King’s ship, and for the preservation of the lives of the remainder of his brave crew, he was reduced to the painful necessity of ordering the colours to be struck.
The enemy’s ships during the battle continued to warp nearer the shore, by which means they had considerably increased the distance between them and their assailants. Sir James Saumarez resolving to use every exertion in his power, either to destroy or bring them off, ordered the cables of his squadron to be cut, with a view to stand closer in; but the unfavourable state of the weather, and a strong current, rendered all his endeavours ineffectual; and after a most severe conflict of five hours, he was compelled to withdraw his ships and proceed to Gibraltar, leaving the dismasted and shattered Hannibal as a trophy in the hands of the French[1].
The loss sustained by the British on this occasion was extremely heavy; it amounted to 121 killed, 240 wounded, and 14 missing; of which number, the Hannibal alone had 75 slain, 62 wounded, and 6 missing; the remainder of her crew were made prisoners[2]. The French and Spaniards, according to their own published accounts, had 317 killed, including Captains Moncousu and Lalonde, and about 500 wounded. The ships and forts received considerable injury; five of their gun-boats were sunk, and the others materially damaged.
In the course of a few hours the British ships reached the anchorage in Rosia Bay. The Pompée, owing to her leaky state, was obliged to be towed strait into the New Mole; whither the Caesar soon followed her. Two days after, the Superb and Thames were observed in the Gut, with the signal for an enemy flying; and soon afterwards a Spanish squadron, of five sail of the line and three frigates[3], was
- ↑ This advantage obtained by the enemy was magnified by them into an important victory; and it was announced at all the Parisian theatres, that six English ships had been either taken or beaten back into Gibraltar, by three French ships. The same news was circulated by the telegraphs through the whole of the republican dominions, without a word of the land batteries; and the destruction of the modern Carthage, as Great Britain was denominated, predicted, in an epigram greatly admired at Paris, because it had lost its Hannibal.
- ↑ Captain Ferris, his officers, and wounded men, were afterwards liberated on parole.
- ↑ This squadron was from Cadiz, and composed of the following ships, under the orders of Rear-Admiral Moreno:
