482 THE SOVEREIGNTY OF THE SEA 



Thus, by their own maladroitness as it happened, the States 

 were drawn into precisely the dispute that Charles had been 

 longing for a dispute about the flag and the sovereignty of 

 the sea. He replied by sending Downing to The Hague, in 

 December 1671, as ambassador extraordinary, with a sheaf of 

 peremptory and intolerable demands. The choice of the ambas- 

 sador was in itself significant of much, for Downing was known 

 to be repugnant to the States-General, partly from his over- 

 bearing and quarrelsome disposition, still more because of his 

 unconcealed enmity to the Dutch people. He was to demand 

 free trade for the English in the Dutch plantations in the 

 Indies ; redress and satisfaction for the pamphlets and medals 

 insulting to the king; above all, he was to present to the 

 States-General a memorial requiring that they should " solemnly 

 and clearly acknowledge, in writing, the king's right to the 

 dominion of these seas, and that they neither do nor will dis- 

 pute it, but expressly engage themselves that all ships or fleets 

 of theirs, however numerous, shall, upon warning given by any 

 ship or ships of war, carrying English colours, of what rate or 

 bigness soever, strike their top-sails and lower their flags, as 

 has been ever practised/' As a pendicle to this, he was to 

 demand that Van Ghent should be " exemplarily punished for 

 the insolent affront done by him to a small English man-of-war 

 [the Merlin] in refusing to strike." If within a fortnight no 

 answer was received to this "memorial," Downing was to 

 present a sharp and peremptory note demanding an immediate 

 reply, and if he did not get it within another week, he was 

 instantly to quit The Hague, without giving any notice of his 

 intention to go. 



While Downing was away on his explosive mission, Boreel, 

 the Dutch ambassador in London, was beguiled with smooth 

 words in order to lull the States-General into a feeling of 

 security. On the eve of his departure, Downing told him he 

 was going to The Hague with the object of strengthening the 

 good understanding between the two countries, and Charles 

 treated the ambassador with the most friendly courtesy. The 

 ease with which the Dutch were being hoodwinked caused 

 much amusement in Paris. But Charles was not yet quite 

 ready. He needed a great deal more money than what was 

 left of the 800,000 which the House of Commons had voted. 



