The reign of Elizabeth saw the commencement of the naval glory of England. Down to the reign of Henry VII, there was no such thing as a navy belonging to the public, and the military genius of the people was devoted exclusively to enterprises by land. The rise, however, of a commercial spirit in Europe, which in 1492 had caused the discovery of America, and was again acted upon by the scope for adventure which that discovery opened up, had latterly caused great attention to be paid to nautical affairs in England. Englishmen of all ranks supported and entered into enterprises for discovering unknown territories; and under Drake, Cavendish, Raleigh, and Frobisher, various expeditions of more or less magnitude were sent out. The colonies of North America were now commenced. Amongst the exertions of private merchants, our attention is chiefly attracted by the commencement of the northern whale-fishery, the cod-fishery of Newfoundland, and the less laudable slave-trade in Africa. When hostilities with Spain became more open, the English commanders made many successful attacks upon her colonies in the West Indies, and also upon the fleets of merchant vessels which were employed to carry home the gold, and other almost equally valuable products of the New World, to the Spanish harbors. These attacks were now made in a more systematic manner, and with more effect, as a revenge for the affair of the Armada. It may be said that the dominion of Britain over the seas was perfected almost in a single reign; a power which has been of such advantage to the country, both in protecting its commerce, and keeping it secure from foreign invasion, that its origin would have conferred everlasting lustre on this period of British history, even although it had not been characterised by any other glorious event.