n he made haste to fit out a fleet; and thirty
ships of the line were put under the command of Lord Dartmouth. An
army of forty thousand men--the largest that any king of England had
ever commanded--was also sent to the seaboard; a force more than
sufficient to repel a Dutch invasion.

[Sidenote: Critical Condition of James.]

At the same time, the king made great concessions. He abolished the
Court of High Commission. He restored the charter of the city of
London. He permitted the Bishop of Winchester, as visitor of Magdalen
College, to make any reforms he pleased. He would not, however, part
with an iota of his dispensing power, and still hoped to rout William,
and change the religion of his country. But all his concessions were
too late. Whigs and Tories, Dissenters and Churchmen, were ready to
welcome their Dutch deliverer. Nor had James any friends on whom he
could rely. His prime minister, Sunderland, was in treaty with the
conspirators, and waiting to betray him. Churchill, who held one of
the highest commissions in the army, and who was under great
obligations to the king, was ready to join the standard of William.
Jeffreys, the lord chancellor, was indeed true in his allegiance, but
his crimes were past all forgiveness by the nation; and even had he
rebelled,--and he was base enough to do so,--his services would have
been spurned by William and all his adherents.

[Sidenote: Invasion of England by William.]

On the 29th of October, 1688, the armament of William put to sea; but
the ships had scarcely gained half the distance to England when they
were dispersed and driven back to Holland by a violent tempest. The
hopes of James revived; but they were soon dissipated. The fleet of
William, on the 1st of November, again put to sea. It was composed of
more than six hundred vessels, five hundred of which were men of war,
and they were favored by auspicious gales. The same winds which
favored the Dutch ships retarded the fleet of Dartmouth. On the 5th of
November, the troops of William disembarked at Brixham, near Torbay in
Devonshire, without opposition. On the 6th, he advanced to Newton
Abbot, and, on the 9th, reached Exeter. He was cordially received, and
magnificently entertained. He and his lieutenant-general, Marshal
Schomberg, one of the greatest commanders in Europe, entered Exeter
together in the grand military procession, which was like a Roman
triumph. Near him also was Bentinck, his intimate friend and