THE BATTLE OF ALGIERS.
The town of Algiers is built on the declivity of a hill fronting to the
eastward. It is of a triangular form, having for its base the sea-front,
which is about a mile in length, and rises directly from the water. It
is strongly fortified on the land side, and the sea defences are most
formidable, as well from the great thickness of the walls, as the number
of heavy guns.
The harbour is artificial. A broad straight pier, three hundred yards in
length, and upon which the storehouses were built, projects from a point
about a quarter of a mile from the north extremity of the town. A mole
is carried from the end of this pier, which bends in a south-westerly
direction towards the town, forming nearly a quarter of a circle.
Opposite the mole-head is a small insulated pier, which leaves the
entrance to the harbour about a hundred and twenty yards wide. The rock
upon which the mole is built extends about two hundred yards to the N.E.
beyond the angle at which the pier joins it. The shores recede
considerably from the base of the pier, forming a small bay on either
side of it.
All the works around the harbour were covered with the strongest
fortifications. Immediately beyond the pier-head stood the Lighthouse
battery, a large circular fort, mounting between sixty and seventy guns,
in three tiers. At the extremity of the point of rock beyond the
lighthouse was a very heavy battery, of two tiers, mounting thirty guns
and seven mortars in the upper. The mole itself was filled with cannon,
like the side of a line-of-battle ship, mostly disposed in a double
tier, with ports below, and embrasures above; but the eastern batteries,
next the light-house, had an inner fortification, with a third tier of
guns, making sixty-six in these batteries alone. All these batteries had
together above two hundred and twenty guns--eighteen, twenty-four, and
thirty-two pounders; besides two, at least sixty-eight pounders, and
upwards of twenty feet long. On the sea wall of the town were nine
batteries; two at the southern extremity; then the Fish-market battery
in three tiers, bearing three hundred yards west of the molehead; three
between the Fish-market and the gate leading to the mole; one over this
gate; and two on the wall beyond it. Along the shore, within twelve
hundred yards south of the town, were three batteries, and a very heavy
fort. Another large fort, and six batteries, commanded the bay to the
N.W. Many guns in other parts of the fortifications of the town, and in
forts and batteries on the hills around it, were in situations which
enabled them to fire upon ships. Altogether, the approaches by sea were
defended by scarcely less than five hundred guns.
The Admiralty were greatly surprised when Lord Exmouth proposed to
attack these works with five sail of the line. Many naval officers who
were consulted by the Board considered them unassailable. Nelson, in a
conversation with Captain Brisbane, had named twenty-five line-of-battle
ships as the force which would be required to attack them. The opinion
was not founded upon his own observation, and he was evidently misled by
the errors in the received plans; for that number of ships could not
have been placed before the town; but it marks his sense of the great
danger in attacking powerful batteries with ships, and of the tremendous
strength of Algiers. Lord Exmouth was offered any force he required, but
he adhered to his first demand; for he had satisfied himself that five
ships could destroy the fortifications on the Mole as effectually as a
greater number, and with far more safety to themselves. After he had
fully explained his plans, and marked the position which every ship was
to occupy, the Admiralty allowed him to act upon his own judgment;
though they found it not easy to believe that the force was equal to the
service; nor were persons wanting to remark that he had at length
involved himself in a difficulty, from which he would not escape with
credit. His own confidence never wavered. "All will go well," he wrote,
"as far at least as it depends on me." As he was going down Channel, he
said to his brother, who accompanied him as far as Falmouth, "If they
open their fire when the ships are coming up, and cripple them in the
masts, the difficulty and loss will be greater; but if they allow us to
take our stations, I am sure of them; for I know that nothing can resist
a line-of-battle ship's fire." He wrote to the Admiralty before he left
England, declaring himself fully satisfied with all the arrangements,
and taking on himself the responsibility of the result.
He was scarcely appointed, when officers came forward in crowds to offer
their services. On the 29th of June, only six days after he arrived in
the Channel, he writes--"Government has taken a very proper view of the
subject, and has determined to send out a proper force. I immediately
said, it was my duty to finish that which I had begun, and that I should
cheerfully go. My offer is accepted, and I embark in the _Queen
Charlotte_, with _Impregnable_, and others. The only delay will be want
of men; but I hope they will be induced by the offers made, to volunteer
for the service, to be rewarded after it." On the 4th of July, he says,
"I have refused Israel, Pownoll, Fleetwood, Harward, and both Admiral
and Captain Halsted,[12] volunteers. Even Lord Spencer brought his son,
and a hundred others."
With very few exceptions, the officers were selected by the Admiralty.
It was understood that Sir Charles Penrose would be the second in
command, his appointment at that time as commander-in-chief in the
Mediterranean entitling him to the preference. He was very highly valued
by Lord Exmouth, under whom he had served with the _Cleopatra_ in the
western squadron. It was intended that despatches should be sent in time
to enable him to join the expedition; but greatly to the disappointment
of both officers, the information was received too late.
Lord Exmouth persisted in refusing all his relations. The motive of
duty, which was imperative on himself, applied to none of them; and all
were anxious to go. For himself, he might well trust that the Providence
which had shielded him forty years, for so long was it since he had
fought the _Carleton_ on Lake Champlain, would guard him in the
approaching battle; or, if he were doomed to fall in what might truly be
deemed a holy war, he had a better confidence than the pride of a hero,
or even the self-devotedness of a patriot. Before he sailed, he made
every arrangement which his death would render necessary; and among
others, wrote a letter for his eldest son, chiefly on the subject of the
duties which would devolve upon him as a British nobleman, and which he
designed for his last injunctions. The existence of this letter was not
known until some time after his death, when it was found among his
papers.
The Admiralty would not send back the squadron which had just returned
from the Mediterranean, probably thinking it right that ships going
expressly to fight a severe battle should be manned with volunteers.
This decision greatly increased his difficulties. Naval officers seldom
think a ship effective until she has been some time in commission.
Within two months, Lord Exmouth commissioned, fitted, and manned a
fleet, and fought the battle.
As soon as he had completed his first arrangements at the Admiralty, he
hastened to Portsmouth, where the _Boyne_, his flag-ship, was lying
with her consorts. He went on board as soon as he arrived, and there was
not a little excitement when the Admiral was seen coming alongside at a
very early hour in the morning. He mustered the ship's company on deck,
and having read to them the Admiralty letter, invited them to join him;
but at that time scarcely a man came forward. They were unwilling to
enter for a new service until they had enjoyed some liberty on shore;
but after they had been paid off, and spent their money, numbers of them
volunteered, and many more would probably have done so, but for the very
short time in which the crews were completed. No difficulty was
experienced in manning the fleet. The whole ship's company of the
_Leander_, then on the point of sailing as the flag-ship on the North
American station, volunteered to go, and accordingly her destination was
changed for the time. Rear-Admiral Milne, for whom she had been fitted,
obtained permission to go out with her; and as Sir Charles Penrose did
not join at Gibraltar, he hoisted his flag in the _Impregnable_, as
second in command. Among other volunteers were a number of smugglers,
who had been taken on the western coast, and sentenced to five years'
service in the navy. They were sent to the eastward as prisoners in a
cutter in which Mr. Pellew had taken a passage to make a parting visit
to his brother, and they implored his intercession on their behalf. He
advised them to enter for the _Queen Charlotte_, and gain a title to the
indulgence they sought by their good conduct in the battle. They all did
so: no serious casualty occurred among them, and they behaved so well
that Lord Exmouth applied to the Admiralty, and obtained their
discharge.
Lord Exmouth's marine officer in the _Arethusa_, the late Sir Richard
Williams, then commanded the marine artillery, and Lord Exmouth wrote to
request that he would aid him to the best of his abilities, by selecting
officers and men from his corps. Sir Richard displayed on this occasion
all the activity and judgment to be expected from his character, and
Lord Exmouth acknowledged his services after the glorious result of the
expedition, in the following words:--"I should be very ungrateful, my
dear friend, if I neglected to thank you for the care and pains you took
in selecting, for the service I was ordered upon, the best officers and
men I ever saw during my service. I assure you that all the officers did
you full justice: they not only knew their duty well, but they performed
it well."
In addition to the five line-of-battle ships, two of which were
three-deckers, the force included three heavy frigates, and two smaller
ones; four bomb vessels, and five gun-brigs. Four of the line-of-battle
ships were to destroy the fortifications on the Mole; while the fifth
covered them from the batteries south of the town, and the heavy
frigates, from those on the town wall. The bomb-vessels were to fire on
the arsenal and town, assisted by a flotilla of the ships' launches,
&c., fitted as gun, rocket, and mortar-boats. The smaller frigates and
the brigs were to assist as circumstances might require.
The fleet left Portsmouth on the 25th of July. On the 28th it sailed
from Plymouth Sound, and the same afternoon was off Falmouth. Twenty
three years before, Lord Exmouth had gone from the house of his brother,
who now took leave of him, and sailed to fight the first battle of the
war from the port whence he was proceeding on the service which was to
close and crown it. From this place the _Minded_, 74, was sent on to
Gibraltar, that the necessary supplies might be ready when the fleet
arrived. Through all the passage the utmost care was taken to train the
crews. Every day, Sunday excepted, they were exercised at the guns; and
on Tuesdays and Fridays the fleet cleared for action, when each ship
fired six broadsides. On board the _Queen Charlotte_ a twelve-pounder
was secured at the after part of the quarter-deck, with which the first
and second captains of the guns practised daily at a small target, hung
at the fore topmast studding-sail boom. The target was a frame of laths,
three feet square, crossed with rope-yarns so close that a twelve-pound
shot could not go through without cutting one, and with a piece of wood,
the size and shape of a bottle, for a bull's-eye. After a few days'
practice, the target was never missed, and on an average ten or twelve
bottles were hit every day. Thus kept in constant preparation for the
battle, and daily gaining new confidence in themselves, the crews were
in the highest degree elated. Officers and men felt they were going to
an assured victory, and that to obtain complete success the plans of
their chief required only the exertions which every one resolved to
make. As a consequence of this enthusiasm, which never had a check, for
the excitement of preparation was followed by the flush of victory,
their health and vigour were beyond all parallel. Scarcely a man came on
the sick-list; and when the _Queen Charlotte_ was paid off on her
return, only one had died, except from the casualties of battle, out of
nearly a thousand who had joined her more than three months before.
On the 9th of August, the fleet reached Gibraltar, where the _Minden_
had arrived only the preceding night. Here they found a Dutch squadron
of five frigates and a corvette, commanded by Vice-Admiral the Baron Von
de Capellan, who, on learning the object of the expedition, solicited
and obtained leave to co-operate. The ships, having completed their
ordnance stores and provisions, were ready to sail on the 12th; but the
strong easterly wind prevented them from moving for two days. On the
13th, every ship received a plan of the fortifications, with full
instructions respecting the position she was to occupy. A general order
to this effect had been issued on the 6th, but the co-operation of the
Dutch squadron had made some change in the arrangements necessary. To
this squadron was assigned the duty of attacking the fort and batteries
south of the town, a service previously intended for the _Minden_ and
_Hebrus_, which were now to take a position among their consorts in
front of the Mole.
The fleet sailed next day, and on the 16th was within two hundred miles
of its destination, when the wind again shifted to the eastward. That
evening the ship-sloop _Prometheus_, Captain Dashwood, joined direct
from Algiers, with information that the Algerines were making every
preparation to meet the attack. All the former defences had been made
completely effective, and new works had been added; forty thousand
troops had been assembled; all the Janizaries called in from distant
garrisons; and the whole naval force of the regency, four frigates, five
large corvettes, and thirty-seven gun-boats, were collected in the
harbour. The _Prometheus_ brought the wife, daughter, and infant child
of Mr. M'Donell, the British consul. The two former had succeeded in
getting off, disguised as midshipmen; but the infant, which had been
carefully concealed in a basket, after a composing medicine had been
given to it by the surgeon of the _Prometheus_, awoke, and cried as it
was passing the gateway, and thus led to the arrest of all the party
then on shore. The child was sent off next morning by the Dey, and, "as
a solitary instance of his humanity," said Lord Exmouth, "it ought to be
recorded by me;" but the consul was confined in irons at his house, and
the surgeon, three midshipmen, and fourteen seamen of the _Prometheus_,
were detained as prisoners; nor could the most urgent remonstrances of
Captain Dashwood induce the Dey to release them.
The fleet continued beating against a head wind until midnight on the
24th, when the wind shifted to south-west. On Monday the 20th, at noon,
they made Cape Cazzina, the northern point of the Bay of Algiers, and
about twenty miles from the town. Next morning at daybreak, Algiers
itself was in sight As the ships lay nearly becalmed, Lord Exmouth sent
away Lieutenant Burgess in one of the _Queen Charlotte's_ boats, under a
flag of truce, with the terms dictated by the Prince Regent, and a
demand for the immediate liberation of the consul, and the people of the
_Prometheus_. The _Severn_ was directed to tow the boat, but as she
made very little way, the boat was ordered by signal to cast off, and
proceed alone to the shore. At eleven o'clock, she was met outside the
mole by the captain of the port, who received the communication, and
promised an answer in two hours. In the mean time, a breeze springing up
from the sea, the fleet stood into the bay, and lay to about a mile from
the town.
At two o'clock the boat was seen returning, with the signal that no
answer had been given. The _Queen Charlotte_ immediately telegraphed to
the fleet, "Are you ready?" Immediately the affirmative was displayed
from every ship, and all bore up to their appointed stations.
The _Queen Charlotte_ led to the attack. It was Lord Exmouth's intention
not to reply to the enemy's fire in bearing down, unless it should
become galling. In that case, the middle and main-deck guns, thirty long
24-pounders, were to have opened; keeping the upper deck for shortening
sail, and the lower for working the cables. The guns on these decks were
not primed until the ship had anchored. But the Algerines reserved their
fire, confident in the strength of their defences, and expecting to
carry the flagship by boarding her from the gun-boats, which were all
filled with men. Steered by the master of the fleet, Mr. Gaze, who had
sailed with Lord Exmouth in every ship he commanded from the beginning
of the war, the _Queen Charlotte_ proceeded silently to her position. At
half-past two, she anchored by the stern, just half a cable's length
from the Mole-head, and was lashed by a hawser to the mainmast of an
Algerine brig, which lay at the entrance of the harbour. Her starboard
broadside flanked all the batteries from the Mole-head to the
Light-house. The Mole was crowded with troops, many of whom got upon the
parapet to look at the ship; and Lord Exmouth, observing them as he
stood upon the poop, waved to them to move away. As soon as the ship was
fairly placed, and her cables stoppered, the crew gave three hearty
cheers, such as Englishmen only can give. Scarcely had the sound of the
last died away, when a gun was fired from the upper tier of the eastern
battery; and a second, and a third followed in quick succession. One of
the shots struck the _Superb_. At the first flash, Lord Exmouth gave the
order, "Stand by!" at the second. "Fire!" The report of the third gun
was drowned in the thunder of _Queen Charlotte's_ broadside.
The enemy now opened from all their batteries, the _Queen Charlotte_ and
_Leander_ being the only ships which had yet reached their stations.
Preparations had been previously made in all, to avoid the necessity of
exposing the men aloft when shortening sail. Following the flag-ship,
the _Superb_ anchored about two hundred and fifty yards astern of her,
and the _Minden_ at about her own length from the _Superb_. The _Albion_
came to astern of the _Minded_, which passed her stream cable out of the
larboard gun-room port to the _Albion's_ bow, and brought the two ships
together. The _Impregnable_ was anchored astern of the _Albion_.
The large frigates, and the Dutch squadron, particularly the _Melampus_,
their flag-ship, went into action under a very heavy fire, and with a
gallantry that never was surpassed. The _Leander_ had placed herself on
the _Queen Charlotte's_ larboard bow, at the entrance of the harbour;
her starboard broadside bearing upon the Algerine gun-boats with the
after guns, and upon the Fishmarket battery with the others. The
_Severn_ lay ahead of the _Leander_, with all her starboard broadside
bearing upon the Fishmarket battery. Beyond her the _Glasgow_ fired upon
the town batteries with her larboard guns. The Dutch squadron took the
assigned position, before the works to the southward of the town. It was
their Admiral's intention to place the _Melampus_ in the centre; but his
second ahead, the _Diana_, having anchored too far to the southward to
allow this, he pushed the _Melampus_ past her, and anchored close astern
of the _Glasgow_.
The two smaller frigates, the _Hebrus_ and _Granicus_, were left to take
part in the battle wherever they might find an opening. Eager to gain a
position, in the line, the _Hebrus_ pressed forward to place herself
next the flag-ship, till, becalmed by the cannonade, she was obliged to
anchor on the _Queen Charlotte's_ larboard quarter. Captain Wise, of the
_Granicus_, waited until all the ships had taken their stations. Then,
setting topgallant-sails and courses, he steered for where Lord
Exmouth's flag was seen towering above the smoke; and with a seamanship
equalled only by his intrepidity, anchored in the open space between the
_Queen Charlotte_ and _Superb_; thus, with a small-class frigate, taking
a position, of which, said Lord Exmouth, a three-decker might be justly
proud.
Eastward of the Lighthouse, at the distance of two thousand yards, were
placed the bomb-vessels; whose shells were thrown with admirable
precision by the Marine Artillery. The smaller vessels, except the
_Mutine_, which anchored, continued under sail, firing occasionally
wherever they saw opportunity. The flotilla of gun, rocket, and mortar
boats, directed, by Captain Michell, were distributed at the openings
between the line-of-battle ships, and at the entrance to the Mole.
Thus the ships commanded the strongest of the enemy's defences, while
they were exposed to the weakest part of his fire. The officers and men
felt new confidence when they saw the power derived from the admirable
disposition of their force. All behaved most nobly; and it was not long
before the state of the Algerine batteries gave proof that their courage
was fully equalled by their skill.
In a few minutes, indeed before the battle had become general, the
_Queen Charlotte_ had ruined the fortifications on the Mole-head. She
then sprang her broadside towards the northward, to bear upon the
batteries over the gate which leads to the Mole, and upon the upper
works of the Lighthouse. Her shot struck with the most fatal accuracy,
crumbling the tower of the Lighthouse to ruins, and bringing down gun
after gun from the batteries. The last of these guns was dismounted
just as the artillerymen were in the act of discharging it; when an
Algerine chief was seen to spring upon the ruins of the parapet, and
with impotent rage, to shake his scimitar against the ship. Her men
proved themselves as expert amidst the realities of war, as they had
before shown themselves in exercise; and some of them were detected
amusing themselves, in the wantonness of their skill, by firing at the
Algerine flag-staffs.
Soon after the battle began, the enemy's flotilla of gun-boats advanced,
with a daring which deserved a better fate, to board the _Queen
Charlotte_ and _Leander_. The smoke covered them at first, but as soon
as they were seen, a few guns, chiefly from the _Leander_, sent
thirty-three out of thirty-seven to the bottom.
At four o'clock, when a general and heavy fire had been maintained for
more than an hour without producing any appearance of submission, Lord
Exmouth determined to destroy the Algerine ships. Accordingly, the
_Leander_ having first been ordered to cease firing, the flag-ship's
barge, directed by Lieutenant Peter Richards, with Major Gossett, of the
Miners, Lieutenant Wolrige, of the Marines, and Mr. M'Clintock, a
midshipman, boarded the nearest frigate, and fired her so effectually
with the laboratory torches, and a carcass-shell placed on the main
deck, that she was completely in flames almost before the barge's crew
were over her side. The crew of a rocket-boat belonging to the _Hebrus_
were prompted by a natural, but unfortunate ardour, to follow the barge,
though forbidden; but the boat pulling heavily, she became exposed to a
fire of musketry, which killed an officer and three men, and wounded
several others. Lord Exmouth stood watching the barge from the gangway,
delighted with the gallantry and promptitude with which his orders were
executed. When the frigate burst into a flame, he telegraphed to the
fleet the animating signal, "Infallible!" and as the barge was
returning, he ordered those around him to welcome her alongside with
three cheers.
It was hoped that the flames would communicate from this frigate to the
rest of the Algerine shipping; but she burnt from her moorings, and
passing clear of her consorts, drifted along the broadsides of the
_Queen Charlotte_ and _Leander_, and grounded a-head of the latter,
under the wall of the town. The gun-boats, and the _Queen Charlotte's_
launch, then opened with carcass-shells upon the largest frigate, which
was moored in the centre of the other ships, too far within the Mole to
be attempted safely by boarding. They soon set her on fire, and
notwithstanding the exertions of the Algerines, she was completely in
flames by six o'clock. From her the fire communicated, first to all the
other vessels in the port, except a brig and a schooner, moored in the
upper part of it, and afterwards to the storehouses and arsenal. At a
little past seven, she came drifting out of the harbour, and passed so
close to the flag-ship as nearly to involve her in the same destruction.
About sunset, a message was received from Rear-Admiral Milne, requesting
that a frigate might be sent to divert from the _Impregnable_ some of
the fire under which she was suffering. She had anchored more to the
northward than was intended, and consequently became exposed to the
heavy battery on the point of rock beyond the lighthouse, and which was
covered from the fire of the rest of the fleet. The _Glasgow_ weighed
immediately, but the wind had been driven away by the cannonade, and she
was only able, after three-quarters of an hour's exertion, to reach a
new position between the _Severn_ and _Leander_; a better for annoying
the enemy, but where she was herself more exposed, and suffered in
proportion. As it was found impossible to assist the _Impregnable_, Lord
Exmouth sent on board Mr. Triscott, one of his aides-de-camp, with
permission to haul off. The _Impregnable_ was then dreadfully cut up;
150 men had been already killed and wounded, a full third of them by an
explosion, and the shot were still coming in fast; but her brave crew,
guided and encouraged by the Rear-Admiral and Captain Brace, two of the
most distinguished and successful officers in the service, would not
allow her to go thus out of battle; and she kept her station,
maintaining an animated fire to the last. To relieve her in some degree,
an ordnance sloop, which had been fitted at Gibraltar as an
explosion-vessel, with 143 barrels of powder, was placed at the disposal
of the Rear-Admiral. She had been intended for the destruction of the
Algerine fleet, but this service had already been effected by other
means. Conducted by Lieutenant Fleming, who had been commanding a
gun-boat near the _Queen Charlotte_, with Major Reed, of the Engineers,
and Captain Herbert Powell, a volunteer on board the _Impregnable_, the
explosion-vessel was run on shore under the battery which had annoyed
her, where, at nine o'clock, she blew up.
The fleet slackened their fire towards night, as the guns of the enemy
became silenced, and the ships began to feel the necessity for
husbanding their ammunition. Their expenditure had been beyond all
parallel. They fired nearly 118 tons of powder, and 50,000 shot,
weighing more than 500 tons of iron; besides 960 thirteen and ten-inch
shells thrown by the bomb-vessels, and the shells and rockets from the
flotilla. Such a fire, close, concentrated, and well-directed as it was,
nothing could resist; and the sea-defences of Algiers, with great part
of the town itself, were shattered and crumbled to ruins.
At a little before ten, the objects of the attack having been effected,
the _Queen Charlotte's_ bower-cable was cut, and her head hauled round
to seaward. She continued, however, to engage with all the guns abaft
the mainmast, sometimes on both sides. Warps were run out to gain an
offing, but many of them were cut by shot from the batteries southward
of the town, which had been very partially engaged, and also from forts
on the hills out of reach of the ships' guns. A very light air was felt
about half-past ten, and sail was made; but the ship, after cutting from
her remaining warps and anchors, was manageable only by the aid of her
boats towing, and then the only point gained was keeping her head from
the land. At eleven she began to draw out from the batteries, and at
twenty-five minutes past she ceased to fire. The breeze freshened, and a
tremendous storm of thunder and lightning came on, with torrents of
rain; while the flaming ships and storehouses illuminated all the ruins,
and increased the grandeur of the scene. In about three hours the storm
subsided, and as soon as the ship was made snug, Lord Exmouth assembled
in his cabin all the wounded who could be moved with safety, that they
might unite with him and his officers in offering thanksgiving to God
for their victory and preservation.
The two Admirals came on board the _Queen Charlotte_ as soon as they
could leave their ships, and spoke their feelings of admiration and
gratitude to Lord Exmouth with all the warmth of language and
expression. The Dutch Admiral, who, with his squadron, had most nobly
emulated the conduct of his British allies, declared himself in terms of
the highest eulogy of the _Queen Charlotte_, which, he said, by her
commanding position and the effect of her fire, had saved five hundred
men to the fleet. Perhaps there was no exaggeration in the praise; for
the destruction occasioned by her first broadside, as she lay flanking
the Mole, must have contributed much to protect the ships which had not
yet reached their stations; and the havoc she inflicted by a cannonade
of nine hours must have been great indeed, since her fire could destroy
the fortifications on the Mole-head in a few minutes.
In no former general action had the casualties been so great in
proportion to the force employed. One hundred and twenty-eight were
killed, and six hundred and ninety wounded, in the British ships, and
thirteen killed and fifty-two wounded in the Dutch squadron. Yet,
except the _Impregnable_, which had fifty men killed, no ship suffered
so much as is usual in a severe engagement. Generally, in fleet actions,
the brunt of the battle, and the chief amount of losses, fall upon a
few; but here every ship had her allotted duty, and was closely engaged
throughout. After the _Impregnable_, the frigates suffered the most,
particularly the _Granicus_, which took a line-of-battle ship's station;
and the _Leander_, which was much cut up by the Fish-market and other
batteries, and as late as seven o'clock was obliged to carry out a
hawser to _the Severn_, to enable her to bear her broadside upon one
which annoyed her. The loss in the other line-of-battle ships was
remarkably small. They had together but twenty-six killed, including the
casualties in their respective boats.
Lord Exmouth escaped most narrowly. He was struck in three places; and a
cannon-shot tore away the skirts of his coat. A button was afterwards
found in the signal locker; and the shot broke one of the glasses and
bulged the rim of the spectacles in his pocket. He gave the spectacles
to his valued friend, the late gallant Sir Richard Keats, who caused
their history to be engraven on them, and directed, that when he died,
they should be restored to Lord Exmouth's family, to be kept as a
memorial of his extraordinary preservation.
On the 28th, at daylight, Lieutenant Burgess was sent on shore with a
flag of truce, and the demands of the preceding morning; the
bomb-vessels at the same time resuming their positions. The captain of
one of the destroyed frigates met the boat, and declared that an answer
had been sent on the day before, but that no boat was at hand to receive
it. Shortly after, the captain of the port came off, accompanied by the
Swedish consul, and informed Lord Exmouth that all his demands would be
submitted to. On the morning of the 29th, the captain of the port came
off again, being now accompanied by the British consul; upon which
Captain Brisbane, of the flag-ship, went on shore, and had a conference
with the Dey. Sir Charles Penrose, whom the Admiral had expected to the
last, arrived this day in the _Ister_ frigate, from Malta, where he had
waited for his expected orders, until he heard that Lord Exmouth was in
the Mediterranean. Lord Exmouth committed to him the management of the
negotiations, the only compliment he could now offer. Where nothing
remained but submission for the vanquished, the arrangements were soon
concluded, and next day the final result was officially communicated to
the fleet.
"_Queen Charlotte_, Algiers Bay, August 30, 1816.
"General Memorandum.
"The Commander-in-Chief is happy to inform the fleet of the final
termination of their strenuous exertions, by the signature of
peace, confirmed under a salute of twenty-one guns, on the
following conditions, dictated by His Royal Highness the Prince
Regent of England.
"I. The abolition of Christian slavery for ever.
"II. The delivery to my flag of all slaves in the dominions of the
Dey, to whatever nation they may belong, at noon to-morrow.
"III. To deliver also to my flag all money received by him for the
redemption of slaves since the commencement of this year--at noon
also to-morrow.
"IV. Reparation has been made to the British consul for all losses
he has sustained in consequence of his confinement.
"V. The Dey has made a public apology, in presence of his ministers
and officers, and begged pardon of the consul in terms dictated by
the captain of the _Queen Charlotte_.
"The Commander-in-Chief takes this opportunity of again returning
his public thanks to the Admirals, Captains, Officers, Seamen,
Marines, Royal Sappers and Miners, Royal Marine Artillery, and the
Royal Rocket Corps, for the noble support he has received from
them throughout the whole of this arduous service; and he is
pleased to direct that on Sunday next a public thanksgiving shall
be offered up to Almighty God, for the signal interposition of his
Divine Providence during the conflict which took place on the 27th,
between his Majesty's fleet and the ferocious enemies of mankind.
It is requested that this memorandum may be read to the ship's
company.
"To the Admirals, Captains, Officers, Seamen, Marines, Royal
Sappers and Miners, Royal Marine Artillery, and the Royal Rocket
Corps."
Above twelve hundred slaves were embarked on the 31st, making, with
those liberated a few weeks before, more than three thousand, whom, by
address or force, Lord Exmouth had delivered from slavery.[13] Having
sent them to their respective countries, and leaving a ship to receive a
few who had yet to come up from the interior, he sailed on the 3rd of
September for England. On the 8th, when on his way to Gibraltar, he
wrote an account of the battle to his brother, to whom he had previously
sent a very laconic communication, stating merely the result.
"It has pleased God to give me again the opportunity of writing
you, and it has also pleased Him to give success to our efforts
against these hordes of barbarians. I never, however, saw any set
of men more obstinate at their guns, and it was superior fire only
that could keep them back. To be sure, nothing could stand before
the _Queen Charlotte's_ broadside. Everything fell before it; and
the Swedish consul assures me we killed above five hundred at the
very first fire, from the crowded way in which troops were drawn
up, four deep above the gun boats, which were also full of men. I
had myself beckoned to many around the guns close to us to move
away, previous to giving the order to fire; and I believe they are
within bounds, when they state their loss at seven thousand men.
Our old friend John Gaze was as steady as a rock; and it was a
glorious sight to see the _Charlotte_ take her anchorage, and to
see her flag towering on high, when she appeared to be in the
flames of the Mole itself; and never was a ship nearer burnt; it
almost scorched me off the poop; we were obliged to haul in the
ensign, or it would have caught fire. Everybody behaved uncommonly
well. Admiral Milne came on board at two o'clock in the morning,
and kissed my hand fifty times before the people, as did the Dutch
Admiral, Von Capellan. I was but slightly touched in the thigh,
face, and fingers--my glass cut in my hand, and the skirts of my
coat torn off by a large shot; but as I bled a good deal, it
looked as if I was badly hurt, and it was gratifying to see and
hear how it was received even in the cockpit, which was then pretty
full. My thigh is not quite skinned over, but I am perfectly well,
and hope to reach Portsmouth by the 10th of October. Ferdinand has
sent me a diamond star. Wise behaved most nobly, and took up a
line-of-battle ship's station; but all behaved nobly. I never saw
such enthusiasm in all my service. Not a wretch shrunk any where;
and I assure you it was a very arduous task, but I had formed a
very correct judgment of all I saw, and was confident, if
supported, I should succeed. I could not wait for an offshore wind
to attack; the season was too far advanced, and the land-winds
become light and calmy. I was forced to attack at once with a
lee-shore, or perhaps wait a week for a precarious wind along
shore; and I was quite sure I should have a breeze off the land
about one or two in the morning, and equally sure we could hold out
to that time. Blessed be God! it came, and a dreadful night with
it, of thunder, lightning, and rain, as heavy as I ever saw.
Several ships had expended all their powder, and been supplied from
the brigs. I had latterly husbanded, and only fired when they fired
on us; and we expended 350 barrels, and 5,420 shot, weighing above
65 tons of iron. Such a state of ruin of fortifications and houses
was never seen, and it is the opinion of all the consuls, that two
hours more fire would have levelled the town; the walls are all so
cracked. Even the aqueducts were broken up, and the people
famishing for water. The sea-defences, to be made effective, must
be rebuilt from the foundation. The fire all round the Mole looked
like Pandemonium. I never saw anything so grand and so terrific,
for I was not on velvet, for fear they would drive on board us. The
copper-bottoms floated full of fiery hot charcoal, and were red hot
above the surface, so that we could not hook on our fire-grapnels
to put the boats on, and could do nothing but push fire-booms, and
spring the ship off by our warps, as occasion required."
The battle of Algiers forms a class by itself among naval victories. It
was a new thing to place a fleet in a position surrounded by such
formidable batteries. Bold and original in the conception, it was most
brilliant and complete in execution. Nor was it more splendid for the
honour, than happy in the fruits. It broke the chains of thousands; it
gave security to millions;--it delivered Christendom from a scourge and
a disgrace. To complete the happiness of the achievement, a nation
co-operated, the natural ally of England, and the truest of her friends;
bound to her by the proudest recollections of patriotism, and the
dearest ties of religion; and which, if it should be required once more
to strike down the power of whatever evil principle may desolate Europe,
will again be found at her side, strong in virtue as in courage, to
emulate her prowess, and to share the triumph.
FOOTNOTES:
[12] Sir Israel, his brother; Captains Pownoll and Fleetwood, his sons;
Captain Harward, and Sir Lawrence Halsted, his sons-in-law.
[13] Slaves liberated by Admiral Lord Exmouth:--
AT ALGIERS.
Neapolitans and Sicilians 1,110
Sardinians and Genoese 62
Piedmontaise 6
Romans 174
Tuscans 6
Spaniards 226
Portuguese 1
Greeks 7
Dutch 28
English 18
French 2
Austrians 2--1,642
AT TUNIS.
Neapolitans and Sicilians 524
Sardinians and Genoese 257----781
AT TRIPOLI.
Neapolitans and Sicilians 422
Sardinians and Genoese 144
Romans 10
Hamburghers 4----580
_______
3,003