Page:The reign of George VI - 1763.djvu/72

 done the French ship; the King returned a most spirited answer: and in short, after many memorials and replies, the King of France declared war against Great-Britain, and was answered by his Britannic Majesty. Charles, jealous of the British power, had entered into an offensive and defensive treaty with Peter, and had agreed to receive the Russian ships into the ports of France; and by combining their respective fleets, to overpower the naval force of George at once.

Fortunately for the King, Peter was dilatory in his preparations; the British fleet, to the amount of ninety sail of the line, was ready for action, and saw no enemy that could look it in the face. But the King was determined to lose no time; collecting a large fleet of transports, he embarked twenty thousand