out a fixed scale of prize money for senior officers led to a scandal in 1665. The Earl of Sandwich commanded an English fleet that, between 3 September and 9 September, had captured thirteen Dutch East India Company merchant ships of the East Indies spice fleet, and had also captured or sunk several of their escorts. Concerned that Charles's difficult financial position might make him less generous that before, and considering the great value of the cargoes captured, Sandwich, urged on by one of his flag officers, Sir William Penn, agreed that he and Penn should take goods to the value of 4,000 pounds, and that each other flag officer and the three captains that held knighthoods should take goods worth 2,000 pounds, from the captured cargoes: nothing was provided for the untitled captains. This seizure of goods was represented by Sandwich and Penn as a payment on account of their expected prize money, although it was in clear breach of the instructions issued in 1665 at the outbreak of the war that required ships and goods to be declared as lawful prizes by an Admiralty court before any goods in its hold could be removed. Marsden, (1911), pp. 44–45. Three of those officers offered 2,000 pounds of goods refused to take them, and the untitled captains complained against the arrangement. In the course of the removal of goods from the Dutch ships' holds, many English sailors joined in the plundering, and a large quantity of spices and other valuable goods were stolen or spoilt. The Earl of Sandwich lost his command, and the government lost goods and money that could have been used to send the fleet back to sea. English privateers were very prominent at sea during the Anglo-Dutch Wars, attacking the maritime trade and fisheries on which the United Provinces depended, capturing many Dutch merchant ships. War of the Spanish Succession The situation of ships' captains was remedied by a Prize Act of 1692. This act distinguished between captures made by privateers and by royal ships. Privateers were entitled to retain any ships captured and four-fifths of the goods, surrendering one-fifth of those to the Crown, and it was left to them how they sold their prizes and distributed the proceeds. However, in the case of captures by royal ships, one-third of their value went to the officers and men of the captor, and one third to