*Interim*
Many a time and oft did my grandfather sing the praises of PrinceMaurice of Nassau, whom he loved as a man, revered as a prince, andadmired as a warrior. He told me that this stout and worthy Prince hadstudied the art of war from a boy up, and made many innovations in thepractice thereof, for the which this age is to him much beholden;namely, he armed his horsemen with the carbine instead of the lance, andtaught his soldiers the true use of the spade in siege work. Before histime men of war were wont to scorn that humble tool, and to look uponsuch as handled it as boors and rascals. My grandfather was with him inthe three months' siege of Groningen, and beheld with admiration thework of his sappers and miners, how they drove mines in the shape of theletter Y beneath the walls of the city, and springing them one night,the north ravelin was blown up into the air with forty of the garrison,of whom one was cast alive and sound at his very feet in the besiegers'camp.
He told me too how in the summer of the year 1595, he came very near tolosing his life. Prince Maurice had raised the siege of Grol, drawingback before the troops of Christopher Mondragon, a little old man ofninety-two, who had practised war from his youth, yet without receivinga wound. The Prince laid an ambush for this marvellous warrior, and sethis cousin Philip to accomplish it; but the old man heard of what wastoward, and took measures to counter it, so that when, about daybreak,Count Philip sent forward a handful of men to pounce upon the enemy'spickets, they saw themselves faced by a great number of Spanish horsemendrawn up in order. Whereof when tidings were conveyed to Count Philip,he donned his casque, and drew his sword, and putting spurs to hishorse, galloped into the lane that divided him from the Spaniards, beingfollowed at the first only by four of his nobles, and then by others ofhis horsemen, among whom my grandfather was one.
And when they were shut in that narrow pass, up started the Spaniards onthe watery pasture lands on either hand, and fired their guns at themvery hotly. Count Philip was shot through the body from a harquebus,which, by reason of its closeness, set his clothes a-fire, and theflames could not be quenched save by rolling him, all wounded as he was,among the sand and heather. When he sought to mount his horse and rideaway, his strength failed him, and he fell to the ground and was takenprisoner and carried away dying. My grandfather, following in thecharge, was thrown from his horse in the disorder and confusion, andonly saved himself by crawling through the hedge, and swimming the riverthat ran by the margin of the field.
A matter of three months thereafter, my grandfather was with Sir FrancisVere when that valiant captain was sent by Prince Maurice to take thecastle of Weerd. Upon Sir Francis demanding that the warden of thecastle should yield it up, that doughty commander refused him withscorn, albeit he had no more than a score and six men at his back. Butwhen Sir Francis opened upon the place with his artillery, these folkfell into a panic and laid open their gates. Their captain claimed thehonours of war, but Sir Francis made answer that he should have nohonours but halters for the stiff-necked simple men that had dared todefend their hovel against ordnance. Whereupon he made the six andtwenty draw lots with black and white straws, and they that drew thewhite were immediately hanged, save only the thirteenth, to whom hislife was given after that he had consented to do hangman's work upon hisfellows. The noose was cast first about the neck of their captain, butthe rope parting asunder, certain of Sir Francis' men held him under thewater of the ditch until he was drowned. My grandfather fell out withSir Francis upon this matter, deeming his truculency to be unworthy of agentleman; and when the troops went into winter quarters, he took shipand returned to England, bearing a richly gilt sword, the gift of PrinceMaurice.
He then took up his place in the Queen's Guard, but had accomplishedscarce four months in the royal service when that adventure befell whichfollows next in order. It was known that King Philip was making ready afleet of sixty sail to invade Ireland, and Sir Walter Raleigh wasinstant that the Queen's ministers should destroy that fleet in Spanishwaters, saying that "expedition in a little is better than much toolate." At that time the Spaniards were rejoicing in that Hawkins andDrake had come to grief in their enterprise against Panama, and weredead of a broken heart. Sir Walter's counsel was deemed good, and theQueen, enraged with the King of Spain for that he was abetting the Irishrebel Tyrone, fitted out ninety-six sail to convey 14,000 Englishmen tothe harbour of Cadiz, setting over them Lord Admiral Howard and the Earlof Essex, and granting to Raleigh the command of twenty-two ships.Contrary winds delayed their setting forth, the which, as Sir Walteraffirmed, caused him deeper grief than he ever felt for anything of thisworld. And Providence so fashioned it that my grandfather performed ahardy feat in Cadiz harbour a good month before Sir Walter set sail, asyou shall now read.
*THE FOURTH PART*
*CHRISTOPHER RUDD'S ADVENTURE IN SPAIN, AND THE FASHION IN WHICH HE PLAYED THE PART OF A PHYSICIAN*