ABSTRACT
Everyone knew that a major amphibious expedition had departed some months before, and speculation was rife about its intended target. It was not clear whether the campaign targeted the French or the Spanish, although by this time it was well-known that it had gone to the Caribbean region. For unknown reasons two printers issued accounts of English victories against French colonies in the Caribbean within a week of each other. More likely, given the near-simultaneous appearance of these two inaccurate stories, some garbled version of events may have been in circulation through the Atlantic network of news. Publishers presented versions of unverified stories, perhaps amplifying on rumours in an effort to fill up a few pages. The word ‘continent’ could mean the lands that contains or comprise those of France, rather than the modern definition of a large contiguous area surrounded by water.
