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They fay his majesty will have the fole honour of giving either peace to Christendom or a balance to the wars; and has fhewn, that all muft follow what he gives a head to. Much

more of this kind I hear from all hands, and have no reason to doubt their meaning what they fay.

Thus far I have given your lordship the fmooth fide only of this conclufion, and now you must receive the rough; for having concerted with the commiffioners, that Monfieur de Witt and I fhould give part of our treaty (all but the feparate articles) to the French and Spanish ambaffadors. The firft we performed this afternoon, the laft we intend tomorrow morning.

The French ambaffador had been much furprized with our conclufion; for, upon our first conference with the commiffioners, he had faid, "Tout cela s'en ira en fumée, & que le roy fon maitre s'eur mocqueroit." The day before our figning, being told we advanced very faft, he replied, "Et bien, d'icy à fix femaines nous en parlerons;" relying upon the forms of the ftate to run the circuit of their towns.

Upon our giving him part of the whole bufinefs, he replied coldly, that he doubted we had not taken a right way to our end; that the fourth article of the second inftrument was not in terms very proper to be digefted by a king of twenty-nine years old, and at the head of eighty thousand men:

that

that, if we had joined both to defire his master to prolong the offer he had made of a ceffation of arms till we propofe; and, withal, not to move his arms further in Flanders, tho' Spain fhould refufe, we might hope to fucceed: but, if we thought to prefcribe him laws, and force him to compliance, by leagues between ourfelves, or with Spain, though Sweden and the German princes fhould join with us, he knew his matter Ne flecheroit pas, and that it would come to a war of forty years. From this he fell warmly on the proceedings of the ftates; faying, they knew his master's refolutions upon thofe two points, neither to prolong the ceffation propofed beyond the end of March, nor to defift the pursuit of his conquefts with his own arms, in cafe Spain confented not to his demands within that term. He faid, his majefty, not being their ally, might treat and conclude what he pleafed, without their offence; but for the ftates, who were their nearest ally, to conclude fo much to his master's difrefpect at least, and without communicating with him, the ambassador, at all during the whole treaty, he must leave it to his master to interpret as he thought fit.Monfieur de Witt defended their cause, and our intentions, with great phlegm, but great fteddiness; and told me, after he was gone, that this was the leaft we could expect at firft from a Frenchman; and that I should do well, however, to give his majesty an account of it by the first, that we put ourselves early in po

fture

fure to make good what we have said; and,, that, as to the time and degree of our arming,. he would confult with the ftates, and let me know their thoughts, to be communicated to his majesty upon this occafion.

I was in hopes to dispatch this away to-morrow morning, but I fhall be hindered till night, by the delay of figning of a separate article with the count de Dona, whereby place is reserved for Sweden to enter as a principal. into this treaty; for I have gone along in the whole bufinefs fince my coming over, with perfect confidence and concert with the count de Dona, upon his affuring me, his orders. were to conform himself to his majesty's resolution in what concerns the two crowns, thơ: before he abfolutely engages, he expects from the Spaniards, by our interceffion, fome fupplies for payment of his troops, and fome other adjustments with the emperor, which will be treated between the feveral minifters at London under his majesty's influence.

In what I fhall fign upon this occafion,. together with the ftates, I confefs to your. lordship to go beyond my inftructions; but apprehending it to be wholly agreeable to his majesty's intentions, and extremely advantageous to the common ends and affairs, I venture upon this excefs, and humbly beg his majesty's pardon if I fail.

Your lordship will be troubled with fome poftfcript to-morrow before I difpatch an ex

prefs

prefs with the copies to be ratified by his 'majefty within a month, though I hope a lefs time will be taken, thofe of Holland having undertaken theirs on fifteen days.

I am, &c.

After this, in the fucceeding fummer, in the year 1668, Sir William Temple returned to Bruffels, with a view to prevail with the Spaniards to confent to a peace with France, which was afterwards treated at Aix la Chapelle, whither he was fent ambaffador extraordinary and mediator; and with his collegue Sir Leoline Jenkins, after many difficulties. and delays, at laft brought it to a happy conclufion.

Soon after, he was fent ambaffador-extraordinary to the states-general, with inftructions to confirm the triple-alliance, and follicit the emperor and German princes, by their minifters, to enter into it: but the meafures of the. English court being changed, in September, 1669, he received orders to haften over into England, where he met at firft with a very cool reception, and was preffed to return to the Hague, and make way for a war with Holland; with which, lefs than two years before, he had been fo much applauded for having made fo ftri& an alliance: but he excufed himfelf from having any thare in it, and retired to his houfe at Shene, near Richmond,. in Surry and, in this interval of his leifure

and.

and retreat, wrote his Obfervations on the United Provinces, and one part of his Mifcellanies.

About the end of the fummer 1673, the king, growing weary of the fecond Dutch war, refolved to fend Sir William Temple to Holland to conclude a peace; but powers having been fent at this time from thence to the marquis de Frefne, the Spanish ambaffador at London, Sir William Temple was ordered to treat with him, and in three days concluded the whole affair.

As a reward for this fervice, he was offered the embaffy into Spain; which, for want of his father's confent, who was then old and infirm, he refufed; as he did foon after the place of fecretary of ftate, for want of fix thousand pounds, which he was to lay down for it, and could not spare.

In June, 1674, he was again fent ambaffador to the Hague, and was afterwards one of the ambaffadors and mediators in the treaty of Nimeguen. It was during his refidence in Holland at this time, that he was the great inftrument in fecuring the religion and liberty of his country, by bringing about a marriage between the prince of Orange, afterwards William III. of glorious memory, and the lady Mary, daughter to James duke of York, and niece to his majesty king Charles II.

This grand affair was concerted by Sir William Temple and the friends of the proteflant religion, and was brought to maturity chiefly

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