a Welcom as he did at Bergen I will say no more of this Subject only this That the Peace at Nimeguen was also a very wonderful thing for that not above eight Days before the Peace was signed most of the Plenipotentiaries did believe the War would have continued another Year first because the King of Denmark and Duke of Brandenburg prospered exceedingly against Sweedland and totally refused the Propositions of France and secondly because the French King writ such bitter Letters against the States-General Yet eight Days after drest a Letter unto the States in which he calls them his Good Friends and Old Alleys offering them not only Maestricht but every Foot of Ground they could lay claim to in the World also giving them new Terms and Conditions as to their Privileges in France by way of Trade Neither can I forget how speedily and as strangely the French King did quit his Conquered Towns after the Valiant Prince of Orange took Naerden which was the first step to the French's Ruine in the States Dominions I come now according to promise in the beginning of this Book to give the Reader some Remarks I made in other Countries where I have been during my Sixteen Years Travels To give a full account of all that might be observed in so many Countries is not a Task for one Man nor a Subject for so small a Book I shall only therefore briefly take notice of some remarkable Matters which may in some measure satisfie the Curiosity of my Country-men who have not been in the said places and convince if possible all of them that no Country that ever I was in affords so great Conveniencies for the generality of People to live in as the Kingdom of England doth Though I have twice made the grand tour of Germany Hungary Italy and France and after my return back to England travelling a third time through Holland as far as Strasbourg and so back by Francfort to Denmark and Sueden yet the Reader is not to expect I should follow a Geographical Method and Order in speaking of the Places I have been in that is to be lookt for in the Map and not in Travels but only that I mention Places as I found them on my Road according as Business or Curiosity led me to Travel THE first considerable Place I then met with after I was out of the Dominions of the States-General was Cleave the Capital City of the Province so called a fair and lovely City standing upon the Rhine and the Rivers Wall and Leck This Province much resembles England in rich Soil and pleasantness of its Rivers The Inhabitants of the Country would have me believe that they were Originally descended of those Saxons who made a descent into England and conquered it and to convince the truth of this they shew'd me a Cloyster standing on a Hill called Eltham from which they say our Eltham in Kent had its Name I was made to observe also two places standing upon the Rhine near Emmerick called Doadford and Gronewich which according to them gave the Names to Dedford and Greenwich in England But many such Analogies and Similitudes of Names are to be found in other places of Germany but especially in upper Saxony and Denmark The greatest part of this Province of Cleave and part of the Dutchies of Juliers and Berg and of the Provinces of Marke and Ravensbourg belongs to the Elector of Brandenbourg the rest belonging to the Duke of Newbourg now Elector Palatine and the Elector of Cologne The Inhabitants are partly Roman Catholicks partly Lutherans and partly Calvinists who all live promiscuously and peaceably together both in City and Country The City of Cleave is the utmost Limit of the Territories of the Elector of Brandenbourg on this side of Germany from whence his Electoral Highness can Travel Two Hundred Dutch Miles out-right in his own Dominions and never sleep out of his own Country but one Night in the Territories of the Bishop of Osnabrug FRom Cleave I went to a small Town called Rhinberg but a very strong Fortification belonging to the Elector of Cologne which lies at two Miles distance from the City of Wesel that belongs to the Elector of Brandenbourg Through Dusseldorpe situated on the Rhine and the Residence of the Duke of Newbourg I went next to Cologne a very large City called by the Romans Colonia Agrippina and the French Rome d'Allemagne Cologne is an Imperial City and a Republick though for some things it does Homage to the Elector of that Name
for the Soldiers and Officers of all Degrees For Example if a Serjeant or Corporal be Drunk or negligent on Duty they are put into Armour and with three Muskets tied under each Arm made to walk two Hours before the Court of Guard yet for all the severity of Discipline used against the Soldiers they commit many Abuses in the Night time Robbing and sometimes killing Men upon the Streets in Stockholme where they have no Lights nor Guards as in Copenhagen In former times there have been at one time 35 Colonels besides General Officers in the Swedish Army all the Subjects of the King of Great Britain but at present there are few or none unless it be the Sons of some Scotish Officers Deceased nor did I ever see an English-Man in the Kings Guards Horse or Foot but one and the Son of Sir Edward Wood who hath since quitted the Service The King hath exceedingly won the Hearts of the common People not only by exempting them from the Tyrannical jurisdiction of the Nobility and Gentry who formerly would by their own private Authority punish and put to Death the Peasants at their pleasure which makes the Countries very willing to Quarter the Kings Soldiers but by his exactness in punishing Duels Murder and Robberies Perjury is Death here also as in Holland which makes the Magistrates in some parts of this Kings Territories enjoyn strange kinds of Oaths to deter Men from being forsworn As for instance in some places the Witness is set with a Staff in his Hand upon some Peeble Stones and Charcoal where he is to imprecate and pray that if what he Sweareth be not true his Land may become as barren as those Stones and his Substance be Consumed to Ashes like the Coals he stands on which as soon as he steps down are set on Fire This manner of Swearing so terrifies the People that they commonly tremble when they come to take their Oath The Religion of the Dominions of the King of Sweden as of those of the King of Denmark and of other Princes and States whom we have named is Lutheran who are more rigid to Roman Catholicks and Calvinists than the Protestants of Germany There is no Toleration allowed here to Calvinist Ministers and they take an effectual course to keep the Country clear of Priests and Jesuits by Guelding them whether they be young or old In Commemoration of the great Losses and Desolation sustained in the late War the Suedes strictly keep four Fasting Days in the Months of April May June and July on which days all Men are prohibited by Authority to kindle Fire in their Houses or to Eat till after Evening Service is done which in the Winter time could not be endured They delight much in Singing in their Churches which they constantly perform twice every day Morning and Evening In their Marryings Christenings and Buryings they are so prodigally extravagant that if all three happen in one year to a Man of a competent Estate it is enough to break him The Clergy of Sweden are neither so Rich nor Learned as those of Germany wanting both the opportunities of Study and of conversing with Learned Men that those of other Countrys enjoy though there be some Learned Men amongst them A Bishoprick in Sweden is no great Benefice if compared with some Parsonages in England for the Arch-bishop and Metropolitan hath not above 400 l. per Annum and some of the rest are not worth above 150 or 200 l. a year The inferiour Clergy are not so regular in their Lives and Conversation in the Countries distant from Stockholme as they are near the Court and the Reason is partly because they entertain Travellers that pass the Country there being no Inns in most places for the Accommodation of Persons of any Quality and so are obliged to drink with their Guests and partly because at Buryings and Christenings where there is commonly high Drinking the Pape or Parson is Master of the Ceremonies And here give me leave to tell a short Story of one of them A Pape coming to Christen a Child in a Church and finding a Scotch Man to be Godfather was so transported either with Zeal or his Cups that when he came to exorcise the Child which is a Rite used in their Office of Administring this Sacrament he neglected the Form prescribed by the Liturgy and in an extemporary Prayer begg'd that the Devil might depart out of the Child and enter into that Scottish Heretick for so they call the Presbyterians of that Nation The Prayer of the Pape so incensed the Scot that he vowed Revenge and watched the Pape with a good Cudgel next day as he crossed the Church-yard where he beat him and left him all in Blood lying on the Ground and crying out Murder For this Fact the Scot was had before the Justice who asking him How he durst be so bold as to lay his profane Hands upon the Man of God He who knew very well what use to make of the Devil he had got Foaming at the Mouth and cunningly acting the Demoniack made answer That the Pape might thank himself for what he had met with for since he had Conjured the Devil into him he spared no Body neither Wife nor Children nor would he spare the Justice himself and with that fell a mangling and tearing the Magistrate that he was fain to 〈◊〉 take himself to his Heels crying out O! the Devil save me and so the Scot marched home no Man daring to lay hold on him for fear of being torn to pieces by the Devil But the Justice recollecting himself sent for the Pape told him That the Scot was a cunning Rogue and bid him go home get a Plaister for his Head and be silent lest if the matter came to the Bishops Ears he might be Censured for going against the Rubrick of the Liturgy The Famous University where their Clergy are bred is Upsal 8 Swedish Miles from Stockholme There are commonly 150 or 200 Students there but no Endowed Colleges as in other Countries The Library is so mean and contemptible that the Libraries of many Grammar Schools and of private Men in England or Holland are far better stored with Books than it is Upon viewing of it and that of the Kings Palace I called to mind the saying of a French Man upon the like occasion That Swedeland came behind France and England in the knowledge of Men and Things at least 800 years yet some Swedes have been so conceited of the Antiquity of their Country as to brag that Paradice was seated in Sweden that the Country was turned into such heaps of Rocks for the Rebellion of our first Parents and that Adam and Eve had Cain and Abel in a Country three Swedish Miles distant from Upsall A French Man standing by and hearing this Romantick Story as I was told fitted him with the like telling him that when the World was made in six days at the end of the Creation all the
Rubbish that remained was thrown together into a Corner which made up Sweden and Norway And indeed the French seem to have no great liking to the Country whatever kindness they may have for the People for a French Ambassador as an Author of that Country relates being by order of Queen Christina Treated in a Country House four Swedish Miles from Stockholme and upon the rode going and coming with all the Varieties and Pleasures that the Country could afford on purpose to make him have a good Opinion of the same made answer to the Queen who asked him upon his return What he thought of Sweden That were he Master of the whole Country he would presently Sell it and Buy a Farm in France or England which under Favour I think was a little Tart and Sawcy Having stayed a considerable time in Swedeland and most part at Stockholme I set out from thence to go to Elsenbourg by Land and went a little out of my way to see a small City called Eubrone Famous for a Coat of Arms which it got in this manner A certain Masculine Queen of Denmark who had Conquered a great part of Sweden coming to this City asked the Magistrates What was the Arms of their City Who having her that they had none she plucked up her Coats and squatting upon the Snow bid them take the mark she left there for their Arms its pity she did not give them a suitable Motto to it also What that Figure is called in Blazonery I know not but to this Day the City uses it in their Arms and for marking their Commodities This Queen came purposely into Sweden to pay a visit to a brave Woman that opposed a King of Swedeland who in a time of Famine would have put to Death all the Men and Women in his Country above 60 years of Age. The Country all the way I travelled in Swedeland is much of the same quality of the Land about Stockholme until I came near the Province of Schonen which is called the Store-house and Kitchin of Sweden where the Country is far better It was formerly very dangerous to Travel in this Province of Schonen because of the Snaphances who were a kind of Bloody Robbers now utterly destroyed by the King so that it is safe enough Travelling there Entering into Schonen I saw 29 of these Rogues upon Wheels and elsewhere in the Country ten and twenty at several places The King used great severity in destroying of them some he caused to be broken upon the Wheel others Spitted in at the Fundament and out at the Shoulders many had the Flesh pinched off of their Breasts and so were fastened to Stakes till they Died and others again had their Noses and both Hands cut off and being seared with a hot Iron were let go to acquaint their Comrades how they had been served The King is very severe against Highway-Men and Duellers In above a 100 Miles Travelling we found not a House where there was either French Wine or Brandy which made me tell a Swede of our Company who was Travelling to Denmark that I would undertake to shew any Man 500 Houses wherein a Traveller might have Wine and other good Accommodation in the space of an Hundred Miles upon any rode from London There are several small Towns and fertile Land in this Country of Schonen lying upon the Sâ—undt at the narrowest part whereof lies Elsenbourg burnt down by the Danes in the last War Here I crost over to Elsenore the passage being but a League broad The King of Denmark has a Castle at Elsenore which commands the narrow passage of the Soundt where all Ships that enter into or come out of the Baltick Sea must pay Toll Having visited this Castle and staid about a Fortnight with the English Consul and Sir John Paul late Resident at the Court of Swedeland I went to the Danish Court at Copenhagen COpenhagen is the Capital City of Zecland Jutland or Denmark and place of Residence of the King It stands on a Flat encompassed with a pleasant and delightful Country much resembling England The Streets of the City are kept very neat and clean with Lights in the Night time for the convenience and safety of those who are then abroad a Custom not as yet introduced into Stockholme where it is dangerous to be abroad when it is dark The Kings Men of War lie hear very conveniently being orderly ranged betwixt Booms after the manner of Amsterdam and near the Admiralty House which is a large pile of Building well furnished with Stores and Magazins secured by a Cittadel that not only commands the City but also the Haven and entry into it The Court of Denmark is splendid and makes a far greater figure in the World than that of Sweden though not many years ago in the time of Carolus Gustavus the Father of the present King of Swedeland it was almost reduced to its last when the Walls of Copenhagen saved that Crown and Kingdom That Siege was Famous carried on with great vigour by the Swede and as bravely maintained by the Danes The Monuments whereof are to be seen in the Cannon Bullets gilt that still remain in the Walls of some Houses and in the Steeple of the great Church of the Town The Royal Palace in Copenhagen is but small and a very ancient Building but his Majesties House Fredenburg is a stately Fabrick of Modern Architecture and very richly Furnished Denmark is at present a flourishing Kingdom and the King who hath now made it Hereditary surpasses most of his Predecessors in Power and Wealth He hath much enlarged his Dominions as well as Authority and by his Personal and Royal Virtues no less than the eminent qualities of a great many able Ministers of State he hath gained the Universal Love of his Subjects and the esteem of all Foreign Princes and States The Court is much frequented every day but especially on Sundays where about Eleven of the Clock in the Morning the Nobility Foreign Ministers and Officers of the Army assemble and make a glorious Appearance There one may see many Knights of the Order of the Elephant of Malto but I never saw any Order of the like Nature as that of Sweden that King rarely appearing in his George and Garter but on days of publick Audience I have observed at one time above 150 Coaches attending at the Court of Denmark which are ten times more than ever I saw together at that of Sweden The King is affable and of easie access to Strangers seen often abroad by his Subjects in his Gardens and Stables which are very large and well furnished with all sorts of Horses He is a great lover of English Horses and Dogs and delights much in Hunting as his Eldest Son the Prince with his Brothers do in Cock-â—ighting insomuch much that the English Merchants cannot make a more acceptable present to those Princes than of English Game-Cocks The standing Forces of Denmark are
the Bastions and the space of Ground between the Wall and the Houses and all the Ground unbuilt from the Utricks-Port to the Wesoper-Port Muyer-Port and 〈◊〉 the Seaside and you will find it to be near 〈◊〉 Morgans of Land There are two Parishes in the Suburbs of London viz. Stepney and St. Martins in the Fields the latter being so big that the Parliament divided it into four Parishes either of them have more Houses than Rotterdam or Haerlem and there are several other great Parishes as St. Margarets Westminster St. Giles in the Fields St. Olaves and St. Mary Saviours the which if they stood apart in the Country would make great Cities we reckon in London and the Suburbs thereof to be at least 130 Parishes which contains 100000 Houses now if you reckon 8 Persons to every House then there are near 800000 Souls in London but there are some that say there is a Million of Souls in it I shall now set down the Cities Alphabetically and their number of Houses as they were given to me not only from the Surveyors and City Carpenters but from the Books of the Hearth-Money and Collectors of the several Taxes in the respective Cities And first I shall begin with the 18 Cities that have Voices in the States of Holland Cities in HOLLAND Cities Houses 1. DOrt 5500 2. Haerlem 7250 3. Delft 2300 4. Leyden 13800 5. Amsterdam 25460 6. Rotterdam 8400 7. Gouda 3540 8. Gorcom 2460 9. Schiedam 1550 10. Briell 1250 11. Schonehoven 2200 12. Alckmaar 1540 13. Horn 3400 14. Enckhuysen 5200 15. Edam 2000 16. Monekendam 1500 17. Medenblick 850 18. Purmerent 709 Total 88909 Cities in GERMANY and in the Seventeen Provinces Cities Houses 1. ANtwerp 18550 2. Aix la Chapelle 2250 3. Arford 8440 4. Berlin 5200 5. Bon 410 6. Brisack 1200 7. Breme 9200 8. Breda 3420 9. Bolduke 6240 10. Bergen op Zome 2120 11. Brussels 19200 12. Cologne 12000 13. Cleave 640 14. Coblentz 420 15. Castels 1520 16. Dresden 6420 17. Disseldorpe 620 18. Dunkirk 2440 19. Emden 2400 20. Francfort 10200 21. Groningen 8400 22. Guant 18200 23. Harford 1420 24. Hanouer 1850 25. Heidelberg 7520 26. Hambourg 12500 27. Lubeck 6500 28. Lovain 8420 29. Lypsick 3242 30. Lunenburg 3100 31. Lewardin 5860 32. Mayence 2420 33. Malin 8000 34. Middelburg 6200 35. Madelburg 1120 36. Mastricht 5600 37. Munster 1240 38. Nurenburg 18240 39. Osenburg 2200 40. Osburg 8420 41. Oldenburg 620 42. Praag 18640 43. Passaw 560 44. Ratisbonne 6540 45. Strasbourg 8560 46. Spire 540 47. Stockholm 6480 48. Salsburg 12460 49. Uytrick 8240 50. Vienna 4520 51. Vean 340 52. Wormes 1200 53. Westburg 2420 Total 314460 Cities in FRANCE Cities Houses 1. AVignion 12400 2. Amiens 5200 3. Bullion 1400 4. Bomont 800 5. Burdeaux 8420 6. Callis 1324 7. Caine 2147 8. Chalons 1850 9. Diepe 1920 10. Lyons 16840 11. Montrevil 820 12. Montpeiller 5240 13. Marselles 9100 14. Nantes 4420 15. Nismes 3120 16. Orleans 10200 17. Orange 354 18. Paris 72400 19. Rochel 4200 20. Roan 11200 21. Tolouze 13200 22. Valence 458 Total 187013 Cities in ITALY Cities Houses 1. BOlonia 12400 2. Florence 8520 3. Genoua 17200 4. Luca 1650 5. Legorne 3560 6. Milan 18500 7. Naples 17840 8. Pisa 2290 9. Padua 8550 10. Rome 31200 11. Sena 1820 12. Venice 24870 13. Veterba 620 14. Valentia 1520 Total 155040 Cities in SAVOY Cities Houses 1. CHambray 852 2. Salé 320 3. Turin 8540 4. Nice 500 5. St. John de Lateran 420 6. Remes 340 7. Moloy 270 Total 11242 Cities in SWITZERLAND Cities Houses 1. BErne 4270 2. Bale 5120 3. Geneva 4540 4. Losana 2100 5. Solure 500 6. Zurick 6200 7. Morge 210 8. Vina 320 9. St. Morrice 300 Total 23560 Cities in DENMARK Cities Houses 1. COpenhagen 8220 2. Elsenore Total Cities in SWEEDLAND Cities Houses 1. NOrthoanen 600 2. Stockholme 7500 3. Upsal 8200 Total 16300 AN EXACT RELATION OF THE ENTERTAINMENT Of His Most Sacred Majesty WILLIAM III. KING of England Scotland France and Ireland Hereditary Stadtholder of the United Netherlands c. At the HAGVE Giving a particular Description of His MAJESTY's Entry there Jan. 26. 169â—-â— And of the several Triumphant Arches Pyramids Pictures c. with the Inscriptions and Devices Illustrated with Copper Plates of the whole Solemnity exactly drawn from the Original By an English Gentleman LONDON Printed in the Year M. DC XCL AN Exact Relation Of the ENTERTAINMENT of His Most Sacred Majesty WILLIAM III. At the HAGVE Kings Voyage to Holland pag 2 'T was expected that the King would have lain here this Night and so have entred the Hague by day light but on the contrary His extraordinary Desire of entring immediately upon Business would not let Him give Himself so much as one Nights ease And His Majesty after a very short Refreshment here departed for the Hague attended with five or six Coaches with six Horses In His own Coach accompanied Him the Earl of Portland and the Lord Overkirk arriving at the Hague about half an hour after five in the Evening where though he was not that Night expected there wanted not the general Acclamations of the People of all sorts who run by His Coach crying out Long Live King William Welcom Welcom c. His Majesty Rode through the Triumphant Arches Erected by the Lords of the Hague and the Honourable the Lords Committee of the Council of Holland of which we shall give an exact Description in their proper Places directly to the Court where being arrived and the Gates shut to keep out the extraordinary press of People thirty peices of Cannon which were planted upon the Vyverberg were thrice discharged Publick Thanksgivings were made in all the Churches and the Bells rung with great Joy and throughout the Town almost all the Houses were Illuminated with great numbers of Candles in their Windows whilst all the People Rich and Poor Old and Young made all Demonstrations of their inexpressible Joy for His Majesties most happy Arrival That Evening the Earl of Berka Envoy Extraordinary from the Emperor waited upon His Majesty and was a long time in private with Him and the next day several Members of the States and divers Persons of Quality came to Compliment His Majesty and Congratulate His Arrival The Ministers of the several Confederate Princes who upon the Kings arrival had sent Expresses to their respective Masters assembling themselves in Congress immediately after their breaking up the Imperial Spanish and Brandenburgh Envoys came to wait upon His Majesty as also the Council of State and the Lords of the General Accounts with all their Members to Congratulate and Complement Him The King immediately applied Himself to the Affairs of State and taking first into His Consideration the Sea Affairs gave the Command of the Dutch Fleet to the Heer Cornelius Van Tromp with the Title of Vice-Admiral of Holland who gratefully accepted the same and immediately beat up his Drums for Seamen who flocked to
To this the King replied That he Thank'd his Electoral Highness That he should always endeavour to promote the common Interest and therefore would joyn with the Elector and that He was Oblig'd to his Highness for this Trouble and lastly that his Person was very acceptable Then the Envoy presented his Gentlemen to the King who kissed his Hand and afterwards the Envoy was carried back in the same manner to his Lodgings as he was brought up Then the Envoys of Mentz Cologne Munster and Hambourg had their publick Audiences after whom came the Elector of Brandenburgh who had a private Audience of near two Hours The Duke Administrator of Wirtenbergh with his Brother who were there incognito were admitted without Ceremonies Also the Deputies of the Cities and Countries who were obliged to go home to give an account of their Affairs had their Audience of Congé of His Majesty And afterwards the Pensionary Secretaries and Deputies of the States of Zealand had their Audiences and Complemented the King The Count of Erbagh came from Prince Waldeck and several Foreign Ministers from the Emperor the King of Spain the Duke of Savoy had their Audiences The 12th in the Evening Count Winditsgratz Ambassador Extraordinary from his Imperial Majesty arrived and had his Audience at Ten a Clock The 14th at Noon the King went into the Council of the States and after some Affairs were dispatched he went with the Lords Commissioners into the Assembly of their High and Mightynesses where the State of the War for the Year 1691. was presented which the Deputies were to send down to their respective Provinces afterwards the King went to Court and gave Audience to several Foreign Ministers and General Officers and among the rest to General Delwich The 15th the King with the Duke of Norfolk the Earls of Portland and Devonshire with several other Noblemen Dined with the Elector of Brandenburgh The Elector received the King without and Conducted him to the Dining-Room The King went away at Four a Clock and gave Audience afterwards to the Elector Palatine's Minister Mr. Berensdorff came hither also from the Duke of Zell and Mr. Klenck from the Duke of Hanouer to Complement His Majesty in their Masters Names Prince Waldeck came also to Court and had Audience of the King immediately And Mr. Chaâ—gagne came from the Elector of Treves The 16th the Elector of Bavaria arriv'd who acquainted the King of his arrival at Ten a Clock by one of his Gentlemen he Lodged in his Envoys House Next Morning my Lord Portland and the Elector of Brandenburgh went to Complement him The Elector was met at the Entrance of the House About five in the Evening he went privately to the King and staid about an Hour and half and the next day the King returned his Visit The 18th in the Evening the Marquis de Gastanaga Governor of the Spanish Netherlands arrived with a very splendid Equipage As soon as he arriv'd he went to Court and was Received with the Honour due to his Character the Swiss Guards being placed in Ranks with their Officer posted at the Head of them He had a particular Audience of the King an Hour long the Elector of Bavaria being by the Swiss Guards appeared then in Arms it being the first time that the Elector of Bavaria had appeared at Court publickly The same day also the Elector of Brandenburgh had his Audience Next Morning the Marquis de Gastanaga was at the Kings Rising and then paid a Visit to the Elector of Brandenburgh the King was that day above two Hours in the Committee of the Council of State and Dined with the Elector of Brandenburgh at my Lord Portlands Mr. Arnauld Preacher and Head of the Vaudois who Commanded them so bravely against the French last Summer came also to the Hague and had an Audience of the King concerning their Affairs The 19th in the Afternoon the King went a Hawking near Sorgvliet with the Elector of Brandenburgh and several other Persons of great Quality Next Morning he went a Hunting with the Elector of Bavaria and the Marquis of Gastanaga near Hounsâ—â—erdyke where they Dined and came back again in the Evening to the Hague The 20th the Prince of Courland with another Prince of the House of Holstein arrived here The 21st the Landtgrave of Hâ—sse came hither with his Envoy and several other Lords He immediately went to Court and staid some time with the King and the next day he paid a Visit to the Electors of Brandenburgh and Bavaria The Duke of Zalâ—sbach came also with General Dautel as it 's believed to Complement the King in the Elector Palatine's Name The Congress was now often kept Colomna the Spanish Envoy had a Conference on the 23d in the Morning with the Deputies of the States General and afterwards assisted in the Congress where was also the Count Winditsgratz the Emperors Plenipotentiary and the Count de Berka and the Chevalier Crampricht the other Imperial Ministers were by when he show'd his Credentials and the States assured him that he should have Audience with the usual Ceremonies in two or three days The Counsellor Mean who was sent by the Prince and Chapter of Liege assisted also in the Congress and the Emperors Minister with most of the other Ministers waited upon his Majesty This extraordinary Concourse has made the Court at the Hague so very Splendid that it has out-done any thing else in any other Court of Christendom Above 30 Sovereign Princes were there besides Marquesses Earls Barons and Gentlemen without Number The Elector of Bavaria and the Marquis de Gastanaga kept publick Tables The 24th about Ten in the Morning the Count de Winditsgratz had publick Audience of the King Conducted by the Master of the Ceremonies with all the usual Solemnities He Congratulated His Majesties happy Successes and assured him that the Emperor his Master esteemed himself very much obliged to His Majesty for that Care and Concern which he show'd for the common Cause and he further added that his Master look'd upon His Britannick Majesty as the principal moving Cause upon whom every thing else depended that might be for the advantage of the Confederacy The Elector of Saxony's Envoy had Audience of the King the same day The 25th in the Morning the King with the Elector of Brandenburgh and the Landtgrave of Hesse went to the great Church where they heard a Sermon Preached by Mr. Ulier who towards the latter end said several moving Things to His Majesty In the Afternoon the King with the Electors of Bavaria and Brandenburgh and the Landtgrave of Hesse all four in a Coach took three or four turns round the Voorhout with the Glasses down upon the Kings side who was received by the thronging Multitudes with all imaginable Demonstrations of Affection and Joy The 26th the Count de Prela Doria Envoy Extraordinary from the Duke of Savoy Count d' Autel with the same Character from the Elector Palatine had Audience of His Majesty
as had on the 27th the Sieur Haxhuysen from the Elector of Saxony March the 5th the Earl of Devonshire Treated the Elector of Brandenburgh the Landtgrave of Hesse the Prince Commercy and divers other Persons of Quality with great Magnificence where His Majesty was pleased to Honour his Lordship with His Presence On the 11th the Duke of Zell arrived at the Hague and the Duke of Wolfembuttel on the 14th During all this time the Congresses had been held almost every day with great Secrecy His Majesty always Honouring them with His Presence when at last the matters being fully Concerted and all Things agreed upon to the mutual Satisfaction of all the Princes this great Council broke up and the Princes returned to their respective Homes to put in execution the Designs here agreed upon the good Effects whereof we doubt not but to see this Campagne notwithstanding the unhappy accident of the loss of Mons. His Majesty having given Orders to all the Troops to be in a readiness to take the Field by the first of April was pleased on the 16th to depart for Loo being accompanied with the Duke of Zell who Rid in the same Coach with Him and lay that Night at the House of Monsieur Zullestein where he was met by the Elector of Bavaria who likewise accompanied His Majesty to Loo where they arrived the next Evening having been Complemented as they passed along with all Demonstrations of Respect and Affection by the City of Utrecht and the several Towns he pass'd through and accompanied every where with the loud Acclamations of the People who were almost overwhelm'd with Joy at the extraordinary Honour they received by the Presence of this most illustrious Monarch But His Majesty had not been long there before he received the unwelcome Tidings of the Siege of Mons an Express arriving at the Hague on the 16th in the Evening that the French Troops had suddenly invested the Town of Mons their Horse having taken Possession of all the Avenues on the 15th of March and that the Foot were marching up with all Diligence The Prince of Steeâ—huysen and the Marquis Bedmar being sent from the Governor of Flanders arrived at the Hague the 17th and after a short Conference with Prince Waldeck went Post to Loo to give His Majesty an account of the State of the Affair Who being resolved Himself to Head the Army in order to raise the Siege returned to the Hague from whence having dispatched Prince Waldeck with necessary Orders for Flanders set forward Himself the 26th for Brussels the Army in the mean time preparing with all imaginable diligence to Muster at Hall whither His Majesty went on the 6th of April intending to have marched the next day at the Head of the Army which consisted of 30000 Foot and 16000 Horse with a Train of Artillery of 71 pieces of Cannon and 14 Mortars But the Carriages not being all come up was obliged to defer His March for two or three days The French had all this time very vigourously attacked the Outworks of the Town but were as vigourously repulsed by the Besieged to the great loss of the Enemy who paid dearly for what he gained insomuch that it was not doubted but the Town would have been able to have held out till the Army came up to its Relief but the French King who was himself all the while at St. Gislain near the Camp the Dauphin Commanding in Chief according to his old Methods had found means of gaining a Party among the Burghers and Clergy in the Town who prevailing upon the rest by the terrifying Destruction the Bombs and Cannon made in their Houses and persuading them that by a timely Surrender of the Town they might obtain Honourable Conditions made them basely desert the publick Good and altogether unexpectedly even to the French themselves on the 8th of April beat a Parley and sent out three Officers as Hostages for three French Offices who immediately entred the Town to Treat upon Articles of Surrender the Governor the Prince de Bergue oppos'd the Surrender and refus'd to deliver the Gate to the French as the Burghers had agreed endeavouring to disswade them from this their Resolution alledging he could still hold out till the Relief came but all would not do the Burghers wre resolved and they being stronger than the Garison who were all employed in the Outworks the Honourable Governor was forced to submit and about Midnight the Capitulation was Signed on both sides and the next day April the 9th a Gate of the Town was deliver'd up to the French Guards and on the 10th the Garison marched out being about 4000 Foot and 400 Horse with Arms Baggage Drums beating Colours flying six pieces of Cannon two Mortars c. and were conducted to Tubiese a few Miles from Mons towards Brussels The King having received this surprizing News just as he was ready to march to their Relief was forced to alter his Measures and understanding that the French King had seperated his Troops and dispos'd 'em into Garisons and that he with the Dauphin c. were return'd to Versailles broke up the Camp and having sent Reinforcements to Charleroy Aeth Namur and the other Frontier Garisons went to Brussels and from thence to the Hague where he was pleased to Honour the Duke of Zell who was likewise return'd thither from the Camp with the Noble Order of the Garter who was invested with the Garter and George by the King Himself assisted by the Dukes of Norfolk and Ormond and the Earl of Devonshire This was perform'd privately in the Kings Bed-Chamber the 18th of April And the next day Garter King at Arms presented to his Highness the rest of the Ensigns with the whole Habit and Ornaments of the Order which his Highness having Received was pleased to make a very Noble Present to the King at Arms and to all the Retinue he had brought with him upon this Occasion April the 22d His Majesty having taken leave of the States General and been Complimented by them with all the Expressions of sincere Affection took Shiping in the Maese in order to his Return for England and the Wind being fair the next Morning made the English Shore and that Evening viz. April the 13th 1691. O. S. about Eight of the Clock landed at Whitehall having been Saluted by the Fleet as he passed along with all their Guns and the repeated Huzza's of the Seamen who Demonstrated the most extraordinary Joy imaginable and by the Guns of the Forts of Tilbury Gravesend and the Tower also by the Ships that lay in the River and the Joyful Acclamations of the People who crowded in great Numbers upon the Shore and in Boats to see His Majesty and express their Joy upon his happy Return continually Repeating God Save King William and Queen Mary and Prosper their Arms by Sea and Land Thus have we finished our short Journal of His Majesties Voyage into Holland wherein we have been as particular as was convenient and as brief as possible we have all along carefully avoided all manner of Reflections and Animadversions of our own and given only a true Relation of the matter of Fact as it occur'd wherein if we have the good Fortune to please the Reader we have our End FINIS * A Fouder contains 4 Hogsheads