The action of 13 January 1797 (known by the French as the Naufrage du ''Droits de l'Homme''; "shipwreck

r sinking R, or r, is the eighteenth letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ar'' (pronounced ), plural ''ars'', or in Irela ...

of the ''Droits de l'Homme''") was a minor naval battle fought between a French

ship of the line A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed during the Age of Sail from the 17th century to the mid-19th century. The ship of the line was designed for the naval tactic known as the line of battle, which depended on the two colu ...

and two British

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 ...

s off the coast of

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...

during the

French Revolutionary Wars 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 ...

. During the action the frigates outmanoeuvred the much larger French vessel and drove it onto shore in heavy seas, resulting in the deaths of between 400 and 1,000 of the 1,300 persons aboard. One of the British frigates was also lost in the engagement with six sailors drowned after running onto a sandbank while failing to escape a lee shore. The French 74-gun ship ''Droits de l'Homme'' had been part of the '' Expédition d'Irlande'', an unsuccessful attempt by a French expeditionary force to invade Ireland. During the operation, the French fleet was beset by poor coordination and violent weather, eventually being compelled to return to France without landing a single soldier. Two British frigates, the 44-gun and the 36-gun , had been ordered to patrol the seas off

Ushant Ushant (; br, Eusa, ; french: Ouessant, ) is a French island at the southwestern end of the English Channel which marks the westernmost point of metropolitan France. It belongs to Brittany and, in medieval terms, Léon. In lower tiers of govern ...

in an attempt to intercept the returning French force and sighted the ''Droits de l'Homme'' on the afternoon of 13 January. The engagement lasted for more than 15 hours, in an increasing gale and the constant presence of the rocky Breton coast. The seas were so rough that the French ship was unable to open the lower gun ports during the action and as a result could only fire the upper deck guns, significantly reducing the advantage that a ship of the line would normally have over the smaller frigates. The damage the more manoeuvrable British vessels inflicted on the French ship was so severe that as the winds increased, the French crew lost control and the ''Droits de l'Homme'' was swept onto a sandbar and destroyed.

Background

In December 1796, during the

, a French expeditionary force departed from Brest on an expedition to invade Ireland. This army of 18,000 French soldiers was intended to link up with the secret organisation of

Irish Republicanism Irish republicanism ( ga, poblachtánachas Éireannach) is the political movement for the unity and independence of Ireland under a republic. Irish republicans view British rule in any part of Ireland as inherently illegitimate. The develop ...

known as the

United Irishmen The Society of United Irishmen was a sworn association in the Kingdom of Ireland formed in the wake of the French Revolution to secure "an equal representation of all the people" in a national government. Despairing of constitutional reform, ...

and provoke a widespread uprising throughout the island.Pakenham, p. 24. It was hoped that the resulting war would force Britain to make peace with 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 ...

or risk losing control of Ireland altogether. Led by Vice-Admiral Morard de Galles, General

Lazare Hoche Louis Lazare Hoche (; 24 June 1768 – 19 September 1797) was a French military leader of the French Revolutionary Wars. He won a victory over Royalist forces in Brittany. His surname is one of the names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe, on ...

and leader of the United Irishmen

Wolfe Tone Theobald Wolfe Tone, posthumously known as Wolfe Tone ( ga, Bhulbh Teón; 20 June 176319 November 1798), was a leading Irish revolutionary figure and one of the founding members in Belfast and Dublin of the United Irishmen, a republican socie ...

, the invasion fleet included 17 ships of the line, 27 smaller warships and transports, and carried extensive

field artillery Field artillery is a category of mobile artillery used to support armies in the field. These weapons are specialized for mobility, tactical proficiency, short range, long range, and extremely long range target engagement. Until the early 20t ...

, cavalry and military stores to equip the Irish irregular forces they hoped to raise.

Departure from Brest

Morard de Galles planned to sail his fleet from the French naval fortress of Brest under cover of darkness on the night of 15–16 December.Henderson, p. 21. The British

Channel Fleet The Channel Fleet and originally known as the Channel Squadron was the Royal Navy formation of warships that defended the waters of the English Channel from 1854 to 1909 and 1914 to 1915. History Throughout the course of Royal Navy's history the ...

normally maintained a squadron off Brest to

blockade A blockade is the act of actively preventing a country or region from receiving or sending out food, supplies, weapons, or communications, and sometimes people, by military force. A blockade differs from an embargo or sanction, which are leg ...

the port, but its commander, Rear-Admiral

John Colpoys Admiral Sir John Colpoys, (''c.'' 1742 – 4 April 1821) was an officer of the British Royal Navy who served in three wars but is most notable for being one of the catalysts of the Spithead Mutiny in 1797 after ordering his marines to fire ...

, had withdrawn his force from its usual station offshore to northwest of Brest because of severe

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

winter

gale A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface winds moving at a speed of between 34 and 47 knots (, or ). The only British ships within sight of Brest were an inshore squadron of frigates under Sir Edward Pellew in , accompanied by , , and the

lugger A lugger is a sailing vessel defined by its rig, using the lug sail on all of its one or several masts. They were widely used as working craft, particularly off the coasts of France, England, Ireland and Scotland. Luggers varied extensively ...

HMS ''Duke of York''. Pellew was already renowned, having been the first British officer of the war to capture a French frigate: the ''Cléopâtre'' at the

action of 18 June 1793 The action of 18 June 1793 was one of the most celebrated encounters between British and French frigates during the French Revolutionary Wars. The action occurred off Start Point in Devon, when the British frigate HMS ''Nymphe'' encountered a ...

. He later captured the frigates ''Pomone'' and ''Virginie'' in 1794 and 1796, and saved 500 lives following the shipwreck of the

East Indiaman East Indiaman was a general name for any sailing ship operating under charter or licence to any of the East India trading companies of the major European trading powers of the 17th through the 19th centuries. The term is used to refer to vesse ...

''Dutton'' in January 1796. For these actions he had first been

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the G ...

and then raised to a baronetcy. ''Indefatigable'' was a razee, one of the largest frigates in the

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 ...

, originally constructed as a 64-gun third rate and cut down to 44 guns in 1795 to make the ship fast and powerful enough to catch and fight the largest of French frigates. Armed with 24-pounder cannon on the main decks and 42-pounder

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 ...

s on the quarter deck, she had a stronger armament than any equivalent French frigate. Edward Pellew

Observing the French fleet's departure from the harbour at dusk, Pellew immediately dispatched ''Phoebe'' to Colpoys and ''Amazon'' to the main fleet at

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most d ...

with warnings, before approaching the entrance to Brest in ''Indefatigable'' with the intention of disrupting French movements.Woodman, p. 84. Believing that the frigates in the bay must be the forerunners of a larger British force, de Galles attempted to pass his fleet through the

Raz de Sein Raz may refer to: Places France * Pointe du Raz, the western point of the ''commune'' of Plogoff, Finistère, France *Alderney Race (''Raz Blanchard''), a strong tidal current between La Hague and Alderney * Raz de Sein, a stretch of water located ...

. This channel was a narrow, rocky and dangerous passage, and de Galles used corvettes as temporary light ships that shone blue lights and fired fireworks to direct his main fleet through the passage. Pellew observed this, and sailed ''Indefatigable'' right through the French fleet, launching rockets and shining lights seemingly at random. This succeeded in confusing the French officers, causing the ''Séduisant'' to strike the Grand Stevenent rock and sink with the loss of over 680 men from a complement of 1,300. ''Séduisant'''s distress flares added to the confusion and delayed the fleet's passage until dawn. His task of observing the enemy completed, Pellew took his remaining squadron to Falmouth, sent a report to the

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong *Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral *Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings * Admiralty, Traf ...

semaphore telegraph Semaphore (; ) is the use of an apparatus to create a visual signal transmitted over distance. A semaphore can be performed with devices including: fire, lights, flags, sunlight, and moving arms. Semaphores can be used for telegraphy when ...

, and refitted his ships.

Failure of the ''Expédition d'Irlande''

During December 1796 and early January 1797, the French army repeatedly attempted to land in Ireland. Early in the voyage, the frigate ''Fraternité'' carrying de Galles and Hoche, was separated from the fleet and missed the rendezvous at Mizen Head. Admiral Bouvet and General Grouchy decided to attempt the landing at

Bantry Bay Bantry Bay ( ga, Cuan Baoi / Inbhear na mBárc / Bádh Bheanntraighe) is a bay located in County Cork, Ireland. The bay runs approximately from northeast to southwest into the Atlantic Ocean. It is approximately 3-to-4 km (1.8-to-2.5 mil ...

without their commanders, but severe weather made any landing impossible.Henderson, p. 22. For more than a week the fleet waited for a break in the storm, until Bouvet abandoned the invasion on 29 December and, after a brief and unsuccessful effort to land at the mouth of the

River Shannon The River Shannon ( ga, Abhainn na Sionainne, ', '), at in length, is the longest river in the British Isles. It drains the Shannon River Basin, which has an area of , – approximately one fifth of the area of the island of Ireland. The Sha ...

, ordered his scattered ships to return to Brest. During the operation and subsequent retreat a further 11 ships were wrecked or captured, with the loss of thousands of soldiers and sailors. By 13 January most of the survivors of the fleet had limped back to France in a state of disrepair. One ship of the line that remained at sea, the 74-gun ''Droits de l'Homme'', was commanded by Commodore

Jean-Baptiste Raymond de Lacrosse Jean-Baptiste Raymond de Lacrosse ( Meilhan, 6 September 1760 – Meilhan, 10 September 1829) was a French sailor, admiral and hero of the French Revolutionary Wars. Career Lacrosse joined the Navy in 1779 as a Garde marine. He rose to ensei ...

and carried over 1,300 men, 700–800 of them soldiers, including General Jean Humbert.Parkinson, p. 177. Detached from the main body of the fleet during the retreat from Bantry Bay, Lacrosse made his way to the mouth of the Shannon alone. Recognising that the weather was still too violent for a landing to be made, Lacrosse acknowledged the failure of the operation and ordered the ship to return to France, capturing the British

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 ...

''Cumberland'' en route.Woodman, p. 86.

Chase

Pellew too was on his way back to Brest in ''Indefatigable'', accompanied by ''Amazon'' under the command of Captain Robert Carthew Reynolds. While the rest of the Channel Fleet had been pursuing the French without success, Pellew had had his ships refitted and resupplied at Falmouth so that both frigates were at full complement, well armed and prepared for action. At 13:00 on 13 January, the British ships were approaching the island of

in a heavy fog when they spied another ship through the gloom ahead.James, p. 11. This ship, clearly much larger than either of the British vessels, was the ''Droits de l'Homme''. At the same time, lookouts on the French ship spotted the British, and Lacrosse was faced with the dilemma of whether or not to engage the enemy. He knew that his ship was far larger than either of his opponents, but had earlier spotted sails to westwards he believed to be British and thus considered himself outnumbered and possibly surrounded. British records show that no other British vessels were in the vicinity at the time and it is likely that Lacrosse had seen the French ships ''Révolution'' and ''Fraternité'' returning to Brest from Bantry Bay. In addition, Lacrosse was concerned by the increasing gale and rocky lee shoreline, which posed a considerable threat to his over-laden vessel, which was already damaged from its winter voyage and carried a

demi-brigade A ''demi-brigade'' ( en, Half-brigade) is a military formation used by the French Army since the French Revolutionary Wars. The ''Demi-brigade'' amalgamated the various infantry organizations of the French Revolutionary infantry into a sing ...

of 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 ...

and Humbert, neither of which could be placed at risk in an inconsequential naval action.Henderson, p. 23. Determined to avoid battle, Lacrosse turned southeast, hoping to use his wider spread of sail to outrun his opponent in the strong winds. Pellew, however, manoeuvred to cut the ''Droits de l'Homme'' off from the French coast, at this stage still unsure of the nature of his opponent. As the chase developed, the weather, which had been violent for the entire preceding month, worsened. An Atlantic gale swept the Ushant headland, driving a blizzard eastwards and whipping the sea into a turbulent state, making steering and aiming more difficult. At 16:15, two of ''Droits de l'Homme'''s topmasts broke in the strong winds. This dramatically slowed the French ship, and allowed Pellew, who had recognised his opponent as a French ship of the line, to close with ''Droits de l'Homme''.Woodman, p. 87.

Battle

Pellew was aware that his frigate was heavily outclassed by his much larger opponent, and that ''Amazon'', which was distant, was not large enough to redress the balance when it did arrive. He correctly assumed, however, that the ocean was too rough to allow Lacrosse to open his lower gunports without the risk that heavy waves would enter them and cause ''Droits de l'Homme'' to founder.Gardiner, p. 159. In fact, the French ship was totally unable to open her lower deck gunports during the action: an unusual design feature had the ports lower than was normal and as a result the sea poured in at any attempt to open them, preventing any gunnery at all from the lower deck and halving the ship's firepower.James, p. 12. Although this reduced the number of available guns on the French vessel, Lacrosse still held the advantage in terms of size, weight of shot and manpower. The French situation was worsened however by the loss of the topmasts: this caused their ship to roll so severely in the high seas that it was far more difficult both to steer the ship and to aim the guns than on the British vessels. Droits de lHomme sinking

To the surprise of Lacrosse and his officers, ''Indefatigable'' did not retreat from the ship of the line, nor did she pass the ship of the line at long-range to

leeward Windward () and leeward () are terms used to describe the direction of the wind. Windward is ''upwind'' from the point of reference, i.e. towards the direction from which the wind is coming; leeward is ''downwind'' from the point of reference ...

as expected. Instead, at 17:30, Pellew closed with the stern of ''Droits de l'Homme'' and opened a

raking fire In naval warfare during the Age of Sail, raking fire was cannon fire directed parallel to the long axis of an enemy ship from ahead (in front of the ship) or astern (behind the ship). Although each shot was directed against a smaller profile ...

. Lacrosse turned to meet the threat and opened fire with the guns on the upper deck accompanied by a heavy volley of

musket 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 ...

fire from the soldiers on board. Pellew then attempted to pull ahead of ''Droits de l'Homme'' and rake her bow, to which Lacrosse responded by attempting to ram ''Indefatigable''. Neither manoeuvre was successful, as ''Droits de l'Homme'' raked the British ship but caused little damage as most of her shot scattered into the ocean. ''Indefatigable'' and ''Droits de l'Homme'' manoeuvred around one another, exchanging fire when possible until 18:45, when ''Amazon'' arrived. During this exchange, one of ''Droits de l'Homme''s

cannon A cannon is a large- caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder ...

burst, causing heavy casualties on her packed deck.Woodman, p. 88. Approaching the larger French ship with all sail spread, Reynolds closed to within pistol shot before raking ''Droits de l'Homme''. Lacrosse responded to this new threat by manoeuvring to bring both British ships to face the westward side of his ship, avoiding becoming trapped in a crossfire.Henderson, p. 24. The battle continued until 19:30, when both ''Amazon'' and ''Indefatigable'' pulled away from their opponent to make hasty repairs. By 20:30, the frigates had returned to the much slower French ship and began weaving in front of ''Droits de l'Homme''s bow, repeatedly raking her.Henderson, p. 25. Lacrosse's increasingly desperate attempts to ram the British ships were all unsuccessful and what little cannon fire he did manage to deploy was ineffectual, as the rolling of the ship of the line prevented reliable aiming. By 22:30, ''Droits de l'Homme'' was in severe difficulties, with heavy casualties among her crew and passengers and the loss of her mizzenmast to British fire. Observing the battered state of their opponent, Pellew and Reynolds closed on the stern quarters of the French ship, maintaining a high rate of fire that was sporadically returned by ''Droits de l'Homme''. Having exhausted the 4,000 cannonballs available, Lacrosse was forced to use the shells he was carrying, which had been intended for use by the army in Ireland. In the high winds, these proved even less effective than solid shot, but did drive the frigates to longer range. With their opponent almost immobilised, the British frigates were able to remain outside her arc of fire, effect repairs when necessary and secure guns that had broken loose in the heavy seas.Woodman, p. 89. For the rest of the night the three battered ships remained locked in a close range duel, until suddenly, at 04:20 while it was still dark, land was spotted just to leeward by Lieutenant George Bell of the ''Indefatigable''.

Shipwrecks

Pellew immediately turned seawards in an effort to escape the shore and signalled Reynolds to follow suit. Although both ships had suffered severe damage from the battle and weather, they were able to make the turn away from land, ''Amazon'' to the north and ''Indefatigable'', at the insistence of its Breton pilot, to the south. Initially it was believed that the land spotted was the island of Ushant, which would have given the ships plenty of sea-room in which to manoeuvre. However at 06:30, with the sky lightening, it became apparent on the ''Indefatigable'' that there were breakers to the south and east, indicating that the three ships had drifted during the night into Audierne Bay. On discovering his situation, Pellew was determined to bring his ship westwards, attempting to work his ship out of danger by beating against the wind. Hasty repairs had to be made to the damaged rigging before it was safe to alter their course. Due to her northwards turn, ''Amazon'' had even less room to manoeuvre than ''Indefatigable'' and by 05:00 she had struck a sandbank. Although the frigate remained upright, attempts over several hours to bring her off failed; at 08:00 Reynolds ordered his men to prepare to abandon ship. ''Droits de l'Homme'' had been more seriously damaged than the British frigates, and was closer to shore at the time land was spotted. As Lacrosse's crew made desperate efforts to turn southwards, the ship's foremast and

bowsprit The bowsprit of a sailing vessel is a spar extending forward from the vessel's prow. The bowsprit is typically held down by a bobstay A bobstay is a part of the rigging of a sailing boat or ship. Its purpose is to counteract the upward tensio ...

collapsed under the pressure of the wind. With the ship virtually unmanageable, Lacrosse ordered the anchors lowered in an attempt to hold the ship in position until repairs could be made. This effort was futile, as all but two anchors had been lost during efforts to hold position in Bantry Bay, and British gunfire had damaged one of the anchor cables and rendered it useless.James, p. 17. The final anchor was deployed, but it failed to restrain the ship and at 07:00 (according to the French account), the ''Droits de l'Homme'' struck a sandbank close to the town of Plozévet. This broke off the remaining mast and caused the ship to heel over onto her side.James, p. 18.

''Amazon''

As daylight broke over Audierne Bay, crowds of locals gathered on the beach. The ''Droits de l'Homme'' lay on her side directly opposite the town of Plozévet, with large waves breaking over her hull; to the north, ''Amazon'' stood upright on a sandbar, her crew launching boats in an effort to reach the shore, while ''Indefatigable'' was the only ship still afloat, rounding the

Penmarck rocks Point Penmarc'h, often spelled Point Penmarch, or in French Pointe de Penmarc'h, is the extremity of a small peninsula in Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France,''Merriam-Webster's Geographical Dictionary, Third Edition'', p. 915 ...

at the southern edge of the bay at 11:00. On board the ''Amazon'', Reynolds maintained discipline and gave orders to launch the ship's boats in an orderly fashion and to build rafts in which to bring the entire crew safely to shore. Six men disobeyed his command, stole a launch, and attempted to reach the shore alone, but were swept away by the current. Their boat was capsized by the waves, and all six drowned. The remaining crew, including those wounded in the previous night's action, were safely brought ashore by 09:00, where they were made

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of w ...

by the French authorities.Henderson, p. 29.

''Droits de l'Homme''

''Droits de l'Homme'' was irreparably damaged, and many of the men on board were soldiers with no training for what to do in the event of a shipwreck. Each successive wave swept more men into the water and desperate attempts to launch boats failed when the small craft were swept away by the waves and broken in the surf. Rafts were constructed, but several were swamped in attempts to carry a rope to the shore. The men on the one raft that remained upright were forced to cut the rope to prevent them from foundering in the heavy seas. Some of the men on this raft reached the beach, the first survivors of the wreck. Subsequent attempts were made by individuals to swim to shore with ropes, but they were either drowned or driven back to the ship by the force of the sea. With no aid possible from the shore, night fell on 14 January with most of the crew and passengers still aboard. During the night, the waves stove in the stern of the ship, flooding much of the interior. On the morning of 15 January, a small boat carrying nine British prisoners (part of the crew of the ''Cumberland'', captured by ''Droits de l'Homme'' earlier in the campaign) managed to reach shore. The sight of the British-manned boat reaching shore prompted a mass launching of small rafts from the wreck in hopes of gaining the beach. However the waves increased once more, and not one of these small craft survived the passage. By the morning of 16 January, the seas were still rough, whilst hunger and panic had taken over on the wreck. When a large raft carrying the wounded, two women and six children was launched during a lull in the weather, over 120 unwounded men scrambled to board it. This severely overloaded the craft and within minutes a large wave struck the heavy raft and capsized it, drowning all aboard.James, p. 19. By the evening, the remaining survivors, without food or fresh water, began to succumb to exposure, and at least one officer drowned in a desperate attempt to swim to shore. Throughout the night, the survivors gathered on the less exposed parts of the hull, and, in the hope of staving off death by dehydration, drank sea water, urine, or vinegar from a small barrel that had floated up from the hold.Pipon in Tracy, p. 170. The morning of 17 January finally saw a reduction in the storm and the arrival of a small French naval

brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the latter part ...

, the ''Arrogante''. This ship could not come close without the risk of grounding but sent her boats to the wreck in the hope of rescuing survivors. The brig was joined later in the day by the cutter ''Aiguille''. On the ''Droits de l'Homme'', many survivors were too weak to reach the boats, and a number of men fell from the hull and drowned in the attempt. Many more could not find room in the small boats, and only 150 men were rescued on 17 January. The following morning, when the boats returned, they found only 140 survivors left, at least as many again having died during the night. The last two people to leave the ship were the commanders

General Humbert General Jean Joseph Amable Humbert (22 August 1767 – 3 January 1823) was a French military officer who participated in several notable military conflicts of the late 18th and early 19th century. Born in the townland of La Coâre Saint-Nabord, ...

and Commodore Lacrosse. Taken to Brest, the survivors were fed and clothed and given medical treatment. All the surviving prisoners from the ''Cumberland'' were released and returned to Britain, in recognition of their efforts to save lives from the shipwreck.

Aftermath

Plozévet-Menhir des Droits de l'Homme(3)

Exact French casualties are difficult to calculate, but of the 1,300 aboard ''Droits de l'Homme'', 103 are known to have died in the battle and just over 300 were saved from the wreck, indicating the deaths of approximately 900 men on the French ship between the morning of 14 January and the morning of 18 January. However, a French source suggests that up to another 500 of the crew were rescued from the wreck by the corvette ''Arrogante'' and the cutter ''Aiguille'' on 17 and 18 January. This would give a toll of only about 400. A menhir at Plozévet, with an inscription carved in 1840 gives a death toll of six hundred. ''Amazon'' lost three in the battle and six in her wreck, with 15 wounded, while ''Indefatigable'' did not lose a single man killed, suffering only 18 wounded.James, p. 15. The discrepancy in losses during the action is likely due to the extreme difficulty the French crew had in aiming their guns given their ship's instability in heavy seas. Reynolds and his officers were exchanged for French prisoners some weeks later, and in the routine

court-martial A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...

investigating the loss of their ship were honourably acquitted "with every sentiment of the court's highest approbation." Reynolds was subsequently appointed to the large frigate . The senior lieutenants of each frigate were promoted to commander and head money (

prize money Prize money refers in particular to naval prize money, usually arising in naval warfare, but also in other circumstances. It was a monetary reward paid in accordance with the prize law of a belligerent state to the crew of a ship belonging to ...

based on the number of the enemy's crew and awarded when the defeated ship was destroyed) was distributed among the crews. Pellew remained in command of ''Indefatigable'' off Brest for another year and seized a number of French merchant ships. He was later promoted several times, and by the end of 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 1815 had become Lord Exmouth, Commander in Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet. Reynolds did not survive the war, dying in the wreck of in 1811. Lacrosse and Humbert were not censured for the loss of their ship: the commodore was promoted to admiral and later became ambassador to Spain, while Humbert led the next and equally unsuccessful attempt to invade Ireland, surrendering at the Battle of Ballinamuck in 1798. In Britain, the action was lauded at the time and since:

First Lord of the Admiralty The First Lord of the Admiralty, or formally the Office of the First Lord of the Admiralty, was the political head of the English and later British Royal Navy. He was the government's senior adviser on all naval affairs, responsible for the di ...

Lord Spencer described the operation as "an exploit which has not I believe ever before graced our naval annals". Historian James Henderson says of the action: "It was a feat of arms and seamanship such as had never been done before, and never was done again," and Richard Woodman calls it "a dazzling display of seamanship by all concerned in the alternating darkness and moonlight of a boisterous night". Five decades later the battle was among the actions recognised by the Naval General Service Medal, with clasps "Indefatigable 13 Jany. 1797" and "Amazon 13 Jany. 1797", awarded upon application to all British participants still living in 1847.

Notes

References

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External links

* {{authority control Conflicts in 1797 Naval battles involving France Naval battles of the French Revolutionary Wars Naval battles involving Great Britain