ling off San tian. Lord Having received information that M. Ganteaume, Col- with his 15 sail of the line and frigates, meant to wood make the attempt, vice-admiral lord Collingwood cruises retired from his station off Cape Sicie, and, with 15 Sebas- sail of the line and five or six frigates and sloops, proceeded off Cape San-Sebastian; between which and Barcelona he established his cruising-ground, in the full expectation of intercepting the french admiral on his way to the latter port. In the mean time lord Collingwood had not neglected the usual precaution of stationing frigates off the port of Toulon to watch the movements of the french fleet. The 38-gun frigates Pomone, captain Robert Barrie, and Alceste, captain Murray Maxwell, from the tried zeal and activity of their commanders, were well calculated for such a service. French dron and On the 21st, in the morning, rear-admiral Baudin, squa- with the Robuste, Borée, and Lion, the two 40-gun frigates Pauline and Pomone, and a fleet of armed Convoy store-ships and transports, sailed from Toulon, with from an easterly wind, bound to Barcelona. At noon the Toulon british frigate Pomone descried the enemy, and sail made sail to the west-south-west. On the next morning captain Barrie spoke the Alceste, and at 9 P. M. fell in with lord Collingwood, then, with 15 sail of the line, three frigates, and a ship-sloop, cruising off the coast of Catalonia, between Cape San-Sebastian and Barcelona. Judging that, as the squadron, or fleet, for captain Barrie did not know but that the whole french force might be coming out, had sailed with the first of an ed by easterly wind, it was bound to the westward, the 1809. british admiral prepared his fleet for battle, and Oct. stationed his frigates to-windward, to give notice of Disthe enemy's approach. On the 23d, at 8 A. M., the cover38-gun frigate Volontaire, captain Charles Bullen, british made the signal for a fleet to the eastward. As the fleet. vessels of it continued to come down before the wind, lord Collingwood made no alteration in the fleet, beyond advancing two fast-sailing ships, the Tigre and Bulwark. At 10 A. M. the english Pomone made the signal that the enemy, now seen to consist of three ships of the line instead of seven as had at first been signalled, had hauled to the wind. Immediately rear-admiral Martin, with eight of the best-sailing ships, was ordered to chase in the French east-north-east. At 3 P. M. the three french line- and of-battle ships and two frigates separated from the convoy convoy; the latter steering north-north-west, in great rate. confusion, and the former east-south-east, with the Powind at north-east. The english Pomone, being сарwell to-windward, got hold of a part of the convoy, tures two brigs, two bombards, and a ketch, and in the part of evening destroyed them; but the remainder of the convoy and the five men of war were shortly afterwards lost sight of by the british fleet. ships sepa mone latter. r.-adm. At 8 P. M. rear-admiral Martin, judging that the Force French would push for their own coast, tacked to under the northward, the wind then about east. Shortly Martin, afterwards two of the chasing ships accidentally parted company, leaving the rear-admiral with the following six sail of the line: The ships continued under a press of sail all night of the 23d, but saw nothing of the enemy until 5 P. M. on the 24th; when the Tigre, the heaḍmost ship, 1809. made the signal for four sail in the north-north-east. These were the Robuste, Borée, Lion, and Pauline; sues Oct. the Pomone having previously parted company and He pur- steered for Marseille. Every stitch of canvass was french now set by the british ships, in the hope to bring squa their opponents to an action before dark. But this dron. could not be accomplished; and at dark rear french run on shore. admiral Martin, owing to the proximity of the land, the shoalness of the water, and the circumstance of the wind blowing directly on the shore, was obliged to haul off for the night. On the 25th, at 7 A. M., the french ships again discovered themselves in the north, running alongshore with a fresh breeze from the south-east. In stantly all sail was again set in chase; and the british ships, nearing the land as well as the enemy, Freof prepared for anchoring with springs. At 11 h. 45 m. ships A. M. the Robuste and Lion, putting their helms up, ran themselves on shore, within pistol-shot of each other, at a spot about six miles north-east of the harbour of Cette, and near to the village of Frontignan. The Borée and Pauline, closely pressed by others the Tigre and Leviathan, and the first fired at by Cette. the Tigre, succeeded in reaching Cette harbour; but which scarcely contained depth enough to float them. Owing to the shoalness of the water upon the coast, and the intricacy of the navigation, the british ships, some of which had already got into seven and others into five fathoms, hauled their wind and stood off. enter At IP. M., finding it impossible to save his ships, M. Baudin began dismantling them and landing the crews; and at 4 P. M. the mizenmasts of both ships went by the board. At dark the british ships stood to the southward, and in the night tacked, with the intention of being close in with the wrecks by dayral de- light on the 26th; but, the wind falling, they did not Ro regain a sight of them until evening. At 7 h. 30 m. buste P. M. both french ships, now with only a foremast Lion. between them, were set on fire by their crews. French admi stroys and At Oct. 8 P. M. the Robuste and Lion were in flames fore 1809. and aft, and at 10 h. 30 m. P. M. blew up with a tremendous explosion; the british squadron then lying nearly becalmed about seven miles from the spot. ling Having thus, by his energy and perseverance, R.-adm caused the entire loss to France of a new 80 and a Martin rejoins fine 74 gun ship, and having left in jeopardy a new lord 74 and a fine large frigate, rear-admiral Martin, with Col his six sail of the line, stood away to the southward; wood, and on the 30th, in the morning, rejoined lord Collingwood, then, with 10 sail of the line, (the Conqueror having recently joined,) cruising off Cape San-Sebastian. Lord Collingwood soon ascertained that the five ships of war, the failure of whose mission we have just done recording, were the whole that had sailed out of Toulon, the blockade of which port his lordship resumed. It appears, how- Borée ever, that both the Borée and Pauline afterwards and managed to get into the road from their insecure reenter anchorage at Cette. Pauline Toulon Hallo ed after re der of After the capture of the five vessels of M. Baudin's Capt. convoy by the british frigate Pomone, the remain- well der, consisting of seven merchant vessels, in charge detachof the armed store-ship Lamproie, of 16 long 8-pounders and 116 men, commanded by lieutenant mainde vaisseau Jacques-Marie Bertaud-la-Bretèche, two french armed bombards, the Victoire and Grondeur, and convoy the armed xebec Normande, put into the bay of Rosas, and anchored under the protection of the castle of that name, of Fort-Trinidad, and of other strong batteries in the neighbourhood. Resolving to attempt the capture or destruction of these vessels, lord Collingwood detached captain Hallowell, with the Tigre, Cumberland, and Volontaire, also the frigates Apollo and Topaze, captains Bridges Watkinson Taylor, and Henry Hope, and brig-sloops Philomel, Scout, and Tuscan, captains George Crawley, William Raitt, and John Wilson. On the evening of the 31st of October, after dark, 1809. the squadron bore up, with a fresh south-east ind, Oct. for the bay of Rosas; and soon afterwards the five Sends ships came to an anchor about five miles from the the boats dron town of Rosas; but the brigs, as had been ordered, of the remained under way. The boats of the squadron squa- were then armed and manned; and, owing to the into the care that, in this instance, has been taken to insert Rosas. the names of the officers in the London Gazette, we are enabled also to give them. bay of Names of the em ployed. . Boats of the Tigre: lieutenants John Tailour, officers Augustus Wm. Jas. Clifford, Edward Boxer, William Waterface, William Hamilton, and John Brulton; master's mates James Caldwell and Joshua Kynson; midshipmen Day Richard Syer, honourable Robert Spencer, Henry Fawcett, George Francis Bridges, George Sandys, James Athill, honourable George James Percival, James Montagu, and Frederick Noel; and assistant surgeon Alexander Hosack. Cumberland: lieutenants John Murray, Richard Stuart, and William Bradley, captain of marines Edward Bailie, master's mate John Webster, and midshipmen Charles Robert Milbourne, Henry Wise, William Hollinshed Brady, and Annesley Blackmore. Apollo: lieutenants James Begbie, Robert Cutts Barton, and John Forster; master's mates Henry William de Chair and William Plant; midshipmen James Dunderdale and Henry Lancaster, and captain's clerk John Oliver French. Topaze: lieutenants Charles Hammond, James Dunn, William Rawlins, and David lord Balgonie; (Ville-de-Paris ;) lieutenant of marines William Halsted, master's mate Alexander Boyter, carpenter Thomas Canty, and midshipmen Joseph Hume, Hungerford Luthill, and Harry Nicholas. Volontaire : lieutenants Dalhousie Tait, Samuel Sison, and honourable J. A. Maude; (Ville-de-Paris ;) lieutenants of marines William Burton and Duncan Campbell, master's mates John Bannatyne and Thomas Randall, midshipmen Richard Stephen Harness, Henry John Leeke, and John Armstead, (Ville-de-Paris ;) and carpenter William |