win a victory. It
was characteristic of Blake that he chose the bolder course.

The fighting began early in the afternoon and was close and furious
from the outset. Again Blake's ship was compelled to engage several
Dutch, including Tromp's flagship. De Ruyter, the brilliant lieutenant
of Tromp, attempted to cut Blake off from his supports on the north,
and Evertsen steered between Blake and Penn's squadron on the south.
(See diagram 1.) Blake's dozen ships might well have been surrounded
and taken if his admirals had not known their business. Penn tacked
right through Evertsen's squadron to come to the side of Blake,
and Lawson foiled de Ruyter by bearing away till he had enough
southing to tack in the wake of Penn and fall upon Tromp's rear
(diagram 2). Evertsen then attempted to get between Monk and the
rest of the fleet and two hours after the fight in the center began
Monk also was engaged. When the lee vessels of the "red" or center
squadron came on the scene about four o'clock, they threatened to
weather the Dutch and put them between two fires. To avoid this
and to protect his convoy, Tromp tacked his whole fleet together--an
exceedingly difficult maneuver under the circumstances--and drew
off to windward. Darkness stopped the fighting for that day. All
night the two fleets sailed eastward watching each other's lights,
and hastily patching up damages.

[Illustration: Based on diagram of Mahan's in Clowes, _The Royal
Navy_, Vol. II, p. 180-1.

THE BATTLE OF PORTLAND, FEB. 18, 1653]

Morning discovered them off the Isle of Wight, with the English
on the north side of the Channel. As Tromp's chief business was to
save his convoy and as the English force was now united, he took
a defensive position. He formed his own ships in a long crescent,
with the outward curve toward his enemy, and in the lee of this
line he placed his convoy. The wind was so light that the English
were unable to attack until late. The fighting, though energetic,
had not proved decisive when darkness fell.

The following day, the 20th, brought a fresh wind that enabled
the English to overhaul the Dutch, who could not move faster than
the heavily laden merchantmen, and force a close action. Blake
tried to cut off Tromp from the north so as to block his road home.
Vice Admiral Penn, leading the van, broke through the Dutch battle
line and fell upon the convoy, but Blake was unable to reach far
enough to head off his adversary before he rou