THE TREATY AND ARTICLES OF AGREEMENT BETWEEN The Estates of Holland, the Prince of Orange, and Magistrates of AMSTERDAM.  
WITH An exact Narrative of the chief Passages and Proceed at the besieging of the said Town by the Prince of Orange; the manner of raising their Batteries, and 300 Piece of Ordnance mounted against the Prince's Army.  
ALSO The discovery of a great Plot and Design against the Towns of Delft. Dort, Medembleck, Harlen and Hoarn. With the Prince's seizing on several Lords of Holland, and commiting them prisoners to Lovestein Castle.  
London, Printed by J. Clowes, over against the lewer-Pump in Grub-street. 1650.   

A LETTER FROM ROTTERDAM.  
SIR,  
THe news we have at present here, I shall impart to you. (as far as time will give leave.) About 2 or 3 months since, the Estates of Holland had some difference with the Prince of Orange, about cashiering or disbanding of forces, they desiring that they might ease the people of their taxes, as the ot●●r Provinces have (they alone paying about 60 g. per cent. whenas all the other 6 Provinces pay but the remaining 40 between them all) they complained much of their Officers, that they abused them by false Mustering their Soldiers; for if they were allowed 60 in a Company, they would not keep above 30. and the reason was (the Capt. say) for want of current payment, being forced to make use of men called Soliciteurs to furnish them with Money, who deduct above 20 or 25 Per. cent. for their disbursement. Now the Estates of Holland indeed, did not so much desire to disband any Soldiers; but that the Companies being so small, they might disband some Officers, and keep up all the Soldiers, and by cashiering of those Soliciteurs, and by managing the business well in paying the Soldiers currently themselves, they would save 100000 pound Per Annum. The major Vote in the State's General was, to side with the Prince, the one having a Brother a Soliciteur, a Cousin perhaps a Col. another friend a Capt. etc. and they petitioning them and the P. of Orange continually to be kept up, and not disbanded: resolved they would live and die with each other, (now you must take notice that all the State's General did not give their Votes to this, but the Major part; for 2 or 3 Provinces have since protested against their proceed) and then the English Cavelierish Col. and Capt. under his Command, with those of the State's General, (that had voted they should not be disbanded) tickled him in the ear with many strange things that they would do for him, and to curb Holland by the sword, and to make him a Sovereign of these Countries, and certainly to effect this, he wanted none of Charles Stuarts Council, nor of his mother Mall neither, for the English Malignants here did report tha● their design was a month since just as hereafter related. On the 20. June or there abouts, the Prince with his Colonels Capt. and other Officers, most English Malignants, with some Commissioners of the Estates General, went about to all the towns in Holland, where the Prince was nobly entertained as their Gen. but at Amsterdam, Delft, Dort, Medemcleck, Harlen & Hoarne, they would not give them audience in their public Common-Councels, (in their Towns) not acknowledging the Commissions they came withal, so they gave them no content; the Prince with the rest returned again to the Hague, where they were all as it were mad that they could not obtain their ends; remaining there, they studied day and night of a way how to obtain that by force, which (as they thought) could not be had with Love: So on Saturday last (being the 30. alias 20. July) the P. of Orange seized on 6 Lords of Holland as they were in full Council, viz. one of Dort, one of Delft, two of Harlen, one of Horn, two of Medembleck and those two of Amsterdam escaped; they were the next day all carried to a Castle near Gorcom called Lovestein, being chief for a prison, were none but traitors are put in. That same day viz. the 30. alias 20. July, the Prince gave Commission for his Army to march out of Garrison to Amsterdam; where on Saturday last in the morning, appeared 2000 horse and 1000 foot; but being discovered by the Hamborough Post, the Lords of the Town were acquainted therewith, and command was given, the Gates should be shut, and the Magazine being opened, about 300 pieces of Ordnance, was by the boys and labourers in the streets dragged up to the walls and Sconces, and Drums beat for the trained bands to be presently in Arms, which was effected: as also the Soldiery that belongs to the Town, being about 5 or 600 were also in Arms, & kept strict watch both at gates & walls, the same day a Company of their Soldiers with Carpenters went out, and cut down all draw Bridges, and got men of war in great number, to lie from Texel to the River Tye, for fear of forces to come in by Sea (as was reported) from Zealand, the mean time drums beat for to list Soldiers in the Town, and gave 15 stivers a day, and in 2 days time had above 12000 Soldiers in pay, on the Lord's day they in the Town set open their sluices, and drowned all the land round about, so that the Prince's soldiery was forced to keep on the bank-sides, which were high; the mean time most part of all his Army came down thither both horse & Foot, and laid siege to it; and in 2 or 3 places began to make works against it. Take notice that till the Lord's day noon he himself remained in the Hague, and knew no otherwise but his men were got into Amsterdam: but when he heard the contrary, he was mad and ready to tore his hair off his head, and seeing himself thus deprived of his hopes in the design, he (like a Lion rob of her whelps) did so take on, and immediately in person went to the leaguer; where in a rage, as before mentioned, he began to raise works, but to no purpose. The mean time, this town of Rotterdam stood nutral, and we expected every hour that some of his Soldiers would come and quarter upon us, but did not, and Dort, Delft, Leyden, Harlen and other Towns shut their Gates, and were in Arms. On Monday and Tuesday the Estates of Holland (consisting of one or two men out of each Town) met, and resolved to send for him home, and the States Gen. seeing his design broke, they most of them fell off from him, and both sent a Committee to him to Treat, and those also of Amsterdam sent to him, and on Wednesday last they were agreed as followeth.  
That the Army shall again march to their quarters, and the town shall not be molested; but that trading may be free, and those that were the causers of this trouble, shall give an account for it afterward; which shall be disputed at the next meeting at the HAGUE.  
It is my opinion, that though the business is appeased for the present; yet some heads will fly for it, and the P. himself, if his head remains on his shoulders, it will be well: however they all say, they will take a great part of his power from him. Certainly if he had taken AMSTERDAM, he would have made himself Sovereign of these Countries, to have made slaves of these people of Holland; His intentions were to have seized upon the Bank there, and the stock of the town, which is many millions. The people in general hate this odious design of his, and as well Magistrates as people say plainly, they may thank his brother Charles for this, and had he obtained his desi●e, he had most assuredly curbed the Estates of Holland for their friendly assistance or correspondency, and would have been very able to assist his Brother; but we may see much of God in this business, and I hope these Countries will make a faster union with England then ever yet they have done. The English Malignants here, are sad at this business, for they were in hopes, and were confidently assured had this design gone on, that their design also would be promoted by it. I have thus as near as I can, given you the relation of this business; for any other particulars, I refer you to Amsterdam Letters, Vale.  
If the troubles had continued, I had sent my wife & child to London per this passage now a going, per whom also many families of our English would have gone, all things being packed up in a readiness; but now we shall wait to see what God shall farther do with us. Some of your Company removed their cloth to Zealand, for it was not here without danger; For a great many Companies of Soldiers were quartered at the Hague and we did expect them or others here, and the Malignants would have been favoured, but the better party burdened.  
The Lord of Dort that was taken prisoner (by name De Wit) is dead, its thought poisoned.  
FINIS.