That respect and confidence he owed in no small measure to his personal courage.
Courage, in the degree which is necessary to carry a soldier without disgrace through a campaign, is possessed, or might, under proper training, be acquired, by the great majority of men.

But courage like that of William is rare indeed.

He was proved by every test; by war, by wounds, by painful and depressing maladies, by raging seas, by the imminent and constant risk of assassination, a risk which has shaken very strong nerves, a risk which severely tried even the adamantine fortitude of Cromwell.

Yet none could ever discover what that thing was which the Prince of Orange feared.

His advisers could with difficulty induce him to take any precaution against the pistols and daggers of conspirators.