The English fleet, which was the first ready, consisted of one hundred and fourteen sail of men-of-war and frigates, twenty-eight fire-ships and ketches, having about twenty-two thousand seamen and soldiers on board. The whole was commanded by the Duke of York, as lord high-admiral; Prince Rupert was admiral of the white; and the Earl of Sandwich who, as Captain Montague had won distinction under Blake, was admiral of the blue. On April 21st, 1665, the English sailed for the Dutch coast, and on the 28th sent in a squadron so near the shore and harbour of the Texel that the country was exceedingly alarmed. After remaining there a month, however, the fleet was so ruffled by a storm, that it was found necessary to retire towards our own shore.
This opportunity the Dutch took of sending out their fleet, which, by the latter end of May, appeared about the Dogger Sands. It was divided into seven squadrons, the first under Admiral Opdam, consisting of fourteen men-of-war and two fire-ships; the second under John Everts, of the like force; the third commanded by Admiral Cortenaer, consisting of fourteen men-of-war and one fire-ship; the fourth under Stillingwert, composed likewise of fourteen men-of-war and a fire-ship; the fifth conducted by Van Tromp, the son of the famous old admiral, who fought with Blake, made up of sixteen men-of-war and two fire-ships; the sixth under Cornelius Everts, consisting of fourteen men-of-war and a fire-ship; the seventh commanded by Schram, comprising sixteen men-of-war and two fire-ships—in all, a hundred and three men-of-war, eleven fire-ships, and seven yachts. A mighty fleet indeed!
The Duke of York having retired with our navy from the Dutch coast when they came out, afforded them the opportunity to fall upon our Hamburg fleet, which they did not neglect; capturing the greater part of it, whereby our merchants suffered a loss of nearly two hundred thousand pounds. This exceedingly exasperated the English, and, at the same time, gave great encouragement to the Dutch.
Admiral Opdam, who commanded the latter, was a prudent as well as a truly gallant commander, but he was not allowed the liberty of action absolutely necessary at such a crisis. No sooner was he out at sea than he received a letter from the states directing him to fight at all events; and this order he resolved to obey, though contrary to the advice of most of his officers and to his own opinion. "I am," said he, addressing the council of war, "entirely in your sentiments: but here are my orders. To-morrow my head shall be bound with laurel or with cypress." On June 3rd the English and Dutch navies engaged about three in the morning off Lowestoft; when the English had the weather-gauge—an advantage they knew how to use as well as keep.
Things went at first very equally on both sides; several squadrons charging through and through, without any remarkable advantage. But about noon, the Earl of Sandwich, with the blue squadron, fell into the centre of the Dutch fleet, and divided it into two parts, thus beginning the confusion which ended in their defeat. The Duke of York in the Royal Charles, a ship of eighty guns, and Admiral Opdam in the Eendracht, of eighty-four, were closely engaged. The fight continued for some hours with great obstinacy, and the duke was often in the utmost danger. Several persons of distinction were killed on board his ship, particularly the Earl of Falmouth, the king's favourite, Lord Muskerry and Mr. Boyle, son to the Earl of Corke, with one ball, and so near the duke that he was covered with their blood and brains; nay, a splinter from the last-mentioned gentleman's skull razed his hand. About one, the Dutch admiral blew up, with a prodigious noise; but how the accident occurred is not known. In this vessel, together with Admiral Opdam, perished five hundred men, only five of the whole crew escaping; many of those lost being volunteers, of the best families of Holland, and not a few Frenchmen, who had taken this opportunity of being present in a sea-fight.
A little after this unlucky blow, the Dutch received a greater. Four fine ships, the largest of sixty, the least of forty guns, ran foul of each other, and were burnt by one fire-ship, and soon after, three larger vessels, by the same accident, shared the same fate. The Orange, a ship of seventy-five guns, after a most gallant defence was also burnt; and thus, towards four in the afternoon, all fell into confusion. Vice-admiral Stillingwert was shot through the middle by a cannon-ball; and Vice-admiral Cortenaer received a shot in his thigh, of which he instantly died. Their ships bearing out of the line on the death of their commanders, without striking their flags, drew many after them; so that, by eight at night, Tromp, who held out bravely to the last, and fought retreating, had not more than thirty ships left with him.
According to English accounts, the Dutch had eighteen ships taken, and fourteen sunk in this action, besides such as were burnt or blown up. Yet their accounts admit of no more than nine ships taken, one, their admiral, blown up, and eight burnt. The English lost the Charity, a ship of forty-six guns, with most of her men, in the beginning of the fight; about two hundred and fifty men killed, and three hundred and forty wounded; on the other side, they lost at least six thousand men, including two thousand three hundred taken prisoners.
There is very little room for doubt that if there had not been some mismanagement on the side of the English, this, which was the first, might also have been the last action in this war; for the Dutch fleet fled in great confusion, and if the English had pressed them vigorously, as they might have done, having the wind, so many ships might have been either sunk, disabled, or taken as must have forced a peace; in favour of which there was a very strong party in Holland, who did not like the domination of the pensionary De Witte and the dependence in which he held the states, who seldom ventured to do anything of importance when he was absent. This great opportunity was lost through the English fleet's slacking sail in the night, contrary, it is said, to the express directions of His Royal Highness the duke before retiring to rest.
It is far from being an easy matter to determine how this came to pass. But the circumstances appear to have been as follows. The duke, as lord high-admiral, had two captains on board his ship—Sir William Penn, who had the rank of a vice-admiral, and Captain, afterwards Sir, John Harman. Sir William had retired as well as the duke, so that the command remained with Captain Harman, who was himself at the helm, when one Mr. Brounker, who was of the duke's bed-chamber, came and told him that "he ought to consider how much His Royal Highness's person had been already exposed in the action, and how much greater risk he might run if their ship, which was the headmost of the fleet, should fall in single with those of the enemy upon their own coasts." Harman heard him, but answered like an honest brave man as he was that he could do nothing without orders. Brounker upon this went to the duke's cabin and returned with orders, in His Royal Highness's name, to make less sail; these Captain Harman, without the least scruple, obeyed, though it caused some confusion in the fleet, several ships coming very near to running foul of each other.
In the morning the duke expressed surprise and resentment at finding the fleet at such a distance from the Dutch, that there was no longer any hope of coming up with them. It then appeared that either through cowardice, or something worse, Brounker had carried Captain Harman orders which he never received. However, this was concealed from His Royal Highness at the time, and other excuses made, such as a brisk wind from shore and their fire-ships being all spent. The truth, however, was very soon whispered about, though the duke was not acquainted with it for more than six months after; upon which he discharged Brounker his service, and would have done more, if the celebrated Duchess of Cleveland, then Countess of Castlemain, with whom he was a favourite, had not by her interest with the king protected him. However, at the end of the war when the House of Commons was out of humour, the matter was mentioned and inquired into; upon which Brounker, who was a member, was expelled the house and ordered to be impeached, but was never prosecuted.