out; it began on the coast of Africa, and soon became general. De Witt
was, of course, at once appointed Chief Commissioner for the direction
of the navy, and by his personal exertions at Amsterdam and other
places he succeeded in fitting out a considerable fleet, very
differently equipped and provisioned to what had been the case in the
war with Cromwell. This fleet, however, under the command of Opdam,
engaged the English in the beginning of June 1665, and suffered a
tremendous and most disastrous defeat. Opdam was killed, and the other
admirals were at daggers drawn with each other. Such was the general
confusion and discouragement, and such the general instinct to turn to
De Witt in any great emergency, that though he had never yet had any
military or naval experience whatever, the chief command was at once
thrust upon him. He knew well how invidious his position would be, and
it was in spite of the earnest persuasion of his personal friends to
the contrary, that, at the call of duty, he accepted the office.
The fleet had been driven into the Texel, and was shut in there by a
contrary wind. To Holland, who depended for her very existence upon
supplies from abroad, and whose East Indian ships at this very moment
required protection for their safe passage, it was absolutely
necessary that the fleet should at once put to sea. But the seamen
unanimously represented that as the wind then stood this was
impossible. De Witt, though no sailor, was a great mathematician. He
had read deeply and written ably on the subject, and he was now to put
his knowledge to practical use. He proved by calculation that it was
just possible, even with this adverse wind, to sail out by one
passage, then called the Spaniards’ Gat. The pilots now declared that
in the Spaniards’ Gat there was not more than ten feet of water, and
that this was not sufficient. De Witt took a boat, personally sounded
it, and found everywhere a depth of at least twenty feet. He himself
superintended the carrying out of the largest ship in the fleet, and
was followed by all the rest.
He now had to exercise his diplomatic abilities in order to reconcile
the two admirals under his command—De Ruyter and the younger Van
Tromp. He succeeded in smoothing down their mutual animosities, and in
attaching them both personally to himself. But the sailors still
grumbled, not unnaturally, at being commanded by an unknown and
inexperienced landsman, and it was not till a violent storm arose that
he had an opportunity of winning their esteem. For two days and two
nights, without food and without rest, he remained on deck, infusing
courage into others, as only a really brave man can do, working
himself, and, what seems to have been unusual, forcing his officers
also by his example to work with their own hands. He gradually became
the idol of the men, showing particular concern for their comfort and
welfare, while, at the same time, by his tact and good management, he
avoided giving any offence to the officers.
This expedition, however, does not seem on the whole to have been very
successful, probably on account of the roughness of the weather. On
his return he found the people violently irritated by false reports of
the intermeddling of himself and the other deputies whom he had taken
with him. He was particularly supposed to have thwarted De Ruyter,
but, unfortunately for his enemies, De Ruyter happened at this time to
come to the Hague, and to choose for his lodgings the house of the
very man who was reported to have behaved so ill. De Ruyter wrote a
letter to the States, not only vindicating, but warmly praising him.
De Witt also wrote an elaborate account of all his proceedings; the
tide of opinion changed. He received an enthusiastic vote of thanks,
and the offer of a large present, which he declined.
De Witt only left the fleet in order to plunge deep into the tangled
thicket of negotiation. Louis XIV. was indeed nominally an ally, but
he was very slack and very procrastinating; delighted to see his two
neighbours tearing each other to pieces, and not anxious to help the
Dutch more than he was obliged. Denmark was making perfidious
overtures, first to England, and then to Holland. De Witt eventually
succeeded in forming an alliance with her, and also with Brandenburg,
but for a long time she required watching with constant attention.
Meanwhile Charles II. had induced the Bishop of Münster to invade the
United Provinces with 8000 men. The Bishop proved to be a bad general,
was threatened by Brandenburg in his rear, and was induced by De Witt
to leave the country before he had done much harm. But Holland had
received a warning to which she ought to have attended. The army was
evidently no longer the same as in the old days of Maurice and
Frederick Henry. There were ugly stories of incompetent officers, and
of men unwilling to expose themselves to the fire of the enemy. But
peace was made with the Bishop; men’s minds were diverted by the
fierce fighting which was going on at sea; and all this was hushed up,
and forgotten for a time.
All parties in the State were now united in a vigorous prosecution of
the war. De Witt, who, as I have said, seems to have been the one man
besides his brother who looked after everything, had taken care that
the education of the young Prince of Orange should not be neglected.
Though he opposed with all his might intrusting him with the offices
held by his ancestors, he was magnanimous enough to provide that, if
he did obtain them, he should be qualified to fill them. The two
factions seemed now, in the face of a common danger, to have been for
the moment reconciled. A large and well-furnished fleet took the sea
in the summer of 1666 under De Ruyter and the younger Van Tromp; on
June I they met the English, under Prince Rupert and the Duke of
Albemarle. One of those desperate sea-battles took place which form
the peculiar feature of the period of which we are writing. The
English were outnumbered, but not more so than they have been in many
of the most decisive of their victories over other nations. For four
days the desperate struggle continued, and it ended in what the Dutch
called a victory, and the English a drawn battle. On July 25 another
engagement took place. The English, who had by this time been
reinforced, were now successful, but only after the most desperate
fighting. Van Tromp had become separated from De Ruyter, either from
accident or by design; but De Ruyter kept his station till night
against overwhelming numbers, and next morning moved sullenly away,
frequently exclaiming, ‘My God! is there not one among all these
bullets which will put an end to my miserable life?’
Not only were the Dutch defeated, but dissension of the most violent
nature broke out between the two admirals, and among all the officers
of the fleet. The Provinces were in consternation; De Witt was sent
out to endeavour to put things straight. Van Tromp’s commission was
taken from him, and some of the captains were punished; but the most
guilty are said to have escaped on account of their family
connections.
Both nations were now beginning to be desirous of peace. Holland had
been reduced to great distress, and Charles had found the war attended
with little glory and much expense. De Witt, afraid of the intrigues
of the Orange party, refused to receive an Ambassador at the Hague,
but negotiations were begun at Paris. It was agreed as a basis that
each country should retain whatever possessions they at the moment
had. This was, on the whole, favourable to England, but some trifling
matters remained to be adjusted, and England meanwhile proposed
immediate disarmament. De Witt, knowing the character of King Charles,
and seeing his opportunity, persuaded the States to refuse. Charles,
as he expected, thinking the matter virtually settled, and wanting his
money for other purposes, made no preparations for the coming year. De
Witt, however, equipped a large fleet, which he despatched, early in
the summer, under the command of his brother Cornelius, straight to
the Thames. Sheerness was taken, and the Dutch sailed up the river.
The Medway was guarded by a chain drawn across it, and by three ships
of war; the chain was broken, and the ships burnt. Three more ships
were burnt at Chatham; the Dutch guns were heard in London, and there
was general consternation. Charles immediately sent orders to give way
upon all the points still insisted on by the Dutch, and peace was
signed at Breda.
Thus ended the war between England and Holland. We may console our
national pride by feeling that our ill success was as much owing to
our own imbecile Government as to the merits of our enemy, but it will
be impossible to refuse a tribute of admiration to the latter. We have
grown so accustomed since, in reading of our many glorious wars, to
look with pride upon the map, and to compare our own small island with
the large proportions of our various opponents, that it almost amuses
us, now that it is so long ago, for once to observe the contrary, and
to remember that we were formerly defied and held at bay by a country
of almost exactly the same size as Wales.
I have said that it was some time before England and Holland
recognised the fact, to us so obvious, that it was the common interest
of both countries to join together against France. The rising power of
that country, and the ambition displayed by her King, now began to
open the eyes of her neighbours. Even Charles II. was for a few years
persuaded to adopt the course required by reason; after some
preliminary negotiation, Sir William Temple was sent to the Hague,
where, with a celerity quite unexampled in anything at that time
dependent on the movements of the Dutch Government, he concluded a
Triple Alliance between England, Holland, and Sweden. This was carried
out by De Witt. He had for some time been convinced of the necessity
for it, but he had great difficulties in his way, as some of the
Provinces were in favour of the suicidal policy of an agreement with
France for the division of the Spanish territory in Flanders; De Witt
only carried his point by a breach of the Constitution. He persuaded
the States-General to sign the treaty at once, instead of referring it
back to the local Assemblies, as they were in strictness bound to do.
Had he not felt sure of his position with the people, he could only
have done this at the risk of his head; but there was no danger. He
was at this moment at the very height of popularity and fame. There is
some interest in contemplating a great man at such a moment,
particularly when there is in the background a dark shadow of
impending fate. The interest is in this instance increased by the
modest dignity of the hero; there is something very striking in the
picture drawn by Temple of the life and habits of one who at this
period shone prominently among the most conspicuous figures in
Europe,—his simple dress, his frugal house-keeping, and his single
servant. He lived upon a salary of £300 a year, shortly to be
increased to £700; and he steadily refused all presents from the
State; accepting with difficulty a small one of £1500 from the rich
families of his own Province. His third term of office now expired: he
was again elected for a fourth period of five years; it was to be the
last time.
We are now to witness first the decline, and then the sudden close, of
this memorable career. De Witt’s popularity with the multitude was
never more than a temporary matter; the Prince of Orange was now
growing up, and had already displayed more than ordinary ability. He
was admitted into the Council, and he gathered round him a
considerable party—not large enough to assume the management of
affairs, but sufficiently so to cause division and weakness. On the
other hand, the party of burgomasters and rich citizens—the burgess
oligarchy, as we have called it—to which De Witt properly belonged,
and which had brought him into power, became divided within itself,
one portion only giving him undeviating support. De Witt had ceased,
to a certain extent, to be a party man, and every Minister in a
Constitutional Government who does this runs the risk of being
deserted by his followers. We have seen that, even in the height of
his power, he was unable to procure the punishment of the aristocratic
sea-captains who had misbehaved, and he was now equally unsuccessful
in his attempts to remodel and reorganise the army, which was largely
officered from the same class. But perhaps he did not push his
attempts in this direction with as much vigour as he ought, for he
relied largely upon diplomacy for preventing the necessity of
employing any army at all.
Louis meanwhile applied all his energy and skill to dissolve the
Triple Alliance. He certainly succeeded in persuading the Dutch to
enter into negotiations, but to this De Witt only consented with the
utmost reluctance, evidently because he could not help himself; or we
may feel pretty sure that he would have succeeded in keeping his
country firm to its true interest. In England, however, things were
very different: it was the time of the Cabal—the worst and most
profligate Ministry we have ever had. By bribery of the Ministers, by
the promise of a large subsidy to the King, and with the help of the
beautiful Duchess of Portsmouth, whom he sent over for the purpose,
Louis persuaded our Government suddenly to reverse their whole policy,
to break all their engagements, and to declare war against the United
Provinces.
The French were already prepared. An army of 130,000 men, commanded,
under the King, by Condé, Turenne, Luxembourg, and all the most
distinguished generals of France, advanced upon the frontier. The
Dutch troops were panicstricken and demoralised; the army had, as we
know, been allowed to get into a very unsatisfactory condition. De
Witt had relied chiefly upon the navy for maintaining the greatness of
his country; but he had not been insensible to the deficiencies of the
other branch of the service. He had, as I have said, tried hard, but
not hard enough, to remedy them. His party had always been pledged to
the reduction of the troops in order to keep down the taxation; the
adherents of the House of Orange, who comprised the best officers of
the country, had been unwilling to serve under the present Government,
and the Government had been equally unwilling to employ them. On the
other hand, the rich citizens, whose political support was the main
prop of the Administration, had insisted upon all the best commands
being conferred upon their sons and other relations, who were too
often utterly incompetent. The French passed the Rhine with only a
faint show of opposition, and, scattering their enemies before them,
marched almost to the very suburbs of Amsterdam. In the meantime the
Prince of Orange had been made, first Captain-General of the United
Provinces, and then Stadtholder of Holland and Zealand; his partisans
were everywhere triumphant, and his opponents, particularly after a
gallant but indecisive naval engagement, and a vain effort by De Witt
to make peace, were utterly crushed and discredited. Now comes the
tragic termination of our story. Cornelius de Witt had just
distinguished himself highly in the sea-fight of Solebay, but, on the
testimony of one of the most infamous of mankind, he was accused of
the preposterous charge of attempting to poison the Prince of Orange.
He was put to the torture, which he endured with heroic constancy, and
nothing could be wrung from him. But he was sentenced to be banished.
John de Witt, whose assassination had already been attempted a short
time before, went to convey his brother out of prison, and start him
on his journey. The prison was besieged by an armed mob, who blockaded
the door, and eventually broke into the room, where they found the two
brothers—Cornelius in bed, shattered by the torture which he had
recently undergone, and John, sitting upon the foot of the bed, calmly
reading his Bible. Cornelius, whose fiery and impetuous nature formed
a contrast to the composure and self-control of John, rose, in spite
of his weakness, and angrily bade the intruders begone. John, having
tried in vain to reason with them, put his arm round his brother, and
assisted him to descend the stairs. In the courtyard they were hustled
by the crowd, separated, and eventually murdered,—John, as he fell,
covering his face, like Cæsar, with his cloak.
The end of De Witt’s political career was disastrous, and it is not
easy to assign to him his proper place among the statesmen of the
world. I think, however, it should be on the whole a high one; as to
actual work done, he merely showed that Holland could maintain her
proud position independently of the House of Orange. The great men of
that House, who came before and after him, under whom the United
Provinces were created a nation, and obtained a world-wide renown,
under whom, in a death-struggle with first one and then the other,
they successfully resisted all the strength of the two mightiest
monarchies in the world—those Princes, William the Silent, Maurice,
and William III., have thrown De Witt rather into the shade. It is
only when we take into account the difficulties he had to contend with
that his rare abilities become fully apparent. One of his biographers
has invidiously compared his character with that of Cromwell, who led
a rival Republic at about the same time. But it seems to me that there
are no materials for a comparison; what De Witt might have done as the
all-powerful chief of a large and well-disciplined army is an unknown
quantity. On the other hand, how would the great Protector, with his
irritable temper and his unintelligible speeches, have succeeded in
doing the work of De Witt? We must remember that Cromwell at the most
critical period only saved himself and his country by turning out half
his Parliament into the street. He cut the Gordian knot; while De Witt
was compelled to be continually untying it. There is a good simile,
supposed to have been used by an illustrious statesman of the present
day as regards his own position, but far less applicable to him than
to the Pensionary: ‘De Witt was like a man out hunting upon a mule.’
C.
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INDEX OF PORTRAITS.
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[Illustration]
INDEX OF PORTRAITS.
-------
_Where there is more than one Portrait of the same Person,
the first number refers to the Page containing the notice of
the Life._
ALBEMARLE, FIRST EARL OF, 399
ARLINGTON, EARL OF, WIFE AND DAUGHTER, 374
AUSTRIA, ARCHDUCHESSES OF, 39
AUVERQUERQUE, FIELD-MARSHAL, 199, 455
BALBI BROTHERS, 384
BEAUVALE, LORD, 398
BOTNIA, JARICH VAN, 373
—— LUITS VAN, 374
BURKE, EDMUND, 69
CLAVERING, JOHN, 334
CLIFFORD, NATHANIEL, 474
COLLETON, LADY ANNE, 456
COWPER, LADY, 398
—— LADY CAROLINE, 211
—— EDWARD, THE HONOURABLE, 334
—— HENRY, OF TEWIN WATER, 324
—— JOHN, 117
—— SARAH, LADY, 366
—— SPENCER, JUDGE, 119
—— SPENCER, THE HONOURABLE, DEAN OF DURHAM, 333
—— WILLIAM, SIR, FIRST BARONET, 115
—— —— SECOND BARONET, 119
—— WILLIAM, THE POET, 229
« _EARLS_— »
COWPER, FIRST EARL, LORD CHANCELLOR, 126, 173
—— AS A YOUTH, 335
—— SECOND EARL, 147
—— THIRD EARL, 148, 308, 324, 404
—— FOURTH EARL, 152
—— FIFTH EARL, 152, 323
COWPER, SIXTH EARL, 303
—— SEVENTH EARL, 331
« _WIVES OF THE EARLS COWPER_— »
COWPER—OF THE FIRST EARL, 335, 398
—— —— SECOND EARL, 362
—— —— THIRD EARL, 308, 372
—— —— FIFTH EARL, 265
—— —— SIXTH EARL, 307
—— —— SEVENTH EARL, 228, 309
DAMER, MRS. DAWSON, 475
DOLCE, CARLO, WIFE OF, 64
ESTE, D’, ELEANORA, 65
FAUCONBERG, CHARLOTTE, COUNTESS OF, 452
FIAMMINGO, 63
FORDWICH, VISCOUNT, 361
FOX, CHARLES JAMES, 84, 449
GORE, FAMILY OF, 308
—— MRS., 361
GREY, DE, EARL, 325
HOBBES, THOMAS, 98
HUGHES, JOHN, 395
JACKSON, MISS, 372
KIRKE, MADAM, 383
LAMB, EMILY, THE HONOURABLE, 322, 323
—— FREDERICK, THE HONOURABLE, 327, 441
—— GEORGE, THE HONOURABLE, 306
—— HARRIET, THE HONOURABLE, 322
—— PENISTON, THE HONOURABLE, 320, 324, 327, 441
—— WILLIAM, THE HONOURABLE, 310, 303, 441
—— LADY CAROLINE, 461
LEGANES, MARQUEZ DE, 385
MARLBOROUGH, SARAH, DUCHESS OF, 450
MARY, QUEEN OF ENGLAND, 436
MELBOURNE, FIRST VISCOUNT, 367, 322
—— SECOND VISCOUNT, 367, 403
—— VISCOUNTESS, 457, 320, 322, 323
MENGS, RAPHAEL, 442
MILBANKE, LADY, 456
—— SIR RALPH, 322
MILBANKE, JOHN, 322
MORO, SIR ANTONIO, 297
NASSAU, THREE BROTHERS OF THE HOUSE OF, 474
—— JOHN, COUNT OF NASSAU SIEGEN, AND FAMILY, 153
NORTHCOTE, JAMES, R.A., 111
—— HIS FATHER, 449
NORTHUMBERLAND, EARL OF, 49
ORANGE, FREDERIC HENRY OF NASSAU, PRINCE OF, 271
—— MAURICE OF NASSAU, PRINCE OF, 278
—— WILLIAM, PRINCE OF, 162
ORMONDE, FIRST DUKE OF, 404
OXFORD, EARL OF, 453
PALMER, MISS, 225
RETZ, CARDINAL DE, 92
REYNOLDS, SIR JOSHUA, P.R.A., 213
—— MRS. SAMUEL, 212
RUYTER, ADMIRAL DE, 159
SARTO, ANDREA DEL, 39
SEYMOUR, LADY CAROLINE, 367
SHAFTESBURY, EARL OF, 163
SOMERS, EARL, 173
SOUTHAMPTON, ELIZABETH, COUNTESS OF, 387
—— RACHEL, COUNTESS OF, 391
STUART, LORDS JOHN AND BERNARD, 389
TRENTO, CARDINAL, 437
TROMP, ADMIRAL VAN, 204
TURENNE, FIELD-MARSHAL, 3
VANDYCK, ANTHONY, 53
WALTA, LOUVE VAN, 437
WHARTON, LORD, 382
WITT, DE, BROTHERS, 481
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● Transcriber’s Notes:
○ The Erratum on page 278 was, in the original, an entire page
inserted at this point. It was changed to a footnote.
○ Missing or obscured punctuation was silently corrected.
○ Typographical errors were silently corrected.
○ Inconsistent spelling and hyphenation were made consistent only
when a predominant form was found in this book.
○ Text that was in italics is enclosed by underscores (_italics_).
○ The name of “Lord Somers” is spelled with an “overbar” on the
letter “m”. This cannot be reproduced in the text version, so the
overbar is omitted.
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