A boat
was sent on shore with a note to the governor, demanding the instant
surrender of the town to the admiral of the Prince of Orange. The
inhabitants rose in enthusiasm; the garrison was small, and the governor
was obliged to comply. De la Mark took possession. A few priests and
monks attempted resistance, but were put down without difficulty, and
the leaders killed. The churches were cleared of their idols, and the
mass replaced by the Calvinistic service. Cannon and stores, furnished
from London, were landed, and Brille was made impregnable before Alva
had realised what had happened to him. He is said to have torn his beard
for anger. Flushing followed suit. In a week or two all the strongest
places on the coast had revolted, and the pirate fleet had laid the
foundation of the great Dutch Republic, which at England's side was to
strike out of Philip's hand the sceptre of the seas, and to save the
Protestant religion.
We may think as we please of these Beggars of the Ocean, these Norse
corsairs come to life again with the flavour of Genevan theology in
them; but for daring, for ingenuity, for obstinate determination to be
spiritually free or to die for it, the like of the Protestant privateers
of the sixteenth century has been rarely met with in this world.
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