The action at La Hogue occurred during the pursuit by the English of the French fleet after the

Battle of Barfleur The action at Barfleur was part of the battle of Barfleur-La Hougue during the War of the Grand Alliance. A French fleet under Anne Hilarion de Tourville was seeking to cover an invasion of England by a French army to restore James II to the ...

on 19 May

Old Style Old Style (O.S.) and New Style (N.S.) indicate dating systems before and after a calendar change, respectively. Usually, they refer to the change from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar as enacted in various European countries betwe ...

(29 May (

New Style Old Style (O.S.) and New Style (N.S.) indicate dating systems before and after a calendar change, respectively. Usually, they refer to the change from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar as enacted in various Europe, European countrie ...

)), 1692, during the

Nine Years' War The Nine Years' War was a European great power conflict from 1688 to 1697 between Kingdom of France, France and the Grand Alliance (League of Augsburg), Grand Alliance. Although largely concentrated in Europe, fighting spread to colonial poss ...

. The pursuing English fleet, under the command of

Admiral of the Fleet An admiral of the fleet or shortened to fleet admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to field marshal and marshal of the air force. An admiral of the fleet is typically senior to an admiral. It is also a generic ter ...

Edward Russell, 1st Earl of Orford Admiral of the Fleet Edward Russell, 1st Earl of Orford, (1653 – 26 November 1727) was a Royal Navy officer and politician. After serving as a junior officer at the Battle of Solebay during the Third Anglo-Dutch War, he served as a captai ...

, destroyed a number of French ships that had been beached near the port of

Saint-Vaast-la-Hougue Saint-Vaast-la-Hougue () is a Communes of France, commune in the Manche Departments of France, department in Normandy (administrative region), Normandy in north-western France. It is particularly known for being a major site of fortifications des ...

Background

During the Nine Years War, the English and French fleets had engaged off the coast of Normandy. Tourville's fleet of badly damaged ships was swept by wind and tide down the coast of the

Cotentin peninsula The Cotentin Peninsula (, ; ), also known as the Cherbourg Peninsula, is a peninsula in Normandy that forms part of the northwest coast of France. It extends north-westward into the English Channel, towards Great Britain. To its west lie the Gu ...

, pursued by an English fleet under

. The French beached three of their most badly damaged ships at

Cherbourg-en-Cotentin Cherbourg-en-Cotentin (, ; Norman: ''Tchidbouo'') is a port city in the department of Manche, Normandy, northwestern France, established on 1 January 2016.attacked and destroyed by an English squadron under

Vice Admiral of the Red Vice-Admiral of the Red was a senior rank of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom, immediately outranked by the rank admiral of the Blue (see order of precedence below). Royal Navy officers currently holding the ranks of commodore, rear admiral ...

Sir Ralph Delaval. The remaining ten French ships, commanded by Tourville and four of his flag officers, were swept down the coast, to be beached on the evening of 21 May (OS) outside the small port of

Action

Situation 21 May 1692

This was the place where the French had assembled an army, under the command of James II, and fleet of transports, for the invasion of England. Tourville's force joined two of the ships that had retired from the battle with Nesmond ( ''Bourbon'' 68 and ''Saint-Louis'' 64), which had been beached at la Hougue the day before. The ships were put ashore in two groups on the wide beaches on either side of the town. On the north beach, between the town and the small tidal island of

Tatihou Tatihou is an islet of Normandy in France with an area of . It is located to the east of the Cotentin peninsula just off the coast near Saint-Vaast-la-Hougue. It is almost uninhabited, and is usually reached by amphibious craft although, being a ...

, lay ''Ambitieux'' 96 guns, (flagship of Villette Mursay and Tourville), ''Merveillieux'' 90 ( d’Amfreville), ''Foudroyant'' 84 ( Relingue), and ''Magnifique'' 86 ( Coetlogon). With them was the smaller ''St Philippe'' 84, and, further out on the shore of Tatihou, the ''Terrible'' 80. These ships were covered by shore batteries at the Fort d’Islet, on Tatihou (44 guns in total), and on platforms set up by the army on the north shore. On the south beach, under the eyes of James and his army at Morsalines, were the ''Bourbon'' 68, and ''St Louis'' 64, from Nesmond's division, and ''Fier'' 80, ''Tonnant'' 80, ''Gaillard'' 68, and ''Fort'' 60, which came in with Tourville. These were covered by the 68 guns of Fort St Vaast, and artillery on gun platforms along the shore. Also, in a small harbour known as the port of La Hougue, which was behind the town of St Vaast and under the guns of the fort, was the fleet of transports prepared for the invasion. The fleet was also protected by a fleet of 200 boats, and 3 oared galleys mounting 12 guns each. James' offer to station troops on the ships to guard against boarding was not taken up.

Preparations 22 May

The English fleet, under Russell, started to arrive on the evening of 21 May; the rest of the fleet joined during the night and over the next two days. Russell immediately organised an inshore squadron under the

Rear-admiral of the red Rear-Admiral of the Red was a senior rank of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom, immediately outranked by the rank Vice-Admiral of the Blue (see order of precedence below). Royal Navy officers currently holding the ranks of commodore, rear adm ...

, Sir

Cloudesley Shovell Admiral of the Fleet Sir Cloudesley Shovell ( – 22/23 October 1707) was an Royal Navy officer and politician. As a junior officer he saw action at the Battle of Solebay and Battle of Texel during the Third Anglo-Dutch War. As a captain he fo ...

, to attack the French positions, but Shovell later collapsed from wounds received at Barfleur. He had to be replaced by

Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

George Rooke Admiral of the Fleet (Royal Navy), Admiral of the Fleet Sir George Rooke (1650 – 24 January 1709) was an Royal Navy officer and politician. As a junior officer he saw action at the Battle of Solebay and again at the Battle of Schooneveld duri ...

, while the waters around St Vaast and La Hougue had to be sounded, which took up most of the 22nd. The assault did not start until the following day. Russell also used the 22nd to organise the 3rd and 4th rates of his command to form a blockade line close inshore, while the bigger 1st and 2nd rates were set to organise boats and boarding crews. The Earl of Danby was keen to take part in the action, and appealed first to Shovell, and later to Rooke, to do so. In the assault he was given command of the boat parties that went close inshore. Benjamin West - William Woollett - The Battle at La Hogue

Benjamin West - William Woollett - The Battle at La Hogue

First Action 23 May

At 6am on the 23, the ships of the inshore squadron were ordered to attack the ships on the north beach. After a preliminary bombardment the boats were despatched, and about 8.30 am one of the fireships grappled the ''Terrible'', which was in a more exposed position. Finding her deserted, the fireship captain refrained from igniting his ship, but boarded ''Terrible'' and started fires with what material was to hand; for this he was much commended in saving his charge for a better occasion. Meanwhile, the boats closed with the other ships. They were accompanied by another fireship, which drew the fire from the French batteries; the supporting ships countered, sweeping the French gun platforms, which were too exposed to continue. One boat, from the ''Eagle'', grounded on the shore, and was attacked by French cavalry. In a highly unusual encounter, one of the troopers was pulled down by a sailor using a boathook, before the boat was re-floated. Resistance melted away as the attack was pressed, and the English sailors were able to board and fire the five remaining great ships along the north beach.

Second Action 24 May

The second action opened at 5am on the 24 when Rooke again sent in his boats, to attack the six great ships on the south beach. Supported by gunfire from ''Deptford'' and ''Crown'', and with close support from ''Charles'' and ''Greyhound'', both under oars, the English sailors were able to board and fire all six ships. The French seamen, and the troops ashore, were demoralised by this point, and had abandoned the ships with little resistance in the face of the determined English assault. This episode was seen by James II, who had been watching from his camp at Marsaline; he was moved to remark, with the lack of tact for which he was notorious, “Only my English tars could have done such a deed”.

Third Action 24 May

Rooke now saw an opportunity to follow up the success with an attack, at high water, on the transports in La Hougue harbour. The boats, led by Rooke, and with two fireships in tow, entered the harbour on the flooding tide, despite gunfire from both the fort and the ships. Both fireships grounded in the shallows below the fort, and had to be burned without result, but a number of ships in the harbour were boarded and set alight, mostly transports, but also a 4th or 5th rate warship and a hulk. Several other of the transports were captured, and carried away when the boats retreated on the ebb, but most of the transports were too far up the harbour to be boarded, and escaped serious damage.

Conclusion

This marked the end of the action, which had been a complete success for the allied fleet; 12 French ships of the line and a number of smaller ships had been destroyed, with minimal English casualties. The action also dashed any hope that James or Louis might have had to mount an invasion that year.

Ships

English :
: Perhaps 30 ships of the line, of which
The Inshore Squadron : 15 ships of the line plus auxiliaries (from the Red Squadron) ''Eagle'' 70, ''Chester'' 50, ''Greenwich'' 54, ''Swiftsure''70, ''Kent'' 70,'' Oxford'' 54,'' Cambridge'' 70,
(from the Blue Squadron) ''Deptford'' 50, ''Woolwich'' 54, ''Crown'' 50, ''Dreadnought'' 64, ''Stirling Castle'' 70, ''Warspite'' 70, ''Berwick'' 70, ''Resolution'' 70. French :
12 ships of the line, plus auxiliaries. 1st Rank – ''Ambitieux'' 96, ''Merveilleux'' 90, ''Foudroyant'' 84, ''Magnifique'' 86, and ''Saint Philippe'' 84
2nd Rank – ''Terrible'' 80, ''Bourbon'' 68, ''Fier'' 80, and ''Tonnant'' 80
3rd Rank – ''St Louis'' 64, ''Gaillard'' 68, and ''Fort'' 60,

References

* Aubrey P: The Defeat of James Stuart's Armada 1692(1979). . * Jenkins, E.H.: ''A History of the French Navy'' (1973) *

N. A. M. Rodger Nicholas Andrew Martin Rodger, FSA, FRHistS, FBA (born 12 November 1949) is an English historian who is currently senior research fellow of All Souls College, Oxford. Life and academia The son of Lieutenant Commander Ian Alexander Rodger, Ro ...

: ''The Command of The Ocean''. (2004) . * A.T. Mahan : The Influence of Sea-Power upon History 1660–1805. .

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:La Hogue 1692 1692 in France Naval battles of the Nine Years' War involving England Naval battles of the Nine Years' War involving France Naval battles of the Nine Years' War involving the Dutch Republic Military history of Manche Conflicts in 1692