When King William’s Government was able to settle down after the confusion of the Revolution, one of its first duties was the reconquest of Ireland, which was still holding out for King James. Louis XIV. was giving open support to his cousin, and war had really begun in March, two months before the formal declaration, when a French squadron under the command of Louis Gabaret landed King James at Kinsale. The material force at the disposal of the English Government was considerable. It consisted of 173 vessels of 101,892 tons, carrying 6930 guns, and requiring when fully manned 42,003 men. Of the 173 vessels 108 were rated. The rating of English ships, which had first been settled according to the number of their crews, was now based on the number of guns. There were six rates in all—the first carrying 90 guns and upwards, the sixth 18 guns or less; unrated ships were little craft such as sloops, ketches, smacks, yachts, etc. With the help of the Dutch fleet, this was more than enough to be a match for the French, but Parliament was justly persuaded of the necessity for increasing the Navy. In 1690 it voted £570,000, to be employed in the building of 17 ships of 80 guns and 10 ships of 60. Three of 70 were also ordered to be built, making the total addition of 30 vessels. The 80-gun ships of that time were three-deckers, and of a burden of 1100 tons. The 60-gun ships were of 900 tons. The time allowed for completing this list was four years. In spite of the wear and tear of the war, and the limited number of prizes we were able to take from the French, the additions made to the navy in the reign of William III. were very considerable. It increased from 108 to 174 rated ships, and in tonnage from 101,000 to 158,999. The increase was greatest in vessels of the fourth and fifth rates—that is, in vessels carrying from 30 to 60 guns. The political confusion of the early years of the king’s reign combined with corruption to neutralise the material strength of the navy to some extent. It was the policy of the king to divide employments between the two parties to which he looked for support, the Whigs, and those Tories who had accepted the Revolution. In pursuit of this policy his first Board of Admiralty was chosen from both. Arthur Herbert, who was a Tory, was made First Commissioner. Other members of the Board belonged to the same party, but it included William Sacheverell, who was a strong Whig. The presence of men belonging to different factions in the same governing body was sure to lead to dissensions, and it was not long before the quarrels of the Admiralty Board became very violent. In order to facilitate the manning of the fleet two new regiments of marines were raised. The admiral’s regiment had been disbanded because it was suspected of being too much attached to the deposed king. The new corps were formally established in 1690, but the work of recruiting them was begun in 1689. They were raised by Herbert, who had been