conversation recorded by Pepys, which, wrongly interpreted, has done
so much to distort the early history of tactics. The circumstances of
Monck's great action must first be recalled. At the end of May, he and
Rupert, with a fleet of about eighty sail, had put to sea to seek the
Dutch, when a sudden order reached them from the court that the French
Mediterranean fleet was coming up channel to join hands with the
enemy, and that Rupert with his squadron of twenty sail was to go
westward to stop it. The result of this foolish order was that on June
1 Monck found himself in presence of the whole Dutch fleet of nearly a
hundred sail, with no more than fifty-nine of his own.[7] Seeing an
advantage, however, he attacked them furiously, throwing his whole
weight upon their van. Though at first successful shoals forced him
to tack, and his rear fell foul of the Dutch centre and rear, so that
he came off severely handled. The next day he renewed the fight with
forty-four sail against about eighty, and with so much skill that he
was able that night to make an orderly retreat, covering his disabled
ships with those least injured 'in a line abreadth.'[8] On the 3rd
the retreat was continued. So well was it managed that the Dutch
could not touch him, and towards evening he was able near the Galloper
Sand to form a junction with Rupert, who had been recalled. Together
on the 4th day they returned to the fight with as fierce a
determination as ever. Though to leeward, they succeeded in breaking
through the enemy's line, such as it was. Being in too great an
inferiority of numbers, however, they could not reap the advantage of
their manoeuvre.[9] It only resulted in their being doubled on, and
the two fleets were soon mingled in a raging mass without order or
control; and when in the end they parted after a four days' fight,
without example for endurance and carnage in naval history, the
English had suffered a reverse at least as great as that they had
inflicted on the Dutch in the last year's action.