Dover to meet and greet their sovereign king, Charles II., on his
landing. On the fair morning of that day a sound of cannon
thundering from the castle announced that the fleet, consisting
of "near forty sail of great men-of-war," which conveyed his
majesty to his own, was in sight; whereon an innumerable crowd
betook its joyful way to the shore. The sun was most gloriously
bright, the sky cloudless, the sea calm. Far out upon the blue
horizon white-winged ships could be clearly discerned. By three
o'clock in the afternoon they had reached the harbour, when the
king, embarking in a galley most richly adorned, was rowed to
shore. Then cannon roared once more from the castle, and were
answered from the beach; bells rang from church towers, and a
mighty shout went up from the hearts of the people.

In the midst of these rejoicings Charles II. landed, and the
gallant General Monk, who had been mainly instrumental in
bringing his royal master to the throne without loss of blood,
now fell upon his knees to greet his majesty. The king raised
the general from the ground, embraced and kissed him. Then the
nobility hastened to pay their duty likewise, and the Mayor and
Aldermen of Dover presented him with a most loyal address. And
presently, with the roar of cannon, the clangour of bells, the
sound of music, and the shouts of a great multitude ringing in
his ears, the king advanced on his way towards Canterbury. At
the gates of this ancient city he was met by the mayor and
aldermen, and was presented by them with a golden tankard, Here
he spent the following day, which being Sunday, he went with a
great train to the cathedral, where service according to the
Church of England, long disused by the Puritans, was restored, to
the satisfaction of many.