The Sun.
London, England, 1808-04-26 00:00:00

LlAlilled PAPERS.

KINGSTON, MAKCiI me sorry to state
that the Ship Alfred the Great, Capt, CMUSTIE,
one of the last London Fleet tar thii Island, hav-
ing separated from the convoy in the severe gale of
the 28t1r December, was unfortunately captured on
the 9th January folloNi'ing, 'off Cape Finisterre, by a
French PriVateer,. carrying 18 guns and 110 men,
belonging to Beurdeaux ; and her Commander or-
dered the prize to be carded into the first port of
France they Could Make, as from a hope of falling
in with some More of the Fleet he was prevented
from:convoying her.

Mrs. JOkiNSONI, a passenger in the Alfred 14e
Great, was continued on board of her ; but Captain'
emirsalE and, most of his crew were taken on board
the Privateer, where he was kept fifteen days) and
then put on board of an American Vessel they fell
in with, bound to Turk's Island, from whence he
arrived at Port-Royal in the Sandwich. The Pri-.
vateer's men 'stated, that eight Privateers, carrying
from 18 to 28 guns, were cruizing in the same quar-
ter.

The Decouverte Schooner, of 12 guns,.Lieutenant.
CAMiIiEr:L, arrived from a cruize, 'and brOught in:
with her the French PriVatecr-schooner DOradar, of,
. three guns and 67 men,,lier • prize. Early in the
morning of the 9th instant, on the south side of
St. D6mingo, the Decouverie descried two Privateer-
schooners, with a Ship in company ; immediately
on the •Doouverte's approaching within gun-shot a
sharp engagement cotnnwnced, which lasted a short
time, when the Ship run ashore, And the Doiudor,
having her Lieutenant and three men killed and four
wounded, struck her colours.

On taking possession of her, Lieut. CAMFBr.Li.
was informed that the 'above Ship was the Matilda,
laden with merchandise, from .Halifax bound to St..
botningo, taken by the Doiadni 'a few days before.
livery exertion of Lieut. CAstraat.r.,'his Officers and
crew,. to get the Ship off, proving ineffeetual, she,
'was set fire to. The other Privateer unfortUnately.
etietaed her escape. The Decouverfr had one matt'
-severely' and thieo slightly, mounded.
The 313 bi Brig, et ft guns, Capt. COMILAN, at;
rived at Nassau, N. P. with the French Privateer;
.Schoonerlfarlegkin, of two guns and
.54 men, be-:
longing to Barracoa, and a Swedish Schooner, which
she bad detained. The Privateer had, shortly after,
leaving port, captured a Swedish Shipp-from St. Do-
mingo to Philadelphia, with Coffee; ana a British,
Schooner,-from Halifaxto this hhrsid, with and
sent tbetit to Cuba.

fti.k

OFTFIIS EVENT

MitiCH ti-j.=--Eventa haVe taken plate
Within these last few days, that have shaken the
Throne One party licenses the Patsce. of PEACE
of heingin cunCert with the QUEEN to destroy the
Prince Of ASTURIAS ; the other, that the Aim: of
AsTurttss Was'at the 'head Of it party td dethroee
his father. ,They say that he recetved this
originally from his wife. Solemn councils and long
p,roceediugs, followed by nets of baeiShrhent, and
preclaniations, instead of relieving the public mind,
infleMed it the more. The French troops, though.
on 'the borders of the Ebre, and at a distahce- of
more than forty leagues from Our capital, were in e
situation of state quo, which the great number of
.couriers that succeeded each otherot. every instant,
and the important negociations which seemed to be
on foot, did not serve to explain. Our troops had
been recalled from Portugal, and advanced by forced
marches to the capital. The Court appeared divid-
ed, and without plan : that which, was ordered one
day, was contradiaed the next. There was neither
arrangement nor unity of power. In this state of-
things,onttre Lsth,of March, the' report Was, that
the KING) who sgs at Aranjuez, was:ehtiut to retire
to. Seville; that Wt teat Council, which had beer)
held at the Palace, had so decided it, but that opi-
nions on this subje& were not agreed ; that the.
Qu andthe PRINCE of PzAca wished to go, but
that the Prince of AsTuittiss, and his brother, wish-
ed to stay. We were soon informed, that the
troops which were cantoned in 'Madrid had or-
ders to quit the city. Alarm was in every breast,
when-a Proclamation from the Km; • was • pub-
lished on the r (eh, which in some degree re-
stored calm. On the I.7th understood, that
the Spanish Guards were to march to Aran-
Juez, and -that the two Regiments of Swiss were
alone to remain here. These Regiments have not
for some time been poplar in this city. The whole.
of the populace, on .this news, litirried to the road
leading to-Aranjuez. • " Spaniards," every one cried
'to the Soldiers, " will you abandon your, country ?.
Will you protea the flight of a Prince who sacrifices,
his subjects; and who goes to carry disorder to our
Colouiei ? Have we as little spirit as the Inhabitants
of Lisbon?" Several of the Ministers who were not.
favourable tothe departure, circulated hand bills in
thesurrounding villages, stating what. Was going on,
and the imminent danger in which the country was
placed. On the 18th the peasants hurried In crowds,
IQ Aranjuez; relays were already' statiolted 'oti the
road to Seville ; the town was filled with troopoi.and
the baggage,of the Court was packed up in all the,
apartments. The night between the 17th and tsth
was a night of tumult. Tire house of the Niece of
PEACE swab defended by his Guards,' ell° had a par-
ticular watch word ; those at the Castle had another.
At four in the tnernine the people reJled in crowds
to the Palace of the &ice of FRAGE, but were re-
pulsed ,by his Guards. :The Life.Unards took part
with-the people, and fell upon the Prince's Guards.
The gates were forced, the furniture broken, and
the apartments desolated. The Princess of Peace
ran to tee staircese; she was condueled to the King's
Palace, with all the respe& due to her birth and
rank. The hike of PEACE disappeared. Don
DIEGO GODOY, his brother Commreahtlarit of the
Life Gords, was arresteriby his ow nsoldiers.
The King and Queen sat up the whole night be-
tween the 17th and 18th. The French Ambassador
ac rived from Madrid, at five in the morning; and im-
mediately waited on their Majesties. On the 18th,
.a Proclamation by the King dismissed the Prince of
Peace from his employments, and declared that he
would take upon himself the command of his armies.
This was published at Aranjuez, and at Madrid.--
On the receipt of this intelligence, the people of
Midrid rushed in crowds to the house of the Prince
of PaAce, and to those of several of the Ministers.
In all of them the furniture and the windows Were
broken. There was no one to oppose this disorder,
the Captain General had lost the cOmmand.—
The Swiss regiments remained cantoned- in their
quarters.
• . .
_ _

AEANJUEX:,'.A.t4ECIT 21.--From.-the lOth to the
21&t, hladrid and Aranjuez luive been the theatre of
sayeral insurrettions, in which the houses of the
Prince of PEACE, the Minister of Finande SOLER,
the Director .of Consolidation, ESPICOSM, of othen
Ministers, and of several relations of the Prince of
PEa.ca, have been pillaged, and the furniture burnt
in the public streets. The Prinef of PEACE has been
arrested in a garret in his own bodge,. where he had
concealed himself for 3ti hours.

Oti the i6th, the King issued a Proclamation, as-
suring his people that the army of his dear Ally'en-
tereehis kingdom upon the principles of friendship
and peace, and to prole& such parts of it as were
threatened by the English. [This- Procustnatlan
was fully and correlily riven in :hut SUN of the
1 th' instaia.)
On the 17th, the King made'knOwn, by another
Proclamation, that he had dismissed the Prince of
NAGE, from his employments, and b;td taken upon
the 'command of his army.—[This Pro-
clamalian also appeared in THE SUN of the lwth
initant.)

The tumult, however, still increasing, the King
thought fit, on the 19th in the evening, to publish
the following Proclamation :

ROYAL DECREE.
I'. My habitual infirmities not permitting me to
support any longer the importaqt burdens of the Go-
vernment of my Kingdom, and it being requisite for
the re-establishtnent of my health, that I should en-
joy ill a. more temperate climate a private We ; .1
have determined, after mature deliberation, to abdi-
cate my Crown, in favour of my heir, my dearly
loved son the Prince of ASTURIAS. IVly Royal will,
therefore is, that he should be recognized and obeyed,
,as King and natural Lord of all my Kingdenis add
Soverelgnties ; and io purer that this. Royal De-
.crec or my lieu and spontaneous abdication may
bey exaaly and duly fulfilled, you will communi-
cate it to the Council, and to• all others whom it
,may concern.

. LTIIE KING."
"DON I'SDHG CEVALLOS."
"Done at Aranitiez, ahe 19th MarCh,tiOB."
On the Xotlt, the following official publications
took piaw

EDICT.

DON ARIAS ANTONIO 1104 ET VRLARDR DEAN, p

VERNoIt PAR INTERIM OF THE COUNCIL.
" The Kin our DilaJter.,7,EaDlNAto) Vila), has

ccitiimnniscaied to tnedivers orckril, wilich I kim' re
ceived.; that hig Majeiity :has Come to the detertnina:
tion of irwobiiiittelY contiisacting kills I 11::
effeelS., and entate4 of Don Goren
ever they tally be:lwnd, and that for tit
hli Nbjesty has taken every -„snitithie r-rteaclure,
Said ofeEti.bolongin:,r irritildiately to ltiiii ; thL.t Ito
has als6 colutt to the determination of shortly et.inf-
ing to 'this city to be proeHrned ; but he Wi,.,eS;
that previously.' the people of 'Madrid, so devotel
and attached to hits Royal /Person; will give hiui
poo.fs of calmness and tratypillity; assuring them;
that he .has`gi.'..n orders against fin EM N WA;
GODOY, his gootil arid reverin6, which no 14..)1ge'r
belong to*lihn; that he will think very' stvionsly of
repairing the wrongs done. to hii3 !dying subjec.l4
who suffered in his cause ; and lastly, thi.:t.
he constantly keep it] view the atloption of al.!
those.tueasureS which--are calculated to ensure their.
happines4.
" His Majesty aEo inform S me that ha hag Appoint:
ed tbt Due D'lNFAivrknO, 'Colonel of his Spanish.
Guardsonterring on. him at the Omit/ brut t 1,:;
Presidency of Ciistile. The King,
that thoe persons, who have been Confined in oat..
st,(iuence of the events at St. Laurent, will Avian I‘.l
his Majesty's presence. In order that this iriay 1L
known to. ailound that the loyal people of Madri4
may know 11(74. the King, -My Ma'tit'er,
hours kw their luapOinei..s and their welf.4te;
ordered me to. communicate it to yop,'-vk hieh I et.;
by these presents.

Dow AalA4 M 013."
Madrid,..the feoll 1144,7. ch, 1 80e,"

E 'Co ,I'll 1'...E OP LE (IF MA I) RI ?Y.

" Nothing ought to .distorts the puhlietrangoitlity
In, the 41appy elevation iolhe;•".l.llroiitt
of;Skrain of the. King•Fcaotz;:mirb VIIt h. His
1111 Aubjd,ts .tare giveii in • that
Majesty proofs at' their di:votion aad, tiffiA'tit.;!:.
'l:hey ought not to doubt ...theriticajoo
.‘vliteh•fi;i
Majesty has for, them, and that lie- will.. eitioloy
hitmelt.itt sias for the. publiv happiness and
'accomplishment of the 6lebireB pep pi
•. • •

" But what is, most importata,fo success of
the..elei,ated 'dews of his —Majesty is weer,
and that this should be ensured; ate Council PratteN
itself thtit..all 'the inhabit:ants • of. this .taithiul .tl;y
will retire.to their homes, and that !hey will rermnd
in the most perfeEt tranquillity, persuaded Ithat'ttley
will thus giye to his Majesty, in the firsr.niOnit4n,a
of his reign, the. best testimony of ,the sincerity of
their sentiments; and of thOse accinmatio:is a ti;;;:-
lity which have been recently heard: .
true copy:),:-certitied by BARTltottititelY
•MuNOZ DE.TORRES, Secretary co his Maes-
ty's COuncil,

AV.72402 Dlt TORRES:I

The bead-quarters of the (;rand Doke of littrit•
.:were on the ioth at Somosiet`ra, on the 20tivit-Brui-
itajo, . and on the 2181 at AlderAndo. . Ue has with
him ,the division. of Marshal Ii MONEY .and'of .c.;eN'rnt
DUPONT. His arrival appeal; to b greatly desired.
The mass of the people of Madrid are calm and tran-
quil and, as it• happens in similar eases,, d'xiorder4
have only been committed by a itnall mittf'Ser 61 in-
dividuals.