530 A. D. 1667. 



France and Holland being willing to treat of a peace, plenipoten- 

 tiaries met at Breda ; and a peace between England and France was con- 

 cluded, whereby the later ceded to England all their part of the ifle of 

 St. Chriftophers, together with Antigua and Montferrat, On the other 

 hand, the Englifh court, not then knowing or duely weighing the im- 

 portance of the country of Acadia, or Acadie, part of Nova-Scotia,, 

 yielded it to France. 



A treaty was alfo concluded between England and Holland, whereby 

 it was agreed, that both parties fhould retain what they then pofTefled. 

 But before it was quite concluded, the king, imagining the peace to be 

 certain, (fome fay too, for faving the money granted by parliament for 

 lefs valuable ends) omitted to fit out his principal fleet to fea ; the Dutch 

 at the infl:igation of the French court, fent over De Ruyter with 70 

 fhips of war, who, entering the mouth of the river Thames, took the 

 fort of Sheernefs, which he blew up, with a great quantity of naval and 

 military ftores, &c. Thence fending Van Ghent with part of his fleet 

 up the river Med way to Chatham, where many of our capital fliips lay, 

 they burnt four (the Dutch fay fix) of them, and brought off the hull 

 of the Royal Charles : but two or three of the Dutch fliips running 

 aground, they burnt them to prevent their falling into our hands, and 

 fo returned in triumph to their own coaft. But as the peace was now 

 too fir gone to break it oflf, it was foon after figned. We fliall here on- 

 ly farther take notice, that the fort at Sheernefs has fince been rebuilt 

 in fo fubftantial and judicious a manner, as probably will prevent any 

 luch daring attempt hereafter. 



The diiafler at Chatham created great uneafinefs in London, efpecial- 

 ly among thofe who had trufted the London goldfmiths with money at 

 a moderate intereft, which they had advanced to the king at a much 

 higher interefi:, on the fecurity of his revenue as it fliould come in, the 

 crefiitors of thefe bankers being juflly apprehenfive left a fudden flop 

 ihould be put to their payments at the exchequer. The king therefor, 

 in order to quiet luch uneafinefs in the people, who were continually 

 demanding their money of the goldfmiths or bankers, iflued his decla- 

 ration for prefeiving inviolably the courfe of payments in his exche- 

 quer, both with regard to principal and intereft : although in lefs than, 

 five years v/e fhall fee that he abfolutely difregarded this folemn decla- 

 ration. 



At the treaty of Breda the Englilh minifters at firft infifted on the 

 Dutch Eaft-India company's refloring the fpice ifle of Poleroon ; Crom- 

 well had indeed obliged them, in 1654, to reftore it .- yet the Dutch 

 liad again feized on it in the year 1664. But at length Poleroon was ' 

 agreed to be left to the Dutch, though it is faid to yield the beft nut- 

 megs and mace of all the Molucca ifles. 



Nothing could niiDre efFeftually demonfl;rate the excellency of the 



