rather to fee the trade of their country diftreffed, than the fea-officers exalted by a new acquifition of honour and influence.

Van Trump, defirous of diftinguishing himself at the refumption of his command by fome remarkable action, had affembled eighty fhips of war, and ten firefhips, and fteered towards the Downs, where Blake, with whofe condition and ftrength he was probably acquainted, was then ftationed. Blake, not able to reftrain his natural ardour, or perhaps not fully informed of the fuperiority of his enemies, put out to encounter them, though his fleet was so weakly manned, that half of his fhips were obliged to lie idle without engaging, for want of failors. The force of the whole Dutch fleet was therefore fuftained by about twenty-two fhips. Two of the English frigates, named the Vanguard and the Victory, after having for a long time stood engaged amidst the whole Dutch fleet, broke through without much injury, nor did the English lofe any fhips till the evening, when the Garland carrying forty guns was boarded at once by two great fhips, which were opposed by the English till they had scarcely any men left to defend the decks; then, retiring into the lower part of the veffel, they blew up their decks, which were now poffeffed by the enemy, and at length were overpowered and taken. The Bonaventure, a ftout wellbuilt merchant-fhip, going to relieve the Garland, was attacked by a man of war, and, after a ftout resistance, in which the captain, who defended her with the utmoft bravery, was killed, was likewife carried off by the Dutch. Blake, in the Triumph, feeing the Garland in diftrefs, preffed forward to relieve her, but in his way had his foremaft fhattered, and was himfelf

boarded;

boarded; but beating off the enemies he difengaged himself, and retired into the Thames with the lofs only of two fhips of force, and four fmall frigates, but with his whole fleet much fhattered. Nor was the victory gained at a cheap rate, notwithstanding the unufual difproportion of ftrength; for of the Dutch flagships one was blown up, and the other two dif abled; a proof of the English bravery, which should have induced Van Trump to have fpared the infolence of carrying a broom at his topmaft in his triumphant paffage through the channel, which he intended as a declaration that he would fweep the feas of the English fhipping; this, which he had little reafon to think of accomplishing, he foon after perished in attempting.

There are fometimes obfervations and enquiries, which all historians feem to decline by agreement, of which this action may afford us an example: nothing appears, at the firft view more to demand our curiofity, or afford matter for examination, than this wild encounter of twenty-two fhips with a force, according to their accounts who favour the Dutch, three times fuperior. Nothing can juftify a commander in fighting under fuch difadvantages, but the impoffibility of retreating. But what hindered Blake from retiring as well before the fight as after it? To fay he was ignorant of the ftrength of the Dutch fleet, is to impute to him a very criminal degree of negligence; and, at least, it must be confeffed that, from the time he faw them, he could not but know that they were too powerful to be oppofed by him, and even then there was time for retreat. To urge the ardour of his failors, is to diveft him of the authority of a commander, and to charge him with the moft reproachful weaknefs that can enter

5

into

into the character of a general. To mention the impetuofity of his own courage, is to make the blame of his temerity equal to the praise of his valour; which feems indeed to be the most gentle cenfure that the truth of history will allow. We must then admit, amidst our elogies and applauses, that the great, the wife, and the valiant Blake was once betrayed to an inconfiderate and defperate enterprize, by the refiftless ardour of his own spirit, and a noble jealousy of the honour of his country.

It was not long before he had an opportunity of revenging his lofs, and restraining the infolence of the Dutch. On the 18th of February, 1652-3, Blake being at the head of eighty fail, and affifted, at his own request, by colonels Monk and Dean, espied Van Trump with a fleet of above 100 men of war as Clarendon relates, of 70 by their own publick accounts, and 300 merchantships under his convoy. The English, with their ufual intrepidity, advanced towards them; and Blake in the Triumph, in which he always led his fleet, with twelve fhips more, came to an engagement with the main body of the Dutch fleet; and by the difparity of their force was reduced to the last extremity, having received in his hull no fewer than 700 fhots, when Lawfon in the Fairfax came to his affiftance. The reft of the English fleet now came. in, and the fight was continued with the utmost degree of vigour and refolution, till the night gave the Dutch an opportunity of retiring, with the lofs of one flaghip, and fix other men of war. The English had many veffels damaged, but none loft. On board Lawfon's fhip were killed 100 men, and as many on board Blake's, who loft his captain and fecretary, and himself received a wound in the thigh. B b

VOL. IV.

Blake

Blake having fet afhore his wounded men, failed in purfuit of Van Trump, who fent his convoy before, and himself retired fighting towards Bulloign. Blake ordered his light frigates to follow the merchants, ftill continued to harrafs Van Trump, and on the third day, the 20th of February, the two fleets came to another battle, in which Van Trump once more retired before the English, and, making use of the peculiar form of his fhipping, fecured himself in the fhoals. The accounts of this fight, as of all the others, are various; but the Dutch writers themfelves confefs that they loft eight men of war, and more than twenty merchant-ships; and it is probable that they fuffered much more than they are willing to allow, for thefe repeated defeats provoked the common people to riots and infurrections, and obliged the States to afk, though ineffectually, for peace.

In April following the form of government in England was changed, and the fupreme authority affumed by Cromwell; upon which occafion Blake, with his affociates, declared that, notwithstanding the change in the administration, they should still be ready to difcharge their truft, and to defend the nation from infults, injuries, and encroachments. "It is not," fays Blake," the business of a feaman to mind state-affairs, "but to hinder foreigners from fooling us." This was the principle from which he never deviated, and which he always endeavoured to inculcate in the fleet, as the fureft foundation of unanimity and steadiness. "Disturb not one another with domeftic difputes, but

remember that we are English, and our enemies are "foreigners. Enemies! which, let what party foever "prevail, it is equally the intereft of our country to "humble and restrain."

After

After the 30th of April 1653, Blake, Monk, and Dean, failed out of the English harbours with 100 men of war, and, finding the Dutch with feventy fail on their own coafts, drove them to the Texel, and took fifty doggers. Then they failed northward in purfuit of Van Trump, who, having a fleet of merchants under his convoy, durft not enter the channel, but fteered towards the Sound, and by great dexterity and address escaped the three English admirals, and brought all his fhips into their harbour; then, knowing that Blake was still in the North, came before Dover, and fired upon that town, but was driven off by the castle.

Monk and Dean ftationed themselves again at the mouth of the Texel, and blocked up the Dutch in their own ports with eighty fail; but hearing that Van Trump was at Goree with 120 men of war, they ordered all fhips of force in the river and ports to repair to them.

On June 3d, the two fleets came to an engagement, in the beginning of which Dean was carried off by a cannon ball; yet the fight continued from about twelve to fix in the afternoon, when the Dutch gave way, and retreated fighting.

On the 4th, in the afternoon, Blake came up with eighteen fresh fhips, and procured the English a complete victory; nor could the Dutch any otherwife preferve their fhips than by retiring once more into the flats and fhallows, where the largest of the English veffels could not approach.

In this battle Van Trump boarded vice-admiral Pen; but was beaten off, and himself boarded, and reduced to blow up his decks, of which the English had gotten poffeffion. He was then entered at once by Pen