The National Register.
London, England, 1811-02-17 00:00:00

SU PPILEIVIENT

~•.~

,Ttp THE
LONDON GAZETTE EXTRAORDINARY
OF WEDNESDAY, the 13th of FEBRUARY.

I •r

FRIDAY, FEB. 15.
A Dispatch, of which the following is an Extract, has been re-
ceivLd from the Hon. Major-General Ab.acromby by the
Earl of Liverpool, one of his Majesty's Principal Secretaries
of State, dated Port Louis, Isle of France, Dec. 7, 1810.

I have the honour to inform your Lordship, that the Isle of
France surrendered by capitulation, un the :41 instant, to the
united force under the summand of Vice-Admiral Bertie and
myself.
I must refer your Lordship for the particulars of the operations
which led to this fortunate e,.•ent to the copy of my official let-
ter to the Right Honourable the Governor-General, which, to-
gether with other documents, I have now the honour to trans-
mit to your Lordship.
In conformity with the instructions which I had the honour to
receive tront Lord Minto, I have placed NI r..Farcruhar in charge
of the Government; and I confidently trust, that, in having
adopted this measure. I shall not incur the dispeasure of h 4
Majesty's Government.
This dispatch will I,e delivered to your Lordship by Captain
Hewitt. my Aid-de-i..amp, and I believe your Lordship will hind
him perfectly. qualified to ati.,rd you every information which
you may require, in respect to the late operations of this force.

TO Tilt RIGHT 110 N. GILISER r, LORD MINTO, &C. &C.
My Lord,--I had the honour to inform your Lordship in try
dispatch of the 21st ult. that although the divisions from Bengal
and the Cape of Good Hope had nut arrived at the rendezvous,
it bad been determined that the fleet shAild proceed to sea ()ri
the following morning, as from the advanced season of the year,
and the threatening appearance of the weather, the ships could
no longer be considered secure ilk their anchorage at Rodrignet,
and I lid myszif the honour to state to yoOr Lorc‘ship the mea-
sures which it was my intention to pursue, even if we should
still be disappointed in not being joined by so large a part of the
arm:uncut.
Ear.y on the morning •of the 22d, Vice-Admiral Berrie re-
. ceived a comimmication,thers•Captain 13roughton, of his Ma-
jesty's ship Illustrious, annotmcing his arrival off the Island with
the Convoy ~from Bengal. 'i'he fleet weighed, at day-light, as
had been originally arranged, and in the course of that day a
junction, haeilig been formed with this division, the fleet bore
upfog•tliAt Isje :of France.
The greatest ohtitacies opposed to an aftack On this Island
with a considerable force, have invariably been considered to
d.-pend on the difficulty of
,effecting a landing, from the reefs
which surr..ound every part of the coast, and the surfased
impossibility of bt!ing, enabled to 'find anchorage for a fleet of
tratisiorts.
These difficulties were rortunately.removed by the indefati•
gable exertions of ,CominodOre Itot% ley, assi.,t, by Lieutenant
§Lfeet. of. the Staunch gun brig, Lieutenanel ..cicis.ton, of the
Madras engineers, and theilktasterS or his iltale.sty's ships Afri-
cable and Boadicea. livery part of 'the leeward side of the
island was minutely examined and s•lundkti, and it was dis-
-coveted th t a fleet might anchor in. the narrow passage formed
by the small` Island of the Gunner? Coin and tlw main !and;
and that at this spot there were openings through the reefv
which would admit several boats to enter abreast. Thege.obvi-
, ous: advantages fixed my determination, although •t' re
, gretted that. circumstances would not allow of the dig-
. e.itharkation being .effeeted at a shorter distance from- Yon
Louis.
Owing to light and baffling winds, the fleet 'did not arrae
in sight of the island unlit the Silth;.. and it was die morning
of the following day . before any 'of the, ships cone to an
anchor. _ _ .

Every arrangement fur a disernbarlv.tiotk .having bet* pre-
vim] sly made, Cie first division, erni,imittg• of: theVeterVe; the
grenadier company of the 59th regiment with sVed 7sllVPAtlrtd"'
era, and two howitzers, under the comnianctof IVlnjer43sinerAl
Warde, effected a landing in the bay a witlaokt to