The Battle of Port Louis was a minor naval engagement of 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 ...

, fought on 11 December 1799 at the mouth of the Tombeau River near

Port Louis Port Louis (french: Port-Louis; mfe, label= Mauritian Creole, Polwi or , ) is the capital city of Mauritius. It is mainly located in the Port Louis District, with a small western part in the Black River District. Port Louis is the country's ...

on the French

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by ...

island of Île de France, later known as

Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label= Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It ...

. ''Preneuse'' had originally been part of a powerful squadron of six frigates sent to the Indian Ocean in 1796 under the command of Contre-amiral Pierre César Charles de Sercey, but the squadron dispersed in 1798 and by the summer of 1799 ''Preneuse'' was the only significant French warship remaining in the region. The battle was the culmination of a three-month raiding cruise by the 40-gun

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 ...

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 ...

''Preneuse'', commanded by Captain Jean-Matthieu-Adrien Lhermitte. Ordered to raid British commerce in the

Mozambique Channel The Mozambique Channel (french: Canal du Mozambique, mg, Lakandranon'i Mozambika, pt, Canal de Moçambique) is an arm of the Indian Ocean located between the Southeast African countries of Madagascar and Mozambique. The channel is about l ...

, Lhermitte's cruise had been eventful, with an inconclusive encounter with a squadron of small British warships in

Algoa Bay Algoa Bay is a maritime bay in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. It is located in the east coast, east of the Cape of Good Hope. Algoa Bay is bounded in the west by Cape Recife and in the east by Cape Padrone. The bay is up to deep. The harbour c ...

on 20 September and an engagement with the 50-gun HMS ''Jupiter'' during heavy weather on 9–11 October. Returning to Île de France in December, Lhermitte steered for Port Louis but was intercepted by the British

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 ...

squadron, comprising the 74-gun

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 ...

HMS ''Tremendous'' and the 50-gun HMS ''Adamant''. Unable to reach safety, Lhermitte evaded pursuit long enough to drive ''Preneuse'' onto a beach at the mouth of the Tombeau. After a brief exchange of fire the wrecked frigate was surrendered and British boarding parties in

ship's boats A ship's boat is a utility boat carried by a larger vessel. Ship's boats have always provided communication with the shore and with other ships. Other work done by such boats has varied over time, as marine technology has changed. In the age o ...

rowed inshore to ''Preneuse'', removed the survivors and burnt the remains. Watching from the shore as the last of his command burned on the beach, Sercey subsequently retired from military service.

Background

In 1796 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 ...

dominance in the East Indies during the

was challenged by the arrival of a squadron of six

frigates, commanded by Contre-amiral Pierre César Charles de Sercey. Among these ships was the new 40-gun frigate ''Preneuse'', commanded by Captain Jean-Matthieu-Adrien Lhermitte. ''Preneuse'' had not sailed from France with Sercey, instead passing independently through the Atlantic and uniting with the squadron at

on Île de France. Sercey deployed his squadron to the

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, whic ...

, but suffered frustration at the

action of 9 September 1796 The action of 9 September 1796 was an inconclusive minor naval engagement between small French Navy and British Royal Navy squadrons off northeastern Sumatra, near Banda Aceh, during the French Revolutionary Wars. The French squadron comprised si ...

and the Bali Strait Incident of January 1797 and subsequently returned to the base at Port Louis. There the squadron began to fracture, with a succession of ships sent back to France or detached on independent missions. ''Preneuse'' separated in March 1798, carrying messages of support and 86 military volunteers for the

Tipu Sultan Tipu Sultan (born Sultan Fateh Ali Sahab Tipu, 1 December 1751 – 4 May 1799), also known as the Tiger of Mysore, was the ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore based in South India. He was a pioneer of rocket artillery.Dalrymple, p. 243 He i ...

of the

Kingdom of Mysore The Kingdom of Mysore was a realm in South India, southern India, traditionally believed to have been founded in 1399 in the vicinity of the modern city of Mysore. From 1799 until 1950, it was a princely state, until 1947 in a subsidiary allia ...

, an enemy of the British in Southern India who sought to form an alliance with France. Lhermitte's instructions emphasised subtlety in the operation, but on 20 April he attacked the British port of

Tellicherry Thalassery (), formerly Tellicherry, is a municipality, Commercial City on the Malabar Coast in Kannur district, in the state of Kerala, India, bordered by the districts of Mahé (Pondicherry), Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kasaragod and Kodagu (Karnat ...

and seized 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 ...

merchant ships ''Woodcot'' and ''Raymond''. This alerted the British to ''Preneuse'''s mission and although the reinforcements were landed safely at

Mangalore Mangalore (), officially known as Mangaluru, is a major port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bangalore, the state capital, 20 km north of Karnataka– ...

on 24 April, diplomatic relations between the British and Mysore collapsed, leading to the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War the following year in which Tipu Sultan was killed and his kingdom absorbed into

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

. Lhermitte then sailed to rejoin Sercey and the corvette ''Brûle-Gueule'' at Batavia in the Dutch East Indies for a planned junction with an allied Spanish squadron at

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populated ...

. This combined force then attacked an

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Sou ...

convoy gathering in the

Pearl River The Pearl River, also known by its Chinese name Zhujiang or Zhu Jiang in Mandarin pinyin or Chu Kiang and formerly often known as the , is an extensive river system in southern China. The name "Pearl River" is also often used as a catch-a ...

in January 1799, but in the ensuing Macau Incident they were driven off by the Royal Navy escort squadron. Dispirited, Sercey returned westwards to Île de France, narrowly avoiding an unequal battle with a large British squadron blockading the port. On arrival he discovered that ''Preneuse'' and ''Brûle-Gueule'' were the only ships remaining of his original command, the others having returned to France or been lost in battle.

Battle

Algoa Bay

In September 1799 Sercey dispersed his remaining ships. ''Brûle-Gueule'' was sent back to France on 26 September carrying condemned political prisoners; the corvette was eventually wrecked on the

Pointe du Raz The Pointe du Raz is a promontory that extends into the Atlantic from western Brittany, in France. The local Breton name is ''Beg ar Raz''. It is the western point of the ''commune'' of Plogoff, Finistère. It is named after the ''Raz de Sein' ...

with heavy loss of life. ''Preneuse'' was ordered to operate against British trade off the coast of Southeast Africa, sailing from Port Louis on 4 August. Lhermitte focused his efforts on the

and the approaches to the

British Cape Colony The Cape Colony ( nl, Kaapkolonie), also known as the Cape of Good Hope, was a British colony in present-day South Africa named after the Cape of Good Hope, which existed from 1795 to 1802, and again from 1806 to 1910, when it united with th ...

and on 20 September encountered a squadron anchored in

comprising the 24-gun naval storeship HMS ''Camel'', the 16-gun HMS Rattlesnake (1791) and the

schooner A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoo ...

''Surprise'', the former ships lying with their masts and rigging removed. This force was supporting an expeditionary army under General Francis Dundas fighting the Third Xhosa War. ''Camel'' was laden with military supplies but neither ship was prepared for battle, with a 30 of ''Camel'''s sailors and 15 from ''Rattlesnake'' trapped on shore by the surf. Lhermitte approached the anchored ships at 18:00, flying false Danish colours, and anchored nearby. A

ship's boat A ship's boat is a utility boat carried by a larger vessel. Ship's boats have always provided communication with the shore and with other ships. Other work done by such boats has varied over time, as marine technology has changed. In the age o ...

from ''Camel'' approached the new arrival, rapidly realising that ''Preneuse'' was a hostile frigate and returning to their ship. Lieutenant William Fothergill, the most senior officer with the convoy, fired warning shots close to the frigate, which Lhermitte ignored. Both British ships then prepared for action. At 20:30, ''Preneuse'' began to approach ''Rattlesnake'' and Fothergill opened fire immediately, joined by ''Camel''. Lhermitte returned fire, focusing its

broadside Broadside or broadsides may refer to: Naval * Broadside (naval), terminology for the side of a ship, the battery of cannon on one side of a warship, or their near simultaneous fire on naval warfare Printing and literature * Broadside (comic ...

on ''Camel''. By midnight ''Camel'' had taken several shot in the hull causing widespread flooding, and the crew ceased firing to man the pumps. Lhermitte apparently believed that ''Camel'' had abandoned the fight and he switched fire towards ''Rattlesnake'', the engagement continuing until 03:30 at which point Lhermitte slipped his anchor and pulled out of range. Remaining in the bay until 10:00 before standing out to sea. British losses were two killed and twelve wounded, both ''Camel'' and ''Rattlesnake'' badly damaged. It was later reported in French sources that Lhermitte believed the schooner ''Surprise'' to be a well armed 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 ...

, prompting his withdrawal. ''Preneuse'''s loss in the action was around 40 killed and wounded, and the frigate was reported to be badly damaged; messages to this effect were hastily sent to the commander at the Cape, Captain George Losack who sent the 50-gun HMS ''Jupiter'' in pursuit. On 9 October after spending the night with the convoy in Algoa Bay, ''Jupiter'' discovered ''Preneuse'' at and gave chase. The sea was turbulent due to a strong

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 ).sternchasers. Granger rapidly gained on the damaged ''Preneuse'' but the state of the sea made it impossible for him to safely open his lower deck gunports and a long-range duel continued at high speed throughout the night and much of the following two days. At 14:00 on 10 October Granger was finally close enough to bring Lhermitte to action, but found that with his 24-pounder guns unusable he was restricted to his upper deck 12-pounder guns, which were no match for Lhermitte's main battery. As a result, the rigging on ''Jupiter'' was rapidly shot away and the British ship fell back for urgent repairs and ''Preneuse'' was able to take the opportunity to escape. Granger returned to

Table Bay Table Bay (Afrikaans: ''Tafelbaai'') is a natural bay on the Atlantic Ocean overlooked by Cape Town (founded 1652 by Van Riebeeck) and is at the northern end of the Cape Peninsula, which stretches south to the Cape of Good Hope. It was named b ...

on 16 October.

Chase off Port Louis

Lhermitte had little subsequent success, and ''Preneuse'' returned to Port Louis in early December 1799. The entrance to the port was blockaded by the 74-gun

HMS ''Tremendous'' under Captain John Osbornhttp://www.pbenyon.plus.com/Navy_List_1805/Officers/Captains.html, Captains Serving in the Royal Navy - May 1805 and the 50-gun HMS ''Adamant'' under Captain William Hotham. These ships had been sent specifically to intercept ''Preneuse'', arriving at Port Louis on 7 December and successfully intercepting the merchant French vessels ''Benjamin'' and ''Bienfait'' and the Spanish ''Nuestra Señora del Carmen''. Four days later they sighted the approaching frigate and chased it northeast, ''Adamant'' pressing so close that Lhermitte could not escape and was forced to drive the frigate on shore at the mouth of the Tombeau River within range of a large shore battery. At 15:00 Lhermitte ordered the masts on ''Preneuse'' to be cut away and the frigate and battery then opened fire on ''Adamant'', which was carefully sailing through the coastal shoals in an effort to engage the beached French ship. For more than two hours Hotham's ship worked its way inshore until at 17:30 it was well positioned to open fire, unleashing its broadside on the wrecked ''Preneuse''. By 17:45 it was clear that further resistance was futile and Lhermitte struck his colours. ''Preneuse'' had surrendered, but was likely damaged beyond repair. Hotham and Osborn discussed the situation and determined to destroy the wreck to deny it to the French. To this end, three cutters were gathered and a

boarding party ''Boarding Party'' is a solitaire science fiction board game published by Task Force Games in 1982 that simulates a boarding party of humans trying to deactivate a killer spaceship. Description ''Boarding Party'' is a solitaire microgame in whic ...

under Lieutenant Edward Grey sent in to attack ''Preneuse'' at 20:00. This party came under fire from the batteries but was able to successfully access the battered French frigate at 21:00, finding that only the officers and a handful of sailors remained, the others having been given the opportunity to escape to the shore in boats rather than become

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 ...

. Among the captives was Lhermitte, who was permitted to bring his personal baggage with him before he was brought to the British squadron as a prisoner. Grey then set the wrecked ship alight before returning to ''Adamant'', having executed his orders without losing a single man.

Aftermath

As ''Preneuse'' had gone ashore near

, Sercey had come to observe the engagement and therefore witnessed the destruction of the last of his squadron of 1796. A commander without a command he subsequently took ship back to France and there retired from his commission, later returning to his family and settling on Île de France. The action temporarily left the French with no naval forces in the East Indies at all, although raiding cruises by

privateers 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 ...

still posed a considerable threat to the British Indian Ocean trade routes. The only subsequent reinforcement to arrive in the region during the war was the frigate ''Chiffonne'' was intercepted and captured at the

Battle of Mahé The Battle of Mahé was a minor naval engagement of the last year of the French Revolutionary Wars, fought on 19 August 1801 in the harbour of Mahé, Seychelles, Mahé in the Seychelles, a French colony in the Indian Ocean. Since the demise of t ...

shortly after arrival in 1801, although substantial reinforcements did reach Île de France before the outbreak 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 1803. Lhermitte subsequently came under criticism from historians for his failure to inflict greater damage on the light force in Algoa Bay:

William James William James (January 11, 1842 – August 26, 1910) was an American philosopher, historian, and psychologist, and the first educator to offer a psychology course in the United States. James is considered to be a leading thinker of the lat ...

described it as "a somewhat discreditable action". Granger was also heavily criticised for his performance in the action on 11 October:

William Laird Clowes Sir William Laird Clowes (1 February 1856 – 14 August 1905) was a British journalist and historian whose principal work was ''The Royal Navy, A History from the Earliest Times to 1900'', a text that is still in print. He also wrote numerous ...

considered that "No explanation of the ''Jupiter'''s failure can be given", while James wrote of the action with ''Jupiter'' that "Undoubtedly it was a cause of triumph to Captain L'Hermite and well calculated to wipe away the disgrace incurred by ''Preneuse'' at Algoa bay".

Citations

References

* * at

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Port Louis, Battle of Conflicts in 1799 1799 in France Naval battles involving France Naval battles involving Great Britain Naval battles of the French Revolutionary Wars Military history of Mauritius