Most
welcome to Cromwell, and drawing from him a few words of special
acknowledgment after his assent to all the Bills (_Speech XV._),
were "Two Bills for an Assessment towards the defraying of the charge
of the Spanish war and other occasions of the Commonwealth." One was
for L60,000 a month from England for the three months ending June 24;
the other for an assessment of L20,000 from Ireland for the same
three months. These were instalments of a lump sum of L400,000, which
the House had voted as long ago as Jan. 30, 1656-7, for the carrying
on of the Spanish war, and the remainder of which was to be raised in
other ways. The House had already before it a general Bill for the
continued assessment of England, Scotland, and Ireland, for Army and
Navy purposes, beyond the period specified; but that Bill had not
yet passed.[1]

[Footnote 1: Commons Journals of dates; Scobell's Acts and Ordinances
of 1656, given in mass in his book, Part II. p. 371 et seq. See
especially there, pp. 389-395.]

Army and Navy purposes, and the carrying on of the Spanish War:
these, through all the bustle of the Kingship question, had still
been the deepest things in Cromwell's mind. His alliance with France,
settled so far by the Treaty of Peace and Commerce dated Oct. 24,
1655, but much imperilled since by Mazarin's dexterity in evasion and
his occasional oscillations towards Spain, had at length, by
Lockhart's exertions, been converted into a great Treaty "offensive
and defensive," signed at Paris, March 23rd, 1656-7, and ratified by
Louis XIV. April 30, and by Cromwell himself May 4, 1657. By this
treaty it was provided that there should be joint action against
Spain, by sea and land, for the reduction and capture of Gravelines,
Mardyke, and Dunkirk, the three coast-towns of Spanish Flanders
adjoining the French territories on the north-east. Gravelines, if
taken, was to belong to France ultimately, but, if taken first, was
to be held by the English till Mardyke and Dunkirk were taken--which
two towns were to belong permanently to England, only with
stipulation of inviolability of Roman Catholic worship for the
inhabitants, and of no further English encroachments on Flanders. For
the joint-enterprise France was to supply 20,000 men, and Cromwell an
auxiliary army of 6000 foot (half at the expense of France), besides
a fleet for coast-service. A secret article of the Treaty was that
neither power should make separate peace with the Spanish