Battle of Abukir (1798)

After a series of victories of Napoleon Bonaparte over the Austrian Empire , which led to the end of the First Coalition War in 1797, Great Britain remained the only European power at war with the French Republic ^[1] . The directory explored various strategic options for fighting Britain, including strengthening the French navy opposing the Royal Navy ^[2] . Despite considerable efforts, in the short term these ambitions were unattainable due to reliable British control of the northern European waters and the Atlantic Ocean ^[3] . However, since the war broke out between Britain and Spain in 1796 and the British were forced to withdraw the fleet from the Mediterranean Sea , the French dominated there ^[4] . In addition, the Irish uprising that began in 1798, according to Napoleon, was also to distract the British from active operations in the Mediterranean Sea. All this created favorable conditions for the French general to invade Egypt ^[5] .

Napoleon believed that by ensuring a permanent presence in Egypt (which was nominally part of the neutral Ottoman Empire ), the French would secure an intermediate base for future operations against British India ^[6] . Such operations would lead to the severance of trade relations between Great Britain and India and would deprive the British of their main source of funds for military spending ^[7] . The French Directory agreed with Bonaparte's plans, one of the main motives for their decision was the desire to alienate, as far as possible, Napoleon and his loyal troops from the capital and from power ^[8] . In the spring of 1798, Bonaparte gathered more than 35 thousand soldiers and a powerful fleet on the Mediterranean coast of France and Italy - in Toulon and Genoa . He also gathered a group of scientists, engineers and creative people who were to found a French colony in Egypt ^[9] . Napoleon kept the main purpose of the expedition a secret - most army officers did not know anything about the mission, and Bonaparte did not publicly disclose it until the completion of the first stage ^[10] .

1798 Mediterranean Campaign

Bonaparte's fleet left Toulon on May 19, 1798, quickly crossed the Ligurian Sea and, after merging with the remaining fleet in Genoa, headed south along the coast of Sardinia in the direction of Sicily , which passed on June 7 ^[11] . On June 9, the fleet reached the coast of Malta. Bonaparte demanded that his fleet be allowed into Valletta’s fortified harbor. When the knights refused, the French general carried out a large-scale attack on the Maltese islands , breaking the defenders' defenses after a 24-hour shelling ^{[12] [13]} . On June 12, the defenders capitulated and transferred the islands and all resources to Bonaparte, including the extensive property of the Roman Catholic Church in Malta ^[14] . Within a week, ship supplies were replenished, on June 19, the fleet advanced to Alexandria , leaving 4,000 soldiers in Valletta to ensure French control of the islands ^[15] .

While Bonaparte was moving to Malta, the Royal Navy of Great Britain entered the Mediterranean Sea for the first time in a year. Alarmed by reports of French actions on the Mediterranean coast, Admiralty First Lord George Spencer sent a message to Vice Admiral Jervis , commander of the Mediterranean fleet based on the Tagus River, to immediately send a reconnaissance squadron ^[16] . The command of the squadron of three battleships and three frigates was entrusted to Rear Admiral Nelson.

Nelson was a very experienced officer, he participated in the battles for Corsica in 1794, where he lost his eye, and also distinguished himself in the battle of Saint Vincent in February 1797, where he captured two Spanish battleships . In July 1797, he lost his hand at the battle of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and was forced to spend some time in Britain. However, already at the end of April 1798 he returned to the fleet, took command of the squadron stationed in Gibraltar, and went with her to the Ligurian Sea ^[17] . On May 21, Nelson’s squadron approached Toulon, where it fell into a severe storm in the Gulf of Lyon , as a result of which the flagship Vanguard lost its main mast , lost its focus mast and nearly crashed near the Corsican coast ^[18] . The rest of the squadron dispersed. Battleships took refuge near the island of San Pietro near Sardinia; frigates carried to the west, and they could not return ^[19] .

By June 7, the flagship was repaired; in addition, ten battleships and ships of rank 4 joined the fleet. As a reinforcement, Nelson was sent a fleet under the command of Thomas Trubridge ^[20] . However, in addition to an impressive number of ships, for a successful attack on the French fleet it was necessary to know Napoleon's plans, as well as to have frigates for reconnaissance ^[21] . Heading south in the hope of gaining information on the movement of the French, Nelson's fleet first stopped near Elba , and then in Naples , where the British ambassador Sir William Hamilton reported that the French fleet had passed Sicily and was heading for Malta ^[22] . Despite the requests of Nelson and Hamilton, the king of the Neapolitan kingdom Ferdinand I refused to provide his frigates to the British fleet, fearing retaliatory measures by France ^[23] . On June 22, Nelson learned that on June 16, the French were about to head further east ^[24] . After conferring with the captains, the admiral came to the conclusion that the goal of the French was most likely Egypt, and set off in pursuit. Assuming that the French were five days ahead of him, and not two, Nelson chose the shortest route to Alexandria ^{[25] [26]} .

In the evening of June 22, Nelson’s fleet missed the French fleet in the dark, overtaking a slow convoy and not realizing how close it was to its target ^[27] . Following the shortest route, Nelson arrived in Alexandria on June 28 and found that the French were not there ^[28] . After meeting with the Ottoman commander, Nelson deployed the British fleet to the north, on July 4 reached the coast of Asia Minor and turned west, back in the direction of Sicily ^[29] . Nelson missed the French less than a day, already in the evening of June 29, the reconnaissance of the French fleet reached the shores of Alexandria ^[30] .

Concerned about a possible skirmish with Nelson, Bonaparte ordered the immediate landing of the landing, during which, because of the rush, the French army suffered the first losses ^[31] . Moving along the coast, the French stormed Alexandria, after which Napoleon led the main forces inland ^{[32] [33]} . He instructed Vice Admiral Francois de Bruet to anchor in the harbor of Alexandria, but it was too small and narrow for the large ships of the French fleet. As a result, French ships were located in the Gulf of Abukir, 32 kilometers northeast of Alexandria ^{[34] [35]} .

On July 19, the Nelson fleet reached the coast of Sicily, where it replenished ship supplies. On July 24, the admiral learned that the French were somewhere in the eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea, his fleet sailed again in the direction of the south of the Balkan Peninsula ^{[36] [37]} . On July 28, at Koroni, Nelson received information about the French invasion of Egypt and turned south. In the afternoon of August 1, his ships “ HMS Alexander ” and “ HMS Swiftsure ” discovered the French fleet in Alexandria ^[38] .

Abukir Bay

When the harbor of Alexandria was unsuitable for the French fleet, Francois de Bruyet gathered captains of ships for a meeting. Bonaparte ordered the fleet to anchor in the shallow and open Abukir Gulf , adding that if this place is too dangerous, the admiral can place the ships to the north, near Corfu . Only transport ships and a few light military were to remain in the bay ^[39] . Bruce refused, citing the fact that the fleet could provide substantial support to the French army on the coast, and gathered captains aboard the 120-gun flagship to discuss possible actions in the event of the discovery of the Nelson fleet. Despite the opinion of Admiral Arman Blanca, who insisted on a battle in open water, the remaining captains considered linear tactics to be the best option, consisting in the formation by the ships of a line in which all ships were turned on board the enemy ^{[40] [41]} . It is possible that Bonaparte considered the Gulf of Abukir as a temporary fortification: on July 27 he wanted to see ships in Alexandria, and three days later he ordered the fleet to relocate to Corfu in preparation for naval operations against the Ottoman possessions in the Balkans , but Bedouin partisans intercepted and killed courier with the order ^{[42] [43]} .

Abukir Bay is 30 km across and extends from the city of Abukir in the west to the city of Rashid in the east, where one of the mouths of the Nile River flows into the Mediterranean Sea ^[44] . In 1798, the western side of the bay was protected by extensive rocky ledges. A small fort, located on an island among the rocks, guarded shallow water. The fort was owned by the French and was armed with at least four cannons and two mortars ^{[45] [46]} . Bruhé fortified the defense with bombardment ships and gunboats , anchored among the rocks on the western side of the island. A strip of shallow water, unevenly located south of the island, formed a semicircle in the bay half a kilometer from the coast. Its depth was not enough for large warships to pass, so Bruhé ordered thirteen battleships to form a line along the northeastern outskirts of the shallows south of the island. This situation allowed the ships to land on the port side under the cover of the right guns ^{[47] [48]} . In addition, each vessel had to be connected by ropes to its neighbors in order to create an effective line of defense, forming a theoretically impregnable barrier ^[49] . The second, inland, line of four frigates was ordered by Bruyé to be made approximately 320 meters west of the main line, about halfway between the fleet and the shallow water. At the forefront of the French line is the battleship ^[46] . The line of defense stretched to the southeast, arching around the coast in the central part. The interval between the ships was about 150 meters, and the length of the entire chain was more than two and a half kilometers ^[50] . In the center is the flagship L'Orient, and on the sides are two 80-gun ships ^[51] . The rear remained under the command of Admiral Villeneuve ^[46] .

Such a deployment of the French fleet, according to Bruhé, was supposed to force the British to attack a strong center, which would allow the vanguard to take advantage of the north-east wind and counterattack the enemy ^[3] . However, Bruet made a serious mistake, believing that between the and the shallow there was not enough space for the enemy ships. The distance to the shallows allowed the British to bypass the French line and cut off the vanguard from the main forces. After such a maneuver, the vanguard found itself under crossfire ^[52] . This miscalculation was compounded by the fact that the French prepared for battle only the starboard sides of their ships (from the sea), from where they expected an attack. The left sides of the ships, facing the land, were not ready for battle. The cannons were closed and the decks littered with things blocking access to guns ^[53] . Bruhé's disposition had another significant drawback: the distances between the ships of the line were large enough so that a British ship could pass through it and break up the building ^[54] . In addition, not all French captains fastened the ships with ropes, which could have prevented such a maneuver of the British ^[55] . The problem was aggravated by the order to use only the anchor on the bow of the ship, because of which the ships were swaying in the wind and the gaps between them widened. Also periodically formed areas that were not shot by any French ship. British ships could anchor there without fear, and irresponsibly fire at the French ^[56] .

One of the main problems was also the lack of food and water. Bonaparte unloaded almost all of his ships, and food supply was not established from the coast. To remedy the situation, Brueux formed groups of 25 people from each ship and sent them to land to requisition food and obtain water ^[49] . The constant attacks of the Bedouins required armed escort for each forage group. Thus, up to a third of sailors were almost always away from their ships ^[57] . Bruet even wrote a letter describing the situation to the French Minister of the Sea, Etienne Bruy : “Our sailors are inferior, both quantitatively and qualitatively. Our rigging is generally in malfunctioning. It seems to me that you need to have a lot of courage to lead a fleet in a similar state ” ^[58] .

British Navy

French Navy

The advent of the British fleet

Nelson did not find the main French fleet in Alexandria , however, the presence of transport ships indicated that he was somewhere nearby. At 14:00 on August 1, a sentinel from the battleship Zealous announced that the French were located in the Gulf of Abukir . The message was transmitted to Goliath , but it inaccurately spoke of 16 French battleships instead of 13 ^[61] . At the same time, French sentinels on the Heureux discovered that the British fleet was only nine nautical miles from the mouth of the bay. Initially, a total of 11 British ships were reported, as the Swiftsure and Alexander only returned from a reconnaissance operation in Alexandria and were 3 nautical miles west of the main forces ^[62] . The Culloden also lagged slightly behind the main forces due to towing a hijacked merchant ship. However, after information about the French, the ship was abandoned, and the battleship reunited with the Nelson fleet ^[61] . Due to the seafarers' busyness on the coast, Bruhé did not designate any of his light warships as a scout, so he was unable to quickly respond to the sudden appearance of the British ^[63] .

While the ships were preparing for battle, Bruhé ordered his captains to gather aboard the Orient and was in a hurry to return the coastal groups, although most of them did not have time to start the battle ^[62] . As a result, a significant number of frigate sailors were distributed among battleships to make up for the shortage of people ^[64] . Bruhé also hoped to lure the British fleet aground by sending the Alerte and Railleur brig there as bait ^[50] . By 4:00 p.m. , the Swiftsure and Alexander also came into view of the French, albeit at some distance from the main British fleet. Bruce canceled his order to remain anchored, but instead he decided to go to sea ^[65] . Admiral Blanca believed that there were not enough people on the ships to simultaneously control them and fight ^[66] . Nelson ordered the leading ships to slow down to make the fleet more organized. This allowed Brueh to suggest that instead of having a risky evening fight in a limited area of ​​the bay, the British plan to wait until the next day. He canceled his previous order to leave the bay ^[67] . Perhaps Bruhét was hoping that a delay in the British would allow him to slip past them at night and thus fulfill Bonaparte’s order not to come into direct conflict with the British fleet, if this could be avoided ^[64] .

The advance of the British fleet slowed down around 16:00, as the ships provided the necessary training to increase stability and focus on the enemy during firing. Ships also needed increased maneuverability to reduce the risk of a possible longitudinal attack ^[68] . Nelson’s plan was to get around the French avant-garde so that each Bruet ship entered the battle with two British, and the flagship “Orient” opposed three at once. The direction of the wind ensured that the second half of the French fleet would not be able to quickly enter the battle and support the front ships. To make sure that in the smoke and bustle of a night battle, his ships did not accidentally attack each other, Nelson ordered his fleet to prepare lights and raise . These flags were quite different from the French tricolors , so as not to be mistaken even in conditions of poor visibility ^[69] .

Soon after the cancellation of Bruce's order to go to sea, the British fleet again began to rapidly approach. This time, Bruhé had no doubt that the battle would take place that night, and ordered the fleet to make final preparations. He also sent the Alerte forward to go near the vanguard of the British fleet, and then abruptly turned west in shallow water, in the hope that some ships would follow him and run aground ^{[62] [67]} . None of the captains of Nelson succumbed to the ruse, and the British fleet continued the offensive in full force ^[70] . At 5:30 pm, the admiral ordered Samuel Hood , captain of the HMS Zealous , to find a safe passage to the harbor. The British had no information about the depth and exact shape of the bay, except for the outline of the map received by HMS Swiftsure from the captain of the merchant ship, the inaccurate British atlas on board the HMS Zealous, and the 35-year-old French map on board the HMS Goliath ^{[71] [52]} . Shortly thereafter, Nelson paused to speak with the Mutine brig, whose commander, Lieutenant Thomas Hardy, captured pilots from a small Alexandrian ship ^[72] . With the HMS Vanguard stopping, all the ships following it slowed down. Because of this, a significant gap was formed between HMS Zealous , HMS Goliath and the rest of the fleet ^[52] . To eliminate it, Nelson ordered HMS "Theseus" under the command of Captain Ralph Miller to circumvent the flagship and join the vessels at the forefront ^[73] . By 18:00, the British fleet resumed the offensive. HMS “Vanguard” was the sixth in a chain of ten ships, HMS “Culloden” ran aground in the north of the bay, “Swiftsure” and “Alexander” caught up with the main forces ^[74] . After a quick change from a free formation to a strict line, both fleets raised their colors; British ships, in addition, came with raised British flags in case of loss of the main flag ^[75] . At 18:20, the French avant-garde, Guerrier and Conquérant opened fire on the rapidly approaching HMS Zealous and HMS Goliath ^[76] .

Start of battle

Ten minutes after the French fired, HMS Goliath , ignoring the firing from the fort on the starboard side and from the Guerrier on the port side, walked around the French defensive line and entered from the coast ^[75] . Captain Thomas Foley discovered that there was enough space for maneuver between the French vessel and the coastal shallow water. On his own initiative, Foley decided to use this tactical error and changed his course, heading for the gap ^[77] . As soon as the nose of the Guerrier was in the affected area, HMS Goliath opened fire, causing serious damage, while the British ship itself was on the side of the unprepared port side of the Guerrier ^[55] . Marines and a company of Austrian grenadiers aboard the HMS Goliath also joined the attack using muskets ^[78] . Foley intended to take a position next to the French ship and continue shelling at close range, but because of the long fuss with the anchor his ship completely passed by ^[79] . HMS "Goliath" was able to stop only near the bow of the "Conquérant" , continuing to shell the new enemy with port guns, and at the same time, using unoccupied guns of the starboard, exchanged random shots with the frigate "Sérieuse" , anchored off the coast ^[73] .

Foley was followed by Hood on the HMS Zealous , which also bypassed the French line, successfully anchored near the Guerrier , where Foley planned to do this, and opened fire at close range on the lead ship ^[80] . Five minutes later, the damaged fore mast of a French ship fell, followed by the joyful cries of the crews of the approaching English ships ^[81] . The speed of the British advance came as a complete surprise to the French captains; they were still aboard the Orient at a meeting at Brueet when the first shots rang out. Hastily leaving the meeting, they returned to the ships. Captain Jean-Francois Trullet already from his boat, on which he was returning to the Guerrier , gave the order to return fire at the HMS "Zealous" ^[80] .

The third to enter the battle was HMS Orion, under the command of Captain James Sumares . He walked around the skirmish on the edge of the French line and walked between it and the frigates that were closer to the shore ^[82] . The frigate Sérieuse opened fire on the HMS Orion , injuring two sailors. According to the convention on the conduct of naval war at that time, battleships did not engage in battle with frigates if the enemy had ships of the same class with them. However, starting the shelling first, the French captain Jean-Claude Martin thereby violated this rule. Sumares became close to the frigate before answering ^[83] . The battleship had only one salvo to destroy the frigate, which after that was forced to retreat in shallow water ^[84] . During this delay, two other British ships managed to enter the battle. HMS rank 3 ship Theseus , which was disguised as a first-rank ship , followed Foley past the Guerrier ^[85] . His captain Ralph Miller sent his ship in the middle of the battle, towards the third French ship, Spartiate . Taking a position on the left side of the French, Miller ordered firing at close range. HMS “Audacious”, under the command of Captain David Gould, took a position between “Guerrier” and “Conquérant” and attacked both ^[81] . After a skirmish with the frigate HMS, the Orion was farther south than expected and was forced to engage in battle with the fifth French vessel Souverain, led by Captain Pierre-Paul Raccor and the flagship of Admiral Blanca, Franklin ^[84] .

HMS "Vanguard" , HMS "Minotaur" and HMS "Defense" maintained a linear battle order and at 18:40 they anchored on the right side of the French line ^[76] . Nelson focused his flagship fire on Spartiate , HMS Minotaur captain Thomas Louis attacked Aquilon , and HMS Defense captain John Peyton joined the Souverain attack ^[81] . Now the attackers outnumbered the French avant-garde, which allowed the following English ships, HMS Bellerophon and HMS Majestic , to pass the unfolding battle and attack the center of the French line ^[86] . Both ships entered into battle with much more powerful opponents and received serious damage. HMS Bellerophon captain Henry Darby came under fire from the main guns of the French flagship Orient ^[87] . HMS Majestic captain George Westcott came under heavy fire with the Tonnant ^[88] . The French also suffered losses. Admiral Bruyé on the Orient was seriously injured by flying debris during a shootout ^[89] .

Surrender of the French Vanguard

At 19:00 on the mizzen masts of the ships of the British Navy, identification lights were lit. By this time had already lost all the masts and was badly damaged. HMS “Zealous” , on the contrary, was practically unharmed: Hood placed his ship outside the zone of destruction of most French ships, and the “Guerrier” was not prepared for firing from the side facing “Zealous” ^[90] . Although their ship was almost destroyed, the Guerrier sailors refused to give up, continuing to shoot from several surviving guns, despite a powerful return fire ^[91] . Goode ordered the Marines aboard the HMS Zealous to fire muskets on the deck of a French ship, which forced the crew to leave the British eye, but did not force them to surrender. Only at 21:00, when Hood sent the boat with the boarding crew, did the French ship finally surrender ^[90] . was defeated faster. After volleys of British ships passing by and close combat with the Audacious and Goliath, even before 19:00 all three of its masts were destroyed. After his ship became motionless and badly damaged, the mortally wounded captain Etienne Dalbarad capitulated, and the boarding crew seized control of the ship ^[92] . Unlike the HMS Zealous , in this skirmish, British ships suffered relatively serious damage. The Goliath lost most of its rigging, all three masts suffered, and more than 60 sailors were injured or killed ^[93] .

After the "Audacious" moved the fire to the "Spartiate" , captain was forced to confront three opponents at once. Within a few minutes, all three masts of his ship were shot down, but the Spartiate lasted until 21:00, when the seriously wounded captain was forced to capitulate ^[93] . During the battle , Spartiate received support from the neighboring Aquilon , which was the only French avant-garde to fight with only one opponent. Captain Antoine Thevenar successfully positioned the salvo ship through the bow of Nelson's flagship, resulting in more than 100 injuries, including the admiral himself ^[93] . At about 8:30 p.m., a splinter hit Nelson's head ^[94] . The wound made him completely blind for some time ^[95] . The wound was immediately examined by HMS "Vanguard" surgeon Michael Jefferson, who reported that she was not dangerous, and operated on the admiral ^[96] . Ignoring Jefferson’s advice to keep calm, Nelson took to the stern shortly before the explosion on the Orient in order to personally control the final stages of the battle ^[97] . Although Captain Tevenard’s maneuvers were successful, he unsuccessfully set his ship’s nose under the fire of the HMS Minotaur , and by 21:25 the French ship had lost the mast and suffered significant damage. Captain Thevenar was killed, and his junior officers were forced to surrender ^[98] . After this victory, Captain Thomas Louis directed his ship south to join the attack on the Franklin ^[99] .

HMS Orion and HMS Defense attacked the fifth French ship from both sides, and the ship quickly lost its foremast and mainmast ^[98] . On Orion, a fragment of one of the masts broke away, killed two sailors and wounded Captain Sumares in the thigh ^[100] . Souverain captain Pierre-Paul Raccor was seriously wounded and ordered to anchor. The ship drifted south towards the flagship “Orient” , which mistakenly opened fire on it ^[101] . “Orion” and “Defense” could not immediately continue the fight. The Defense lost their forging , and the makeshift drift drifting in the bay caught the Orion . The origin of this firewall is not clear, however, it may have been launched with Guerrier during the start of the battle ^[98] . The Souverain anchored close to the flagship, but did not take any part in subsequent hostilities. The wrecked ship surrendered at night. Franklin remained in battle, but Rear Admiral Armand Blanquet suffered a severe head wound, and captain Maurice Gillet lost consciousness from severe wounds ^[102] .

South of them, HMS Bellerophon came under fire from the French flagship. At 19:50, the mizzen-mast and the main mast of the ship collapsed, fires broke out in several places at the same time ^[103] . Although the fire was extinguished, more than 200 sailors suffered. Captain Darby admitted that his position was unsuccessful, and at 20:20 ordered to change it. The ship under continuous fire from the Tonnant side left the battlefield ^[104] . The French ship also suffered significant damage, and Admiral Bruyet was hit in the stomach with a cannonball ^[103] . He died fifteen minutes later, remaining on deck and refusing to go down ^[105] . Captain was wounded in the face by flying debris and lost consciousness, his 12-year-old son's cannonball was torn off his leg ^{[106] [107]} . The southernmost British ship, HMS Majestic, also fell under the volleys of the 80-gun Tonnant , resulting in heavy casualties ^[108] . Captain was killed by musket fire from the French. ^[109] Lieutenant Robert Cuthbert took command and successfully withdrew the ship from battle, allowing the heavily damaged ship to drift further south, resulting in the Majestic between Tonnant and ^[20] by 20:30. Captain Thompson with abandoned futile attempts to bank HMS Culloden and went down the French line, occupying the space freed by the drifting , and then began shelling Franklin and Orient ^[92] .

Defeat the French flagship

By 9 o’clock in the evening, the British noticed a fire on the lower decks of the French flagship “ Orient ” ^[111] . Assessing the weak spot, the captain of HMS "Swiftsure" ordered to focus the fire of his artillery in this area. Continuous shelling contributed to the spread of flame throughout the stern, and also prevented the team from extinguishing it ^[103] . Within a few minutes, a fire swept the rigging and spread to the sails ^[112] . The nearest British ships - “Swiftsure” , “Alexander” and “Orion” - stopped the attack and began to move away from the flaming flagship, waiting for the explosion of huge ammunition on board ^[104] . Part of the crew on each ship began to wet the sails and water the decks with sea water so that after the explosion the fire did not cover their ship ^[106] . The French ships Tonnant , Heureux, and Mercure ^[113] did the same. At about 10 pm, the fire reached the ammunition of the ship, and the Orient was almost completely destroyed by a powerful explosion. Flaming debris scattered strongly around, most of them flew over the surrounding ships and fell into the sea outside the battle zone ^[114] . The Swiftsure , Alexander, and Franklin were set ablaze by the falling debris, but the sailors managed to extinguish the flames ^[103] .

The exact cause of the flagship’s so rapid fire remained unknown, but it was most likely due to cans of oil and paint that were not cleaned after painting. The fire quickly reached the ammunition of the ship, which was designed to burn even in water ^[89] . At the same time, Captain Antoine Gantome later reported that the explosion was preceded by a series of minor fires among the ship's boats on the main deck ^[115] . Regardless of the reason, the fire quickly spread to rigging, while the ship's fire pumps were destroyed by the British ^[116] . Then a second fire started on the bow, holding hundreds of sailors in the middle of the ship ^[117] . Subsequent studies of the seabed confirmed that the ship was destroyed by two huge explosions, one after the other. The crew jumped into the sea to avoid fire, but less than 100 people survived the explosion. British boats picked up about 70 survivors. Several sailors managed to reach the coast by rafts ^[89] . The rest of the crew, with more than 1,000 people, died in the explosion. Including the captain of the flagship and his twelve-year-old son ^{[118] [119] were} not saved.

No shots were heard for ten minutes after the explosion; sailors on both sides were shocked by him and put out fires on their ships ^[114] . During the lull, Nelson ordered the boats to be sent to rescue the survivors. At 10:10 p.m. , Franklin again resumed fire on the HMS Swiftsure ^[120] . Rear Admiral isolated and damaged ship was soon permanently disabled, and the admiral suffered a serious head injury and was forced to surrender ^[121] . More than half of his crew were killed or injured ^[122] .

By midnight, only the Tonnant , under the command of Commodore Aristide Tuars, continued the battle with the HMS Majestic , as well as the shelling of the Swiftsure , when the British ship was in the affected area. By three in the morning , the Majestic lost its main and mizzen masts, while the Tonnant lost all its masts and suffered serious damage ^[114] . Captain Towars lost both legs and arm, but continued to control the actions of the ship ^[121] . Under his leadership , the Tonnant gradually drifted south from the battlefield to join the Villeneuve group ^[123] .

August 2

On August 2, at four o'clock in the morning with sunrise, firing between the French ships Guillaume Tell , Tonnant , , and the British ships HMS Alexander and HMS Majestic ^{[124] resumed ]} . Soon, HMS Goliath and HMS Theseus joined the battle, stripping the French of their numerical advantage. After Captain brought his ship into position, Theseus was fired upon by frigate ^[120] . Miller aimed at the frigate, but his captain Pierre-Jean Standele immediately surrendered and ordered his sailors to leave the ship. Miller directed the boat under the command of Lieutenant William Host to capture the frigate. However, at the command of Standele, the frigate was set on fire, and after some time it exploded ^[125] . The surviving French battleships, covering the retreat with fire, gradually moved east of the battlefield. HMS Zealous chased Villeneuve to and prevented him from capturing the HMS Bellerophon , which was anchored in the southern part of the bay, making hasty repairs ^[123] .

Even during the explosion of the French flagship, the crew of and panic, and their captains were unable to regain control of their ships. As a result, both vessels were in shallow water ^[126] . "Alexander" , Goliath , "Theseus" and "Leander" attacked the stuck defenseless ships, and both were forced to surrender within a few minutes ^[124] . Heureux , Mercure and Justice were a distraction for the British, which allowed Villeneuve to withdraw the surviving French fleet at the mouth of the bay by 11 o’clock ^[127] . On the Tonnant rank 3 ship without masts, Commodore Tuars, who died of his wounds, was thrown overboard by his dying wish. Since the ship was not able to reach the required speed, the crew sent him ashore ^[100] . Captain Trullet went too far south to leave with the Villeneuve group. When trying to join the surviving vessel, it turned out to be in shallow water, having received damage ^[128] . The rest of the French ships - the battleships Guillaume Tell and Généreux , as well as the frigates Justice and Diane - were rebuilt and moved towards the sea ^[97] .

The rest of the day, the Nelson fleet carried out the necessary repairs and captured trophies. Especially badly needed was the help of the stranded HMS Culloden . Captain Trubridge , who finally pulled out the ship at two o’clock, found that he had lost the helm and got water. Repair of the hull and replacement of the steering wheel took most of the next two days ^[129] . On the morning of August 3, Nelson sent Theseus and Leander to force the stranded Tonnant and Timoléon to capitulate. The decks of the first were crowded with more than one and a half thousand surviving sailors from other French ships, so the ship immediately surrendered when the British approached. The Timoléon , by contrast, was set ablaze by the remaining crew, who then fled to shore in small boats ^[130] . The ship exploded shortly after noon, becoming the eleventh and last French battleship destroyed or captured during the battle ^[128] .

The British losses, calculated with some accuracy immediately after the battle, included 218 killed and about 677 wounded. At the same time, the number of wounded who subsequently died from their wounds is unknown ^[62] . The crew of the battleship Bellerophon suffered the most - 201 people were injured or killed. At Majestic, the damage amounted to 193 people. At Zealous , by contrast, only one person died and seven were injured ^[45] . Captain Westcott, five lieutenants and ten junior officers were killed in the battle. Admiral Nelson was wounded, as well as captains Sumares, Ball and Darby, six lieutenants ^[131] . In addition to the Culloden , only Bellerophon , Majestic and Vanguard received significant damage. The Majestic and Bellerophon were the only British ships to lose masts ^[132] .

French losses are more difficult to assess, but it is undoubted that they are significantly superior to the British. The number of victims ranged from 2,000 to 5,000, of whom more than 1,000 were captured by the wounded, and nearly 2,000 were killed, half of whom were the victims of the explosion of the French flagship. Within a few weeks after the battle, the bodies of the dead sailors were thrown along the coast of Egypt ^[133] . Admiral Brueh died, Admiral was wounded. Four captains died, seven more were seriously injured. The French fleet suffered serious damage: two battleships and two frigates were destroyed, among the captured three ships were too damaged to use them. Of the remaining, only three were restored to a combat-ready state ^[134] .

On the morning of August 2, Nelson said: “Victory is a weak name for the current situation” ^[135] . Over the next two weeks, his fleet remained anchored in the Gulf of Abukir : wounds were healed, dispatches were written, and the military situation in Egypt was assessed ^[136] . The admiral himself had a serious three-inch-long head wound. From this injury, he suffered the rest of his life. Even he always sought to style his hair in such a way as to hide the wound as much as possible ^[137] . By the time Nelson first recovered from his injuries, his people had already dismantled the wreckage and made the necessary repairs on their and captured ships ^[138] .

Within a week after the battle, the bay coast was lit by bonfires of Bedouin tribes celebrating the victory of the British ^[133] . On August 5, Captain Edward Berry on the was sent to Cadiz with a message for the Earl of Saint Vincent ^[139] . Over the next few days, the British landed about 200 prisoners with the condition of further non-participation in hostilities, although Bonaparte later ordered them to join the infantry of his army ^[138] . Wounded prisoner officers were transferred aboard the HMS Vanguard , where Nelson often communicated with them. Historian Joseph Allen says that once Nelson, whose vision was damaged due to an injury, offered a toothpick to an officer who had lost his teeth, and then a snuffbox to an officer who had lost his nose ^[140] . On August 8, boats stormed the island in the bay, which surrendered without a fight. The landing party captured four guns, the rest were destroyed along with the fortifications. The island was renamed "Nelson's Island" ^[138] .

On August 10, Nelson sent Lieutenant Thomas Duvall with HMS "Zealous" with a message to the Governor General of India . Duval reached Basra by land and boarded a ship from Basra to Bombay to familiarize the Governor-General of India, Richard Wellesley, with the situation in Egypt ^[136] . On August 12, the frigates HMS Emerald , commanded by Captain Thomas Waller, HMS Alcmene , commanded by Captain George Hope, and HMS Bonne Citoyenne , commanded by Captain Robert Retalik, arrived from Alexandria ^[141] . At first the British confused the approaching frigates with the French ships, and the HMS Swiftsure chased them for a while. The next day the situation cleared up and all the ships returned to the bay ^[138] . That day, when the frigates arrived, Nelson sent a sloop under the command of Lieutenant Thomas Capel with a report to the UK . On August 14, the admiral sent Orion , Majestic , Bellerophon , Minotaur , Defense , Audacious , Theseus , Franklin , Tonnant , Aquilon , Conquérant , Peuple Souverain ” and “ Spartiate ” at sea under the command of Captain James Sumares . On August 16, the British burned the captured French ship , which was no longer suitable for service. On August 18, the and ^{[138] were} also burned. On August 19, Nelson, taking Vanguard , "Culloden" and "Alexander" , sailed to Naples . “Zealous” , “Goliath” , “Swiftsure” , as well as later frigates who joined, remained under the command of Samuel Hood to monitor the activity of the French in Alexandria ^[142] .

Reaction

Nelson’s first report was not delivered because on August 18, 1798, the off the west coast of Crete ^[63] . As a result, the battle in the UK was learned only on October 2, when Lieutenant Capel arrived on the sloop “Mutine” ^[141] and personally delivered the news to the Admiralty to Lord Spencer ^[143] . Although Nelson was previously criticized in the press for not being able to intercept the French fleet, rumors of a battle coming from the continent in late September and Capel’s message were marked by celebrations across the country. Within four days, Nelson was elevated to the barons, which, however, was dissatisfied, believing that he deserved a greater reward ^[144] . King George III on November 20 addressed the Parliament with the words:

The unprecedented number of our naval triumphs was replenished with unforgettable and decisive actions by the detachment of the ships of my fleet under the command of Rear Admiral Lord Nelson, who attacked and almost completely defeated the superior enemy forces. This great and brilliant victory, a bold undertaking against injustice, treachery and restraint, which attracted the attention of the whole world and directed against a number of the most important interests of the British Empire, will bring, first of all, some confusion and, thus, strike France’s power and influence, providing an opportunity , in the case of the right actions on the part of other powers, for the common deliverance of Europe.

Original text

The unexampled series of our naval triumphs has received fresh splendour from the memorable and decisive action, in which a detachment of my fleet, under the command of Rear-Admiral Lord Nelson, attacked, and almost totally destroyed a superior force of the enemy, strengthened by every advantage of situation. By this great and brilliant victory, an enterprise, of which the injustice, perfidy, and extravagance had fixed the attention of the world, and which was peculiarly directed against some of the most valuable interests of the British empire, has, in the first instance , been turned to the confusion of its authors and: and the blow thus given to the power and influence of France, has afforded an opening, which, if improved by suitable exertions on the part of other powers, may lead to the general deliverance of Europe

- King George III, quoted by the historian William James in the book "Naval History of Great Britain during the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars" ^[145]

The convoy of trophy ships under the command of Sumares first stopped in Malta , where he helped a local uprising, and then went to the base in Gibraltar , where he arrived on October 18 ^[146] . Sumares later wrote: "We will never be able to pay tribute to the warmth of their applause and praise for our squadron." On October 23, after placing the wounded in a military hospital and replenishing supplies, the convoy headed to Lisbon , leaving HMS Bellerophon and HMS Majestic for overhaul ^[147] . The captured also remained in Gibraltar. The ship was considered too damaged to travel to the shores of the UK, so it was renamed the HMS "Guerrier" and left to patrol ^[56] . The remaining captured French ships were repaired and, together with a merchant convoy from Portugal , arrived in Plymouth in June 1799 ^[148] . and were too old and damaged for active service in the Royal Navy, although they were both bought for service for £ 20,000 each to provide a monetary reward to the seafarers who captured them. ^[149] . Equivalent amounts were also paid for Guerrier , Mercure , Heureux and Peuple Souverain , the rest of the captured ships cost much more. Tonnant was built in 1792, Franklin and Spartiate less than a year before the battle. “Tonnant” and “Spartiate” became part of the Royal Navy under the old names, “Franklin” was renamed “Canopus” ^[150] . The total cost of the ships captured at the Battle of Abukir and then bought by the Royal Navy amounted to just over 130,000 pounds (equivalent to 11,140,000 pounds for 2014) ^[147] .

Admiral Nelson was awarded £ 2,000 annually by the Parliament of Great Britain and £ 1,000 annually by the Parliament of Ireland ^[151] , although payments to the latter ceased after the dissolution of parliament by the Act of 1800 and the Union of Great Britain and Ireland ^[152] . All captains who participated in the battle were presented with a specially minted gold medal, and the first ship lieutenants were promoted to commanders ^[141] . Trubridge and his team, not originally awarded, were marked like everyone else after Nelson personally interceded for sailors who were aground and did not directly participate in the battle ^[151] . The British East India Company awarded Nelson £ 10,000 in recognition of the benefits of his actions to his possessions; London, Liverpool, a number of other cities and companies have made similar awards ^[151] .

Some states also congratulated the admiral on his victory. The Ottoman orders that existed at that time could not be awarded to non-Muslims, so Sultan Selim III specifically established the Crescent order , making Nelson his first cavalier, and also presented him with a chelenka , diamond rose, sable furs and a number of other valuable gifts. Paul I presented a golden box studded with diamonds; similar gifts made of silver and other European rulers ^[153] . Upon returning to Naples, Nelson was met with triumph by King Ferdinand IV and Sir William Hamilton ^{[154] [155]} . The recognition of him as a hero in Naples allowed Nelson to successfully engage in politics and become the Duke of Bronte, for which he was criticized by the authorities, and his reputation was seriously damaged ^[156] . The British general John Moore , who met Nelson in Naples at that time, described him as “covered in stars, medals and ribbons, more of an opera hero than a battle winner” ^[157] .

Rumors about the battle first appeared in the French press on August 7, although there was no confirmation of this until August 26, but even then they claimed that Nelson was killed in the battle, and Bonaparte is now a British prisoner ^[158] . After receiving more accurate information, the French press insisted that the defeat was the result of the overwhelming numerical superiority of the British and the actions of unknown "traitors" ^[126] . French anti-government magazines blamed the defeat on the incompetence of the Directory ^[159] . Upon returning to France, Villeneuve came under severe criticism for not being able to support Brue during the battle. In his defense, he said that there was a headwind, and Bruhé did not give orders to counterattack the British fleet ^[160] . The British press, on the contrary, was jubilant; many newspapers sought to portray the battle as the victory of Great Britain over anarchy, to use Charles Fox and Richard Sheridan to criticize pro-republican politicians ^[161] .

Over the comparison of the forces of both sides heated debate flared up. Although 13 battleships participated in the battle from both the British and the French, the loss of the Culloden , the relative dimensions of the Orient and Leander , the participation of two French frigates and several small vessels, and the theoretically more advantageous position of the French led most historians to concluded that the advantage was on the side of France ^{[162] [66] [62]} . In addition, this is underlined by the firepower of French ships such as Spartiate , Franklin , Orient , Tonnant, and Guillaume Tell . Each of them was superior in strength to any particular British ship in battle ^[131] . However, the French ships were prevented by insufficient preparation of artillery for battle, incomplete crews and non-participation in the battle of Villeneuve ^[163] .

Value

The battle of Abukir was called "perhaps the most convincing naval battle of the sailing era " ^[164] , as well as "the most magnificent and delightful victory of the British fleet" ^[165] . The historian and writer Cecil Forester in 1929 compared the battle of Abukir with other great naval battles in history and came to the conclusion that "only the Tsushima battle can compete as an example of the destruction of one fleet of another, of approximately equal strength" ^[166] . Immediately followed by a change in the strategic situation in the Mediterranean , the balance of power was disrupted, and the British for the rest of the war held control of the sea ^[167] . The destruction of the French Mediterranean fleet allowed the royal fleet to block French and allied ports ^[168] . In particular, British ships cut Malta off from France , relying on the rebellion of the indigenous population of Malta, which forced the French garrison to retreat to Valletta ^[169] . The ensuing lasted two years before the defenders were forced to capitulate due to starvation ^[170] . In 1799, British ships pursued Bonaparte's army, advancing throughout Palestine , and played a decisive role in the defeat of the French during the siege of Acre ^[171] . This defeat forced Napoleon to retreat to Egypt and upset his plans in the Middle East ^[172] . In the same year, the general returned to France, leaving his army ^[173] .

The Ottomans , whom Napoleon hoped for an alliance after the capture of Egypt, on the basis of the battle of Abukir, on the contrary, opposed France ^[174] . This greatly undermined the strength of the French army remaining in Egypt. Nelson’s victory also inspired the Austrian and Russian empires, which gathered armies as part of the Second Coalition , to declare war on France in 1799. ^[54] The Russian fleet entered the Ionian Sea , while Russian and Austrian forces recaptured much of Italy captured by Napoleon in the last war ^[13] . Without a better general and his veterans, the French army suffered a series of defeats. France lost its strategic initiative in continental Europe and could not regain it until Bonaparte became First Consul ^[175] . In 1801, the British Expeditionary Force defeated the demoralized remnants of the French army in Egypt. The Royal Navy used its dominance in the Mediterranean to land troops in Egypt, without fear of an ambush off the coast ^[176] .

Despite the decisive victory of the British, the campaign is sometimes considered strategically successful for France. Historian Edward Ingram noted that if Nelson managed to intercept Bonaparte at sea, the subsequent battle could destroy both the French fleet and transport ships. But, since he did not have time, Napoleon was able to freely continue the war in the Middle East, and later return unharmed to Europe ^[177] . Particularly emphasized is the ability to change the course of history with a list of French officers, many of whom were later generals and marshals under the Emperor Napoleon. In addition to Napoleon himself, the participants in the were Louis Alexander Berthier , Auguste Marmont , Jean Lannes , Joachim Murat , Louis Deseux , Jean Rainier , Antoine Francois Andreossi , Jean Junot , Louis Davout and Mathieu Dumas ^[178] .

Memory

The battle of Abukir remains one of the most famous victories of the Royal Navy, and this image is supported in a large number of cartoons, paintings, poems and plays ^[179] . One of the most famous works about the battle is the poem “ ”, written by the English poetess Dorothea Hemans in 1826 and representing a fictional account of the death of the son of the captain of the French flagship “ Orient ” ^[180] . In honor of the victory, several monuments were erected, including Cleopatra's Needle in London . In 1819, the ruler of Egypt, Mohammed Ali, in recognition of the battle of 1798 and the campaign of 1801, presented Great Britain with this ancient Egyptian obelisk, which in 1878 was transported and installed on Victoria Embankment ^[181] . In memory of the battle, several Royal Navy ships were named “HMS“ Aboukir ” and HMS“ Nile . ” In 1998, 200 years of victory at Abukir were celebrated, the modern frigate “ ” arrived in Abukir Bay , whose crew laid wreaths in memory of those killed in that battle ^[182] .

Although Nelson’s biographer Earl Bradford in 1977 came to the conclusion that it would almost certainly not be possible to detect the wreckage of the exploding flagship “Orient” ^[183] , the first archaeological study of the battle site began in 1983. The French team, led by Jacques Dumas, managed to detect fragments of the ship. In 1998, Frank Goddio led a large project to study the bottom of the bay. He found that the wreckage of the flagship was scattered over a site about 500 meters in diameter. In addition to naval equipment and tools, the researcher found a large number of gold and silver coins of various countries of the Mediterranean Sea , some of which turned out to be coins of the 17th century. It is possible that it was part of the treasures from Malta lost in the explosion on board the flagship ^[184] . In 2000, the Italian archaeologist Paolo Gallo excavated ancient ruins on the island of Nelson. A number of burials were discovered dating from the period after the battle, as well as the time of the invasion of 1801 ^[185] .

•   Hannay, David (1911), " Nile, Battle of the ", in Chisholm, Hugh, Encyclopædia Britannica , vol. 19 (11th ed.), Cambridge University Press , pp. 699-700