Sept. 1803. also from some guns mounted upon the pier, and several gun-vessels stationed at the entrance of the harbour. The fire was kept up until after 5 A. M.; when the Terror was recalled, and, weighing, reanchored at a greater distance from the town, with a loss of only two men wounded by splinters. Bom ment of Shortly afterwards the Sulphur bomb, whose bad sailing had prevented her from beating up, arrived and anchored in company with the Cerberus and squadron. In the evening both bomb-vessels threw a few shells; but the tide prevented them from getting near enough to produce much effect. On the 15th, in the morning, all the ships were enabled to take capital positions; and soon after 5 A. M. the bombardment recommenced with great spirit and continued until 10 h. 30 m. A. M.; when the falling tide rendered it necessary for the british ships to withdraw from the attack. Although 22 gun-vessels, which had hauled out of the pier and formed themselves in a regular line, had united with the batteries around the port in replying to the fire of the British, no loss and very little damage was sustained by the latter. Shortly after getting under sail to remove into deeper water, the Cerberus grounded upon one of the sand-banks. Nine of the french gun-boats, perceiving the situation of the british frigate, attempted to annoy her, and began a heavy cannonade, but were eventually compelled, by the fire of the Charwell, Kite, bomb-vessels, and cutters, to retire for shelter into the harbour. After remaining aground about three hours, the Cerberus floated with the rising tide. The attack upon the french town and gun-vessels then ceased; nor was it known that any material effect had been produced by it. On the 27th of September, in the evening, a divibard- sion of sloops, bombs, and smaller vessels, under the Calais. orders of captain Samuel Jackson of the 16-gun shipsloop Autumn, anchored off Calais, the bomb-vessels to the north-east of the town, and the remainder of the squadron abreast of the town and pier-head bat- 1803. tery. The French immediately opened a fire from Sept. all directions, and the first shell fell within a ship's length of the Autumn and burst under water. The vessels being at this time so close to each other as to be in danger from the enemy's shells, captain Jackson directed them to weigh and reanchor in more open order, while he remained with the Autumn in her original station. In this way the bombardment continued for several hours, with some apparent damage to the east end of the town, but with none whatever to the british squadron. At length a gale from the north-east obliged the ships to weigh and stand off; and thus the action ended. off Ca Bou On the next day, the 28th, a division of gun-boats, Leda taking advantage of the absence of the british squa- lais dron, quitted Calais for Boulogne; and, although and chased and fired at by the 36-gun frigate Leda, logne. captain Robert Honyman, they arrived in safety at their destination. On the 29th a second division, 25 in number, attempted to do the same; and, after a three hours' cannonade by the Leda, the whole, except two which ran on shore and were bilged upon the rocks, succeeded in reaching the anchorage off the pier of Boulogne; forming, with those already there, a force of 55 sail. pard On the 31st of October, at 9 A. M., while the Leda Oct. frigate, in company with the Lark and Harpy sloops Lieut. of war, were off Etaples, working towards the shore Shipagainst a strong east-south east wind, a large gun-brig, Bou said to be of 12 long 24-pounders, with six schooners logne. and sloops under her convoy, was observed coming out of the port. Captain Honyman immediately signalled the Harpy and Lark to make sail in chase. About this time, however, the british hired cutter Admiral-Mitchell, of 12 carronades, 12-pounders, and 35 men and boys, commanded by lieutenant Alexander Shippard, being close off Boulogne, the port to which the vessels were steering, gallantly stood after them; and, at 10 A. M., brought the gunbrig to action, close under the batteries of Portet. 1803. At the end of a two hours and a half's engagement, the cutter drove the gun-brig and one of the sloops on shore. Oct. Sir the Me ranean. The Admiral-Mitchell's mast and cross-jack yard were wounded in several places, by a shell which fell on board, and her sails and rigging were a good deal cut by grape : the cutter had also one carronade dismounted, and was hulled in several places. Fortunately, however, her loss did not amount to more than two men badly, and two slightly wounded. The strong land-wind having entirely prevented the small british squadron in the offing from acting, this affair was highly creditable to lieutenant Shippard, and the officers and crew of the Admiral-Mitchell. Our attention is now called to the Mediterranean. The british naval force upon that station, at Bicker- the breaking out of the war, consisted of 10 sail of ton in the line, under the command of rear-admiral sir diter- Richard Bickerton, in the Kent 74. The probability, that this extensive and important station would soon become the scene of very active operations, led to the appointment of vice-admiral lord Nelson to the chief command. His lordship accordingly, on May. the 18th of May, hoisted his flag on board his old ship the Victory, in Portsmouth harbour. On the 20th, at 5 P. M., accompanied by the 18-pounder 32gun frigate Amphion, captain Thomas Masterman Hardy, the Victory sailed from Spithead, bound, in the first instance, to the fleet off Brest, to ascertain if her assistance would be required by admiral Cornwallis; in which event she was to remain with the latter, and the vice-admiral was to proceed to his station in the frigate. On the 22d, at 4 P. M., the two ships arrived off the island of Ushant, the appointed rendezvous; but a severe gale of wind had blown the british fleet from its station. After a vain search for the admi ral, both at the rendezvous and nearer to Brest, lord Nelson, at 7 h. 30 m. P. M. on the 23d, shifted his flag to the Amphion, and at 8 P. M. made sail, with a fair wind, leaving the Victory to follow, in case her services should be dispensed with by the 1803. commander in chief of the Channel fleet. On the 25th, in the morning, the wind shifted from north-west to south-west, and blew fresh. The foul wind, with a heavy sea, continued until the night of the 30th, when, a light air sprang up from the northward. With the aid of this, the Amphion, on the morning of the 3d of June, entered the Straits, June. and at 9 h.30 m. P. M. anchored in the bay of Gibraltar. On the 4th, at 4 A. M., the Amphion weighed and made sail. On the 15th the frigate reached Malta; quitted it on the 17th, at 3 A. M., and on the 25th arrived off Naples, where his lordship expected to find the squadron. Sir Richard had, however, since the 4th, sailed for Toulon; and thither the Amphion immediately bent her course. A succession of calms and light winds made it the 8th of July ere lord Nel- July. son could reach his old cruising ground, where he found sir Richard, with the Toulon. The french line-of-battle force in Toulon consisted French of seven ships, nearly ready for sea, under vice- force at admiral René-Madeleine La Touche-Tréville, two repairing in the arsenal, and five on the stocks. The ships afloat were the 80s Formidable and Indomptable, and 74s Atlas, Berwick, (late british,) Intrépide, Mont-Blanc, and Scipion; the two in dock were the late british ships Hannibal, now Annibal, and Swiftsure; and those on the stocks were the 80s Bucentaure and Neptune, and 74s Borée, Phaeton, and Pluton, the two 80s and the last-named 74 nearly ready for launching. 1803. At this time nearly the whole of the Mediterranean coast was subject, more or less, to the sway of France. In Barcelona and other spanish ports, French french cruisers were allowed to carry in and sell their ence in prizes, while to a british vessel admittance was prothe Me-hibited by an order of the government. Genoa was ranean. as much France as Toulon, and in her dock-yard influ diter was constructing a french 74, to be named after her, the Génois. Tuscany was gradually becoming french; and so was Sardinia, although under the mask of a rigid neutrality. Except Naples, every state in the two Sicilies was obedient to the nod of Buonaparte; who had set his emissaries at work in the Morea, to excite the Greeks to an insurrection against the Turks, in the hope, by taking part with the latter, to obtain Egypt as the price of, what could not fail to be, a successful interference. Expecting probably that the Victory would not be detained by admiral Cornwallis, lord Nelson continued on board the Amphion, in preference to removing to a larger ship. Within forty hours after the Amphion had, as already stated, separated from the Victory, the latter fell in with the Channel fleet, and, after a stay of scarcely two hours, was permitted to proceed on her passage to the MediterraRecap- nean. On the 28th of May, in latitude 45° 40′ north, Ambus- longitude 6° 10' west, captain Sutton was fortunate Vic- enough to fall in with and capture the french 32-gun tory. frigate Embuscade, (late british Ambuscade,*) cap ture of cade by tain Jean-Baptiste-Alexis Fradin, 30 days from. Cape-François, bound to Rochefort, with not the whole of her guns mounted, and with a crew of only 187 men. On the 12th of June, in the evening, the Victory anchored in Gibraltar, and departed thence on the afternoon of the 15th. On the 9th of July she anchored in the harbour of Valetta, island of Malta, and quitted it on the 11th; and on the 30th, at about * See vol ii. p. 353. The Ambuscade was restored to her rank in the british navy. |