The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1809-04-22 00:00:00

IMPORTA VT SUCCASS.

About two o'clock, yesterday, a great sensation
was excited by the report of the total destruction
of the French Fleet iu Barque Roads ; and shortly
afti.r a letter, of which the following is a copy, air
sent to the LARD Mavoß, and posted upon the
frout of the Alansion [louse:—
" Admiralty (Mee, April so, tang.
"My Loan—l have the greatest stits.faction
in acquainting your Lordship, that a successful
attack was made by frigates, Ore-skips. and
itninli vessel*, on the eneusy's fleet, lin Basque
Roads, under the command of Capt. Lord Coch-
rane, on the night of the I id) inst.
" The circumstances of this glorious and- i [Apart-
ant action, are detailed in the enclosed Bulletin.
" Our loss has been inconsiderable, viz. two
Office's, the one a Lieutenant, the other a gun-
ner, mid eight men killed; two °Meets and 27
melt rounded.
•• I have the honour to be, &c.
•• Mrs. .119
The Bulletin alluded to in the shove was not

Posted; along with the letter, on the hliuntion-
House. at least in the first instarec, and this omis-
sion excited a good drat of murmur among the
crowd collected on the spot. It was, however, com-
municated at LLOYD'S, and is to the following
effect :
Admirnity-q.lice, Two o'('leck.
. Sir Harry Neale has just arrivcil at toe Admiralty
with dispatches from Admiral Gambier, giving an
acconnt of an attack made by the tire !Mir under
the immediate command Of Lord Cochrane, nt
day-light, 011 the morning of the 12th. 11141
Lordship comminunicated, by telegraph, that
*even of the enemy's ships might be destroyed,
upon which the fieet got under weigh ; bin
the enemy lead succeeded in getting all but
five ships of the line. towards the entrance of
the Charante; before the attack was practicable.
Lord Cochrane, advanced to the Calcutta. 50 gun
thiP, wad, by * well-directed tire, compelled her
to 'trate to the tinperiense ; the Valiruot. Revenge,
some frigates, bombs, and small vessels, attacked
the Ville de Warsevie and Aptilon, and ogliged
them. before five o'clock, after a heavy cannonade,
to strike their odours, sail they were taken pos-
*vision of, col set On fire br the boats of the ad-
Voiced *Timken, as were also, the Tivrregre a



short time after by trio eneiny. On the 15th
three or the Enemy's line-of-battle Ships were
still on shore, mod io a dangerous sittarimi; one
of the Frigates also on shore had fallen over. The
whole of oar has enit-ists of two officers and eight
Mel) ; to officers awl .47 sliest wounded.
At five o'clock the Pork and •rower gulls were
fired, sod, with the fall of night, the lliwite-Guards.
'rressury, Foreign Office iu Downing-strect,
Sn-
mrr.tt-Unuse, end ill the other Public Office*,
were brilliantly joe. however,
was consklerslily dumped, hy .t report that thc
gallant Capteiu COCHILANN fell in the 'idiots ; but
this 4troved to be a mistake ; it was Mr. Caooa--
St AM, the caption sir this- furee.istle of his Lord-
ship's ship, the luipericase.
At nine o'clock it tardier acemitit was pnblished
iu the following Ca=ttle Extraurdimary:—

LONDON GAZETTE EATRAORDIN.MY,

ildmiraky-ggice, 11. 1609.
Sir [Tarry Neale, Ilan. Fire Captain to Admiral
Lord Gatabier, Coonnandir-in.Chief of Uy Ma-
jeSy's 'hips awl emelt employed in the Clianiscl
Soundings, ke. arrived here this rivir ll ll with a
dispatch froin hi. Lwil.hip to the flonouraile
limo Wellesley Pole, of which the followiiig is s
copy :
C.alsduois, at Anchor, is illooqnc-Itusds,
April 14,

SlR—The Almighty's favour w His Majesty and
the Neli)11 has been strongly marked in the success
be has hewn plea Ned to give to the operations of
'Majesty's. fleet under my command : and I
hive the satisfaction to acqiiaint you, fur the in-
formation of the Lords Commissioners of the Ad-
miralty, that the four ships of the enemy, named
iu the margins, have been destroyed at their an-
chorage, and several others, from getting nu shore,
if not rendered altogether unserviceable, are at,
least disabled for a considerable time.

The arrangement of the tire vessels placed under '
the direction of Captain the Right Honourable
Lord Cochrane were made as fully as the state of
the weather would admit, according to his Lord-
ship's plin, on the evening of the I lilt instant;
and at eight o'clock on the same night they pro-
eredivi to the attack under a favouralele strong
wind from the northward, and flood tide, (preceded
by mute vessels tilled with powder and shells, as
proposed by his Lordship, with a view to explosion.)
and led on in the most undeunted and dettrrnined
manner by Captain Wooldridge, in the Mediator
fin-ship. the others following in succevtiod, but
owing to the darknewof the night several mistook
their coarse and failed.
On their approaching to the enemy's ships, it
was discovered that a boom was placed in f tof
their line lOr a defence. This, however, the weight
of the Mediator soon broke, and the !mull iotrepa-
. dive and bravery of Britisit seamen overcame all
ddlicuities. Advancing under it heavy tire from the
forts in the Isle of Aix, as well as from the enemy's
ships, most of which cut or slipt their cables, and
from the confined anchorage, got on shore, and
thus avoided taking lire.
At daylight the following morning, Lord Coch-
rane communicated to me by Telegraph. that seven
of the euenay's ships were on shore, and might be
destroyed. I immediately made the signal fur the
fleet to insincere and weigh, intending to proceed
with it to effect their destruction. The wind howe-
ver being fresh from the Northward, and the flood
tide mining, rendered it too hazardous to run into
Aix Roads, from its shallow water), I therefore
anchored again at the distance of about three miles
from the Forts on the Island:
As the tide suited, the enemy evinced great acti-
vity in endeavouring to warp their ships (which had
grounded) into deep water, and succeeded iu get-
ting all but tire of the lint towards the entrance of
the Charente before it became practicable to attack
them.

1 gave orders to Captain Bligh, of the Valiant, to
proceed with that ship, the Revenge, frigates, bom be,
and small vessels, named iu the margint. to author
'tear the Boyart Shoal, in readiness for the attack.
At twenty minutes past two P. M. Lord Cochrane
advanced in the Imperieuse with his accustomed gul-
Lantry and spirit. and opened a well-directed fire
upon the Calcutta, which struck her colours to the
imperieuse; the ships and vessels Above mentioned
soon after joined in the attack upon the Ville de
Versos ie and Aquilen, and obliged them, before five
o'clock, after sustaining a heavy cannonade, to
strike their colours, whets they were taken possiessMn
of by the boats of the advanced squadron. As soon
as the prisoners were removed, they were set on fire,
as was also the Tositierrs, a short tiinsufter by the
enemy.
-I afterwanls detached Rear-Admiral the Hon.

Robert Stopford iu the Caesar, with the Theseus,
three additional fire *hips (which were hastily pre-
pared in the course of the day), end ■ll the boats
of the fleet, with Mr. Congreve's rockets, to con-
duct the further operations of the night against any
of the slops winch lay expooed to an attack. On
the morning of the 19th, the Rear-Admiral reported
to are, that as the Chessr and other lone-of-battle
ships had grouarhal and were in a dangerous situa-
tion, he thought at advisable to order them all out,
particularly as the remaining part of the service
could be performed by frigates and small vessels
holy ; and I was happy to find that they were ex-
tricated from their perilous situation.
Captain Gligh has since informed me, that it was
romad impracticable to destroy the three-decked
ship, and the others which were lying near the en-
trance of the Charente, as the former, being the
outer one, was protected by three lines of boats
placed in advance from her.
This ship and all the others, except four of the

• Vale de Vareovie, of so ens, Tamome, a 74 VIM r
Aquilas, of 74 roes ' • sod admits, of NI gum
1 Imistaigable. Ai'* likaanki. Falba. Ilteask. Zees.
Swab, lusoica isa•brig. Guava Ikassatar, Formic sad
Grywks.
. .

111

line and a frigate. have now moved OP the rivet
Charente. If Any further attempt to destroy them
is practicable, I not tail to use every means in
ury power to accomplish it.
I bare great autisfaction in stating to their Lord-
ships hoar mucv.i I feel obliged to the zealous to.
operation of Hear•Adtniral Stopford, under whose
ar►ungemtent the boats of the fleet were placed ;
and I unit also express to their Lordships the high
*ruse I have of the awsistsnee I received from the
al.ilities mud tiiiremittFil attention of Sir [tarry
Neale, Bart. the Captain of the Fleet, its well as of
the animated exertions of this Captains, Officers,
Sra.men. and ',Marines under my • mind, and
taeir forwardness to volunteer upon soy service
that might be idiom .1 to them ; purticeiatly the
zeal awl activity ahe•wn by the C111)111111* of line of
Wade slops an prefrtllll4 the'fire vessels.
1 cannot speak iii sufficient terms of admiration
a►d applause, of the vigorous mid gallant attack
tuade by Lord Cochrane upon the French line
of battle ships which were on shore, as smell as of
Ins judicious manner of approaching Hums. tow/.
placing his ship in the position most advantageous,
to annoy the enemy, and preserve his own Jill);
which could not be exceeded by cut fiat of valour
hitherto achieved by the British Navy.
It is due to Itear.Adruiral Stoptord, and Sir Har-
ry Neale. that I should titre take the opjoortunity of
acgraiating their Lordships of the handsome and
earnest manner iu which both these mesitociousoffi-
eerrharl volunteered theirserricev before the arrival

of Lord Cochrane to undcrtiike an attack upon the
enemy wi:11 flre ships; Hurl that, had not their Lord-
ships fixed open him to conduct the enterprise, I
him full confidence that the result of their iamb
would have Ix cu highly creditable to theta.
I shoeld feel that I did not do justice to the tats
viers of Captain Coated, of the/ Etna, in bombard.
log the enemy's ships no the I ?th. and nearly all the
day of the 13th, if I did not recommend him t• their
Lardships holier ; and I cannot • t bearin4 testi-
mony to the elisions desire exprro.ed hy Mr. Cou-
greve to be employed wherever I might conceive hie
services in the management of his rockets would be
asefal ; seine of thesis were placed in the tile ships
with effect, and 1 have every reason to he rititialivi
with the Artillerymen and others who hail the ma-
nagement of them, sitiderMr.Congreve's
I send herewith a return of the killed, wounded,
I and missing of the fleet, which, I sin happy to ob-
serve, is comparatively brmill. 1 hara not yet re-
ceived thereturns of the number of prisoners taken,
but I conceive they amount to between four and live
hundred.
I have charged Sir /lorry Neale with this dispatch
(by the Imperieuse) and l beg leave to refer their
Lordships to him, as also to Lord Cochrsaie, fur any
further partieulars of which they may wish to be
mfornied.

...

I 13 ICC
wait 15.
P. S. This morning three of the ein my's line of
battle ships are observed to be still on slmre under
FOUtliq, and one of them is in * dangerotte situation.
One of their frigates (L'ltelieitne). also ou .bore,
has fallen over, and they are now dismantling her.
As the tides will take n in a day or two, there is.
every probability that she will be destroyed.
Since writing the foregoing, 1 have learnt that. the
Honourable Lieutenant-Colonel Cochrane (Lord
Cochrane's brother) and Lit utenarit Bisaett, of the
navy. were voluntreci in the Iniperimiae, bind ren-
dered themselves extremely useful, the former by
commending some of her guns on the main deg k,
and the latter in condnctiug one of the explosion
veviels.

Names of the ships in Ant Ronda previous to the attack, oa
the nth April, !Igo.
L'Ccets, 1,2 n guts, Vice-Admiral Allemande, Capt. Ro-
land ; repaired in lead; on shore soda Fumes. Frodroy-
ant, au gnus, Rear-Ailinit al Gsturdon, Captain Heidi; use
years mid ; on 311.-1* under Foams. C 74 gnus, Capt.
Faun, Cominodvie three years old; un shore mailer Fon-
reit. Totoville' 74 guns, Capt. LA Caille o'd ; on shore
M lb* River. Regulus 74 guns, Capt. Lure; five years
old; un shore ander Madams. Patrote, 74 guns, Caplan,
Mahn; 101111.11:ti in 180 J. J elk] ppe, 74 guns, Caption
F ; on 'here under Madame. Tonnerre, 74 guts,
Capt. Clement de Is Rouciere ; nine mu: the aid bete, at
nen. Amodio', 74 gum, Capt. Midterm ; old. Valle as Var.
movie, nu guns, Gapt. Coedits, • sew, *ever at sea, Calcut-
ta, sti guns, Capt. La Tome ; lotdd wills door sad military
stores.
Frigates —Tndienns' Captain Protests—flu shore near
Isle &Furl, on her beain.ends, ; Elbe, Captaiu Perengicr
Pallas, Cant le Bigot ; Hort. use, Capt. Algaud.
N. B ore of the throe last frigate, is on shore under Isle
Madame.
Return of the Names of Officers, Seamen and Nlsrines kil-
led, wouisikd, and issiworig, belosgiorg to the Sect •ndrr
the command of Admiral the klieg Hon. Lord Gushier,
Commiunter. &c. between the liar and itch of
April vino, inclusive.
Celesioma.—lr Edward Fairfax, matter of the fleet ; ecs-
tasies of lire hip.
Fliatoft, oche; lieutenant; killed. Tho-
mas Marldim, able ; ditto. John Nelson, aide ; ditto. Julia
Elifs (ad), oMe ; missing, and supposed to tic drowned.
Thetas Frnittil Imes*, Master's mate; se-
moody witisuded in the had sad Man by powder is the t. re •
ship Julio Pody, marity, usasisi is the unman ho.
Williams, boy, wouoiled i• the hand awl luta.
lsperieusc--Heery Crookin.ra, eaptaiu of the forecastle,
killed. Peter partied, boatrwithis ncdr, Jilt,.. John Mar-
soviet, oraniaa, ditto. James Mason, scannas severely
wounded. Jelin Solomon, seasisa, slightly weasied Mr.
Gilbert, surgeot's aaaialaat, ditto. M. Nltioiden, porter,
ditto. Juba liurrlun, seaman, ditto. John Sheridan, Ica.
etas, ditto. John Muter, artisan, ditto. Job.' Wheelan,
seaman, ditto. llisttliew Good, asansa, ditto William
lliewchndois, marine, ditto. Jobs Said, saucer, ditto.
Remsage—Heary Johnees tsarina's, tilled. Thomas
Cltailnalr, marine, Jilin. Theism Pansy" twin boleti.,
JAW, Carload, herdsman, seven eirstssroa a tin iler
end sidr. James Cans 0), oriissm I.A thretintru:il.
sa
sad • veer daspersas weend of tiedela
1111111inelhlasflassa, wand Is Os Usti Thaws Tyler,
iroood of or. DoosioGrei. wane% wino
of _hock. • Thomas Trip/tolls, setimary, sal
vosand of right foot. Charlie Choi, assists; night WO
aapstated, mud a•• ingeopos good osibogiro oisooll of
lift leg sod Mk*. Ihrry, slaw I cowed= of
WO. John Wismoo. many cootooloo oi shedder.
Tiessay 1141114 6111188818; einsesies ethigb. Geo•g•Samily.
marks v. 4506.140 sf difoilku. Joooplb Weds, malls

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