have been to give them an undisputed
predominance in the West Indies and make them masters of the
neighbouring seas.

In the second war of conquest waged by Louis XIV. against Holland, the
French in the West Indies found the buccaneers to be useful allies, but
as usually happened at such times, the Spaniards paid the bill. In the
spring of 1677 five or six English privateers surprised the town of
Santa Marta on the Spanish Main. According to the reports brought to
Jamaica, the governor and the bishop, in order to save the town from
being burnt, agreed with the marauders for a ransom; but the Governor of
Cartagena, instead of contributing with pieces of eight, despatched a
force of 500 men by land and three vessels by sea to drive out the
invaders. The Spanish troops, however, were easily defeated, and the
ships, seeing the French colours waving over the fort and the town,
sailed back to Cartagena. The privateers carried away the governor and
the bishop and came to Jamaica in July. The plunder amounted to only L20
per man. The English in the party, about 100 in number and led by
Captains Barnes and Coxon, submitted at Port Royal under the terms of
the Act against Privateers, and delivered up the Bishop of Santa Marta
to Lord Vaughan. Vaughan took care to lodge the bishop well, and hired a
vessel to send him to Cartagena, at which "the good old man was
exceedingly pleased." He also endeavoured to obtain the custody of the
Spanish governor and other prisoners, but without success, "the French
being obstinate and damnably enraged the English had left them" and
submitted to Lord Vaughan.[394]

In the beginning of the following year, 1678, Count d'Estrees,
Vice-Admiral of the French fleet in the West Indies, was preparing a
powerful armament to go against the Dutch on Curacao, and sent two
frigates to Hispaniola with an order from the king to M. de Pouancay to
join him with 1200 buccaneers. De Pouancay assembled the men at Cap
Francois, and embarking on the frigates and on some filibustering ships
in the road, sailed for St. Kitts. There he was joined by a squadron of
fifteen or more men-of-war from Martinique under command of Count
d'Estrees. The united fleet of over thirty vessels sailed for Curacao on
7th May, but on the fourth day following, at about eight o'clock in the
evening, was wrecked upon some coral reefs near the Isle d'Aves.[395] As
the French pilots had been at odds among themselves as to the exact
position