Frigates, Egyptienne, Captain the Honourable Charles Elphinstone, Fleming, and Sirius, Captain William Prowse.

Lugger Nile, Lieutenant John Fennell, and cutter Frisk, Lieutenant James Nicholson.

With this force the vice-admiral was directed to proceed 30 or 40 leagues to the westward of Cape Finisterre, and there endeavour to intercept the combined fleet from the West Indies, represented, upon the authority of the Diamond-rock account, to consist of only 16 sail of the line.* Thus had the blockade of two ports been raised, in which, at the time, were about as many ships of the line ready for sea, as, by all accounts, composed the fleet which the blockading squadrons, when united, were ordered to intercept. The policy of this measure does not seem very clear. If the Ferrol squadron, did not, as the Rochefort had done, take advantage of the circumstance and sail out, it was merely because it had received no orders from France.

On the 19th Sir Robert received a copy of Lord Nelson's despatch, of date the 15th of June, addressed to the British commanding officer off the Tagus, stating that the combined fleet, of what force not mentioned, had passed Antigua on the 8th of June, and was probably on its way to Europe. On the 22d of July, in the forenoon, that same combined fleet, composed of 20 sail of the line, seven frigates, and two brigs, besides the recaptured galleon Matilda, made its appearance to windward, in the manner we shall proceed to relate.

On the morning of the 22d, in latitude 43° 34′ north, and longitude 16° 13' west, from Paris, the combined fleet, formed in three divisions, and having a light breeze from west-northwest, was steering in a thick fog, east-south-east, a direct course

*See vol. iii., p. 331.

+ Ibid., p. 340.

for Ferrol, when, at about 11 A. M., on a sudden clearing up of the weather, the French leading ship, the Indomptable, discovered and signalled 10 sail in the north-north-east, approaching on the starboard tack. The frigates sent ahead to reconnoitre, presently augmented the number to 21 sail; namely, 17 British ships, the lugger and cutter, and two Danish merchant brigs, one brought to by the Dragon, the other by the Egyptienne. In the mean time the Defiance, the British look-out ship, and which then lay about three leagues to windward of her fleet, discovered and signalled a strange fleet in the south-west.

At noon, latitude 43° 54′ north, longitude (from Greenwich) 11° 38' west, Ferrol east-south-east distant 49, and Cape Finisterre south-east distant 39 leagues, the Prince-of-Wales made the signal to prepare for battle, and in a few minutes afterwards to form the order of sailing in two columns. This was followed by a signal to form the line; and at 1 h. 15 m. P.M., to keep in close order. At 2 h. 15 m. P. M. the latter signal was repeated; and at 3 P.M. the Defiance having stood on until within less than two miles of the enemy, joined and took her station in the line, the ships of which, when in their places, ranked as follows: Hero, Ajax, Triumph, Barfleur, Agamemnon, Windsor-Castle, Defiance, Prince-of-Wales, Repulse, Raisonable, Dragon (then under a press of sail to leeward, as soon as she should join), Glory, Warrior, Thunderer, Malta; most of the ships with their topgallantsails set, and all, except the Dragon, with their courses up, standing, as before, on the starboard tack.

At about the same time the ships of the combined fleet formed themselves in line of battle, in the following order: Argonauta, Terrible, America, Espana, San-Rafaël, Firme, Pluton, Mont-Blanc, Atlas, Berwick, Neptune, Bucentaure, Formidable, Intrépide, Scipion, Swiftsure, Indomptable, Aigle, Achille, Algésiras.* At 3 h. 30 m. P. M., after having hove to, some time, the combined fleet filled, and under topsails, stood on upon the larboard tack, rather off the wind, in a close wellformed line; one frigate ahead, another, the Sirène, who had just taken the galleon in tow, astern, and the remaining five frigates, in a second line, to windward of the centre and rear. The British fleet was at this time nearly abeam, and about seven miles distant; but, owing to the fog, neither fleet was more than partially in sight of the other.

Since 1 P.M. the Egyptienne and Sirius, then a short distance to windward of the Defiance, had been ordered, by signal, to keep sight of the enemy. The frigates accordingly made sail to get nearer to the latter; and the Sirius, the weathermost frigate, as she passed from van to rear of the combined fleet,

*For the names of their several commanders see vol. iii., pp. 323, 327, and 330.

made the signal of the exact number of line-of-battle ships and smaller vessels composing it. At 3 h. 20 m. P. M. Sir Robert made the signal to engage the enemy; and at 3 h. 22 m., to tack together. At 3 h. 26 m. the same signal was repeated and annulled. At 3 h. 27 m. a signal was made for the starboard division to make all possible sail, and steer south-south-west. At 3 h. 30 m. the same signal was made to the Hero, who probably had commenced tacking in obedience to the signal at 3h. 22 m. At 3 h. 31 m. the signal was made to form the line of battle in open order; at 3 h. 53 m., to alter course one point to starboard; and at 4 h. 21 m., to tack in succession.

The signal to tack in succession appears to have been made by each commander-in-chief about the same time; but, in the foggy state of the weather, neither fleet saw the commencement of the other's manœuvre. The British tacked, to prevent their opponents escaping them on the opposite tack; but the FrancoSpaniards, who had hauled close to the wind on getting within about three miles of the British fleet, wore, in consequence of the Sirène, which had the galleon in tow, making signals, by guns fired in quick succession, that the rear was in danger of being cut off.

This was occasioned by the bold approach of the Sirius, who, as soon as she had got sufficiently to windward to fetch into the wake of the combined line, had tacked, with the intention of attempting to carry, by boarding, the great object of the enemy's solicitude. While making the necessary preparation to effect his object, Captain Prowse discovered, through the haze on his lee bow, the enemy's van-ship, the Argonauta, approaching with the wind nearly abeam. The Sirius herself being now in jeopardy, Captain Prowse abandoned his design upon the galleon, and bore up to pass to leeward of the Franco-Spanish line. With a forbearance highly honourable to Admiral Gravina, the Argonauta passed the British frigate without firing; and so did the Terrible and America. By the time, however, that the Sirius had got abreast of the Espana, which was at about 5 h. 15 m. P.M., the Hero, the British van-ship, then with royals set, hove in stays. Instantly the Spanish ships, all of whom had royals and courses set, hoisted their colours and commenced the action; the Argonauta firing her larboard guns at the Hero, and the Espana hers at the Sirius, which ship, in consequence, had two men killed and three wounded.

At 4 h. 30 m. P. M. the Prince-of-Wales had made the signal to engage the enemy's centre; at 4 h. 45 m., to keep in close order; and, at 5 h. 9 m., to engage the enemy as closely as possible. At 5 h. 20 m. P. M., which was about five minutes after she had tacked, the Hero opened a fire from her starboard guns. The reason of the Hero's having tacked without a signal was, that her advanced station had enabled her to see, what the fog concealed from the ships in her wake, that the enemy had

come round on the starboard tack. Precisely as the Hero tacked to starboard, the Windsor-Castle, the sixth British ship from the van (the majority of the ships now with royals and courses set), tacked to port. We have chosen this moment for representing in a diagram the position of the two fleets; or rather, of the van and rear of the combined, and of the ten leading ships of the British fleet.

At 5 h. 45 m. P. M. the Ajax tacked astern of the Hero; but, unfortunately for the success of Captain Gardner's gallant manœuvre, the Ajax put her helm up, and bore away to speak the admiral. On passing within hail of the Prince-of-Wales, Captain Brown informed Sir Robert Calder of the change of position in the two vans. The Ajax then wore, and fell into the line astern of the Glory; thus making herself, instead of the second, the twelfth ship from the van. At 5 h. 50 m. P. M., by which time the five ships in line between the Ajax and Prince-ofWales had successively tacked, the latter, as she probably would have done, had the Ajax followed her gallant leader into the thick of the enemy's fire, hoisting the signal to tack in succession, tacked also, and, in a quarter of an hour or 20 minutes, joined in the cannonade, now becoming general and furious. By 6 P. M. all the ships in the British line, except the Dragon, which was still to leeward working up, had got round on the starboard tack, and the greater part had found opponents in the

opposite line; but, what with the fog and the smoke, no ship could see much beyond her own length.

Owing to the disorder to which this gave rise, some of the ships in both fleets had several opponents upon them at once. On the British side, the Windsor-Castle was a principal sufferer; and the Ajax, Prince-of-Wales, Thunderer, and Malta, the last especially, participated in this unequal warfare. On the part of the combined fleet, the San-Rafaël, Firme, and Espana, having dropped to leeward, became greatly exposed to the fire of the British. Seeing the situation of the Firme, the latter's second astern, the Pluton, gallantly bore up out of the line, and, for a while, covered the Spanish ship from the destructive effects of their enemy's fire; but the Firme was too powerfully opposed to profit by the aid afforded her, and the Pluton herself with difficulty regained her station.

The critical situation of the Espana induced Captain CosmaoKerjulien, a second time, to interpose himself between one of his Spanish allies and the British Îine. In this instance, being assisted by the Mont-Blanc and Atlas, the Pluton succeeded, and the Espana was rescued. Amidst the derangement of the Franco-Spanish line, the Atlas suffered most severely, and, but for the support of her friends, among whom the Neptune was foremost, would certainly have been captured.

Soon after 8 P. M. the Firme, with the loss of her main and mizen masts, and subsequently of all her masts, struck; and the San-Rafaël, with the loss of her main topmast, and subsequently of all her masts also, did not hold out many minutes longer. At 8 h. 25 m., at which time the British ships were disunited and scattered, the body of the combined fleet barely within gun-shot to windward, and the shades of night combining with the fog and smoke to render objects still more indistinct, Sir Robert made the night private signal to discontinue the action. At about 9 P. M. the Windsor-Castle, with her fore topmast gone, passed close to windward of the Prince-of-Wales, and then bore up and was taken in tow by the Dragon; who, with all her efforts, had not got up in time to take more than a very slight part in the action: indeed, it was nearly 8 P. M. when the Dragon fell into line ahead of the Barfleur, who herself had been unable to get very close to the enemy. The signal to discontinue the action being seen but by few ships, the general firing did not cease until 9 h. 30 m. P. M. The British ships soon afterwards brought too upon the starboard tack, with their heads about south-west by west, and lay by for the night, repairing their damages, in order to be ready to renew the contest on the

morrow.

The loss, in gross, sustained by the British fleet, amounted to 39 officers and men killed and 159 wounded; and, as Sir Robert Calder, in his official return, has, contrary to what is customary, omitted to specify the names or qualities of the