but remained in squadron. At around 9pm, Sandwich even ordered his squadron to shorten sail so that the White Squadron could catch up and the Duke of York assume command. Much more damaging, however, was the decision taken for the Royal Charles to reduce sail during the night. Significant controversy surrounds this incident, and several explanations have been proposed to explain it. An account which relies on the reported testimonies of Penn and Harman suggests that Lord Henry Brouncker, James' master of the bedchamber, either from fear or because he had promised the Duchess of York to keep the Duke from danger, first approached William Penn, the Captain of the Fleet asking him to slacken sail, reminding him that the Duke was heir presumptive and that his death would be a disaster. Penn refused, stating that only James could order this, but he then went below. Brouncker next approached the captain of the Royal Charles John Harman, this time pretending that the order to take in sail did come from James. When Royal Charles reduced sail in the course of the night, the rest of the English fleet followed suit. According to another account, Penn was said to have remarked that James, having narrowly escaped death in the battle, had lost his nerve completely. Brouncker later fled for his life rather than face a Parliamentary enquiry after the war, which could have condemned him. When, on the morning of 14 June, the fastest English frigates were sent ahead of the main fleet, they captured six Dutch ships, some of which defended themselves honourably, but others offered little resistance: these were in addition to three captures on the previous evening. The results of what had been a notable victory were less than might have been expected, firstly through the rearguard actions of Tromp and Johan Evertsen which allowed many Dutch ships to disengage from the battle and secondly the failure to release the faster frigates from the main fleet in pursuit of the fleeing Dutch, which could have been ordered as early as 6pm. These small but fast ships had taken little part in the main action, but their activities on the morning of 14 June showed what could have been achieved. The controversial slowing-down of the whole fleet at night simply exacerbated this earlier failure. Aftermath The English lost only one ship, the captured Great Charity mentioned above. Eight Dutch