By England's Aid: The Freeing Of The Netherlands

by G.A. Henty

Two English lads, brothers, experience the major conficts in the struggle meeting one of the greatest generals of the time, Sir Francis Vere. Their adventures include the Spanish Armada, the battle of Cadiz, life in Holland and Spain, the Battle of Ostend and more.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Adventure, Historical

204 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1890

About the author

George Alfred Henty, better known as G.A. Henty, began his storytelling career with his own children. After dinner, he would spend and hour or two in telling them a story that would continue the next day. Some stories took weeks! A friend was present one day and watched the spell-bound reaction of his children suggesting Henty write down his stories so others could enjoy them. He did. Henty wrote approximately 144 books in addition to stories for magazines and was known as "The Prince of Story-Tellers" and "The Boy's Own Historian." One of Mr. Henty's secretaries reported that he would quickly pace back and forth in his study dictating stories as fast as the secretary could record them.

Henty's stories revolve around fictional boy heroes during fascinating periods of history. His heroes are diligent, intelligent, and dedicated to their country and cause in the face, at times, of great peril... Henty's heroes fight wars, sail the seas, discover land, conquer evil empires, prospect for gold, and a host of other exciting adventures. Along the way, they meet famous personages... In short, Henty's heroes live through tumultuous historic eras meeting leaders of that time. Understanding the culture of the time period becomes second nature as well as comparing/contrasting the society of various cultures.

Reviews

[Vaughn Ohlman · Rating 4 out of 5]

By England's Aid was one of the very first Henty's we read and is part of a mini-series about the freeing of Holland from the rule of Spain. After reading it we were addicted to Henty's, and have never looked back.

It includes the typical Henty theme's: a brave boy (boys, in this case), a war, a great cause, and learning a language and culture of another nation. A great read for homeschoolers, or even government schoolers if they aren't afraid of a little morality and a lot of pages in a book.

[Pat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Standard G. A. Henty book, except there are two boys doing exceptional things. As usual, I learned some history while following the adventures.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

Better than the last one. Still way too much detailed description of battles, though.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two brothers from Sir Francis Vere’s land in England follow him to honor and glory in the Netherlands, with many adventures along the way. When they leave the Netherlands to fight the Spanish Armada from England, one of the boys is knocked overboard. He ends up going to Spain, being captured by Algerian pirates, and eventually marrying and becoming a merchant in Spain. The other brother uses his keen observation and intelligence to become a great officer, and the brothers eventually meet in Spain at the end of the Netherlands’ war for independence, and go home together to their parents. They are strong and valiant, and almost always honorable, except in the case of hiring ruffians to carry off a friend’s young lady. The reader is educated on the many sides of the war, meeting all the important characters of the time, witnessing the battles, and understanding the reasoning and logic employed during the wartime. This is another terrific history book with entertaining adventure thrown in!

[Angelyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Spanish Catholics are finally defeated in Protestant Netherlands with Englands help. (Elizabeth wasn't quite the same person we saw in the movie "Elizabeth")Interesting.