Raid On Saint Paul
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The raid on Saint-Paul was an
amphibious operation Amphibious warfare is a type of offensive military operation that today uses naval ships to project ground and air power onto a hostile or potentially hostile shore at a designated landing beach. Through history the operations were conducted ...
conducted by British forces against the port of Saint-Paul in the French colony of Isle Bonaparte during the
Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...
. It was launched on 20 September 1809 as both a precursor to a future full-scale invasion of Isle Bonaparte and in order to capture the French frigate ''Caroline'' and the
East Indiamen East Indiamen were merchant ships that operated under charter or licence for European Trading company, trading companies which traded with the East Indies between the 17th and 19th centuries. The term was commonly used to refer to vessels belon ...
she had seized in the action of 31 May 1809 which were sheltering in the harbour. The operation was a complete success, with British storming parties capturing the batteries overlooking the port, which allowed a naval squadron under Commodore
Josias Rowley Admiral Sir Josias Rowley, 1st Baronet, (1765 – 10 January 1842) was a Royal Navy officer and politician who served in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Birth and family Rowley was born in 1765 the second son of Clotworthy Rowle ...
to enter the bay and capture the shipping in the harbour. The French defenders of the town, despite initially resisting the attack, were unable to prevent the seizure of the port's defensive fortifications. The British force later withdrew under pressure from the main garrison of the island, burning warehouses containing over £500,000 worth of
silk Silk is a natural fiber, natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be weaving, woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is most commonly produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoon (silk), c ...
captured from British merchant ships. Ultimately the French were unable to effectively oppose the invasion, the island's governor General Nicolas Ernault des Bruslys retreating to Saint-Denis rather than engage the British and later committing suicide. The transportation of forces from the recently captured island of Rodriguez, the co-ordination of land and naval forces and the failure of the French defenders to co-ordinate an effective response were all features of the subsequent invasion and capture of Isle Bonaparte in July 1810.


Background

The French
Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or approximately 20% of the water area of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia (continent), ...
colonies of Isle de France and Isle Bonaparte were heavily fortified island bases from which French
frigates A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...
were able to launch raids against British trade routes across the Indian Ocean during the Napoleonic Wars. In late 1808, a squadron of four frigates departed France for the region under Commodore
Jacques Hamelin Jacques or Jacq are believed to originate from the Middle Ages in the historic northwest Brittany region in France, and have since spread around the world over the centuries. To date, there are over one hundred identified noble families related t ...
with orders to prey on the convoys of East Indiamen that regularly crossed the Indian Ocean.Gardiner, p. 92. During the late spring of 1809, these frigates dispersed into the
Bay of Bengal The Bay of Bengal is the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. Geographically it is positioned between the Indian subcontinent and the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese peninsula, located below the Bengal region. Many South Asian and Southe ...
, attacking British shipping and coastal harbours around the rim of the Eastern Indian Ocean. The
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...
was also preparing an operation in the region, a staggered campaign intended to blockade, isolate and subsequently capture both Isle de France and Isle Bonaparte, eliminating the final French territories and bases east of Africa. To conduct the British operation, Admiral Albemarle Bertie at the
Cape of Good Hope The Cape of Good Hope ( ) is a rocky headland on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa. A List of common misconceptions#Geography, common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Afri ...
organised a squadron under Commodore
Josias Rowley Admiral Sir Josias Rowley, 1st Baronet, (1765 – 10 January 1842) was a Royal Navy officer and politician who served in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Birth and family Rowley was born in 1765 the second son of Clotworthy Rowle ...
to blockade the islands, capture any French shipping that presented itself and begin preparations for the invasions. Rowley was equipped with the antiquated
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 tactics in the Age of Sail, naval tactic known as the line of battl ...
and a small squadron of frigates and smaller ships, later reinforced with a force of soldiers from
Madras Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...
in
British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...
, with which he seized the nearby island of Rodriguez to use as a raiding base. On 14 August, one of Rowley's ships, the 18-gun sloop , attacked a French brig at
Rivière Noire District Rivière Noire () or Black River () is a district on the western side of the island of Mauritius. Rivière Noire translates to Black River. This region receives less rainfall than the others. The district has an area of and the population was es ...
in Isle de France. Although the attack was ultimately unsuccessful, ''Otter''s captain Nesbit Willoughby and his landing party were able to break into and out of the harbour without severe difficulties. This prompted Rowley to consider a larger scale operation against a more heavily fortified French position. Two months earlier, in the action of 31 May 1809, the French frigate ''Caroline'' had captured two East Indiamen, ''Streatham'' and ''Europe'', in the Bay of Bengal. The French captain, Jean-Baptiste-Henri Feretier, led his prizes back to the French-held islands, arriving off Isle de France on 22 July. Feretier was prevented from attempting to reach
Port Louis Port Louis (, ; or , ) is the capital and most populous city of Mauritius, mainly located in the Port Louis District, with a small western part in the Black River District. Port Louis is the country's financial and political centre. It is admi ...
by Rowley's blockading squadron and instead put his ships into Saint-Paul on Isle Bonaparte to unload his captured vessels and replenish his supplies.Gardiner, p. 93


Raid


Preparation

Rowley became aware of Feretier's presence at Saint-Paul during the following month and determined to attack the port and recapture the valuable ships in the harbour. The operation was also to be a prelude to an eventual invasion attempt, giving the squadron experience of an amphibious landing operation. Conferring with Lieutenant Colonel Henry Keating on Rodriguez, Rowley determined that Keating's men would land behind the gun batteries that defended the town and storm them. This would allow Rowley to bring his squadron directly into the harbour, capture the shipping anchored there and possibly seize the town as well.Taylor, p. 240 Rowley's planning was directly affected by a failed attack on Saint-Paul on 11 November 1806, when and had attacked the harbour without infantry support. Their target was the frigate ''Sémillante'', but neither British ship had been able to pass the heavy batteries that protected the port and they were forced to withdraw.Clowes, p. 393 On 16 September 1809, the troops were prepared, and 368
British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
soldiers were embarked on the British frigate HMS ''Nereide'' under Captain
Robert Corbet Captain Robert Corbet RN (died 13 September 1810), often spelled Corbett, was an officer of the British Royal Navy during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars who was killed in action in highly controversial circumstances. Corbet was ...
, Willoughby's ''Otter'' and the
Bombay Marine The Royal Indian Navy (RIN) was the naval force of British India and the Dominion of India. Along with the Presidency armies, later the Indian Army, and from 1932 the Royal Indian Air Force, it was one of the Armed Forces of British India. Fr ...
schooner HCS ''Wasp''. This troop convoy was joined off Saint-Paul on 18 September by the rest of Rowley's squadron, the flagship ''Raisonnable'' and the frigates under Captain
Samuel Pym Admiral Sir Samuel Pym KCB (1778–1855) was a British admiral, brother of Sir William Pym. In June 1788, Pym joined the Royal Navy as captain's servant of the frigate ''Eurydice''. He was promoted to lieutenant of the sloop ''Martin'', und ...
, and under Captain
John Hatley : Captain John Hatley, RN (c. 1762 – 12 December 1832) was an officer of the British Royal Navy during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Hatley is most noted for being one of the junior officers on board Captain James Cook's ...
. These ships mustered an additional 236 seaman volunteers and
Royal Marines The Royal Marines provide the United Kingdom's amphibious warfare, amphibious special operations capable commando force, one of the :Fighting Arms of the Royal Navy, five fighting arms of the Royal Navy, a Company (military unit), company str ...
who would join the assault. The entire invasion force was then embarked on ''Nereide'', as Corbet had experience with the Isle Bonaparte coastline, with the assault designated for the early morning of 21 September.Woodman, p. 283


Assault

At 05:00 on 21 September 1809, ''Nereide'' entered the bay of Saint-Paul under the cover of darkness and successfully landed the British force, without any sign they had been sighted from the shore, at the Pointe des Galets. The Pointe des Galets was north of Saint-Paul, the distance allowing the force, divided into Keating's soldiers from Rodriguez and the naval force led by Nesbit Willoughby, to approach the heavy gun batteries that guarded the port unobserved. Storming the strongest batteries, Lambousière and la Centière, at 07:00, the British force surprised the garrisons, captured the fortifications and turned their
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 during th ...
onto the shipping moored in the harbour, firing
grape shot In artillery, a grapeshot is a type of ammunition that consists of a collection of smaller-caliber round shots packed tightly in a canvas bag and separated from the gunpowder charge by a metal wadding, rather than being a single solid projectile ...
at the decks of the frigate ''Caroline''.Taylor, p. 241 A detachment of the British landing force then separated from the main body and seized a third battery named la Neuf, routing a force of local militia that attempted to block their advance with artillery assistance from the British squadron in the bay. The militia had come down from their garrisons in the surrounding hills and been joined by 110 French soldiers who had disembarked from ''Caroline'', but the small French force was easily brushed aside by the British landing party. Keating and Willoughby then destroyed the guns in the first two captured batteries and stormed the remaining two fortifications, once again capturing them and using their own cannon to fire on the shipping in the harbour.James, p. 197 While the landing force drove off the defenders and captured the fortifications, the naval squadron entered the harbour and opened up an overwhelming fire on the outnumbered ''Caroline''. Shot was also fired at the captured East Indiamen, various other vessels in the harbour and any small batteries or shore positions that remained in French hands. Feretier and the other French naval officers, recognising that their position was hopeless, cut the anchor cables of their ships and allowed them to drift ashore, where they abandoned ship to escape capture. The British squadron then anchored in the harbour as their crews set about refloating the grounded French ships on the beach. In addition to ''Caroline'' and the East Indiamen and , Rowley's squadron captured the 14-gun
privateer A privateer is a private person or vessel which engages in commerce raiding 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 o ...
brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, 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 l ...
, which the French had captured in 1806 from the Bombay Marine, and five or six smaller merchantmen. With the harbour and fortifications in British hands, Keating and Willoughby entered the town of Saint-Paul without further combat.


Withdrawal

On the night of 21 September, the landing party embarked on the British ships in the bay having destroyed all of the fortified positions that surrounded the harbour. During 22 September, French forces were seen gathering in the hills around the town, brought from outlying garrisons to join the main garrison from the capital Saint-Denis by the island's governor-general, Nicolas Ernault des Bruslys. Rowley and Keating anticipated that this force, which outnumbered their own, would recapture the town on 23 September and accordingly ordered Willoughby to land with his marines and sailors to burn French government property along the waterfront.Taylor, p. 243 The most obvious and significant target of Willoughby's force was a warehouse on the docks that was stocked with the captured silk from the East Indiamen captured by ''Caroline''. Willoughby ordered this building to be burned, destroying over £500,000 worth of captured textiles,Woodman, p. 284 (the equivalent of £ as of ). Other nearby warehouses were not destroyed as it was not possible to rapidly determine their ownership. Although the French force had reached the outskirts of the town, Willoughby was able to land and reembark his troops without a single shot being fired. On 22 September, Rowley received a petition from a body of slaves in the town who had escaped during the fighting and demanded arms with which to attack the French. They also offered to burn the town to the ground. Rowley, who sought to cultivate good relations with the powerful elements of society with a view to capturing the island in the near future, refused their demands and had the slaves returned to their owners, where eight were executed for plotting rebellion.Taylor, p. 244 There was however a noted example of a slave displaying loyalty to his owner: The painter Jean-Joseph Patu de Rosemont had served in the militia forces with the journalist
Nicole Robinet de La Serve Jean-Pierre-François Nicole Robinet de La Serve (1791, Isle Bourbon – 20 December 1842, Salazie) was a French journalist, lawyer and politician.''Robinet de La Serve : l'énergumène créole'', Patrick Imhaus, Océan Éditions – . Biograph ...
and was captured when Keating's troops entered Saint-Paul. Taken aboard the British squadron, Rosemont's son Amédée applied to exchange himself for his father as a prisoner but was refused. Shortly before the squadron departed, Rosemont's personal slave Félix swam to the squadron to serve his owner in captivity. For his loyalty, Félix was
manumitted Manumission, or enfranchisement, is the act of freeing slaves Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and ...
when Rosemont was freed in 1810.Imhaus, p. 40 On 23 September, Rowley and Keating planned another landing under cover of the guns of the ''Nereide'' to drive off the French reinforcements. On landing, however, it was discovered that the French force had disappeared. Lacking support for a counterattack from the local landowners, who were mostly royalists hostile to the current regime in France,Imhaus, p. 39 des Bruslys was unwilling to order an assault which he deemed would have inevitably led to an unnecessary bloodbath.Charles Mullié, ''Biographie des célébrités militaires des armées de terre et de mer de 1789 à 1850'', 1852. Instead, he ordered his forces to abandon Saint-Paul and retire to Saint-Denis during the night. Without support from his commanding officer, Captain St-Michel, commandant of Saint-Paul, agreed to surrender the town entirely, withdrawing his remaining forces under a flag of truce. The agreed truce lasted five days, during which the British force loaded their ships with French government provisions, equipment, military and naval stores and those cargoes from captured British ships that had not been burnt by Willoughby. The French made no effort to prevent this, des Bruslys having committed suicide some days before, torn between his refusal to surrender the island to the British and his reluctance to order a bloody battle for what he regarded to be an "open island". Rowley also captured the East Indiamen ''Streatham'' and ''Europe'' and restored their previous captains and crews, who had been released as part of the truce. A number of smaller merchant ships were captured and all were refitted for the journey to Britain, to be convoyed there by the newly captured ''Caroline''. This 40-gun frigate, only three years old and very large and powerfully built, was given to Corbet in recognition of his services in the operation and renamed HMS ''Bourbonaise'', reflecting the British name for Isle Bonaparte, "Isle Bourbon". Willoughby was promoted to
post captain Post-captain or post captain is an obsolete alternative form of the rank of captain in the Royal Navy. The term "post-captain" was descriptive only; it was never used as a title in the form "Post-Captain John Smith". The term served to di ...
and immediately took command of Corbet's former ship ''Nereide''. Late on 28 September, Rowley led his force to sea from Saint-Paul having burnt or seized all government shipping, stores and buildings in the town and surrounding areas.


Aftermath

Casualties of the operation were not high on either side. British losses in the landing party amounted to 15 killed and 58 wounded, with an additional three missing.James, p. 198 The naval squadron suffered no known casualties in the engagement, principally because they did not come under heavy fire. French losses have not been calculated, but apart from des Bruslys were probably a similar figure to the British. In contrast, the damage to the morale of the French defenders of Isle Bonaparte was severe: the death of des Bruslys and the failure to properly defend the port undermined their efforts to such a degree that the eventual invasion of the island in 1810 was carried out without significant fighting. This invasion force was similar in size to the raiding party and was once again led by Rowley and Keating. ''Caroline'' was a "tolerably fine frigate" and her capture was a blow to the French squadron based on Isle de France under Hamelin.James, p. 199 The recapture of the East Indiamen was an important success, reducing the impact of French operations in the region during 1809. The raid also provided the British forces with vital experience in conducting amphibious landings staged from Rodriguez and gave an indication of the quality of French shore defences and defensive formations throughout the islands, which would have an important effect on future operations, especially the successful British
invasion of Isle Bonaparte The invasion of Isle Bonaparte was an amphibious operation in 1810 that formed an important part of the British campaign to blockade and capture the French Indian Ocean colonies of Isle Bonaparte and Isle de France during the Napoleonic Wars. ...
in 1810.Gardiner, p. 94 ''
Lloyd's List ''Lloyd's List'' is one of the world's oldest continuously running journals, having provided weekly shipping news in London as early as 1734. It was published daily until 2013 (when the final print issue, number 60,850, was published), and i ...
'' (''LL'') reported on 9 January 1811 that the captured vessels, except for ''Europe'', which had been sent to Bombay, had all arrived at the
Cape of Good Hope The Cape of Good Hope ( ) is a rocky headland on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa. A List of common misconceptions#Geography, common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Afri ...
.''LL'' №4421.
/ref>


Notes


References

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint-Paul Conflicts in 1809 Naval battles of the Napoleonic Wars involving the United Kingdom 1800s in Réunion 1809 in Africa Military raids Amphibious operations involving the United Kingdom September 1809