The French fleet proceeded first to Gravelines and then to the port of Damme. Meanwhile, the army marched by Cassel, Ypres, and Bruges before laying siege to Ghent. Hardly had the siege begun when Philip learned that the English fleet had captured a number of his ships at Damme and that the rest were so closely blockaded in its harbor that it was impossible for them to escape. He ordered the fleet to be burned to prevent it from falling into enemy hands.