The General Chase order was added to the Royal Navy's fighting instructions in the mid-eighteenth century, amending a previous rule requiring that battle could not be joined with any opponent unless a line of battle was formed directly opposite an enemy fleet. The previous order had the advantage of ensuring rigid discipline in the positioning of Navy vessels but allowed an outgunned opponent to break formation and flee without being adequately pursued. The first instance of a General Chase was in the aftermath of the First Battle of Cape Finisterre in 1747, when British ships broke their line of battle to engage and defeat twelve of the fourteen French vessels opposing them. Admiral Edward Hawke also signalled a General Chase in order to overwhelm a French fleet at the Battle of Quiberon Bay, thereby ending France's prospects of invading Britain during the Seven Years' War.