dron of siessy at the plan of operations which Napoléon, on the 29th 1805. of September in that year, marked out for the squadron of five sail of the line and four frigates, under the command of rear-admiral Missiessy, then Squalying in the road of the isle of Aix, watching an r.-adm. opportunity to escape the vigilance of the british Misblockading squadron, under vice-admiral Colling- in Aix wood in the Dreadnought 98. The french squadron road. had been ready for sea since May or June, 1804; and on the 2d of August the Jemmappes and Suffren Vain 74s, accompanied by the Armide and Gloire frigates, tempt attempted to sail out; but, finding vice-admiral sir to esRobert Calder, who then commanded the blockading cape. squadron, close off the port, the french ships returned to their anchorage in Aix road; where, moored in two lines, the squadron lay free from molestation, defended on one side by the batteries upon the isle of Aix, and on the other by a large floating battery, mounting 12 heavy mortars of an extraordinary size, and 32 long 36 and 24 pounders, with a furnace for heating shot. The expedition of M. Missiessy, it will be remembered, had for its principal object the capture of the island of Dominique, with power to the rearadmiral, if he deemed the thing practicable, to attempt Sainte-Lucie; and he was particularly directed to garrison, and endeavour to retain possession of, his conquests. On the 11th of January in the present year, owing to the temporary absence of rear-admiral sir Thomas Graves, who then commanded on the Rochefort station, rear-admiral Missiessy was enabled to put to sea. On the following ceeds morning, the 12th, the british 12-gun schooner Felix, in putlieutenant Richard Bourne, discovered the french ting to squadron, and proceeded with the intelligence in search of sir Thomas Graves, but whom lieutenant Bourne was not able to join until the 16th; and even then, owing to a strong gale at south-west, the british squadron was compelled to put into Quiberon bay. Suc sea. 1805. Jan. After being detained on the coast by a succession of similar gales, M. Missiessy, on the 25th, proceeded on his mission. His force consisted of the Majestueux three-decker, the four 74-gun ships Jemmappes, Lion, Magnanime, and Suffren, the Force three 40-gun frigates Armide, Gloire, and Infatiof gable, and the two 16-gun brig-corvettes Actéon squa- and Lynx, having on board 3500 troops, under the dron. command of general Lagrange, besides a great quantity of military stores, including a considerable train of artillery. french The interruption, already complained of, in the correspondence of Napoléon with his minister of marine, renders uncertain the nature of the modifications of the original plan. The probability is, that the additional instructions received by rearadmiral Missiessy were, chiefly, that he was to disembark the military stores, in stated quantities, at Its sup- Martinique and Guadeloupe; that he was to capture desti.. and possess Dominique, and, without any particular nation. reference to Sainte-Lucie, was to depredate, as far posed tinique as he was able, the weaker of the neighbouring british colonies; and that if, in 35 days from his arrival in the Antilles, admiral Villeneuve, with the Toulon fleet, did not make his appearance, M. Missiessy was to commence his return home, calling on his way at the city of Santo-Domingo, and leaving with general Ferrand as many troops as he might have remaining on board. Arrival On the 20th of February rear-admiral Missiessy, at Mar- with his squadron, entered the channel of SainteLucie, there fell in with and chased an english convoy, but succeeded in capturing one vessel only, the Prince-of-Asturias transport; and, on the same afternoon, cast anchor in the road of Fort-de-France, or Fort-Royal, Martinique. During the evening the squadron landed 2500 muskets and 50000 weight (french) of powder. The rear-admiral and general * See vol. iii. p. 486. attack also disembarked, and, on a consultation with ad- 1805. miral Villaret-Joyeuse, the governor-general of the Feb. island, came to the determination to make an immediate attack upon the british island of Dominique. Plan of The plan was this. The squadron was to appear upon before the island at daybreak on the 22d, and to Domieffect a disembarkation at three different points ; nique. for which purpose the troops were divided into three columns. The first column, consisting of 900 men, and commanded by general Lagrange in person, was to land between the south-east point of the island and the town of Roseau, possess itself of a battery situated on the point, and then march rapidly towards the fort which defends the town on its east side. The second column, composed of 500 men, under adjutant Barbot, having disembarked at the foot of Morne-Daniel, distant a full mile and a half to the north-west of Roseau, was to turn a fort that commanded the town, and cut off the retreat of the garrison. The third column, composed of about 900 men, and commanded by general Claparède, was to land within two gun-shots of a mountain situated at the north-west extremity of the island, and carry that position at the point of the bayonet. island. On the 21st, in the afternoon, the french squadron, Arrival preceded by an armed schooner as a look-out, set off the sail towards Dominique, and at midnight arrived abreast of the south-east point of the island. On the 22d, at about 3 A. M., the fort of Scotshead, a post not far from this spot, discharged the alarm. gun; and shortly afterwards the signal was answered by fires in different parts of the island. The french admiral continued to stand on under easy sail, and, just as the day dawned, appeared before the town of Roseau. The ships of the squadron immediately hoisted english ensigns and pendants, and prepared for disembarking the troops. Meanwhile brigadiergeneral George Prevost, the commander in chief or governor of Dominique, deceived by the colours of the ships, had sent the captain of the fort on board Feb. 1805. the Majestueux, to conduct the supposed british admiral and his squadron to a safe anchorage. This appears in general Lagrange, but not in general Prevost's letter. Shortly afterwards the boats pushed off with the troops, and the squadron changed its colours to french. Land french The column of general Lagrange, 900 strong, was ing of the first that landed, effecting its disembarkation, troops. under cover, at first of the Actéon and the schooner, and subsequently of the Majestueux, Jemmappes, and Lion, at a spot not far distant from that originally fixed upon. A gallant resistance was made by the british regulars and colonial militia, under the command of major Nunn of the 46th regiment, and, on his being severely wounded, of captain O'Connell, of the first West-India regiment; but, against an enemy so comparatively numerous, every effort was unavailing, and the important post of Cachecrow was carried. The second column, under adjutant Barbot, 500 strong, landed near Morne-Daniel, and, after a slight skirmish with a body of militia "under brigadier-general Prevost,"* assaulted and carried the redoubt; in which, according to the french accounts, 16 militia artillerymen were taken. The remainder of the colonial forces, with the brigadiergeneral at their head, retired to the heights of Woodbridge-estate, a defile of difficult approach. While all this was going on, a spirited cannonade British was maintained between the Magnanime, Suffren, batte- and three frigates, joined afterwards by the refrench mainder of the french squadron, on the one part, ships. and the guns of Fort Young and Fort Melville on ries and the other. The latter fort mounting five long 24pounders, and the former five long 24 and three 18 pounders with a furnace for heating shot, several * The official letter is not very clear on this point. A private letter from St.-Kitts is rather more explicit. "General Prevost, having observed from the government-house the ineffectual resistance, &c. &c." of which in their red-hot state were discharged at 1805. the shipping. Feb. The calm, which usually prevails at this early hour of the day, prevented the covering vessels from lending a prompt aid to general Claparède and his column of 900 men. Consequently, the latter did not accomplish a landing until past noon, and then not on the spot originally intended. The general, however, succeeded at last in disembarking his men, and soon effected a junction with general Lagrange. The united columns then attacked, and at 4 P. M. entered, Fort Young; where they found about 300 French militiamen, who laid down their arms. Meanwhile Fort the town of Roseau had been set on fire, not by the Young shot of the ships that lay off, but by the wadding of burn one of the guns mounted upon, Fort Young. The Roseau french soldiers, it is related, did their utmost to extinguish the flames; but the only part of the town saved were a few small houses occupied by free negroes. enter and of gen. Brigadier-general Prevost, as soon as he found Retreat the case was desperate, retreated across the island, Prevost accompanied by brigade-major Prevost and a quar- Princetermaster of militia, and arrived, in 24 hours after- Rupert wards, at the strong hold of Prince-Rupert. This place of safety the general and his two friends, it appears, would scarcely have reached, so difficult is the country to traverse, had it not been for the assistance of the inhabitants and the exertions of the Caribs. No sooner did the british commander in chief of the island reach the fort, than he directed all the cattle to be driven in, and took measures for getting a supply of water from the river in the bay. He had previously given orders for all the regulars in the island to follow him; leaving the militia and the president of the council to make the best terms they could with the enemy, for what remained of the town of Roseau, the capital of the island. Loss of regu The loss sustained by the british regulars, in re- british sisting the invaders and defending the various posts, lars. |