The Sun.
London, England, 1808-04-13 00:00:00

&o'n L 0 Aii) Oh ail ZitlE, 11, I ,08.

Downing Street, April tt, 1804.

Dispatches, of which the following are Copies,
were yestcrday r,..,ceived by Viscoont Clistlereagh,
one et hi, Nla)esty's Principal, -Secretaries of State,
front Nlajor-General Sheibrooke., commanding his
-Majesty's Troops in Sicily.
AIY LORD. ilfessina,, Fel. 8,100 R.

AS an opportunity offers a writing to Enlond
by a private Ship, which runs without convoy, 1
proiit of the conveyance to infc;m your Lordship,
that his Sicilian Majesty's Garrison of Reggio sur-
_

routetred, to the Fretich on the 3d last:int.

L'eneral

Ilegnier's operations in Calabria win now, conse-
quently, be dire6ted against Scylla alone; which
place has been invested for nearly six weeks. Ile
has been so fortunate as
,to possess himself of four
Sicilian Gun-boats, each carrying a 24-pounder,-air,
of which he has: landed. Our greatest etforts'have;-
for a length of time past, been to prevent his bring-
ing haltering cannon into this part of .Colabria ; hut
fortune, by throwing those into his hands, has Ten-
dered our endeavours nugatory. -
As in my former letters, I have given your. Lord-
ship my opinion of what the probable tine Of Scylla
must be, when the Enemy can bring guns of heavi
metal into batteries against it at breaching diStance,
it is.leeedless for me to say more upon,the subject.
I am. extremely Sorry to inform your .Lordship,
that in endeavouring to. recover the Sicilian Go4i.:
boats. which fell into the Enemy's hands, on the
evening of the 30th ult. the Delight Sloop of War
most unfortunately got on ',shore on the Calabrian
coast. It being found impossible to get her otf,
she was next day burnt, to prevent her being of
further use co the Enemy.
At is with the most heartfelt, concern I add,' that
on this melancholy occasion Capt. liandfielti (with
several of his Ship's Corapan)) was- killed; and
that—Captain Seccowbe, ot the Glatton; (who was
at the time on boatd the Delight,) was very dun-
gerouily wouuded, and, with the remainder, made
.prisoners. Captain Seccombe was permitted, the
next day, to mine over to Messina on his parole,
but ou the 3d instant he died of his wounds.
I have the honour to be, -Ike.

(Signed) J. C. SkiEhLlllooli.E, Maj. Gen.

MY LORD, Nessina, FrL. 23, 1808.
I have the honour to state for your Lordsnip's
itil6rmauon, that I have found it expedient, and, to
.the best of my judgment,: for the good of his Ma-
jesty'sservice, to"withdraw the British troops from
the Castle of Scylla, which was evacuated accord-
ingly by my ordi r on the 17th inst.; the place was
ittar~rt~iia<<ly entered by the French troops, and it is
,now in their irosse,sion.
I beg leave also to lay before. your Lordship the
inclo4ed report made to rue by Lientenant-Colond
Robertson, late Commandant of Scylla, as it contains
a detailed acc.:ount of the events as they occurred,
from the3ist December last (the day on which the
Enemy came Wore the place), until the time:of its
evacuation ; which measure, I am led to hope, will
not only appear to your Lordship to have been ah-
soltirely necessary under the exising circumstance*,
but that our troops wore not
,withdrawn until no
other means remained of preventing the brave Gar-
rison falling into the Enemy's hands. I likewise
transmit a return of .the killed and wounded of the
detachments forming the British Um risen of Scylla
during the siege. . •

Having already,,, on a former occasion, bad the
honour of submitting my opinion, that the Castle
of Scylla would be no longer tenable whenever the
Enemy should succeed in bringing battering gunS
against it, the fall of this place will excite no sur-
prise in your. Lordship's mind when you perceive the
very formidable farce with .wbleh it 'was attacked,
and the very ample means with which the Enemy'
was provided to possess himself of it.
Much reliance has been heretofore plted•upon
the assistance which might be afforded by the. Gun
and Mortar-boatit in the defenee'of Seylla; and of
the .annoyance they might give the Enemy lit .ear--.
lying on his approaches; but, unfortunately, the
weather from' the ith to the 17th was so stormy,,
that it was quite ithpossihle for them to be employed,
with any hopes of advantage.
On the morning- of the 15th inst. Lieutenant-
Coleuel Robertson 'having informed tne, by Tele-
graph, that the parapet of the work was destroyed,
and than all his guns were either disinpunted or dis-
abled, I felt very anxious. indeed to withdraw the
Troops, but a continuance of the,.gale rendered
this iworatlicable till the t 7th, when, during a tetn-
porary (every necessary arrangement havii;g
been previously made), the Transports' Boats, Pro-
teaed by the Men of War's Launches, ran over 1
front the Faros,' and succeeded in bring away the
whole of the Garrison, • who elfeeted their retreat 'by
the Sea Staircase to the Boats, when they were ex- 1
poSed to a most tremendous _galling tire both of
grape and musketry from the Enemy„ tiH such
ria they could pull out of tlku reach of it. j.. ant
liappY to add, that the loss of the Troops in this T
exposed situatipn was- oulrfour killed and 'fie I
wounded, and that of the seamen one killed,and to
wound ad .

Captain Otway, of the Navy, who commands the
Ships of 'War stationed here, entrusted the exlecu-
tion of this very dangerous piece•of service to Clp-
tain Trollope, of the Electra: .More judgment,
coolness, and intrepidity -was never displayed on any .
occasion ,• and I feelMyselt particularly indebted to
Captain Trollope, and to the Officers and Seamen,.
serving, under him, to,.whose gallant exertions .I owe
the preservation of the Garrisok.
The gallantry and good condut of, the Officers
and men employed in the defence of Scylla Castle,
merits my highest approbation. .More could not be
cipeekd from any men ,than these -have, performed.
Lleatenant-Colenel Itol;ertson, who commanded, I
beg leave to recommend in the strongest -terms to
your Lordship's notice and prolation.. The ability,
zL.al,- and' gillantry displa3fed by- him in the defence
of this -little fortress, • deserves my warmest
and commendation.

When your Lard3hip cornea toconsider what the
numbers of the enemy were before Scy/la, with a
strong supporting army at hand, from which he
could draw reinforcements at pleasure, I trust it
will appear to your Lordship that prudence would

not have warranted nil= making a &version in favour
of Scyllat, by 'rfskiug a landing on the Calabrian
shore.' ' . • '
The only reinaining effort' therefore that I could
malce, I,vas to prevent the brave Garrison 'falling
iwu the enemy's hands ; and this, with the co• Op-
eration and assistance af the naval force under Captain
(ft ray,, has been 'happily effeeted in open - day,
under the enemy's. fire, with ' much less loss thdn
might, reasonably, have been expected.
.• ; I have the lionourte be, &c.
• J. C, S H Es,ltilios i. 0,,
Febis
( li.E. Ma! 80.1Gesn..
Silt, • •
In obedieitce tb your eiderS; I have the.honour to.
report the particulars of what oCce:sedSioce the first
appearance Qt the eneniy befell! S,eille.r
After tieing invested b l R y Genewegnier's army
uring seven weeks, and battered for six days by
fourteen pie"ces of heavy ordnance,. the little Castle,
of Scylla has falleo into his hands :i but I have the
heartfelt .satisfaCtieti, to add, that not one of the
gallant GarriSon' placed under-'my orders has become
his prisonei.
Iti the latter' eiid of December, the arrival of.
troops and eranance stores at Seminara left me no
room to doUlat the'enetny's intention of besieging
Scylla, 'and patties of the peasantry were accordingly
sent out• id render the passes of Solano‘impracti-
dable, and to create'obstacles to his, advance, by
CUIS across .the various paths which lead iron) the
-heights. of Milia down io Scylla. This work, as.,
Well, as the,levelling`of, iences, &c., proceeded ra-
pidly and effetcdually Midler the direet'on of Captain
IN; [cholas, Aisitstant Qa.larter-Master-General; when,
upon the 31st of' 4
mien, ecember, the advanced wor!,-
en, and out-posts of, the Masse, were'driven
in by three French haintlions, and a detaChment of
cavalry, under General' Millet, which ' took post
upon the heights abo, et' us ; and on the following
day Regnier brought up two more battalions, and
spreading his.out-pestS to Favezzina, Bagnara. &c.completA the investment of the town. At this
time the Garrison of the Castle consisted of about
two hundred British, and from four to five hundred
Masse occupied the town.
The Enemy's Troops were now incessantly em-
ploy,edln forming the °roads necessary for bringing
his heavy ordnance from - Sentinara, while we la-
boured to render the approach to Scylla difficult,
at* harassed the French by constant attacks on his
out•etosts with parties of the Masse, and occasionally
with Boats. In some of these partial aelions the
Enemy suffered severely, Oracularly in a night at•
tack at Bagnara, where theslroltigeurs of the 23d
Light Infantry were cut to pieces.
Owing to these checks, the French were retarded
ontil the 6th of Febt nary, when they descended the
heights in force, and Came within a distant range of
our guns ; and from ibis' day they lrOnoured our
little Castle with all 'the detailed precautions of a
regular siege, in covering his approaches and cons-
triunications; The skirmiihes between the Enemy
and the Masse became very serious ; the latter dis-
played great gallantry ; and enjoying the support of
the-Castle - gulls, 'obliged the' French to' purchase
their advance with heavy loss, but, on the 9th, were
obliged to yield to the ndnibets of the Enemy, who
,assalled the• town On* sides : our guns, however,
,pivercd their' retresse; od I had the satiefacaioleof
1
Betiding off these brave' 'easants to :vlesAua without
leaving' a man in the Enemy's 'hands. •
The force which General Regina had brought to
besiege Scylla consisted of. a body of Cavalry, the,
23d Light infantry, the Ist, 62d, and luist of -the
Line, in all' about six thousand men ; with' five
twenty-four pounders, five eighteens, and four suer-
tars, besides field-piece S-
On the Morning of the flit) he opened his bat-
.
teries, direeting his, efforts to the destruetion .of
our upper -Works; and , the disabling_ of our guns,
while under Cover-of this 'fire, lie laboured to etita-
blish two Breaching Batteries, at 3 and 400 yards
dittance. It was not, hoWever, till the tath that
'our parapet and guns were rendered totally useies,i ;
nor till then did the Slaughter abate lo which their'
parties employed on the Breaching Batteries were
exposed from our give and shells.
Front this ainieourdetence was confined to mus-
ketry; as-oUrgtinte lay buried under the ruins of the
parapet, and the close fire from live 24-pounders be-
came incessant': iii ftie mean tittle We discovered hint'
titternpting to mine the.itight Bastion, ufon ieyhich
he continued at' work for three nights, but I appre-
', bend without the expected success, .
In the 'night br the !Sat 'ihe'French pushed-
, round the foot of the Bock, with the intention 'of
destroying the. Sea Stairtise, bur we bat pity 'disco-
vered theni,. aritt,beat them ..tf ‘vitli the Shiegh!er to
which their desperate situation exreseil them.
The fire from the Breachiog Batteries' had been
variously di t'eew till the eveoingof 'ate f6tlrc, wheq
they bent thetrundivideifflaa'y against the".ll:ls Iles-
' trots with such,:uccess, that the breach wotild proba-
bly havebeederaeticable hy the tolloo,ingelening--=`
It was ' under these ..eireutristances I feceised your
orders to 'ewe:elate the Castle, and haie the great sa•
t6faCtien of reporting' that we .accomplished, this
yesterday Morning, in lull view' of the- enemy,.and
without leaving an individual behind: The approach
of the boats from Faro gaVe the French ' fug inti-
pation' of our design, but the' tempestuous state .of
,the weather obliged us to seize the short opporidnity
-Of an fitir'S lull: ` Every aartery`poUred:its Utmost
Are upon - the Castle, `anti Stibseenently upon the
boats ; While Infantry with fieldspieces 'tried the
.breaoh on either sidg.
The Garrison Was' drawn 'off in succession rind
•
-the embarkation 'effected 'With the greatest order,-
notwithstanding' the treinendons fired grape, shah,
Sic.- Our loss in the operation was small ; anti lie
fore we were a'intasket;shot distant, the French were
in the Fort: '

The masterly arrangement of the Transport Boats
and Men of War Launches upon this occasion (Ines
high Honour td ,Capt. I.frollope,. of His Majesty's
ship Ele6Ara, who .porsOnally, superintertded this ser-
vice ; and the condp& of the_Oftlcers and men unr
der him was marked with all the coolness and dex-
terity of British seamen. I regret to add, that one
uF tlern was killed ,in th 4 pperation„ and ten Wound-
ed, some of them dangerously. The'uniform goal
eondnet of the, Garrison. which I have had the good
fortune. to command, demands my warmest grail,.
tude • and their intrepid spirit,:ri
dung the siege it
hardy, more commendable thin the zeal with which