TROWBRIDGE AND LINOIS.

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with Sir Thomas Trowbridge and his convoy to the eastward of Madagascar, in 81° east and 19° south. Linois had with him the Belle Poule and Atalante frigates, of 44 guns, and the Brunswick, his prize. The Marengo brought the Blenheim to action, most probably under the conviction of that ship being an Indiaman; but, feeling the effect of her lower-deck guns, Linois very quickly took himself out of gun-shot, and hauled his wind. The Blenheim sailed too ill to attempt the pursuit, and the British rear-admiral continued his course to Madras, where he arrived without any farther accident, and took the command in the Eastern seas.

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CHAPTER II.

Plans of Napoleon for invasion of England-Number and disposition of his forces-His letters to the minister of marine and to La Touche Treville-Force of his fleet-Directions of Napoleon for the exercise of his Brest fleet-Letter to Missiessy-Army and flotilla-Plans his expeditions to St. Helena, West Indies, and Ireland-Rendezvous off Boulogne-Combination of Spain with France-Causes of failureSir Robert Calder sent off Ferrol-Rigorous blockade of BrestAnxiety of Napoleon for the sailing of Gantheaume-Orders to take the West India islands and St. Helena.

THE naval history of Great Britain for the year 1805, was fraught with events of such magnitude as to command in a particular manner the attention of the whole civilized world, whose political existence depended on the result of the great struggle preparing to be decided on the ocean between the navies of Britain and those of France, Spain, and Holland, united against her.

The Emperor of France, with his " invincible army of England," encamped on the heights of Boulogne, waited, or pretended to wait, with anxious expectation to hear of the defeat of the British fleet, before he embarked on his perilous enterprise against the last refuge of liberty in Europe.

While our fleets preserved their position before the Texel, Brest, Rochefort, Vigo, Ferrol, Cadiz, Carthagena, and Toulon, the smaller vessels, under the command of the most enterprising young officers, watched every motion of the flotilla and the imperial legions, and lost no opportunity of showing to them the kind of enemy they would have to encounter, should they ever reach the happy shores of Britain. The scene of naval operations extended from the Texel to Toulon, thence westward as far as the island of Trinidad, the Antilles, and Jamaica.

The year 1804 had been suffered to pass away without any attempt on the part of France, and little was effected by us worthy of notice.

I shall in this place endeavour to show how vast, and at the same time how indefinite, were the naval plans embraced by Bonaparte for destroying the power of this country; in doing

PLANS OF NAPOLEON FOR INVASION.

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which I shall have occasion, besides other authorities, to quote documents emanating from himself.

It was pretended by Napoleon that his squadrons, putting to sea simultaneously, should raise the blockades of the ports of Europe, and, after ravaging the British colonies, concentrate in the Channel. In this he certainly pursued a very different system from that which had been adopted by his predecessors. Convinced that the failure of the maritime expeditions of France in her former wars was occasioned by precipitation, he resolved to collect an overpowering force, and not to hazard it in action until he could ensure a favourable result. See Précis, vol. xi., p. 317. "His plan was so good," says his eulogist," that it ought to have succeeded even at the very last moment." This is a conclusion to which we should not have been led by reading the letters and instructions of Napoleon; on the contrary, knowing, as he did, the force under the command of Nelson and Cornwallis, I cannot admit that he showed any judgment in trusting to the union and resources of his scattered squadrons after months of separation, and in not having as many French three-deck ships under the command of Villeneuve as there were in the British fleet.*

says,

In a letter to his minister of the marine, dated at St. Cloud, 1st May, 1804, Napoleon gives the most positive injunctions for the Brest fleet to be daily under sail; he is discontented with the conduct of the admiral, who, notwithstanding his urgent commands, "had not caused one ship to weigh her anchor in the whole course of the year, in order to facilitate the passage of the flotilla from Audierne bay;" so that, with a very small squadron, the English had been permitted to blockade their fleet. "Whenever the weather will permit," he "let light squadrons be kept constantly under weigh, to harass the enemy, even if they should receive a few broadsides." No excuse would be admitted for the neglect of this order, the execution of which was to keep the British on the alert, and the French in wind, (en haleine.) Napoleon forgot that this exercise was at least as beneficial to us as to them; increasing the local knowledge of our officers, and the practical seamanship of our men. Rewards and promotions were liberally held forth to the most zealous; and, by a letter to Admiral La Touche Treville, dated Malmaison, July 2, 1804, it would appear that a little energy had been instilled into them.

*Fouché, vol. i., p. 333. The author of that work, speaking of the vast schemes of Napoleon, says, "Hélas! il s'abîma dans ses combinaisons maritimes, croyant mouvoir nos divisions navales avec la même précision qu'il mettraient ses armées de terre à manoeuvrer devant lui." The instructions to Villeneuve, in the same page, were more easy to dictate than to execute.

To that officer Napoleon writes "that the Rochefort squadron consists of five sail of the line and four frigates, ready for sea; while at Brest there are 20 sail of the line, which are in the constant habit of weighing anchor "to harass the enemy;" that three Dutch ships of the line were blocked up in the Texel, with four frigates, and a convoy of 30 transports, having on board the army of Marmont."

He adds that "between Etaples, Boulogne, Vimereux, and Ambleteuse, he had 1,800 gun-vessels, carrying 120,000 troops, and 10,000 horses." "Let us only be masters of the Channel six hours, and we shall be masters of the world." Précis, vol. xi., p. 200. "If," continues Napoleon, "you deceive Nelson, he will go to Sicily, to Egypt, or to Ferrol;—if your squadron should get out of the Mediterranean, it will naturally be supposed that you intend to raise the blockade of the last-named place; it will therefore be advisable that you take a circuitous route to reach Rochefort; this will give you 16 sail of the line and 11 frigates: then, without anchoring, or losing one minute, you will either sail round Ireland at a great distance, or get before Boulogne." (We suppose by running up the English Channel.) Our Brest fleet, of 23 sail of the line, will have the army embarked, and by keeping under sail will oblige Cornwallis to remain close to the shores of Britany, in order to prevent their escape." He adds, "It is probable that you will reach Boulogne in the course of September, when the nights will be reasonably long, and the weather not bad for any length of time."

When, in the autumn of 1804, Bonaparte was at Mayence, he ordered Decrès to prepare three expeditions. One, under Villeneuve, was to embrace two objects: it was to sail from Toulon, consisting of 12 sail of the line, eight frigates, and two brigs, with a body of troops. When in the Atlantic Ocean the admiral was to detach, on a separate expedition, two sail of the line, four frigates, and two brigs, with 1,800 troops, under the command of Brigadier-general Rielle, to take St. Helena; to carry succours to Senegal; retake Goree, and burn or lay under heavy contributions all the British settlements on the coast of Guinea. After having sent off this detachment, he was to proceed in accomplishment of the other object: with nine or ten sail of the line, three frigates, and 5,000 or 6,000 men, he was to repair to Guayana, take on board Victor Hugues, and go to Surinam, of which no doubt he was expected to become

master.

The moment it was known that this fleet had sailed from Toulon, the remaining expedition, consisting of the Rochefort squadron, under Vice-admiral Missiessy, was to sail directly to

Martinique; to take Dominica, St. Lucia, and the Saints, and form a junction with Villeneuve; who, thus reinforced, would lay all the British islands under contribution; take as many prizes as he could; show himself before every roadstead in the Windward Islands; run down to the city of St. Domingo, in which a few French troops still remained, reinforce them with 1,200 or 1,500 men; then, returning to Europe, raise the blockade of Ferrol, release the five sail of the line in that port, and thus, with a fleet of 20 sail of the line, proceed to Rochefort; then join the Brest fleet, and with the whole proceed to Boulogne.

Villaret, who commanded the fleet on the 1st of June, 1794, and at St. Domingo in 1802, was appointed governor of Martinique; Victor Hugues of Surinam; and, as if success were certain, governors were also appointed to Demerara, Berbice, and Cayenne.

The instructions respecting a fourth expedition are fully detailed in a letter from Napoleon to Decrès, dated Mayence, September 29, 1804, Précis, vol. xi., p. 212. This was to be undertaken by Gantheaume, with the Brest fleet. The Océan, of 120 guns, under repair at that port, was to have been finished by torchlight, to assist in conveying 18,000 men, 3,000 of whom were to be cavalry, artillery, and engineers. Sailing from Brest they were to steer well to the westward of Ireland, and then, turning suddenly to the east, enter Loch Swilly, as if coming from Newfoundland. Thirty-six hours after having anchored they were to sail again, leaving the brigs and all the transports, with the Volontaire frigate, whose guns were to serve for the army, or to be placed in battery, or otherwise, as might be most advisable. The landing in Ireland, if it could not be immediately effected, was to have been abandoned; no time was to be lost, and the squadron was to steer for Cherbourg, to gain intelligence of the army at Boulogne, and escort the flotilla. If, on reaching this last place, the admiral should find the winds so unfavourable as to force him to pass the Straits of Dover, he was to proceed to the Texel, where he would find seven Dutch ships of the line, and 27,000 men embarked: these he was to take under his convoy, and proceed with them to Ireland. "One or the other of these operations," says Napoleon, "must succeed;" and then, whether he had 30,000 or 40,000 men in Ireland, whether he was himself in England or Ireland, the victory was his. "Le gain de la guerre est à nous." "The English, attacked at the same time in Europe, Asia, Africa, and America, unaccustomed to such visitations, will be made sensible of their own weakness." Napoleon supposed, and with great reason, that, as soon as Admiral Cornwallis heard of the sailing of Gantheaume from

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