4. It is to be specially noted that Antwerp was a
Roman Catholic city that had never, _in the least
way possible_, rebelled against PHILIP II.; and that
its awful destruction was made, without the least
provocation, by the soldiers of its Sovereign, that
should have protected it. Its only crime was its great
wealth. 5,000 merchants met in its Bourse, or Exchange,
every week. It was then the Venice of the North, with
about 125,000 inhabitants.
The following extract will explain the general position
of affairs in Flanders about this time.
S. P. _Foreign. Eliz._ Vol. 140.
1,021. _Dr [THOMAS] WILSON [Ambassador for
England in Flanders] to the Privy Council._