HISTORY OF MARINE ARCHITECTURE.

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who,.notwithstanding their inferiority of force *, appeared by no means to havea wish of declining the combat, were discovered about eight leagues from theGun fleet, on the nineteenth of May. De Ruyter led his fleet into action,and conducted it with so much animation and judgment during its continuance,that owing to his bravery, and the cool inanimate support afforded to theEnglish by the French division, under the count d’Estrees, the Dutch wereat least able to maintain their own ground, and the combatants parted, as isnot unfrequently the result of an indecisive action, with nearly an equal pre-tension to the victory. The British fleet, however, sustained a loss in theRoyal James, of one hundred guns, the flag ship of the great and gallant earl ofSandw'ich, which was burnt by a Dutch fireship, that more than counter-balancedevery injury which they were able to inflict on their antagonists. Four otherships, of inferior rate, were also destroyed ; and a considerable number somaterially injured, as to be incapable of any farther service, without pre-viously undergoing a thorough repair. To compensate for this loss, one Dutchship of the line, called the Stavereen, fell into the hands of the English ;and a second, the Westergoes, was blown up ; a third, the name of whichdoes not appear, was sunk in the action; and a fourth, called the Great Hol-land, of seventy-six guns, so much damaged, as to be totally unfit for all furtherservice.

The bloody issue of this conflict appears to have had some effect in allayingthe fury of the combatants. The English retired first to their own ports ; andDe Ruyter, having convoyed into the Texel a fleet of merchant ships, thesafety of which had, in all probability, stimulated the Dutch commanders to thehighest exertions, followed their example soon afterwards. England herselfappeared in a state of inactivity for some weeks; but this deceitful calm wasonly the forerunner of a premeditated, and new system of attack. It wasagreed between Charles, and Louis his ally, that, as soon as their fleets shouldbe re-equipped, a descent should be jointly made by them on the province ofZealand, whither the ravages made by the French army had not then reached.All concurrent circumstances appeared to favour the bold attempt. De Ruyterhimself was informed of the intended blow', and felt, with the most poignantgrief, that he was unable to parry it. The duke of York, who had borne aprincipal share in planning the expedition, proposed to land the troops on

* See page 339 et seq.

the