Читать книгу The Life of Sir Henry Morgan. With an account of the English settlement of the island of Jamaica онлайн

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War was not actually declared by England until the 17th of March, 1665, but long before that declaration was made the two nations had been engaged in fierce and open hostilities in nearly every quarter of the globe; in the East and West Indies, in the Mediterranean, at many places on the west coast of Africa, and in North America. The commercial supremacy of the world was frankly at stake.[69]

By a treaty concluded in 1662, Louis XIV had agreed to assist the Dutch in any war in which they were not the aggressors. It seemed more than probable that war with Holland might involve England in hostilities with France. It therefore was considered expedient to make a resolute effort to conciliate Spain. Sir Henry Bennet, soon to become Lord Arlington, had been appointed a Secretary of State in October, 1662. He had negotiated the secret treaty by which the Spanish government had undertaken to assist Charles to regain his throne, and had afterwards spent four years at Madrid, vainly endeavouring to obtain the fulfilment of its terms. Since his appointment the French ambassador had consistently referred to him in his official correspondence with his court as "a Spaniard", and there is little doubt he was inclined to support Spain as the weakest of the two belligerents in resisting the aggression of France, which was becoming more menacing. But the English ambassador was instructed to demand the concession of freedom of trade with the Spanish possessions in the West Indies and America and an "assiento" granting the Company of Royal Adventurers to Africa the monopoly of the profitable slave trade with those colonies, which was then virtually in the hands of the Dutch. The charter granted to the African Company had been cancelled and another granted to this far stronger association, which included among its partners the Queen, the Duke of York, Prince Rupert, and many great noblemen and ministers of the Crown, giving it a monopoly of trade on the west coast of Africa from Sallee to the Cape of Good Hope, and prohibiting all other Englishmen from competing. In the success of this company the King and his government took a particular interest as being an enterprise of great national importance.[70]