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COMMERCIAL RESTRICTIONS.

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out loss of reputation, retired to Hesdin.* This second failure made him, like an angry gamester, more bent upon a further trial of his fortune. After deliberating upon many plans, he ordered the count d'Estampes and Antoine de Croy, with 5000 men, to enter the county A. D. of Guisnes, and break down the principal dyke in those 1438. parts, in expectation that, even if he should not succeed in drowning the town of Calais and the surrounding country, he should at least reduce it to such a condition that the English would be compelled to abandon it. Some engineers were so unskilful that they persuaded him this might be effected: the labourers, however, of whom a great number had been brought together, had not been long employed before they discovered that no inundation which could ever be brought about by such means would either endanger the loss of the place or annoy the garrison. The silly enterprise, therefore, was given over after they had broken down the bridge of Nieulay, and some smaller dykes †, which were easily repaired.

A truce, which had been "taken for a small time, and for a less observed," scarcely interrupted the course of these hostilities. But the duchess of Burgundy, a wise and good princess, nearly akin to the reigning house of Plantagenet, used all her endeavours to bring about a peace with England. The duke's hopes of aggrandising himself by the war were abated, and the more industrious part of his subjects suffered severely from the stoppage of their cloth manufactures, no wool being imported from England. Ypres felt this especially. Men were thrown out of work and bread, in a time of extreme dearth. Smuggling no doubt had its beginning as soon as custom-house duties were imposed. There existed at this time a law by which all manner of merchandise, whether entering the realm of England or going out, should be forfeited if it were landed or

"Haviendo," says Sueyro, "gastado inutilmente tanto en los aparejos, — en que se hechava bien de ver, que le estuviera mejor a Phelipe no separarse del Ingles; pues con tener en su campo la gente mas escogida, y los capitanes mas insignes, - volvio con menos reputacion a Hesdin." P. 302-3. † Monstrelet, 113, 114. Sueyro, 307.

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put on board in creeks and small landing places, instead of the great ports, except when vessels had been driven into such creeks "by cohersion of tempest of the sea. But as the facilities of smuggling are in proportion to the degree of intercourse between the countries concerned, the supply of any bulky commodity which could be introduced must in those days have been very inconsiderable. Already the warlike governments of Europe had begun to make war upon the resources of an enemy by impeding his commerce; what had always been practised as the law of the strongest being now directly regarded as a measure of policy. This, of course, led to the fabrication of false papers and forged passports; and when an enemy's ship was brought into an English port, false witnesses were provided to swear that the goods on board were neutral property. This being to the great hinderance of the captors and abashment of the courage of the king's liege people," an act was passed that all goods taken in an enemy's ship should be considered as legal prize for the three years ensuing, and longer if it should please the king," insomuch," the law stated, "that it is not contrary to the league made between him and some of his allies."+ Four years afterwards this law was modified, and alien merchants were allowed to lade enemy's ships, provided the masters, owners, or merchants of the said ships took out letters patent of the king's safe-conduct, surety, and safeguard. It was soon found that such letters patent were forged as easily as false papers; and it was then enacted that they should be of no avail unless they were enrolled in the king's chancery; the reason assigned for this being, that by the fraudulent practices which it was intended to suppress, the king's enemies were greatly enriched, and their navies strongly increased, while the navy and merchandise of the realm greatly diminished; whereas, "if people of the king's amity were feared and dis

*4 Hen. 6. c. 20.

+ 14 Hen. 6. c. 7.

18 Hen. 6. c. 8.

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1439.

91 couraged from freighting the ships of her enemies, their navy in time to come would be decreased, diminished, and that of her subjects and friends increased and enlarged." * It became a contest of commercial regulations between the duke of Burgundy and the English government, after more active hostilities had ceased, the duke being engaged in turmoils with his own subjects, and with the marauders whom the French king encouraged to provide for themselves upon his neighbour's territories, and the English seeking to maintain their ground in France, not to make conquests on the side of Artois or Flanders. The prohibition of English cloth in Brabant, Flanders, Holland, and Zeeland was a measure which the duke thought would injure England, A. D. and encourage his own manufactories: an ordinance, therefore, was published to this effect, and strictly enforced; and whatever English cloths were found were seized and forfeited. When a truce at length was made between the two powers, it was stipulated that this prohibition should be revoked: nevertheless, it was continued to be enforced, and that notwithstanding letters from the English government and demands of redress. At length they passed an act declaring, that unless this ordinance was repealed before the ensuing Michaelmas, no manner of merchandise or goods, of the growing or workmanship of the countries which the duke possessed, should be imported into England, on pain of forfeiture; the ordinance, it was said in the act, being " to the intolerable damage of all the commons of this realm, because many clothmakers, that is to say, men weavers, fullers, and dyers, and women websters, carders, and spinners, and others who were buyers and sellers of the materials in their various stages, had no other occupation; and being deprived of this, to which of very necessity they were constrained for their living, were driven, by idleness and distress, to sin and evil life." † The act was re-enacted in the ensuing year.

The English had not yet turned their arms against

20 Hen. 6. c. 1.

+ Sueyro, 314. 27 Hen. 6. c. 1.

each other; nor, though the tide of fortune had turned against them in France, had they lost any of their military renown, or abated any thing of their pretensions. But their naval force appears to have been neglected; and while the three great powers of England, France, and Burgundy were eagerly engaged in the continental war, the trade of piracy flourished. A certain Hannequin Leeuw, who had been banished from Ghent for his misdeeds, took to this course, and pursued it with such success that he got together a squadron of eight or ten vessels, well armed and stored. He not only infested the coast of Flanders and Holland, and the English Channel, but scoured the coast of Spain, and even proceeded as far as the Straits of Gibraltar, making war indiscriminately upon all nations, and calling himself the Friend of God and the Enemy of all mankind. This wretch escaped the vengeance of man; but he, and, as it appears, the greater part, if not the whole, of his people, perished in storm at sea. *The Easterlings, among whom the piratical spirit was still continued down from the days of the Vikingar, provoked at length the Hollanders and Zeelanders. They had

been warned by one of their own people, more farsighted than themselves, not to rouse the lion; for if he was so far awakened as to feel his strength, he would be provoked to use it! Instead of listening to this counsel, they pursued their depredations, laughed at the demand of 50,000 florins for reparation, when it was made in the name of his countrymen by the burgomaster of Amsterdam; and, when they were required to choose between such amends and open war, made choice of fire and sword. Upon this the Hollanders and Zeelanders united their forces, sent a fleet to sea, and gave the Easterlings a great defeat, taking twenty of their ships, besides three vessels laden with salt and other commodities from Prussia, and a rich Venetian carrack in their company. This action was more important in its consequences than in itself: it made

*Monstrelet, vii. 347. Sueyro, 281.

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the two provinces sensible, for the first time, of their maritime strength, and gave a new impulse to that spirit of maritime adventure which they had recently begun to manifest. Till of late the Zeelanders had confined their trade to the northern and eastern ports, and to those of their French and English neighbours: a voyage to Spain had been considered among them to be so perilous, that whosoever undertook it settled his worldly and his spiritual affairs as if preparing for death*, before he set forth: from this time they carried on a brisk trade with Spain and Portugal. Till now they had borne the insults of the Easterlings as the weaker party after this victory they retaliated upon them, attacked and captured one of their admirals off the coast of Norway, hoisted a besom at the mast-head, in token that they had swept the seas; and, if their own chroniclers may be believed on such a subject, showed themselves as much superior to their enemies in the generous treatment of their prisoners as they had proved themselves to be in war. But this redeeming virtue can have belonged only to individuals: it is certain that those who were engaged in this predatory warfare soon made no distinction between friend and foe, considering all as fair prize upon which they could lay strong hand. Under pretext of making war upon the Easterlings, the admiral Hendrick van Borselen, lord of Veere, entertained all the pirates and outlaws whom he could gather together, and carried on his depredations with equal audacity and address. The booty which he obtained enabled him to add largely to his possessions in Walcheren, by the purchase of confiscated estates; while he received others as grants from the duke, who thought it prudent, at any cost, to retain in his service, or at least in the profession of obedience, one who could render himself so destructive an enemy. This did not prevent the admiral-for he held that rank under the

* Chronicle of Zeeland by Jan Reygersbergh van Cortgene, quoted by Sueyro, ii. 312. + D'oude Chronijcke van Holland, Zeeland, &c. Dordrecht, 1620. p. 462. Tegenwoordige Staat der Vereenigde Nederlanden, x. 144, 145

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