The Adriatic campaign was a minor
theatre of war during the
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fre ...
in which a succession of small
British Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...
and
Austrian Navy
The Austro-Hungarian Navy or Imperial and Royal War Navy (german: kaiserliche und königliche Kriegsmarine, in short ''k.u.k. Kriegsmarine'', hu, Császári és Királyi Haditengerészet) was the naval force of Austria-Hungary. Ships of the ...
squadrons and independent cruisers harried the combined naval forces of the
First French Empire
The First French Empire, officially the French Republic, then the French Empire (; Latin: ) after 1809, also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental E ...
, the
Kingdom of Italy
The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to ...
, the
Illyrian Provinces
The Illyrian Provinces sl, Ilirske province hr, Ilirske provincije sr, Илирске провинције it, Province illirichegerman: Illyrische Provinzen, group=note were an autonomous province of France during the First French Empire that e ...
and the
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples ( la, Regnum Neapolitanum; it, Regno di Napoli; nap, Regno 'e Napule), also known as the Kingdom of Sicily, was a state that ruled the part of the Italian Peninsula south of the Papal States between 1282 and 1816. It was ...
between 1807 and 1814 in the
Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to th ...
. Italy, Naples and Illyria were all controlled either directly or via proxy by the French Emperor
Napoleon I
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...
, who had seized them at the
Treaty of Pressburg in the aftermath of the
War of the Third Coalition
The War of the Third Coalition)
* In French historiography, it is known as the Austrian campaign of 1805 (french: Campagne d'Autriche de 1805) or the German campaign of 1805 (french: Campagne d'Allemagne de 1805) was a European conflict spanni ...
.
Control of the Adriatic brought numerous advantages to the
French Navy
The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...
, allowing rapid transit of troops from Italy to the Balkans and Austria for campaigning in the east and giving France possession of numerous shipbuilding facilities, particularly the large naval yards of
Venice
Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...
. From 1807, when the
Treaty of Tilsit
The Treaties of Tilsit were two agreements signed by French Emperor Napoleon in the town of Tilsit in July 1807 in the aftermath of his victory at Friedland. The first was signed on 7 July, between Napoleon and Russian Emperor Alexander, when ...
precipitated a Russian withdrawal from the
Septinsular Republic, the French Navy held naval supremacy in the region. The Treaty of Tilsit also contained a secret clause that guaranteed French assistance in any war fought between the Russians and the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University ...
. To fulfil this clause, Napoleon would have to secure his supply lines to the east by developing the French armies in Illyria. This required control of the Adriatic against increasingly aggressive British raiders. The Royal Navy decided to prevent these troop convoys from reaching Illyria and sought to break French hegemony in the region, resulting in a six-year naval campaign.
The campaign was not uniform in approach; British and French forces were limited by the dictates of the wider Mediterranean and global conflict, and consequently ship numbers fluctuated. Although numerous commanders held commands in the region, the two most important personalities were those of
William Hoste and
Bernard Dubourdieu
Bernard Dubourdieu (28 April 1773 – 13 March 1811) was a French rear-admiral who led the allied French-Venetian forces at the Battle of Lissa in 1811, during which he was killed.
Life
A native of Bayonne, Dubourdieu started sailing on a mer ...
, whose exploits were celebrated in their respective national newspapers during 1810 and 1811. The campaign between the two officers reached a climax at the
Battle of Lissa in March 1811, when Dubourdieu was killed and his squadron defeated by Hoste in a celebrated action.
The events of 1811 gave the British dominance in the Adriatic for the remainder of the war. British and
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
expeditionary forces steadily captured fortified French islands and their raiding parties inflicted havoc on trade across the region. As a result, French plans against the Ottoman Empire were cancelled,
La Grande Armée
LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States.
La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* La (musical note), or A, the sixth note
* "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figure ...
turning towards Russia. British forces continued operations until the advancing armies of the
Sixth Coalition
Sixth is the ordinal form of the number six.
* The Sixth Amendment, to the U.S. Constitution
* A keg of beer, equal to 5 U.S. gallons or barrel
* The fraction
Music
* Sixth interval (music)s:
** major sixth, a musical interval
** minor six ...
drove the French from the shores of the Adriatic in early 1814, British troops and marines assisting in the capture of several important French cities, including
Fiume
Rijeka ( , , ; also known as Fiume hu, Fiume, it, Fiume ; local Chakavian: ''Reka''; german: Sankt Veit am Flaum; sl, Reka) is the principal seaport and the third-largest city in Croatia (after Zagreb and Split). It is located in Prim ...
(Rijeka) and
Trieste
Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into pr ...
.
Background
There had been a French presence in the
Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to th ...
since the
Treaty of Campo Formio
The Treaty of Campo Formio (today Campoformido) was signed on 17 October 1797 (26 Vendémiaire VI) by Napoleon Bonaparte and Count Philipp von Cobenzl as representatives of the French Republic and the Austrian monarchy, respectively. The trea ...
during the
French Revolutionary War
The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted France against Britain, Austria, Pruss ...
. Campo Formio marked the end of the
War of the First Coalition
The War of the First Coalition (french: Guerre de la Première Coalition) was a set of wars that several European powers fought between 1792 and 1797 initially against the constitutional Kingdom of France and then the French Republic that suc ...
in 1797 and confirmed the
demise of the independent
Republic of Venice
The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia ...
and the division of its territory between the
French Republic
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
and the
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central- Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence, ...
.
[Chandler p. 78] One of France's gains from this division were the seven
Ionian Islands that controlled the entrance to the Adriatic. These
French outposts in the Eastern Mediterranean were considered a threat by both the
Russian and the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University ...
s and in 1798 a united Russo-Ottoman force attacked the massively fortified French citadel on
Corfu
Corfu (, ) or Kerkyra ( el, Κέρκυρα, Kérkyra, , ; ; la, Corcyra.) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the margin of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The isl ...
, which fell the following year after a
four-month siege. The victors took possession of the islands and from them created the
Septinsular Republic, nominally Ottoman, practically independent and guaranteed by the
Russian Navy.
On mainland Europe, the rise of
Napoleon Bonaparte
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...
as the ruler of the new
French Empire resulted in a new conflict, the
War of the Third Coalition
The War of the Third Coalition)
* In French historiography, it is known as the Austrian campaign of 1805 (french: Campagne d'Autriche de 1805) or the German campaign of 1805 (french: Campagne d'Allemagne de 1805) was a European conflict spanni ...
in 1805, which ended disastrously for the Austrian and Russian allied armies at the
Battle of Austerlitz
The Battle of Austerlitz (2 December 1805/11 Frimaire An XIV FRC), also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, was one of the most important and decisive engagements of the Napoleonic Wars. The battle occurred near the town of Austerlitz ...
. The treaties that ended the war created two French client monarchies in Italy, the
Kingdom of Italy
The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to ...
and the
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples ( la, Regnum Neapolitanum; it, Regno di Napoli; nap, Regno 'e Napule), also known as the Kingdom of Sicily, was a state that ruled the part of the Italian Peninsula south of the Papal States between 1282 and 1816. It was ...
, and French troops were left holding substantial parts of the Eastern coastline of the Adriatic in
Dalmatia
Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see names in other languages) is one of the four historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of the Adriatic Sea, str ...
.
[Chandler p. 348] These holdings significantly increased French naval interest in the Adriatic, which was well supplied with excellent ports and shipbuilding facilities, particularly at
Venice
Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...
.
The Russian garrison on Corfu, augmented with a powerful naval squadron, effectively blocked French use of the Adriatic by sealing the entrance through the
Straits of Otranto
The Strait of Otranto ( sq, Ngushtica e Otrantos; it, Canale d'Otranto; hr, Otrantska Vrata) connects the Adriatic Sea with the Ionian Sea and separates Italy from Albania. Its width at Punta Palascìa, east of Salento is less than . The st ...
. French military concerns were also directed further north at this time, resulting in the
War of the Fourth Coalition
The Fourth Coalition fought against Napoleon's French Empire and were defeated in a war spanning 1806–1807. The main coalition partners were Prussia and Russia with Saxony, Sweden, and Great Britain also contributing. Excluding Prussia, s ...
during 1806 and 1807 that saw Napoleon's armies overrun
Prussia
Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...
and force the Russians to sign the
Treaty of Tilsit
The Treaties of Tilsit were two agreements signed by French Emperor Napoleon in the town of Tilsit in July 1807 in the aftermath of his victory at Friedland. The first was signed on 7 July, between Napoleon and Russian Emperor Alexander, when ...
on 7 July 1807.
[Chandler p. 163] One of the minor clauses of this treaty transferred the Ionian Islands
back into French hands, the Russians withdrawing completely from the Adriatic.
[Adkins, p. 209] This withdrawal supported a hidden clause in the treaty that guaranteed French support in the continuing
Russian war with the Ottomans in the Balkans.
[Chandler p. 441]
Campaign
Opening exchanges
As the Russians withdrew, the French immediately despatched garrisons to the Ionian Islands, rapidly amassing over 7,400 French and Neapolitan troops on Corfu alone.
[Gardiner, p. 153] This effectively turned the Adriatic into a sheltered French sea from which they could be free to despatch raiders against British convoys, colonies and
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...
blockade squadrons, which had controlled the
Mediterranean
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...
since the
Battle of Trafalgar
The Battle of Trafalgar (21 October 1805) was a naval engagement between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French and Spanish Navies during the War of the Third Coalition (August–December 1805) of the Napoleonic Wars (1 ...
two years earlier.
[Gardiner, p. 9] To facilitate this, the French Navy placed significant orders at the Venetian naval yards, intending to build forces in the region with locally produced and crewed vessels.
[James, Vol. 6, p. 44]
The Royal Navy's Mediterranean Fleet responded rapidly to this threat, and in November 1807 the
fourth rate
In 1603 all English warships with a compliment of fewer than 160 men were known as 'small ships'. In 1625/26 to establish pay rates for officers a six tier naval ship rating system was introduced.Winfield 2009 These small ships were divided i ...
ship
HMS ''Glatton'' and several smaller craft were blockading Corfu, seizing several French and Italian reinforcement convoys.
[James, Vol. 4, p. 342] Encouraged by the success of the blockade, small British raiders began entering the Adriatic independently, to prey on French convoys along the Italian coast.
One of the first British operations in the region was the seizure of the small Dalmatian Island of
Lissa, for use as a safe harbour deep in nominally French-controlled waters. The largely uninhabited island was rapidly developed into an effective naval base with the construction of a town and harbour at
Port St. George.
[Henderson, p. 112] During 1807, British ships stationed in the Adriatic were relatively small and their impact was consequently minor. British raiders also limited their attacks on the Illyrian coast to purely military objectives in order to maintain the support of the local population, who supplied the British cruisers with food, water and naval stores.
The French Mediterranean Fleet, led by Admiral
Ganteaume made a foray to Corfu in February 1808 that the British blockading squadron was powerless to stop, but this was the only attempt by the French to send ships of the line to the region and the fleet had returned to Toulon by mid-March.
[Gardiner, p. 19]
The first major British deployment into the Adriatic came in May 1808, when the
frigate
A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat.
The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed an ...
HMS ''Unite'' under Captain
Patrick Campbell arrived off Venice. During May, Campbell severely disrupted French and Italian shipping off the busiest Adriatic seaport and captured three ships sent against him by the Italian Navy.
[James, Vol. 5, p. 52] The French response to these depredations was to despatch the small frigate
''Var'' to Venice, an action which had little effect on British operations.
British activity in the Adriatic was however curtailed during the year by the British
war with the Ottoman Empire, which absorbed the scant British naval resources in the Eastern Mediterranean.
[Woodman, p. 247][James, Vol. 5, p. 57]
Invasions of the Ionian Islands
The British presence in the Adriatic was greatly strengthened in 1809 with the arrival of the frigates
HMS ''Amphion'' under
William Hoste and
HMS ''Belle Poule'' under
James Brisbane
Captain Sir James Brisbane, CB (1774 – 19 December 1826) was a British Royal Navy officer of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Although never engaged in any major actions, Brisbane served under both Lord Howe and Horatio Nels ...
. These reinforcements made an immediate impact with a series of raids in the Dalmatian and Ionian islands.
[James, Vol. 5, pp. 152–153] In February ''Belle Poule'' captured the ''Var'' off
Valona; the French responded by despatching the frigates
''Danaé'' and
''Flore'' from
Toulon
Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...
.
[Gardiner, p. 154] HMS ''Topaze'' attacked these frigates as they arrived, but they were able to reach Corfu before sailing north to augment French defences in the Adriatic.
[James, Vol. 5, pp. 171–173]
Throughout the year British attacks intensified, driven by Hoste's ''Amphion'' operating from Lissa. Raids on the Italian coastline seized dozens of coastal merchant vessels and gunboats while parties of marines and sailors landed at coastal towns, driving off the defenders and blowing up the fortifications before returning to their ships.
[James, Vol. 5, pp. 171–178] These successes in the face of negligible French opposition encouraged the British commander in the Mediterranean, Admiral
Cuthbert Collingwood, to detail a force specifically to eliminate the French garrisons on the Ionian Islands.
This expedition, led at sea by Brigadier-General
John Oswald from
HMS ''Warrior'' succeeded in landing on the island of
Cefalonia
Kefalonia or Cephalonia ( el, Κεφαλονιά), formerly also known as Kefallinia or Kephallenia (), is the largest of the Ionian Islands in western Greece and the 6th largest island in Greece after Crete, Euboea, Lesbos, Rhodes and Chios. It ...
on 1 October and forcing the Neapolitan garrison to surrender within hours.
[James, Vol. 5, p. 146] Within days the neighbouring islands of
Zante
Zakynthos (also spelled Zakinthos; el, Ζάκυνθος, Zákynthos ; it, Zacinto ) or Zante (, , ; el, Τζάντε, Tzánte ; from the Venetian form) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the third largest of the Ionian Islands. Za ...
and
Ithaca
Ithaca most commonly refers to:
*Homer's Ithaca, an island featured in Homer's ''Odyssey''
*Ithaca (island), an island in Greece, possibly Homer's Ithaca
*Ithaca, New York, a city, and home of Cornell University and Ithaca College
Ithaca, Ithaka ...
had also surrendered and the detached frigate
HMS ''Spartan'' under
Jahleel Brenton effected a successful invasion of
Cerigo shortly afterwards.
[Brenton, Sir Jahleel](_blank)
''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...
'', P. K. Crimmin, (subscription required), Retrieved 18 June 2008
These islands were defended by small garrisons, with a few dozen regular French soldiers and larger numbers of men of the
Albanian Regiment(400 on Zante, 145 on Cefalonia, 46 on Ithaca, and 27 on Cerigo) on each island. These forces were completely inadequate to offer anything but a token resistance; the captured men were transferred to Italy as prisoners of war, but more than a few of the Albanian Regiment's men simply scattered into the countryside and resumed their traditional guerrilla habits. Most of these escapees, as well as those taken prisoner, were soon induced to enter British service in what eventually became the
1st Regiment Greek Light Infantry
The 1st Regiment Greek Light Infantry (1810–12) was a light infantry regiment, founded as a ''local establishment'' in British service consisting mostly of Greek and Albanian enlisted men and Greek and British officers that served during the Nap ...
. Over 70% of the Albanian Regiment's men on the four islands switched to the British, including most of the officers. The 1st Regiment Greek Light Infantry, initially under
Richard Church Richard Church may refer to:
*Richard Church (general) (1784–1873), Irish military officer in the British and Greek army
*Richard William Church (1815–1890), nephew of the general, Dean of St Paul's
*Richard Church (poet) (1893–1972), English ...
and later under Robert Oswald (brother of John), soon attracted many Greek military leaders who would later play a crucial role in the
Greek War of Independence
The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. The Greeks were later assisted by ...
, most notably
Theodoros Kolokotronis
Theodoros Kolokotronis ( el, Θεόδωρος Κολοκοτρώνης; 3 April 1770 – 4 February 1843) was a Greek general and the pre-eminent leader of the Greek War of Independence (1821–1829) against the Ottoman Empire. Kolokotronis's g ...
.
Troop withdrawals late in 1809 delayed any further invasions until March 1810, when Collingwood's temporary successor
Thomas Byam Martin detached a squadron of the Mediterranean Fleet for an operation against
Santa Maura
Lefkada ( el, Λευκάδα, ''Lefkáda'', ), also known as Lefkas or Leukas (Ancient Greek and Katharevousa: Λευκάς, ''Leukás'', modern pronunciation ''Lefkás'') and Leucadia, is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea on the west coast of Gr ...
. Landings were effected on 22 March, and the island surrendered on 16 April after an
eight-day siege of the principal fortress, the attackers considerably aided by the desertion of the garrison's native Greek troops to the Greek volunteers fighting on the British side.
[Gardiner, p. 155] Along with a 2nd Regiment raised in 1813, the Greek units took part in the capture of
Paxoi and
Parga
Parga ( el, Πάργα ) is a town and municipality located in the northwestern part of the regional unit of Preveza in Epirus, northwestern Greece. The seat of the municipality is the village Kanallaki. Parga lies on the Ionian coast between the ...
and the Allied
capture of Genoa in 1814.
French reinforcements
The conclusion of the
War of the Fifth Coalition
The War of the Fifth Coalition was a European conflict in 1809 that was part of the Napoleonic Wars and the Coalition Wars. The main conflict took place in central Europe between the Austrian Empire of Francis I and Napoleon's French Empir ...
in late 1809 had changed the political situation in the Adriatic, confirming French possession of the
Illyrian Provinces
The Illyrian Provinces sl, Ilirske province hr, Ilirske provincije sr, Илирске провинције it, Province illirichegerman: Illyrische Provinzen, group=note were an autonomous province of France during the First French Empire that e ...
and removing any threat to the Adriatic seaports from Austrian-held territory.
[Chandler p. 405] It also freed the
French Army
History
Early history
The first permanent army, paid with regular wages, instead of feudal levies, was established under Charles VII of France, Charles VII in the 1420 to 1430s. The Kings of France needed reliable troops during and after the ...
to operate against the Ottoman Empire, as intended in the Treaty of Tilsit. It did not however affect the British frigates raiding in the Adriatic under the command of William Hoste, who was now launching coordinated raids against coastal convoys, towns and forts along the Italian coast.
[James, Vol. 5, p. 169–178]
In the late summer of 1810 the French Navy made their first serious effort to contest British operations in the Adriatic, with the despatch of
Bernard Dubourdieu
Bernard Dubourdieu (28 April 1773 – 13 March 1811) was a French rear-admiral who led the allied French-Venetian forces at the Battle of Lissa in 1811, during which he was killed.
Life
A native of Bayonne, Dubourdieu started sailing on a mer ...
from
Toulon
Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...
in
''Favorite''.
[Gardiner, p. 172] Dubourdieu was considered one of the more successful frigate commanders in the French Navy, and he collected the French and Italian forces scattered across the Adriatic into a squadron that significantly outnumbered Hoste's forces. Hoste was aware of Dubourdieu's movements and maintained a careful watch on the French-led squadron in its base at
Ancona
Ancona (, also , ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region in central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region. The city is located northeast of Rome, on the Adriatic ...
.
[Adkins, p. 357]
In early October, having failed to draw Dubourdieu into battle the previous month, Hoste resupplied at Lissa and returned to the blockade of Ancona, now accompanied by
HMS ''Cerberus''. Discovering Dubourdieu and his squadron missing, Hoste gave chase in the direction of Corfu, acting on inaccurate information supplied by a passing Sicilian
privateer
A privateer is a private person or ship that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or deleg ...
.
As Dubourdieu had planned, this detour opened Lissa to attack. Landing on the island with overwhelming force on 21 October, the French seized the shipping in the harbour but were unable to find the island's garrison, which had retreated to the mountains.
[Woodman, p. 253] Dubourdieu remained on Lissa for seven hours, but withdrew to Ancona when local fishermen informed him that Hoste was returning from the south.
[James, Vol. 5, p. 252–256] To defend against a repeat of this raid and to guard against intervention by the French ship of the line
''Rivoli'', which was completing at Venice, the British Mediterranean Fleet sent the
third-rate
In the rating system of the Royal Navy, a third rate was a ship of the line which from the 1720s mounted between 64 and 80 guns, typically built with two gun decks (thus the related term two-decker). Years of experience proved that the thi ...
HMS ''Montagu'' to Lissa. The arrival of such a powerful vessel stifled any further French initiatives during the year, allowing Hoste to conduct limited raids on the Italian coastline.
[James, Vol. 5, p. 256]
Battle of Lissa
In early 1811 ''Montagu'' left the Adriatic. With HMS ''Cerberus'' and
HMS ''Active'' detached on operations against the ports of
Pescara and
Ortona
Ortona ( Abruzzese: '; grc, Ὄρτων, Órtōn) is a coastal town and municipality of the Province of Chieti in the Italian region of Abruzzo, with some 23,000 inhabitants.
In 1943 Ortona was the site of a bloody battle, known as "Weste ...
in February, Dubourdieu organised a second attack on Lissa, this time with the ambition of permanently seizing the island and garrisoning it with Italian troops.
Departing Ancona on 11 March with six frigates, numerous support craft and over 500 soldiers, the Franco-Italian squadron sailed for Lissa overnight. Early in the morning on 12 March, the French were spotted by British observers on Lissa and Hoste brought his squadron, including the recently returned ''Cerberus'' and ''Active'', to meet Dubourdieu off the island's northern coast.
[Adkins, p. 359]
Maintaining a close line of battle, Hoste forced Dubourdieu to attack him directly, Dubourdieu attempting to personally board Hoste's ''Amphion'' at the head of the Italian soldiers carried aboard his flagship. Hoste responded to the attempt with fire at point blank range from a
carronade
A carronade is a short, smoothbore, cast-iron cannon which was used by the Royal Navy. It was first produced by the Carron Company, an ironworks in Falkirk, Scotland, and was used from the mid-18th century to the mid-19th century. Its main funct ...
containing over 750
musket balls
A musket is a muzzle-loaded long gun that appeared as a smoothbore weapon in the early 16th century, at first as a heavier variant of the arquebus, capable of penetrating plate armour. By the mid-16th century, this type of musket gradually di ...
.
[Henderson, p. 113] The first shot killed Dubourdieu and almost all of his officers, creating confusion in the French squadron that resulted in ''Favorite'' being wrecked on Lissa's coastline. Hoste then engaged the following ''Flore'' and ''Bellone'', forcing them both to surrender.
[Gardiner, p. 174] The head of the British line, led by
HMS ''Volage'' engaged the three remaining French and Italian ships, driving off ''Danaé'' and ''Carolina'' and capturing
''Corona''. ''Flore'' too later escaped to the safety of French batteries off
Lesina.
[Woodman, p. 255]
The victory at the
Battle of Lissa confirmed British dominance in the region for the next three years, the French unable to replace the losses in ships and experienced officers inflicted at the action.
[Adkins, p. 362] Attempts to reinforce the Adriatic and maintain the convoys that supplied Corfu were launched from Toulon during the spring of 1811, but few reached the Adriatic; stopped by the British blockade of the Southern French ports.
[James, Vol. 5, p. 362] Of those that escaped the blockade of Toulon, most were subsequently captured by the squadron at Lissa, which had been augmented by the return of HMS ''Belle Poule'' and the newly arrived
HMS ''Alceste'', replacing HMS ''Amphion'' and the wounded Hoste who had returned to Britain.
The squadron also continued the raids on coastal shipping and towns that defined the British campaign, attacking
Parenzo and Ragosniza to destroy supply ships sheltering in the harbours.
[James, Vol. 5, p. 371]
In November
HMS ''Eagle'' chased and captured the small French frigate
''Corcyre'' in a failed attempt by a French convoy to transport supplies to Corfu.
[James, Vol. 5, p. 375] A day later, the
action of 29 November 1811
The action of 29 November 1811 was a minor naval engagement fought between two frigate squadrons in the Adriatic Sea during the Adriatic campaign of the Napoleonic Wars. The action was one of a series of operations conducted by the British Roy ...
foiled the most significant French attempt to bring more forces to the Adriatic in 1811 when a British squadron under Captain
Murray Maxwell
Captain Sir Murray Maxwell, CB, FRS (10 September 1775 – 26 June 1831) was a British Royal Navy officer who served with distinction in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, particularly during the French Revolutionary and Napol ...
in ''Alceste'' chased and engaged two frigates and an armed store ship.
[James, Vol. 5, pp. 375–380] One frigate and the store ship were captured, the other reaching Ancona in a disabled state. This action had wide-ranging effects;
Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...
himself took an interest in the reports, and it has been suggested that it was this engagement that convinced him to change the direction of his plans for eastwards expansion from the Balkans to Russia.
British dominance
French hopes of regaining supremacy in the Adriatic now rested on the ''Rivoli'', a ship of the line under construction at Venice. Although her completion had been delayed by almost two years, British intelligence was aware of her condition and had periodically supplied ships of the line to observe her movements and engage her if the opportunity should arise.
[James, Vol. 6, p. 64] In February 1812, ''Rivoli'' departed Venice for the first time, destined for
Pola on her maiden voyage. Waiting for ''Rivoli'' was the British
HMS ''Victorious'', commanded by
John Talbot, who chased ''Rivoli'' and captured her in a
four-hour battle in which both sides suffered heavy casualties.
[Talbot, Sir John](_blank)
''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...
'', J. K. Laughton, (subscription required), Retrieved 18 June 2008
The loss of ''Rivoli'' ended French efforts to contest British dominance of the Adriatic. Although the campaign in the theatre would continue until 1814, from February 1812 British raiders were able to attack French convoys, forts, islands and even significant cities with impunity.
[Gardiner, p. 180] In the summer of 1812, William Hoste returned to the Adriatic as captain of HMS ''Bacchante'' and raided the
Apulia
it, Pugliese
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 =
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographics1_title1 =
, demographics1_info1 =
, demographic ...
n coast for several months.
[Gardiner, p. 179] The freedom with which British cruisers could operate within the Adriatic attracted reinforcements from the Mediterranean Fleet, such as HMS ''Eagle'' which arrived off Ancona in September and blockaded the city, chasing and destroying whole coastal convoys unopposed.
[James, Vol. 6, p. 75]
Even without British intervention, French losses in the Adriatic mounted. In November 1811 the
''Flore'', veteran of Lissa, was wrecked off
Chioggia
Chioggia (; vec, Cióxa , locally ; la, Clodia) is a coastal town and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Venice in the Veneto region of northern Italy.
Geography
The town is situated on a small island at the southern entrance to the L ...
while in September 1812, the
''Danaé'' suddenly exploded with heavy loss of life at Trieste.
[James, Vol. 6, pp. 491–494] For the French Navy, these losses were irreplaceable; French frigates were increasingly unable to escape the blockades of their home ports to reach the Adriatic and ensure the protection of their convoys. In early 1813 the first significant British squadron was detached to the Adriatic, under the command of Admiral
Thomas Fremantle.
This force had wide-ranging orders to seize or destroy all French islands, forts and outposts, disrupt coastal trade wherever possible and assist the allied armies of the
Sixth Coalition
Sixth is the ordinal form of the number six.
* The Sixth Amendment, to the U.S. Constitution
* A keg of beer, equal to 5 U.S. gallons or barrel
* The fraction
Music
* Sixth interval (music)s:
** major sixth, a musical interval
** minor six ...
. Under Fremantle's orders the islands or coastal towns of
Lagosta,
Curzola,
Carlopago,
Cherso,
Dignano,
Giuppana and others were systematically invaded, to be either held by British forces or have their shore facilities slighted to prevent their use by the French.
[James, Vol. 6, pp. 172–179]
Fremantle also despatched several officers, including Hoste, to operate independently. Hoste in ''Bacchante'' returned to Apulia and attacked a string of ports, castles and anchorages, while Captain
George Cadogan
General Sir George Cadogan (2 December 1814 – 27 January 1880) was a general in the British Army.
Life
The fifth son of George Cadogan, 3rd Earl Cadogan and Honoria Louisa Blake (and thus the younger brother of the 4th earl). He joined the ...
in
HMS ''Havannah'' effectively halted the movement of supplies along the northern Italian coast in support of the approaching
Austrian
Austrian may refer to:
* Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent
** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law
* Austrian German dialect
* Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ...
armies.
[Gardiner, p. 181] In June, Fremantle himself led his whole squadron against the important port city of
Fiume
Rijeka ( , , ; also known as Fiume hu, Fiume, it, Fiume ; local Chakavian: ''Reka''; german: Sankt Veit am Flaum; sl, Reka) is the principal seaport and the third-largest city in Croatia (after Zagreb and Split). It is located in Prim ...
, seizing or burning 90 vessels from the harbour and huge quantities of naval stores after a sharp battle in the city streets.
[James, Vol. 6, p. 179] Three months later, Fremantle attacked the city of
Trieste
Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into pr ...
, blockading it from the sea, bombarding its defences and landing marines and cannon to join with the besieging Austrian armies and force the city's surrender.
[James, Vol. 6, p. 180]
End in the Adriatic
In the autumn of 1813, British raiders enjoyed unopposed domination over the Adriatic sea. Working in conjunction with the Austrian armies now invading the Illyrian Provinces and Northern Italy, Fremantle's ships were able to rapidly transport British and Austrian troops from one point to another, forcing
the surrender of the strategic port of
Zara in December.
Cattaro was captured in collaboration with Montenegrin ground troops, and the
same result occurred at Ragusa in January 1814.
[James, Vol. 6, p. 257] By 16 February 1814, Fremantle wrote to his superior
Sir Edward Pellew that every French harbour had been captured by British or Austrian troops. Over 700 French merchant ships had been seized and the only remaining French outpost in the region was Corfu.
[Fremantle, Sir Thomas Francis](_blank)
''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...
'', J. K. Laughton, (subscription required), Retrieved 18 June 2008 The last surviving French warship in the region, the frigate
''Uranie'', was destroyed by its own crew at
Brindisi
Brindisi ( , ) ; la, Brundisium; grc, Βρεντέσιον, translit=Brentésion; cms, Brunda), group=pron is a city in the region of Apulia in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea.
Histo ...
on 3 February to prevent her falling into British hands.
[Clowes, p. 562]
The abdication of Napoleon in early April 1814 brought the War of the Sixth Coalition to a close. Corfu, the longest-held French territory in the Adriatic surrendered and was added to the
United States of the Ionian Islands
The United States of the Ionian Islands ( el, Ἡνωμένον Κράτος τῶν Ἰονίων Νήσων, Inoménon-Krátos ton Ioníon Níson, United State of the Ionian Islands; it, Stati Uniti delle Isole Ionie) was a Greek state and a ...
under British protection.
Aftermath
Many awards were presented in Britain for service in the Adriatic, Hoste, Maxwell and Fremantle among those knighted in the 1815 reforms to the knightly orders, as well as the recipients of a large amount of prize money for their captures in the theatre. The dearth of significant fleet actions in the last nine years of the war also increased public interest in actions such as that at Lissa, which were widely celebrated both before and after the peace.
[Hoste, Sir William](_blank)
''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...
'', J. K. Laughton, (subscription required), Retrieved 22 June 2008[Ireland p. 194]
Impact
Although a minor theatre of the Napoleonic Wars, the naval campaign in the Adriatic may have had far reaching consequences for the wider conflict. In particular, the events of 1811 were studied closely by Napoleon; in a chance meeting with Murray Maxwell in 1817, the former Emperor recalled Maxwell's action on 29 November 1811 intimately and commended Maxwell on his victory.
[Henderson, p. 162] The agreement between France and Russia to support each other in operations against the Ottoman Empire could not have been fulfilled without secure supply lines from France to the Balkans and those supply lines could not be assured without naval control of the Adriatic.
[Henderson, p. 111] British historian James Henderson has linked the action of November 1811 to this strategic problem, suggesting that the loss of the convoy and its 200 cannon may have been a factor in Napoleon's decision to change the emphasis of his planned campaign of 1812 from the Balkans to Russia.
[Henderson, p. 152]
On a smaller scale, the Adriatic was one of the few areas in which French and British ships saw regular combat during the period, ''Rivoli'' being the last French ship of the line captured in battle at sea.
The drain of resources from the French Mediterranean Fleet to the Adriatic in the final years of the Napoleonic Wars, prompted by the need to convoy supplies to the isolated garrison of Corfu, frustrated successive French admirals, particularly after the death of Dubourdieu in 1811. The British blockade of Toulon stifled efforts to rebuild forces lost in battle and through accident to such a degree, that by 1812 British ships were free to operate almost with impunity, keeping thousands of French and Italian soldiers that would otherwise have been deployed against the Sixth Coalition in garrisons along the coastline.
In the final months of the war, the ability of the Royal Navy to strike at any point on the coast without opposition undermined the entire defensive structure of the French forces in the region and eased the capture of several heavily defended port cities by the advancing Austrian armies.
Notes
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Adriatic campaign of 1807-1814
Conflicts in 1807
Conflicts in 1808
Conflicts in 1809
Conflicts in 1810
Conflicts in 1811
Conflicts in 1812
Conflicts in 1813
Conflicts in 1814
Campaigns of the Napoleonic Wars
Naval battles involving the United Kingdom
Naval battles involving France
Naval battles involving Italy
History of the Adriatic Sea
Battles involving Montenegro
French rule in the Ionian Islands (1807–1814)