The Sun.
London, England, 1865-08-30 00:00:00

The French Fleet at Portsmouth.

PORTSMOUTH, Aug. 29.

The long expected visit of the French fleet to this
port has at length become an accomplished fact.
Within range of our forts and in close proximity to
the most fruitful nursery of our naval power a for-
midable squadron of foreign men-of-war at this mo-
ment rides at anchor. Such, however, is the manner
of their coming that so rare an event gives rise to no
other feeling than one of intense satisfaction, and
that not even the most timid lady sees anything in
the invasion more perilous than a long vista of plea-
surable excitement, culminating in a ball. From an
early hour this morning the appearance of Ports-
mouth gave evidence that it was stirred by some un-
wonted expectation, but the streets were compara-
tively quiet until about 9 o'clock, when the firing of
artillery spread a somewhat general impression that
the French fleet might have come in sight. A sud-
den rush of some hundreds of people to the pier and
ramparts was the result, but it was soon discovered
that the firing was caused by the arrival of the Aus-
trian screw wooden frigate Friedrich, 22 guns, Capt.
von Wiplinger, which had just arrived in the road-
stead and dropped her anchor on the extreme west
of the English fleet off Ryde, after exchanging
salutes with the Victory, the flagship of the Port-
Admiral, Sir M. Seymour, and the King's Bastion
battery. The disappointment occasioned by this in-
telligence was, however, very trifling, for although
the sky was far from being free from clouds, there
were at intervals streaks of blue from which the sun
shone out brightly, and it was pleasant to walk by
the ramparts looking across the tranquil roadstead in
-which the British ships of war lay moored. During
the night their numbers had been increased by the
arrival from Portland of the Research, 4, iron-cased
sloop, Capt. Wihnshurst, 1,253 tons and 200-horse
power. On reaching Spithead she took up her posi-
tion in line west of the Prince Consort, 35, screw fri-
gate, 4,045 tons and 1,000 horse power, Capt. G. 0.
Willis, C.B. The remaining English vessels of war
lying at Spithead to receive the French fleet, anchored
in a line from N.W. to S.E., are the Edgar, 71,
screw, wooden line-of-battle ship, on board which
is hoisted the flag of Rear-Admiral Sir S. C. Dacres,
K.C.8., 3,094 tons, and 600-horse power, Captain
G. T. P. Ilornby ; the Hector, 24, iron frigate,
4,089 tons and 800-horse power, Capt. G. W.
Preedy, C.B. ; the Defence, Capt. A. Phillimore, 16,
iron frigate, 3,720 tons and 600-horse power; the
Black Prince, 41, iron frigate, 6,009 tons and 1,250-
horse power, Capt. Lord F. Kerr ; the Achilles, 26,
iron frigate, 6,121 tons and 1,250-horse power,
Capt. E. W. Vansittart ; the Royal Sovereign, 4,
turret ship, 3,765 tons and 800-horse power, Capt.
H. Herbert ; the Liverpool, 39, wooden frigate,
Capt. R. Lambert, 2,656 tons and 600-horse power ;
the Salamis, paddlewheel despatch vessel, 835 tons
and 250-horse power ; and 10 screw wooden gun-
bolts, acting as tenders, each of 250 tons and 60-
h3rse power. It will be seen by this list that the
English fleet is very powerfully represented at Spit-
head, consisting, as it does, of 20 vessels, with a
combined tonnage of 38,187 tons, and a nominal

horse power of engines of 9,750.
There are few places in which a naval spectacle
can be seen to greater advantage than the broad
expanse of water separating the Isle of Wight from
the mainland, in which this splendid squadron lay
moored. It is sufficiently wide to admit of
manoeuvres on a considerable scale without being
so extensive as to preclude the spectator from
following them easily with the naked eye. Spit-
head itself is one of those magnificent anchorages
which would seem to have been formed by nature
as a resting-place for ships, possessing, as it does in
the Isle of Wight, a breakwater more powerful than
any which human ingenuity could construct. In
this respect it has an advantage over Cherburg
which no digue could supply. For some time before
the French vessels cast their anchors in its waters
to-day yachts and boats innumerable plied about the
roadstead like a swarm of busy bees. The weather,
happily, grew warmer and the sky more cloudless
as the day wore on, and the streets of Portsmouth
became from hour to hour more thronged, and as-
sumed a gayer aspect, for, as if by magic, the house-
tops and church steeples sprouted out at noon with
a perfect forest of bunting, the tricolor of France
being for once in the ascendant in the very heart
of one of our most cherished strongholds.
One of the divisions of the Imperial fleet was seen
off Ventnor last night, and at daybreak this morn-
ing it stood down to the westward, where it formed
a junction with the main body of the fleet, under
Vice-Admiral Count Bouet Willaumez, consisting
of eight vessels. Soon afterwards the ships were
seen south-east of Dunnose, communicating with a
pilot vessel.

About half-past 10 the Osborne paddle yacht,
with the Lords of the Admiralty on board, accom-
panied by the paddle yachts Enchantress and Black
Eagle,steamed out to Spithead to receive the squad-
ron, Which could now be seen in dim outline through
the dark haze collected to leeward, the Reine Hor-
tense, having the Minister of Marine, M. Chasse-
loup Laubat on board, leading, followed by the Sol-
ferino, carrying at the fore the flag of the French
Commander-in-Chief, Count Bouet Willaumez.
Sir Michael Seymour, Naval Commander-in-
Chief, in attendance on:the Lords of the Admiralty,
had by this time arrived at Spithead in his paddle
yacht the Fire Queen. Steamers of all sizes and
descriptions, too, were cruising about the roadstead,
while a fleet of schooners, yachts, yawls, and
cutters belonging to the Royal Victoria Yacht
Club came out from Ryde Roads and darted
to and fro by the line in which the English ironclads
lay at anchor, in as yet silent and grim array.
Meantime the French squadron continued to ad-
vance, ship after ship, in single file, the at first
shadowy outlines of the vessels becoming each moment
more clearly defined, conspicuous among them being
the Magenta and Solferino, with their high black
hulls and double rows of ports, light rig, and pecu-
liar beaks. It was not, however, until near noon
that the squadron hove in sight off Portsmouth. Its
approach was the signal for a merry peal being rung
by the bells of St. Thomas's Church, and for a more
determined rush of people to the ramparts, which
were, from that moment until long after the fleet
anchored at Spithead, thronged with spectators.
Shortly after the nine most powerful ironclads in
the navy of France, accompanied by four frigates,
steamed slowly into Spithead, and dropped each
her anchor opposite to one of her English sisters.
As soon as the Solferino had anchored, the Osborne
and the Reine Hortense stood towards each other,
and meeting midway between the two fleets clipped
their flags in salutation. The English ships at Spit-
bead were then with almost magical rapidity manned
at every yard, and a more stirrinc, scene than that
which greeted the spectator, both on shore and
afloat, as they did so it is not easy to conceive. A
vessel with her yards fully manned' is always a pretty
sight, but when, as to-day, a whole squadron con-
tributed to the effect the view presented was strik-
ing in the extreme. The Reine Hortense, followed
by the Osborne, then made for Portsmouth, and as
the former rounded the Spit Buoy the flag of the
Minister of Marine received a salute from the
Victory, stationed in the harbour. This salute
the Solferino, not wishing to be outdone in cour-
tesy, returned with rigid punctuality, belching
forth flame in rapid flashes, each being succeeded
by a brief silence, which although it might convey
no compliment was extremely grateful to civilian
cars. But the land was not td be outdone in this
great strife of sound, and accordingly the roar of the
garrison artillery went booming across the water,
dying away in reverberations which' grew fainter
and fainter until at last they totally ceased, and the
vexed air was quiet once more. By this time, too,
the smoke created by the firing, which hung over the
water, began to drift before the wind and to break
up into light fleecy clouds, each of which took its
own way into the heavens, leaving the atmosphere
immediately over Spithead perfectly clear. Then
might be seen lying harmlessly by .one another in
the roadstead such an array of ironclads constructed
on the most deadly principles as has never been seen
assembled together before. Hundreds of boats im-
mediately clustered round them, and loud cheers
continued long after they anchored to greet the ap-
pearance of the French officers and sailors on the
decks of their respective vessels. The allied fleets, as
they now lie at Spithead, are anchored in three pa-