THE THIRD DUTCH WAR 475 



between him and his subjects, and, mindful of the fate of his 

 father, he thought it prudent to secure in secret a wealthy 

 and powerful ally lest rebellion again broke out in England. 

 Within a year of the signing of the Triple Alliance Charles 

 was gained over by France, and the compact was sealed in 

 the disgraceful secret treaty of Dover in May 1670. Under 

 the treaty Charles was to receive a large yearly pension from 

 Louis, and aid in case of insurrection; he was to avow and 

 re-establish the Roman Catholic religion in England when it 

 could be done with safety ; and he was to begin hostilities 

 against the Dutch Republic when Louis required him by fur- 

 nishing 4000 men and fifty ships of war, for which he was 

 to receive a subsidy of 120,000, and to gain as his share of 

 the spoils of conquest Walcheren, Sluys, and Cadsand. Louis 

 crowned the dishonourable compact with the appropriate gift 

 of a new mistress to his royal ally Mademoiselle de Kerouaille, 

 afterwards the Duchess of Portsmouth, who well served the 

 interests of France. 1 



In order to carry out his part of the iniquitous bargain, it 

 was necessary for Charles, as the vassal of France, to deceive, 

 his subjects and his Parliament as well as his public ally, the 

 Dutch Republic. He had first to get money for the armaments, 

 for which the subsidy from France was insufficient, and he had 

 then to discover some pretext for the war which would make 

 it least objectionable to the English people. For the former 

 purpose he resorted to a bold subterfuge. The sentiment of 

 both the Parliament and the people was hostile to France, and 

 advantage was taken of this circumstance to obtain a subsidy 

 under false pretences. When Parliament met in October 1670 

 the Lord Keeper, by the king's commands, made a speech on 

 the state of public affairs, in which he enlarged on the king's 

 need of supply; pointed to the great strengthening of the 

 French navy and the decay of our own; urged the necessity 

 of fitting out in the ensuing year a fleet of fifty sail ; and 

 dwelt upon the obligations placed upon the king by several 

 treaties to exert himself for the good of Christendom, mention- 

 ing among others the Triple Alliance and the League with the 

 United Provinces. The trick succeeded. Parliament, uneasy 



1 Hume, Hist, of England, c. Ixv. Temple's Memoirs and Letters. Pontalis, 

 John de Witt. Macaulay, Hist., i. c. ii. 



