Zutphen Sconces. Both these officers turned traitors and delivered
up the posts they commanded to the Spaniards. Their conduct not
only caused great material loss to the allies, but it gave rise
to much bad feeling between the English and Dutch, the latter
complaining that they received but half hearted assistance from
the English.

It was not surprising, however, that Leicester was unable to effect
more with the little force under his command, for it was necessary
not only to raise soldiers, but to invent regulations and discipline.
The Spanish system was adopted, and this, the first English regular
army, was trained and appointed precisely upon the system of the
foe with whom they were fighting. It was no easy task to convert a
body of brave knights and gentlemen and sturdy countrymen into regular
troops, and to give them the advantages conferred by discipline
and order. But the work was rendered the less difficult by the
admixture of the volunteers who had been bravely fighting for ten
years under Morgan, Rowland Williams, John Norris, and others. These
had had a similar experience on their first arrival in Holland.
Several times in their early encounters with the Spaniards the
undisciplined young troops had behaved badly; but they had gained
experience from their reverses, and had proved themselves fully
capable of standing in line even against the splendid pikemen of
Spain.

While the English had been drilling and fighting in Holland things
had gone on quietly at Hedingham. The village stands near the
headwaters of the Colne and Stour, in a rich and beautiful country.
On a rising ground behind it stood the castle of the Veres, which
was approached from the village by a drawbridge across the moat.