He was answered with acclamations; the officers
were instantly arrested; the crews of the other ships followed the example;
the arguments and entreaties of Rainsborowe himself, and of the earl of
Warwick, who addressed them in the character of lord high admiral, were
disregarded, and the whole fleet, consisting of six men-of-war fully
equipped for the summer service, sailed under the royal colours to
Helvoetsluys, in search of the young duke of York, whom they chose for
their commander-in-chief.[1] But the alarm excited by this revolt at sea
was quieted by the success of Fairfax against the insurgents on land. The
Cavaliers had ventured to oppose him[c] in the town of Maidstone, and for
six hours, aided by the advantage of their position, they resisted the
efforts of the enemy; but their loss was proportionate to their valour, and
two hundred fell in the streets, four hundred were made prisoners. Many
of the countrymen, discouraged by this defeat, hastened to their homes.
Goring, earl of Newport, putting himself at the head of a different body,
advanced[d] to Blackheath, and solicited admission into the city. It was a
moment big with the most important consequences. The king's friends formed
a
[Footnote 1: Life of James II.
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