Our king used to go every spring, as long as the war lasted, to fight the French on the borders of France, and he came home in the autumn to see what had been done in England while he was away.
The bravest admiral in these times was Admiral Russell, who beat the French ships whenever he could find them, and who fought a very famous battle against the French Admiral Tourville, about which the English sailors sing some fine songs even now.
King William himself was so brave and skilful in war that he baffled the best French generals, and kept King Louis’s large armies from getting any decisive advantage for many years, till at last Louis was tired of war, and was glad to make peace. So he sent his ambassadors to a place called Ryswick, in Holland, where King William had a country-house and promised to give back all the places he had taken from his neighbours during the war, provided he might have peace.
But in the midst of the war, when everything seemed to be going on well, a great misfortune happened to both the king and people of England. Good Queen Mary died of the small-pox when she had been queen only six years. She was a very good and clever woman. She was not only a good wife to the king, but his best friend; and he trusted her, and took her advice in everything. She was a true Protestant, and very religious, which made her particularly fit to be Queen of England. She was a cheerful, good-tempered woman, which made the people love her; and the ladies who lived at her court were good wives and mothers, and spent part of their time in useful work and reading, like the queen, instead of being always at plays, or gaming, or dressing, as they used to be in the time of Charles and James.
King William lived seven years after the queen died. He was killed by a fall from his horse near Hampton Court.
He was not near so pleasant and cheerful as Queen Mary. But he was the very best king for England that we could have found at that time.
He was a very religious man, and he knew his duty, and loved to do it, both in England, where the people chose him for their king, and in Holland, his own country.
I must write down a few of the things that he did for England: perhaps you will not quite understand how right they were till you are older, but it is proper that you should remember them.
A law was made that no man or woman should ever be king or queen of England but a Protestant.
It was settled that there should be a new parliament very often, and that no year should pass without the meeting of a parliament.