Editing Four Days' Battle (section)

===French intervention===
Louis had tried to act as mediator in July and August 1664 to prevent war being declared, but England did not accept his offer.<ref>Rommelse, p.110</ref> After Battle of Lowestoft, and concerned that the complete destruction of the Dutch fleet would leave the English fleet in a position to interfere with his plans in the Spanish Netherlands, Louis again offered mediation, but as he had already sent French troops into the Netherlands to assist the Dutch, and had also attempted to bring Denmark into an alliance with the [[Dutch Republic]] and France that was designed to put pressure on England, his credibility as mediator was undermined. In response to its rejection of his mediation, Louis XIV declared war on England on 16 January 1666.<ref>Fox, pp.136</ref> The greater part of the French fleet was in the Mediterranean under the  [[François de Vendôme, duc de Beaufort|duc de Beaufort]], and Louis intended that much of this would be brought into the Atlantic to join up with the Atlantic squadron commanded by [[Abraham Duquesne]]. The combined French fleet would then, it was intended, link up with the Dutch in the [[English Channel]] and the two would outnumber the English fleet.<ref>Fox, pp.123-7</ref>

Louis' plans were based on the assumption that the Dutch fleet would be at sea in time to be able to prevent the English fleet attacking the weaker French fleet in the western English Channel. However, the Dutch could not undertake to be at sea to provide cover for Beaufort until 21 May. As a result, Beaufort, who left Toulon in April 1666 with 32 fighting ships, delayed at Lisbon for six weeks while the Four Days' Battle was fought.<ref>Fox, pp.173-5, 180</ref> Duquesne, who initially had 8 and later 12 ships, was ordered to join Beaufort at Lisbon so that the combined French fleet would be less vulnerable to a possible English attack before it could join the Dutch, although the two failed to meet and Duquesne returned to Brest while Beaufort stopped at [[Rochfort]].<ref>Fox, pp.176-7</ref>