408 THE SOVEREIGNTY OF THE SEA 



On the other hand, the English fishermen suffered greatly. 

 The Iceland and North Sea fishing came almost to a stop, and 

 men-of-war had to guard the herring and mackerel boats. In 

 September 1653 the Council sent a force of men and three 

 " fit and nimble " ships to the Shetlands to ply about the 

 islands, to intercept the enemy's trade of fishing, with what 

 results do not appear. 1 



But the operations against the enemy's fisheries played only 

 a small part in the war. The struggle for the command of 

 the sea was concentrated in many fierce battles between the 

 contending fleets in 1652 and 1653. The exploits of Blake, 

 Dean, Monk, and Penn on the one side, and of Tromp, De 

 Ruyter, Evertsen, and De With on the other, are famous in 

 the naval history of the two countries ; and although victory 

 finally rested with England, there were times when the actual 

 control of the British seas was in the hands of the Dutch. 

 It was on one of those occasions that the Dutch admiral was 

 said to have hoisted a broom at his mainmast-top as a sign 

 that he would sweep the seas of all Englishmen. Tromp 

 unexpectedly appeared in force in the Channel in the winter 

 of 1652, and on 30th November he defeated Blake off Dunge- 

 ness. From that date till the end of February in the follow- 

 ing year no English fleet was able to oppose him. The Dutch 

 were "lords and masters" of the sea, and English commerce 

 suffered severely. But the popular story about the broom 

 seems to have uncertain foundation. It was first set afloat 

 in two English newspapers, published on 9th March 1653, after 

 the decisive "three days' battle." In one it was said that 

 Tromp had set forth " a flag (or standard) of Broom ; and being 

 demanded what he meant by it, reply 'd, That he was once 

 more going to sweep the Narrow Seas of all Englishmen." 

 The other paper gave a letter from the Nonsuch frigate at 

 Portsmouth, stating that the Hollanders had probably gone 

 home after the battle, and that " their gallant Mr Trump when 

 he was in France (we understand) wore a flagg of Broom, and 

 iing demanded what he meant by it, replied that he was going 



l., 1652, pp. 343, 364, 387. HoUantsche Mercurius, 1652, p. 86. 

 Beaujon, Hi^. Dutch Fisheries. 363. Groot Placaet-Boeck, ii. 506. Aitzema, 

 Saken van Staet, iii. 810. Perm's Memorials, i. 526, 527. State Papers, Bom., 

 xxv. 25 ; xxxii. 15 ; xxxvi. 15, 29, 55 ; xxxviii. 116 ; xxxix. 73 ; xli. 



