History of Protestantism in the Netherlands - James Aitken Wylie

to obtain from the justice of Philip.
The war was renewed with increased
exasperation on both sides. The opening of the
campaign was signalized by the capture of a few
small Dutch towns, followed by the usual horrors
that attended the triumph of the Spanish arms. But
Governor Requesens soon ceased to push his
conquests in that direction, and turned his whole
attention to Zealand, 'where Philip was exceedingly
desirous of acquiring harbors, in order to the
reception of a fleet which he was building in Spain.
This led to the most brilliant of all the feats
accomplished by the Spaniards in the war.
In the sea that washes the north-east of Zealand
are situated three large islands -- Tolen,
Duyveland, and Schowen. Tolen, which lies
nearest the mainland, was already in the hands of
the Spaniards; and Requesens, on that account, was
all the more desirous to gain possession of the
other two. He had constructed a flotilla of fiatbottomed
boats, and these would soon have made
him master of the coveted islands; but he dared not
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