Page:Cassell's Illustrated History of England vol 4.djvu/95

A.D. 1694]  was accomplished more completely than he could have anticipated. His rival was not disgraced, but destroyed—taken out of his way; and the hypocritical monster went to Whitehall to condole with the queen over this national dishonour and calamity, and to offer what he truly called "his own unworthy sword." When the offer was forwarded to William in Holland, he bluntly rejected it; but Marlborough ultimately achieved his end, and we ought never to forget, when we remember Ramailies, Blenheim, and Malplaquet, that amongst the acts by which he rose to a dukedom was the massacre of Camaret Bay.

Lord Berkeley returned to St. Helen's to take fresh orders from the admiralty, and was commanded to make a raid on the coast of Normandy. He again set sail on the 5th of July, and bombarded Dieppe, laying the greater part of it in ashes. Havre received the same treatment, and the fleet then ranged the coast, scattering terror amongst the inhabitants all the way, and harassing the French troops which were obliged to march after them. The French and Jacobites denounced this warfare on peaceable people as horrible and un-Christian; but it was replied that it was to retaliate for the atrocities repeatedly committed by the French on the palatinate, as if the diabolical orders of Louis were to be revenged on simple people who had no concern in them. By such conduct the English only degraded themselves to Louis's scale of wickedness. Berkeley then returned home, devolving the command on Sir Cloudesley Shovel, who, being joined by captain Masters with six-and-twenty Dutch pilots on the 12th of September, they attempted to fire the vessels in the harbour of Dunkirk, but failed, and then sailed to Calais, and did considerable mischief to the town.

Whilst these unfortunate demonstrations had been making, admiral Russell had sailed to the Mediterranean, and done good and legitimate service. When he arrived before Barcelona, the French had united their fleets from Toulon and Brest, in spite of the endeavours of the English. They were in full possession of the Bay of Rosas, and town after town had fallen into their hands. The fate of Barcelona was decided had not the fleets of the allies arrived, for the English was now joined by the Dutch under Callembergh and Evertsen. The army of the viceroy of Catalonia had been routed on the banks of the Ter, and all Catalonia trembled to its fall. But at the approach of the English the French made a precipitate retreat from the coast, and secured themselves in Toulon, where Russell sent vessels to blockade them. The Spanish government, in its sudden joy at this deliverance, presented Russell with a diamond, said to be worth twenty thousand pounds; but that was all the gratitude shown or benefit received. As we have experienced in Spain in our time, the Spaniards wanted the admiral to supply his own fleet with victuals, and even complained that he had not brought an army to drive out the French and defend the country against them. The viceroy was urgent that he should attack and exterminate the French vessels under the batteries of Toulon. After impressing respect for the English power on the states of Venice and Tuscany, and confirming by it the wavering faith of the duke of Savoy, Russell, by express order of the king, wintered with his fleet in the harbour of Cadiz, so ae to be able to prevent the union of the Toulon and Brest fleets at spring. He spent the time in active repair of his vessels and having them well supplied for the opening of the next campaign, though he received little aid from the Spanish government, who, as has been Justly observed, are generally more effectual in annoying their friends than enemies. From this time, however, Russell seems to have gone heartily into the service of the new sovereigns, and a new spirit arose in the navy which soon made itself felt by the enemies of the country.

On the continent no very decided events of war occurred. William, early in June, found himself at Louvain at the head of one hundred thousand men, where he was joined by the electors of Bavaria and Cologne. About the same time the Dauphin arrived in the camp of Luxembourg, and assumed the nominal command; but Luxembourg was still the real general, who pitched his camp at Fleurus. His force was much inferior to that of the allies, and according to the plan of the campaign determined on by Louis, he acted solely on the defensive. Various marches and counter-marches took place, but at length Luxembourg appeared to be moving on Maestricht, and William having no fear of his taking that place, determined to march boldly on French Flanders. He resolved to pass the Scheldt, and dispatched the duke of Würtemberg to cross it at Oudenarde, and the elector of Bavaria to do the same at Pont des Espières. But Luxembourg instantly comprehended the design, and by a forced march of such rapidity that he astonished every one, he reached the most distant place before the slow German elector; and to the astonishment of that commander, was seen already entrenching himself on one bank of the river when he arrived on the other. William, however, still determined to cross the river, and finding that Würtemberg had effected it at Oudenarde, he followed and passed there. His intention was to get possession of Courtray, but Luxembourg had extended his lines so as to prevent that William, therefore, drafted some forces from Maestricht and Liege, and sent them against the town of Huy, which they took. William himself passed the Lys and encamped at Wanneghem, and ordered Dixmude, Deynese, Tirlemont, and Ninone, to be secured for winter quarters, and quitted the army on the last day of September; the Dauphin returned to Versailles, and both armies retired into their winter quarters in the middle of October. William had advanced dangerously near to Dunkirk and the French frontiers, yet Louis was delighted with Luxembourg's wonderful march, and wrote a letter with his own hand, praising the whole army, which was read at the head of every regiment. It is clear that had William been well informed of Louis's inability to maintain the campaign actively, and had kept the field longer, he might, by a skilful and bold manœuvre, have still marched into French Flanders, greatly to his own reputation. At that day, however, it was the established fashion to retire early to winter quarters, as they did to bed; and William was rather a sturdy keeper of the field, than a commander of comprehensive genius.

On the Rhine the prince of Baden met de Lorges, the brutal ravager of Heidelberg and the palatinate, in this valley of the Neckar, near Heibronn, and drove him across the