The secret history of White-Hall, from the restoration of Charles II down to the abdication of the late K. James writ at the request of a noble lord, and conveyed to him in letters, by ̲̲̲late secretary-interpreter to the Marquess of Louvois, who by that means had the perusal of all the private minutes between England and France for many years : the whole consisting of secret memoirs, which have hitherto lain conceal'd, as not being discoverable by any other hand / publish'd from the original papers, by D. Jones, gent.

LETTER XXXII. (Book 32)

Of the Confederacy entered into for the defence of Holland, of the Prince of Orange's success against France, and of the Methods used by the French to hinder the King of England to make Peace and joyn with the Dutch, by re∣moving my Lord Shaftsbury from be∣ing Chancellor, &c.

My Lord,

THere was hardly a Prince on the Earth worse served than our King and paid more, no less than Three Embassadors to make up the Embassy mentioned in my last save one to your Lordship, and yet Two of the Three concurring with the French designes to the ruine of Hollund first, and so consequently their own Native Country next; so that the poor Hollanders, as your Lordship may well remember, were forced to save their Country from the French (who pursuant to the last advise were ready to devour it) by losing it in the Sea, in breaking down the Dikes the last ex∣tremity and the only remedy they had left them; for this gave them time to think of their Affairs, and this first brought the Elector of Brandenburg, then the Emperor,

and at last the King or Queen Regent of Spain, as apprehensive of the common dan∣ger to all of them in general by the French subduing the Dutch Provinces, to enter into a mutual League for their defence; and by their Conjunction, The Prince of Orange who had all this time struggled with the hardest destiny that could be, and lay neg∣lected by his Uncles as if they had no share either in his good or bad Fortunes, recover∣ed several of the Upland Towns in almost as little time as they had been taken by the French, and like another Scipio having joyned Montecucucli the Emperors General in the dead of Winter, and so carrying the War out of his own Country Besieged and took Bon, the Residence of the Elector of Cologn, and thereby did cut off the Comu∣nication between France and Holland; where∣by the French were necessitated not only to quit their Conquered Towns by heaps, but he also opened a passage for the Imperial Forces to joyn the Dutch and Spanish; But tho' neither the sence of his own true In∣terest, nor the Tyes of Consanguinity to the Prince of Orange could induce our King to come to the rescue of Holland, which notwithstanding the Princes brave∣ry and success was still but in a pitiful plight, as having but newly recovered their drowned Country; yet the French had an incurable Jealousie of him, the remem∣brance of the forementioned interposition

by his Embassy was still fresh in memory; And as that fell out when they least expect∣ed any such thing, so they considered a Peace might be struck up in as sudden and surprizing a manner, and therefore they set all their Engines on work to hinder it if possible, and in the first place knowing that great Person who had the influence over the King to procure such an Embassy, and might also by the same Arguments induce him to make a much hardier step, and force him at last in spight of his own inclinations, or of French Menaces, as well as of French Charmes, not only to a Peace with Holland, but even to a War against them; They therefore left nothing unes∣say'd, or stone untur'd to get him to dis∣pose of the Chancellor's place, tho' it was well known the King himself upon a cer∣tain occasion had given his Testimony of his being the wisest Subject he had in his Dominions, and seemed at that time to va∣lue him accordingly: I cannot posi∣tively inform your Lordship, by which of their Instruments it was done, for I never could find it was inserted in the Minutes; but I have heard it generally discoursed at the French Court, that they ploughed in this Affair with the Heifer they had formerly presented the King withal, and that the Duke also whom they by their Emissaries iritated against

him, to whom they alledged that he had taken notice of his keeping off of late from the Protestant Worship, and talked too li∣berally thereof, not without some Expressi∣ons boding much danger to his Highness, and even levelled at putting him by the Succession it self, gave an helping hand thereto.

But for all they had gained so considera∣ble a point, as the removal of the Chan∣cellor, yet fearing still the worst, they never left off their former apprehensions; And therefore their Ministers still continued with utmost Application to pursue their Game, both by magnificent Promises and Offers of Money, and some Menaces a la sourdene; but with instructions after all their industry, if they could not succeed in ob∣structing the peace, yet not to fail to elude it, which how well they succeeded in the first for a time, and when that could not be warded off no longer, how much more fortunate success they have had in the latter I shall endeavour to make your Lordship ac∣quainted with at another time, when I hope they may be no less grateful to your Honour's gusto, from him who desires to approve himself to be,

My Lord,

Your Obedient Servant

Paris Octob. 9. 1678.