Lowestoft, battle of

views updated May 18 2018

Lowestoft, battle of, 1665. A heavy engagement in the second Anglo-Dutch War between the English fleet, commanded by James, duke of York (later James II), Sandwich, and Prince Rupert, and a Dutch fleet under Jacob van Opdam, on 3 June. Pepys wrote that the noise of the gunfire could be heard in the streets of London. Opdam was killed when his flagship blew up and the Dutch losses were severe. ‘A great victory, never known in the world,’ was Pepys's summary.

J. A. Cannon