Editing Prince Rupert of the Rhine (section)

===Career in the Restoration navy===
[[File:Storck, Four Days Battle.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|The [[Four Days' Battle]], 1–4 June 1666, by [[Abraham Storck]], during which Rupert's new aggressive fleet tactics were first applied|alt=English and Dutch sailing ships clash on a stormy sea; a wreck of a sinking vessel can be seen in the foreground, whilst the sky is full busy white clouds.]]

For much of the 17th century, England was embroiled in conflict with commercial rival Holland through the [[Anglo-Dutch Wars]].<ref>Kitson, p. 152.</ref> Rupert became closely involved in these as a senior admiral to King Charles II, rising to command the Royal Navy by the end of his career. Although several famous admirals of the day had previously been army commanders, including Blake and [[George Monck, 1st Duke of Albemarle|Monck]], they had commanded relatively small land forces and Rupert was still relatively unusual for the period in having both practical experience of commanding large land armies and having extensive naval experience from his campaigns in the 1650s.<ref>Kitson, pp. 312–3.</ref>

At the start of the [[Second Anglo-Dutch War]] (1665–1667), Rupert was appointed as one of the three [[Squadron (naval)|squadron]] commanders of the English fleet, under the overall command of the Duke of York, taking {{HMS|Royal James|1660|6}} as his flagship.<ref>Kitson, p. 154.</ref> As the commander of the White Squadron, Rupert fought at the [[Battle of Lowestoft]] in 1665, breaking through the enemy defences at a critical moment; Rupert's leg was injured in the battle, an injury that caused him ongoing pain.<ref>Kitson, p. 175.</ref> Recalled to accompany the King during the [[Great Plague of London|plague]] that was sweeping London, Rupert continued to argue in favour of the fleet's seeking a set-piece engagement with the Dutch that would force the Dutch back to the negotiating table.<ref>Kitson, p. 180.</ref> The following year, Rupert was made joint commander of the fleet with Monck and given the opportunity to put this plan into practice. In June 1666, they fought the Dutch at the [[Four Days' Battle]], one of the longest naval battles in history; the battle saw the new aggressive tactics of Rupert and Monck applied, resulting in "a sight unique till then in sailing-ship warfare, the English beating upwind and breaking the enemy's line from leeward."<ref>Lewis, p. 100.</ref> However, the Four Days' Battle was considered a victory for the Dutch, but the [[St. James's Day Battle]] the following month allowed Rupert and Monck to use the same tactics to inflict heavy damage on the Dutch and the battle resulted in a significant English victory.<ref>Kitson, p. 212.</ref> The Dutch however would see a favourable end to the war with the decisive [[Raid on the Medway]].<ref>De Viet, pp. 44–45.</ref>

Rupert also played a prominent role in the [[Third Anglo-Dutch War]] (1672–74). This time [[Louis XIV of France]] was a key English ally against Holland, and it was decided that the French would form a squadron in a combined fleet.<ref>Kitson, p. 247.</ref> The English fleet had been much expanded, and Rupert had three ships, {{HMS|Royal Charles|1673|6}}, {{HMS|Royal James|1671|6}} and {{HMS|Royal Oak|1674|6}}, equipped with a high-specification, [[Annealing (metallurgy)|annealed]] and [[lathe]]-produced gun of his own design, the ''[[Rupertinoe]]''. The cost of the weapon—three times that of a normal gun—prevented its wider deployment in the fleet.<ref>Spencer, p.351; Endsor, p. 9.</ref> The French role in the conflict proved a problem when Charles turned to the appointment of an admiral. Rupert's objection to the French alliance was well known, and accordingly the King appointed the Duke of York to the role instead.<ref name="Kitson, p.248">Kitson, p. 248.</ref> Rupert was instead instructed to take over the Duke's work at the Admiralty, which he did with gusto.<ref name="Kitson, p.248"/> The Allied naval plans were stalled after the Duke's inconclusive battle with the Dutch at [[Battle of Solebay|Solebay]].<ref>Palmer, p. 61.</ref>

[[File:Battle of Texel August 21 1673 (Slag bij Kijkduin) - Nightly battle between Cornelis Tromp and Eward Spragg (Willem van de Velde II, 1707).jpg|thumb|left|''The [[Battle of Texel]]'', by [[Willem van de Velde the Younger]], a Dutch victory which marked the end of Rupert's career as a sea admiral|alt=English and Dutch ships clash at night; the sky is dark, with the last colour of the day in the centre. The surrounding edges of the picture fade into deep blues and darkness.]]
The English plan for 1673 centred on first achieving naval dominance, followed by [[Blackheath Army|landing an army]] in [[Zeeland]]. The King appointed the Duke as supreme commander, with Rupert as his deputy, combining the ranks of general and vice admiral of England.<ref>Kitson, p. 257.</ref> During the winter of 1672, however, Charles—still (legitimately) childless—decided that the risk to the Duke, his heir, was too great and made Rupert supreme Allied commander in his place.<ref>Kitson, p. 259.</ref> Rupert began the 1673 campaign against the Dutch knowing the logistical support for his fleet remained uncertain, with many ships undermanned.<ref>Kitson, p. 261.</ref> The result was the [[Battle of Schooneveld]] in June and the [[Battle of Texel]] in August, a controversial sequence of engagements in which, at a minimum, poor communications between the French and English commanders assisted the Dutch victories.<ref>Kitson, pp. 288–289.</ref> Many English commentators were harsher, blaming the French for failing to fully engage in the battles and Rupert—having cautioned against the alliance in the first place—was popularly hailed as a hero.<ref>Kitson, p. 289.</ref> Rupert finally retired from active seagoing command later that year.<ref>Warburton, pp. 505–506.</ref>

Rupert had a characteristic style as an admiral; he relied upon "energetic personal leadership backed by close contact with his officers";<ref name="Kitson, p.179">Kitson, p. 179.</ref> having decided how to proceed in a naval campaign, however, it could be difficult for his staff to change his mind.<ref name="Kitson, p.179"/> Recent work on Rupert's role as a commander has also highlighted the progress the prince made in formulating the way that orders were given to the British fleet. Fleet communications were limited during the period, and the traditional orders from admirals before a battle were accordingly quite rigid, limiting a captain's independence in the battle.<ref>Kitson, p. 155.</ref> Rupert played a key part in the conferences held by the Duke of York in 1665 to review tactics and operational methods from the [[First Anglo-Dutch War]], and put these into practice before the St James Day battle.<ref name="Kitson, p.316">Kitson, p. 316.</ref> These instructions and supplementary instructions to ships' captains, which attempted to balance an adherence to standing orders with the need to exploit emerging opportunities in a battle, proved heavily influential over the next hundred years<ref name="Kitson, p.316"/> and shaped the idea that an aggressive fighting spirit should be at the core of British naval doctrine.<ref>Kitson, p. 319.</ref>

After 1673, Rupert remained a senior member of the Royal Navy and Charles's administration. Rupert allied himself with [[Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury|Lord Shaftesbury]] on matters of foreign policy, but remained loyal to King Charles II on other issues,<ref name="Kitson, p.296"/> and was passionate about protecting the [[royal prerogative]]. As a consequence, he opposed Parliament's plan in 1677 to appoint him to [[Lord High Admiral of the United Kingdom|Lord High Admiral]]—on the basis that only the King should be allowed to propose such appointments—but noted that he was willing to become Admiral if the King wished him to do so.<ref>Kitson, p. 302.</ref> The King's solution was to establish a small, empowered Admiralty Commission, of which Rupert became the first commissioner.<ref>Kitson, p. 274.</ref> As a result, from 1673 to 1679 Rupert was able to focus on ensuring a closer regulation of manning, gunning and the selection of officers. He was also involved in setting priorities between the different theatres of operations that the Royal Navy was now involved in around the world.<ref>Kitson, p. 297.</ref> Rupert was also appointed to the supreme position of "General at Sea and Land", effectively assuming the wartime powers of the Lord High Admiral.<ref>Kitson, p. 348.</ref>