The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1914-12-04
AN. ATTEMPTED
 INVASION OF ENGLAND

The reported intention of the Ger mans to Invade England after seiMng a suitable port on the English Chan mel recalls the elaborate preparations century to achieve the same purpose. It was fofled by Eng1and's control of the sea, the factor on which she re- lies to-day to protect her island ena- pire.
 At the close Of 1779, one of Napo-= Icons principal aims was to distract Great Britain by the threat of inva- sion of England across the Channel. Napoleon's ships were continually be- ing held in check by the superior Eng 1ish fleet, but the invasion schexn eswas lvigorously pushed after the 3rd Of March, 1901. Flat-bottomed boats were gradually collected at Boulogne. 1 Two attempts to destroy them at an chor, though directed by Nelson him self. were repu1sed on the 4th and 18th of August. But the invasion l was so far little more than a threat made for diplomatic purposes
 After the peace of Amiens had been lsueceeded by open war on the 18th.
 of May. 1908. the plan was again ts4-- l ken up. I :sFrom that date till abont the rnid- | dle. of August 1895, space of some | two years and two months, says the Encyc1opaedia. Britannica, tst11e war T took the form of a. most determined V
 carry out anainvasion of Great Brit l ain, xnet by the counter measures Of the British government. The scheme i of invasion was based on the Bou- the old French royal government. i through the Republic. Its object was Ito throw a great army ashore on the coast between Dover and Hastings.
 The preparations were made on an Il unprecedented scale. The Republic 1r
 forty vessels. Under the direction of
 Napoleon ten times as many were
 equipped. They were divided into
 prames, ship-rigged, of E metres long and 8 wide, carrying IF guns; cha l 1oupes cannonieres, of 24 metres long rfgged; bateaux cannonieres, of 19
 metres long by 1.66 wide. carrying 2
 guns. and mere boats.
 ssAIl were built to be rowed, were ldat-bottomed, and of, shallow draft So as to be able to avigatescIose to the ii shore, and to take the ground without l hurt. They were built in France and the Low Countries, in the coast towns land the riVers-even in Paris-and S were collected gradually shore bat
 teries both fixed and mobile being sl largely employed toscoyer the passage. t A vast sum of money and the labor of I thousands of men wers employed to clear harbours for them, at and near II BOul0gne.5 The SAa4lOW water on the Ecoast made it irnposafbIe for the Brit
 ish line of-batt1e ships or even large
 frigates, to press the attack on them
 home. Smaller vessels they were able
 to beat off and so. in spite of the activ- . ity of the British cruisers andsof many lsharp encounters, the concentration was emected at Boulogne, where an army of 13o,00O was encamped and was necessarily pracused in embark
 ing and disembarkfng.
 Before the invasion was taken in
 hand as a serious policy, there had been at least profession of a. belie1 . that the hotiI1a could push aeress the < Channel during a calm. Experience tsoonE showed that when the needfu
 allowance was made for the time re lquired to bring them out of harbos .HI {two tfdes1 and for the influence (which the Channel currents must have upon their speed, it would be ex- ItEenne1y rash to rely on a, calm of silf- F hcient length. Napoleon therefore N Icame early to the conclusion that he
 must bring about a concentration o1
 his seagoing fleet in the Channel
 which would give him a temporary l command of it's waters
 This concentration Napoleon found it mipossib1e to achieve. The inva- sian plan was finally brought te naught by the great victory of Nelson
 over the French and Spanish fleet al
 Trafalgar.
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