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HISTORY OF THE UNITED NETHERLANDS
From the Death of William the Silent to the Twelve Year's Truce—1609
By John Lothrop Motley
MOTLEY'S HISTORY OF THE NETHERLANDS, Project Gutenberg Edition, Vol. 75
History of the United Netherlands, 1602-1603
Protraction of the siege of Ostend—Spanish invasion of Ireland— Prince Maurice again on the march—Siege of Grave—State of the archduke's army—Formidable mutiny—State of Europe—Portuguese expedition to Java—Foundation there of the first Batavian trading settlement—Exploits of Jacob Heemskerk—Capture of a Lisbon carrack—Progress of Dutch commerce—Oriental and Germanic republics —Commercial embassy from the King of Atsgen in Sumatra to the Netherlands—Surrender of Grave—Privateer work of Frederic Spinola —Destruction of Spinola's fleet by English and Dutch cruisers— Continuation of the siege of Ostend—Fearful hurricane and its effects—The attack—Capture of external forts—Encounter between Spinola and a Dutch squadron—Execution of prisoners by the archduke—Philip Fleming and his diary—Continuation of operations before Ostend—Spanish veterans still mutinous—Their capital besieged by Van den Berg—Maurice marches to their relief— Convention between the prince and the mutineers—Great commercial progress of the Dutch—Opposition to international commerce— Organization of the Universal East India Company.
It would be desirable to concentrate the chief events of the siege ofOstend so that they might be presented to the reader's view in a singlemass. But this is impossible. The siege was essentially the war—asalready observed—and it was bidding fair to protract itself to such anextent that a respect for chronology requires the attention to bedirected for a moment to other topics.
The invasion of Ireland under Aquila, so pompously heralded as almost tosuggest another grand armada, had sailed in the beginning of the winter,and an army of six thousand men had been landed at Kinsale. Rarely hadthere been a better opportunity for the Celt to strike for hisindependence. Shane Mac Neil had an army on foot with which he feltconfident of exterminating the Saxon oppressor, even without theassistance of his peninsular allies; while the queen's army, severelydrawn upon as it had been for the exigencies of Vere and the States,might be supposed unable to cope with so formidable a combination. YetMontjoy made short work of Aquila and Tyrone. The invaders, shut up intheir meagre conquest, became the besieged instead of the assailants.Tyrone made a feeble attempt to relieve his Spanish allies, but was soondriven into his swamps, the peasants would not rise; in spite ofproclamations and golden mountains of promise, and Aquila was soon gladenough to sign a capitulation by which he saved a portion of his army.He then returned, in transports provided by the English general, a muchdiscomfited man, to Spain instead of converting Ireland into a provinceof the universal empire. He had not rescued Hibernia, as he stoutlyproclaimed at the outset his intention of doing, from the jaws ofthe evil demon.
The States, not much wiser after the experience of Nieuport, were againdesirous that Maurice should march into Flanders, relieve Ostend, andsweep the