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1806. however, continued to fire at the three-decker, until Feb. the latter, at 11 h. 40 m. A. M., struck the ground, and by the shock lost her only remaining stick, the foremast. The Impérial shortly afterwards fired a gun to-leeward, and her people flocked to the upper part of the ship in the utmost apparent distress: whereupon the firing at her ceased, and the nearest british ships hastened to join the Superb. About this time the mainmast of the Northumberland came down by the board, and, falling forward on the booms, broke to pieces all the boats, and carried away three or four skid-beams, besides doing other material damage.

After having bore up from engaging the Alexandre, the Spencer had passed, and, not seeing any colours, had fired at, the Brave; had passed, next, the Donegal as she was boarding the Jupiter, and was approaching to aid the Canopus in her attack upon the Impérial, when, owing to the latter's proximity to the shore, the Spencer had no choice but to join the Atlas in engaging the Diomède. It was captain Stopford's intention to pass under the latter's stern; but in this he was foiled by the position of the Atlas, who, it will be recollected, had dropped, and was engaging, upon the larboard beam of the Diomède. The Spencer then steered to pass ahead of the Diomède, and received her fire, without the power of returning it, until closing she crossed the french ship's bows. Meanwhile, the Atlas, in her still ungovernable state, having shifted her position, the Dio- stern of the Spencer now became exposed to the guns also of the Diomède. The Spencer at length came to grounds the wind on the larboard tack, and the Atlas hauled

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out of her way, but too late to prevent the Diomède from running on shore. The moment the french ship struck the ground, her three masts went by the board; but the Diomède still continued to fire ocnation casionally at the Atlas and Canopus, until they quitof ac- ted her to rejoin the admiral. Thus, in less than two hours, had the five ships composing this french

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squadron been either captured or driven on shore. 1806. The two frigates and the corvette, having got well to-leeward during the action, hauled to the southward; and, as the Acasta and Magicienne, at the commencement of the battle, were not ordered to go in chase, and, at its close, were busily employed in attending to the captured ships, all three of the former effected their escape.

For the actual force of the british ships, in Force guns on and men, it may suffice, in this case, to refer to their british respective establishments, as set forth in various side. parts of this work. For the guns mounted on the first and second decks, except in the case of the Canopus, which ship, from the weakness of her topsides, had been fitted with 18 instead of 24 pounders, reference may be had to the alphabetical letters K, N or O, and P, in Annual Abstract No. 1. The quarterdeck and forecastle guns of all seven ships were chiefly 32-pounder carronades, agreeably to the establishment of 1797,* and the six carronades on the poop, except those of the Superb which were 24s, were 18-pounders.

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The force of the french ships may also be stated Force with tolerable accuracy. The Impérial is acknow- périal. ledged to have been "le plus fort et le plus beau vaisseau qui eut jamais été construit dans aucun pays du monde," and to have mounted in this action 130 guns, 36, 24, and 18 pounders, namely 34 on each of her principal decks, besides 10 long 12pounders and 12 iron 36-pounder carronades on her quarterdeck and forecastle, and six brass ones of the same caliber on the poop; making her broadside weight of metal reach the enormous amount of 1852 lbs. english. The Impérial is described to have had thin sides, and to have been constructed, throughout, of very light scantling for so large a ship. She must have measured at least 3000 tons. Admiral Ekins, but upon what authority we are not informed,

See vol. ii. p. 153.

† Victoires et Conquêtes, tome xvii. p. 268.

Feb.

1806. says it was 3300.* That the tonnage of the Impérial could not have been much below that amount may be inferred from the fact, that the Commerce-deMarseille, a ship mounting when captured but 118 guns, with only 12-pounders on the third deck,

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measured 2747 tons.

The long-gun force of the Alexandre may be main- seen in that of her class-mate, the Formidable, taken ing by sir Richard Strachan;+ and a reference to the ships. force of the Scipion, captured on the same occasion,

french

may suffice for that of either of the three 74s. It is believed, however, that each of the four two-deckers carried eight iron 36-pounder carronades, in lieu of an equal number of her quarterdeck long guns. In the account of the enemy's force, as given in sir John Duckworth's gazette-letter, the Diomède appears to have been of "84 guns." No writer on the subject, except ourselves, has been so sceptical as to doubt that authority; and accordingly each of our contemporaries, disregarding the statement in the first edition of this work, that the Diomède was a 74, have felt themselves, if not quite correct, quite safe, (with many writers a paramount consideration,) in averring that the ship was an 84. We knew the contrary, not only from having seen the name of the Diomède as a 74 in several french accounts published previously to the action, but from the smallness of her sworn complement, which was actually 40 men fewer than that of either of the other french 74s, and from the positive assertion of a british officer of distinction, who took a very active part in the battle. Nor is the difference between a french 84 and a french 74 merely that of 10 guns. The caliber of all the guns, except those upon the lower deck, is larger, the scantling stouter, and the complement of men much greater.

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‡ Brenton, vol. iii. p. 524; who also makes the Canopus but a 74. Marshall, vol. i. p. 262, and vol. ii. p. 281, and Ekins, p. 293.

Feb.

The number of men composing the crew of any 1806. one of the french ships is not even hinted at in the official letter. The following are the respective numbers that were certified by the french officers, except in the case of the Impérial, which we shall revert to presently; and for which head-money was paid to the captors: Impérial, (doubtful,) 1500 men ; Alexandre, 820; Brave and Jupiter, 660 each; and Diomède 620; total, 4260. With respect to the Impérial, the three deponents were common men. They swore that their ship mounted 136 guns, and went into action with a crew of 1500 men. It may have been so, certainly, but the probability is that these illiterate fellows (for not more than one of them, it appears, could write) meant, that their ship had 1500 men on board before she disembarked the troops. That the Impérial was rather under than over manned, may be inferred from the fact, that all the other ships were so. Let us say that her crew amounted to 1200 men; and that is allowing her 100 more than the establishment of a french 120-gun ship.*

british

The loss sustained by the british ships was offi- Loss on cially reported as follows: Superb, three seamen side. and three marines killed, one lieutenant (Charles Patriarch) and the master (William Pickering) badly, and four midshipmen, (Charles Wallington, Thomas Jackson, Joseph Bullen, and James Willcox,) 41 seamen, and nine marines slightly wounded; Northumberland, one midshipman, (David Ridgeway,) 18 seamen and one marine, and the admiral's cook killed, one lieutenant, (George Francis Seymour,) three midshipmen, (William Millard, Charles William Selwyn, and Jeremiah Lawrence,) one se'cretary's clerk, one boatswain's mate, the french pilot, 27 seamen, and 12 marines badly, and three midshipmen, (Henry Stokes, Charles Comer, and Philip Peacock,) one secretary's clerk, one quarter

* See vol. i. p. 78.

1806. master, two boatswain's mates, 20 seamen, and six Feb. marines slightly wounded; Canopus, eight officers, (names not reported,) seamen, and marines killed, 15 badly and seven slightly wounded; Spencer, her boatswain, (Martin Oates,) 14 seamen, and three marines killed, and her captain, one lieutenant, (James Harris, both slightly,) one lieutenant of marines, (James Cuthbertson, badly,) one midshipman, (William Neame, slightly,) 40 seamen and six marines wounded; Donegal, one midshipman, (Charles H. Kynaston,) seven seamen, and four marines killed, the master, (John Airey,) three midshipmen, (William Rudall, Henry Ogilvie, and Edward Acton,) and 12 seamen and marines badly, and 17 slightly wounded; Atlas, seven seamen and one marine killed, the master, (William Mowbray,) boatswain, (Stephen Spargo,) and nine seamen wounded; Agamemnon, one seaman killed, and one boatswain's mate, four seamen, and eight marines wounded; making the aggregate loss 74 killed, and 264 wounded, and the total numerical loss of each ship as follows:

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We may remark that, in respect to the relative proportions of killed and wounded, the returns of the Superb and the Atlas form a surprising contrast. But the log of the Superb says: six killed and 30 wounded. The return of the Northumberland, on the other hand, corresponds exactly with the entry in her log.

No british ship, except the Northumberland, appears to have had any mast shot away.

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