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.D'Estrees went to sea for the first the in 1667, being then a man of matureyears; but in 1672 we find him in the chief command of an important squadron, having under him Duquesne,who was a seaman, and had been so for nearly forty years.In 1677, D'Estrees obtained from the king a bodyof eight ships which he undertook to maintain at his own expense, upon the condition of receiving half theprizes made.With this squadron he made an attack upon the then Dutch island of Tobago, with a recklessnesswhich showed that no lack of courage prompted his equivocal conduct at the Texel.The next year he went outagain and contrived to run the whole squadron ashore on the Aves Islands.The account given by the flag-CHAPTER III.WAR OF ENGLAND AND FRANCE IN ALLIANCE AGAINST THE PROVINCES, 1672-1674.79 The Influence of Sea Power Upon History, 1660-1783captain of this transaction is amusing as well as instructive.In his report he says: The day that the squadron was lost, the sun having been taken by the pilots, the vice-admiral as usual hadthem put down the position in his cabin.As I was entering to learn what was going on, I met the third pilot,Bourdaloue, who was going out crying.I asked him what the matter was, and he answered: 'Because I findmore drift than the other pilots, the admiral is threatening me and abusing me, as usual; yet I am only a poorlad who does the best he can.' When I had entered the cabin, the admiral, who was very angry, said to me,'That scoundrel of a Bourdaloue is always coming to me with some nonsense or other; I will drive him out ofthe ship.He makes us to be running a course, the devil knows where, I don't.' As I did not know which wasright, says the captain of the ship, rather naively, I did not dare to say anything for fear of bringing down alike storm on my own head. (1) 1.Gougeard: Marine de Guerre. Some hours after this scene, which, as the French officer from whom the extract is taken says, appears nowalmost grotesque, but which is only an exact portrayal of the sea manners of the day, the whole squadron waslost on a group of rocks known as the Aves Islands.Such were the officers. The flag- captain, in another partof his report, says: The shipwreck resulted from the general line of conduct held by Vice-Admiral d'Estrees.It was always the opinion of his servants, or others than the proper officers of the ship, which prevailed.Thismanner of acting may be understood in the Comte D'Estrees, who, without the necessary knowledge of aprofession he had embraced so late, always had with him obscure counsellors, in order to appropriate theopinions they gave him so as to blind the ship's company as to his capacity. (1) D'Estrees had been madevice-admiral two years after he first went aboard ship. 1 Troude: Batailles Navales. CHAPTER IV.ENGLISH REVOLUTION. WAR OF THE LEAGUE OFAUGSBURG, 1688- 1697. SEA BATTLES OF BEACHY HEAD AND LAHOUGUE.The Peace of Nimeguen was followed by a period of ten years in which no extensive war broke out.Theywere, however, far from being years of political quiet.Louis XIV.was as intent upon pushing on his frontiersto the eastward in peace as in war, and grasped in quick succession fragments of territory which had not beengiven him by the peace.Claiming this and that in virtue of ancient feudal ties; this and that other as implicitlysurrendered by the treaty, because dependent upon something else that had been explicitly surrendered;purchasing at one time, using bare force in other cases, and backing up all the so-called peaceful methods ofobtaining his asserted rights by the presence of armed power, he carried on this process of extension between1679 and 1682.The aggression most startling to Europe.and above all to the German Empire, was the seizureof the then imperial city of Strasburg on the 30th of September, 1681; and on the same day Casale, in Italy,was sold to him by the Duke of Mantua, showing that his ambitions were directed that way as well as to thenorth and east.Both of these were positions of great strategic importance, threatening, the one Germany, theother Italy, in case of war.The excitement throughout Europe was very great; in every direction Louis, serenely trusting to his power,was making new enemies and alienating former friends.The king of Sweden, directly insulted, and injured inhis duchy of Deux-Ponts, turned against him, as did the Italian States; and the Pope himself sided with theenemies of a king who was already showing his zeal for the conversion of the Protestants, and was preparingfor the revocation of the Edict of Nantes.But the discontent, though deep and general, had to be organized anddirected; the spirit necessary to give it form and final effective expression was found again in Holland, inWilliam of Orange.Time, however, was needed to mature the work. No one yet armed himself; but everyCHAPTER IV.ENGLISH REVOLUTION. WAR OF THE LEAGUE OF AUGSBURG, 1688- 1697. SEA BA80 The Influence of Sea Power Upon History, 1660-1783one talked, wrote, agitated, from Stockholm to Madrid.The war of the pen preceded by many years the warof the sword; incessant appeals were made to European opinion by indefatigable publicists; under all formswas diffused the terror of the New Universal Monarchy, which was seeking to take the place once filled bythe House of Austria.It was known that Louis sought to make himself or his son emperor of Germany
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