must have succeeded, as the town wasaltogether in a defenceless state with "neither men, capable of standing to the guns, nor rammers, sponges, or other-impliments for loading them."*The inhabitants and the neighbouring country were in the greatest confusion and the utmost alarm. But on Wednesday the 18th it providential began to blow almost a storm at east, which continued till the 22d, and forced the fleet below Plymouth; and the wind remaining strong in the same point for same days, prevented its return no less than Sir Charles Hardy's coming into the channel. The Ardent of 64 guns, on her way from Portsmouth to join Sir Charles, mistaking the combined for the British fleet, was taken in sight of Plymouth. D'Orvilliers ranged about the Land's End, the Scilly Islands, and the chops of the channel, till the end of the month, without seeking to return and make an attack upon Plymouth. He might conclude, that it would be now too late, the first opportunity having been lost, especially as a very great sickness prevailed among the sailors and soldiers on board the fleet. Tims by a coincidence of cumstances, Plymouth, with the dock, the naval magazines &c.were happily preserved, notwithstanding the criminal neglect of administration in not putting the place into a proper state of defence. It is a fact, that there was delivered to one of the ministry, on the 28th of July, a letter from France, acquainting him with the destination of the combined fleet, and the intention of attacking and destroying Plymouth. [Aug. 31.] The wind favoring, Sir Charles Hardy gained the entrance of the channel in sight of the combined fleets, without their being able to prevent him. The enemy pursued him as high up as Plymouth, but did not venture much further. The sickness increasing on board the combined fleet to a most extreme degree, and their ships being otherwise much out of condition, and the equinox approaching, count d'Orvilliers thought itnecessary to abandon the British coasts, and repair to Brest early in September. The whole country round about became an hospital, through the many thousands of sick that were landed. It was a most happy circumstance for the British merchants, that a large Jamaica fleet escaped and got into the channel about ten days before he first entered it; and that eight homeward bound East-Indiamen had timely notice of their danger, so as to have the opportunity of putting into Ireland. In the beginning of September, adım. Barrington arrived with dispatches, giving an account of the taking of the isles of St. * Mr. H--b-t's declaration. Gentleman's magazine for 1780, p. 109. + Gentleman's magazine for 1779: P. 421---423 Vincent Vincent and Grenada, and of an action between adm. Byron and count d'Estaing. The count sailed for Grenada, and arrived off the island [July 2.) with a fleet of five or six and twenty ships of the line, about 12 frigates, and near 10,000 land forces, including marines. The defence of the place lay in about 150 soldi ers, 350 militia, 200 volunteers, with some seamen; and its strength consisted in a fortified and entrenched hill, which commanded the fort, harbour, and capital town of St. George. The French landed between 2 and 3000 regulars, under count Dillon, the same evening; and the next day invested the hill and made the necessary preparations for carrying it by storm the following night, as they would lose no time, lest admiral Byron's fleet might arrive. The defence was obstinate, considering the force on each side. Although d'Estaing headed a column of the assailants in person, they were repulsed in the first onset, but their superior numbers at length prevailed, and the lines were carried after a conflict of about an hour and a half; the loss of the French, however, in killed and wounded, was considerable. The canon taken on the top of the hill, being turned at break of day against the fort, the governor, lord Macartney, was under the necessity of proposing a capitulation. D'Estaing granted him but an hour for framing the articles, which, when presented, were rejected in the gross. The count proposed others so extra ordinary that his lordship and the principal inhabitants thought, it better to trust to the law and custom of nations, and to the justice of one court, and the interposition of the other, by surrendering at discretion, than to bind themselves to such unex ampled conditions. His lordship, in expectation that the fortified hill was next to impregnable, had carried thither his plate, jewels and most valuable effects, and his principal officers had followed his example.* The count is charged with having exercised great severity and oppression; and it is said that his sol diers were indulged in such unbridled licence that the condition of the inhabitants would have been deplorable beyond description, but for the humanity and tenderness of the officers and privates of Dillon's Irish regiment. Meanwhile admiral Byron had returned to St. Lucie, from convoying the West-India fleet; but weakened through the ships he had sent with the trade to Great-Britain. He there received intelligence of the loss of St. Vincent; and immediately, concluded with gen. Grant, to proceed with the land and navar forces for its recovery. On their passage they received inform ation that d'Estaing had attacked Grenada, without being ac *The Paris account of the taking of Grenada, quainted quainted with de la Motte Picquet's having joined him. They changed their intention, and steered for the relief of Grenada The British commanders arrived within sight of the French fleet at break of day, [July 6.] Their force consisted of 21. ships of the line and a single frigate. They were embarrassed. by the somewhat greater number of transports which conveyed the troops. The French having received previous information of the approach of the British fleet, were then mostly getting under way, and those ships which had not already hoisted their anchors, slipt their cables, and kept stretching out to sea. The objects of the hostile commanders were totally different. The British admirals wanted to bring the enemy to close action in hopes of conquest and of saving Grenada, D'Estaing sought for no further advantage than the preservation of his new acquisi tion, which to him was a sufficient victory. His ships being cleaner, and consequently sailed better than the British, he chose a partial action, rather than be exposed to the doubtful issue of a desperate conflict. The first signal made by Byron was for a general chase; and the second, for the ships to engage and form as they could get up. By eight o'clock the action was commenc ed by adm. Barrington in the Prince of Wales, with the captains, Sawyer and Gardner in the Boyne and Sultan, they hav ing closed with the van of the enemy. Being obliged to endure the whole weight of fire from that division, for a considerable time before they could be supported, and suffered accordingly; beside the damage of the ships and the loss of the men, the admiral was himself wounded, The French eluded every effort made by the British commanders to bring on a close and decisive engagement. When the evolutions on both sides, and the eagerness on one, threw a few of the British ships into a siteation, which obliged them to endure a conflict with a much greater number of the enemy, a close engagement ensued. Thus the Grufton, the Cornwall and the Lion, sustained the whole fire of the French fleet. The Monmouth attempting singly to arrest the progress of the enemy's van, hoping thereby to bring on a general action, but failing, was reduced almost to a wreck. The Suffolk, adm. Rowley with the Fame, suffered also considerably in similar situations. The action ceased about twelve o'clock; but although renewed at two, and at other times, in a degree, during the evening, yet nothing essential was effected. During the heat of it, some British ships pushing their way to the very entrance of the harbour of St. George's, beheld French colours on the fort, and were fired at by the batteries. The object of the British commanders was therefore totally changed. The relief of the island was 1 was at an end. The protection of the transports, along with that of the disabled ships, was now the main point to be considered. Three of the disabled ships were a great way astern: the Lion was obliged to bear away 'singly, in the best manner she could, before the wind. That and the other two might seemingly have been cut off by the French: but d'Estaing would not risk the bringing on of a decisive action by attempting their capture. In the evening, the Monmouth and the transports were ordered to make the best of their way to Antigua or St. Kitts. Byron drew up his line, reduced now to 19 ships, about three miles distant from d'Estaing, and expected to be attacked in the morning; but during the night, the count returned to Grenada. The loss of men in the British fleet was moderate; the other circunistances of the action however were exceeding grievous ; for the great damage sustained by the ships in their masts and rigging, which could not be easily remedied in that quarter, afforded an astonishing superiority of force to the French, which while it continues, will render it impossible for the British longer to dispute the empire of the sea with them in the West-Indies.All accounts concur in describing the French loss of men in the action as prodigious. The published number of officers killed and wounded, both in the naval and land departments, is considerable. The other must be in a great degree conjectural. The latter end of July, there sailed from Port l'Orient the Bon Homme Richard, of 40 guns and 375 men, commanded by capt. Paul Jones, the alliance of 36 guns, the Pallas, a French frigate of 32, the Vengeance an armed brig of 12 together with a cutter: Jones acted as commodore to the squadron. He steered for the Western coast of Ireland and appeared off Keiry. From thence he ranged round the north of Scotland, till he came off Forth Frith on September the 19th; when he directed his course to Flamborough Head. Being off the Head, he fell in with the fleet [Sept. 23.] from the Baltic, under the protection of the Serapis, capt. Pearson, and the Courtess of Scarborough, capt. Piercy. Before noon, capt. Pearson received intelligence from the bailiffs of Scarborough, of the squadron un der Jones being on the coast. Between twelve and one the headmost of the fleet got sight of it, when the Serapis made all the sail she could to get between the enemy and the convoy, which she soon effected. Capt. Pearson, by four o'clock plainly discern ing from the deck, that the squadron consisted of three large ships, and a brig, (the cutter was not now with them) made the Countess of Scarborough signal to join him, which was done about half past five. A little after seven, the Bon Homme Richard brought to within musket shot of the Serapis, when the حب fight began, and was maintained with equal fury on both sides, each vessel using all possible means to gain an advantageous situation to rake the other. Capt. Pearson had infinitely the superiority over the Bon Homme Richard in working the Serapis, and obtained advantages in spite of every effort of Jones to prevent it. Jones to render such superiority useless, aimed at lying his ship athwart the hawse of the other. Though he did not succeed to his wish, yet as the bowsprit of the Serapis ran between his poop and mizen-mast, he seized the opportunity of lashing the vessels together, when the wind driving the head of the Serapis against the bow of the Bon Homme Richard, they became so close fore and aft, that the muzzles of their guns touched each other's sides. In this position they engaged from half past eight till half past ten. But before it commenced, the Bon Homme Richard had received many 181b. shot between wind and water, and was become very leaky. Her tier of 12 pounders was entirely silenced and abandoned. Her six 18 pounders, which were old, were of no service, and were fired but eight times in all. During the succeeding action, Jones made use only of three nine pounders, whose fire was seconded by that of his men in the round-tops. At the same time others threw such a quantity and variety of combustible matters into the decks, chains, and every part of the Serapis, that she was on fire not less than 10 or 12 times in different parts, and it was with the greatest difficulty that the same could be extinguished. At half past nine, by some accident the Serapis had a cartridge of powder set on fire, the flames of which communicating from one to another all the way aft, blew up all the people and officers abaft, the main-mast, and rendered all those guns useless for the remainder of the action. When both ships were on fire together, as it happened at times, the spectacle was dreadful-beyond expression.. The Alliance repeatedly sailed round both while engaged, raking the Serapis fore and aft, and thereby killing or wouning many of her men on the quarter and main decks.*After ten she came up afresh, and renewed the fire; but through the darkness of the night, and both ships being so close along side each other, it was not poured into the Serapis alone, but also into the Bon Homme Richard, eleven of whose men were killed, beside an officer mortally wounded, by one of her broad * The account printed in the Courier de l'Europe of November 3, 1779. figned Paul Jones, states the matter so as to imply a denial of what is afferted in the Gazette account figned R. Pearfon, but from the known vanity of Jones, and the utter improbability of the Alliance's remaining totally inactive for so long a time, it is highly reasonable to conclude, that the first account is erroneous. VOL. II. sides. M3 |