Alva now held every fortress in the Low Countries, whether inland or on
the coast. The people were crushed. The duke's great statue stood in the
square at Antwerp as a symbol of the annihilation of the ancient
liberties of the Provinces. By sea alone the Prince of Orange still
continued the unequal struggle; but if he was to maintain himself as a
sea power anywhere, he required a harbour of his own in his own country.
Dover and the Thames had served for a time as a base of operations, but
it could not last, and without a footing in Holland itself eventual
success was impossible. All the Protestant world was interested in his
fate, and De la Mark, with his miscellaneous gathering of Dutch,
English, and Huguenot rovers, were ready for any desperate exploit.
The order was to leave Dover immediately, but it was not construed
strictly. He lingered in the Downs for six weeks. At length, one morning
at the end of March 1572, a Spanish convoy known to be richly loaded
appeared in the Straits. De la Mark lifted anchor, darted out on it,
seized two of the largest hulks, rifled them, flung their crews
overboard, and chased the rest up Channel. A day or two after he
suddenly showed himself off Brille, at the mouth of the Meuse.
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