Battle of Copenhagen ( 1807 ) The Second Battle of Copenhagen ( or the Bombardment of Copenhagen ) ( 16 August – 5 September 1807 ) was a British bombardment of Copenhagen in order to seize the Dano - Norwegian fleet , during the Napoleonic Wars . The attack gave rise to the term to " Copenhagenize " . Background . Despite the defeat and loss of many ships in the first Battle of Copenhagen in 1801 , Denmark - Norway , possessing Schleswig - Holstein and Iceland , still maintained a considerable navy . The majority of the Danish army under the Crown Prince was at this time defending the southern border against possible attack from the French . There was concern in Britain that Napoleon might try to force Denmark to close the Baltic Sea to British ships , perhaps by marching French troops into Zealand . The British believed that access to the Baltic was " vitally important to Britain " for trade as well as a major source of necessary raw materials for building and maintaining warships , and that it gave the Royal Navy access to help Britain ' s allies Sweden and ( before Tilsit ) Russia against France . The British thought that after Prussia had been defeated in December 1806 , Denmark ' s independence looked increasingly under threat from France . George Canning ' s predecessor as Foreign Secretary , Lord Howick , had tried unsuccessfully to persuade Denmark into a secret alliance with Britain and Sweden . The reports of British diplomats and merchants in northern Europe made the British government feel uneasy and by mid - July the British believed that the French intended to invade Holstein in order to use Denmark against Britain . Some reports suggested that the Danes had secretly agreed to this . The Cabinet decided to act and on 14 July Lord Mulgrave obtained from the King permission to send a naval force of 21 to 22 ships to the Kattegat for surveillance of the Danish navy in order to pursue " prompt and vigorous operations " if that seemed necessary . The Cabinet decided on 18 July to send Francis Jackson on a secret mission to Copenhagen to persuade Denmark to give its fleet to Britain . That same day the Admiralty issued an order for more than 50 ships to sail for " particular service " under Admiral James Gambier . On 19 July Lord Castlereagh , the Secretary of State for War and the Colonies , ordered General Lord Cathcart at Stralsund to go with his troops to the Sound where they would get reinforcements . In January 1808 [ confirm date ? 1807 ? ] , Lord Hawkesbury told the House of Lords that he received information from someone on the Continent " that there were secret engagements in the Treaty of Tilsit to employ the navies of Denmark and Portugal against this country " . He refused to publish the source because he said it would endanger their lives During the night of 21 / 22 July Canning received intelligence from Tilsit that Napoleon had tried to persuade Alexander I of Russia to form a maritime league with Denmark and Portugal against Britain . Spencer Perceval , the Chancellor of the Exchequer , wrote a memorandum setting out the government ' s case for sending forces to Copenhagen : " The intelligence from so many and such various sources " that Napoleon ' s intent was to force Denmark into war against Britain could not be doubted . " Nay , the fact that he has openly avowed such intention in an interview with the E [ mperor ] of R [ ussia ] is brought to this country in such a way as it cannot be doubted . Under such circumstances it would be madness , it would be idiotic . . . to wait for an overt act " . The British assembled a force of 25 , 000 troops , and the vanguard sailed on 30 July ; Jackson set out the next day . Canning offered Denmark a treaty of alliance and mutual defence , with a convention signed for the return of the fleet after the war , the protection of 21 British warships and a subsidy for how many soldiers Denmark kept standing . On 31 July Napoleon ordered Talleyrand to tell Denmark to prepare for war against Britain or else Jean - Baptiste Bernadotte would invade Holstein . Neither Talleyrand nor Jackson persuaded the Danes to end their neutrality so Jackson went back to the British fleet assembled in the Sound on 15 August . The British published a proclamation demanding the deposit of the Danish fleet ; the Danes responded with " what amounted to a declaration of war " . On 12 August the 32 - gun Danish frigate " Frederiksværn " sailed for Norway from Elsinor and Admiral Lord Gambier sent the 74 - gun third rate and the 22 gun sixth rate after her , even though war had not yet been declared . " Comus " was much faster than " Defence " in the light winds and so outdistanced her . On 15 August 1807 " Comus " caught " Frederiksværn " off Marstrand and captured her . The British took her into service as . Bombardment . British troops commanded by General Wellesley defeated a Danish force of militia in the Battle of Køge , south of Copenhagen . Most of the civilian inhabitants of Copenhagen were evacuated in the few days before Copenhagen was completely encircled . The British forces included a Hanoverian force ( the King ' s German Legion ) , under General Lord Cathcart . The Danes rejected British demands , so the British fleet under Admiral Gambier bombarded the city from 2 to 5 September 1807 . In addition to the military casualties , the British bombardment of Copenhagen killed some 195 civilians and injured 768 . The bombardment had included Congreve Rocket s , which caused fires . Due to the civilian evacuation , the normal firefighting arrangements were ineffective ; over a thousand buildings were burned . On 5 September the Danes sued for peace and the capitulation was signed on 7 September . Denmark agreed to surrender its navy and its naval stores . In return the British undertook to leave Copenhagen within six weeks . Peymann had been under orders from the Crown Prince to burn the Danish fleet , which he failed to do , though the reason for his failure to do so is unknown . Thus , on 7 September 1807 Peymann surrendered the fleet ( eighteen ships of the line , eleven frigates , two smaller ships , two ship - sloops , seven brig - sloops , two brigs , one schooner and twenty - six gunboats ) . In addition , the British broke up or destroyed three 74 - gun ships - of - the - line on the stocks , along with two of the aforementioned ships - of - the - fleet and two elderly frigates . After her capture , one ex - Danish ship - of - the - line , " Neptunos " , ran aground and was burnt on or near the island of Hven . Then , when a storm arose in the Kattegat , the British destroyed or abandoned twenty - three of the captured gunboats . The British added the fifteen captured ships - of - the - line that reached Britain to the British Navy but only four — " Christian VII " 80 , " Dannemark " 74 , " Norge " 74 and " Princess Carolina " 74 — saw subsequent active service . On 21 October 1807 , the British fleet left Copenhagen for the United Kingdom . However , the war continued until 1814 , when the Treaty of Kiel was signed . Aftermath . The news of what happened did not reach Canning until 16 September . He wrote to Rev . William Leigh : " Did I not tell you we would save Plumstead from bombardment ? " One week later he wrote : " Nothing ever was more brilliant , more salutary or more effectual than the success [ at Copenhagen ] " and Perceval expressed similar sentiments . " The Times " said that the confiscation of the Danish fleet was " a bare act of self - preservation " and noticed the short distance between Denmark and Ireland or north - east Scotland . William Cobbett in his " Political Register " wrote that it was " vile mockery " and " mere party cavilling " to claim that Denmark had the means to preserve her neutrality . William Wilberforce MP said the expedition could be defended on grounds of self - defence . Thomas Grenville wrote to his brother Lord Grenville that he could not help feeling " that in their [ the government ' s ] situation we should very probably have given the same order without being able to publish to Parliament the grounds on which we had believed in the hostile mind of Denmark " . Lord Erskine condemned it by saying " if hell did not exist before , Providence would create it now to punish ministers for that damnable measure " . The opposition claimed the national character was stained and Canning read out in Parliament the previous administration ' s plans in 1806 to stop the Portuguese navy falling into the hands of France . Canning and Castlereagh wished to hold Zealand and suggested that when the British evacuated it as part of the peace they should immediately occupy it again . This was strongly opposed by Sir Arthur Wellesley , however , and it did not happen . The opposition claimed that the attack had turned Denmark from a neutral into an enemy . Canning replied by saying that the British were hated throughout Europe and so Britain could wage an " all - out maritime war " against France without worrying who they were going to upset . The opposition did not at first table a vote of censure on the battle and instead on 3 February 1808 demanded the publication of all the letters sent by the British envoy in Denmark on information regarding the war - readiness of the Danish navy . Canning replied with a three hour speech which Lord Palmerston described as " so powerful that it gave a decisive turn to the debate " . Lord Howick said the speech was " eloquent and powerful " but that it was an " audacious misrepresentation " and " positive falsehood " of the correspondence between himself and Benjamin Garlike . The three motions on this subject were heavily defeated and on 21 March the opposition tabled a direct motion of censure on the battle . It was defeated by 224 votes to 64 after Canning made a speech " very witty , very eloquent and very able " . The British bombing frustrated the first attempt to have a modern edition of the Anglo - Saxon poem Beowulf when the subsequent fire destroyed the 20 - year work of scholar Grímur Jónsson Thorkelin . Two manuscripts , however , were recovered and Thorkelin eventually published the poem in 1815 . Ships involved . The following ships sailed with Gambier from England on 26 July 1807 : " Prince of Wales " 98 ( flag of Admiral James Gambier , 1st Captain Sir Home Riggs Popham , 2nd Captain Adam Mackenzie ) " Pompee " 74 ( Vice - Admiral Henry Edwyn Stanhope , Captain Richard Dacres ) " Centaur " 74 ( Commodore Sir Samuel Hood , Captain William Henry Webley ) " Ganges " 74 ( Commodore Richard Goodwin Keats , Captain Peter Halkett ) " Alfred " 74 ( Captain John Bligh ) " Brunswick " 74 ( Captain Thomas Graves ) " Captain " 74 ( Captain Isaac Wolley ) " Goliath " 74 ( Captain Peter Puget ) " Hercule " 74 ( Captain John Colville ) " Maida " 74 ( Captain Samuel Hood Linzee ) " Orion " 74 ( Captain Sir Archibald Collingwood Dickson ) " Resolution " 74 ( Captain George Burlton ) " Spencer " 74 ( Captain Robert Stopford ) " Vanguard " 74 ( Captain Alexander Fraser ) " Dictator " 64 ( Captain Donald Campbell ) " Nassau " 64 ( Captain Robert Campbell ) " Ruby " 64 ( Captain John Draper ) " Surveillante " 38 ( Captain George Collier ) " Sibylle " 38 ( Capt . Clotworthy Upton ) " Franchise " 36 ( Capt . Charles Dashwood ) " Nymphe " 36 ( Capt . Conway Shipley ) The following vessels joined on 5 August off Helsingor : " Superb " 74 ( Captain Donald M ' Leod ) The following further vessels joined on 7 August off Helsingor : " Minotaur " 74 ( Rear - Admiral William Essington , Captain Charles John Moore Mansfield ) " Valiant " 74 ( Captain James Young ) " Inflexible " 64 ( Captain Joshua Rowley Watson ) " Leyden " 64 ( Captain William Cumberland ) The following vessels joined on 8 August or later : " Defence " 74 ( Captain Charles Ekins ) " Mars " 74 ( Captain William Lukin ) " Agamemnon " 64 ( Captain Robert Devereux Fancourt ) " Africaine " 32 ( Capt . Richard Raggett ) Note that Lieutenant - General Lord Cathcart arrived in the " Africaine " on 12 August to take command of the ground forces . In addition , there were another three dozen smaller frigates , sloops , bomb vessels , gun - brigs and schooners ( e . g . HMS " Rook " attached to the British fleet ) , and a very large number of merchant or requisitioned ships carrying troops or supplies . Ships surrendered . The Danes surrendered the following warships on 7 September under the terms of the capitulation following the attack : " Christian den Syvende " 84 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Christian VII " 80 " Neptunus " 80 – sailed for Britain , but wrecked and burned en route " Valdemar " 80 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Waldemar " 80 " Danmark " 76 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Danmark " 74 " Norge " 78 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Norge " 74 " Fyen " 70 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Fyen " 74 " Kronprins Friderich " 70 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Kron Princen " 74 " Tre Kroner " 74 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Tree Kronen " 74 " Arveprins Friderich " 70 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Heir Apparent Frederick " 74 " Skjold " 70 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Skiold " 74 " Odin " 74 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Odin " 74 " Justitia " 74 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Justitia " 74 " Kronprinsesse Maria " 70 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Kron Princessen " 74 " Prindsesse Sophia Frederica " 74 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Princess Sophia Frederica " 74 " Prindsesse Caroline " 66 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Princess Carolina " 74 " Ditsmarsken " 60 – not sailed to Britain , but deemed useless and burnt " Mars " 64 – not sailed to Britain , but deemed useless and burnt on Saltholm " Sejeren " 64 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Syeren " 64 " Perlen " 46 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Perlen " 38 " Rota " 40 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Rota " 38 " Freja " 40 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Freya " 36 " Iris " 40 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Iris " 36 " Najaden " 44 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Nyaden " 36 " Havfruen " 40 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Hasfruen " 36 " Nymfen " 36 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Nymphen " 36 " Venus " 36 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Venus " 36 " Frederiksten " 26 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Frederickstein " 32 " St Thomas " 22 – not sailed to Britain , but deemed useless and burnt " Triton " 24 – not sailed to Britain , but deemed useless and burnt on Saltholm or the Swedish coast . " Lille Belt " 20 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as 20 " Fylla " 22 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Fylla " 20 " Eyderen " 18 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Eyderen " 18 " Elven " 18 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Elvin " 18 " Glückstadt " 12 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Gluckstadt " 16 " Nidelven " 18 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Nid Elven " 16 " Sarpen " 18 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as HMS " Sarpen " 18 " Glommen " 18 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Glommen " 16 " Mercurius " 18 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Mercurius " 16 " Delphinen " 18 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Delphinen " 16 " Allart " 18 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Allart " 16 " Brevdrageren " 18 – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Brev Drageren " 12 " Flyvende Fiske " 14 ( brig - rigged cutter ) – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Flying Fish " 14 " Ørnen " 10 ( schooner ) – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Ornen " 12 " Stege " 2 ( gunboat ) – sailed to Britain , added to Royal Navy as " Warning " 2 There were a further 25 gunboats similar to the " Stege " , of which 23 were lost in the October storm in the Kattegat or destroyed rather than be sailed to Britain – these lost were Four barges ( stykpram ) , floating gun platforms each with 20 cannon , were incapable of being moved far and so were scuttled by the British during their occupation of Copenhagen . Of these four barges ( " Hajen " , " Kiempen " , " Lindormen " and " Sværdfisken " ) only " Hajen " was not raised and refurbished by the Danes after the British departure . A further " unsinkable " floating battery ( " Flaadebatteri No 1 " ) of twentyfour 24 - pound cannon was rendered inoperable and decommissioned the following year . References . Individual record cards in Danish for ships of the Danish Royal Navy used to be found on the internet at Orlogmuseet Skibregister , but this is now a dead link ( from February 2013 ) . A new Danish naval Museum website listing for ships is available here linking to a page of ships ' names for which there is data . The following website in Danish or in English gives the list of ships , as recorded by the Danes , " forcefully taken " by the British in September 1807 at Copenhagen . The references , in Danish , are as follows Historical fiction . Author : Bernard Cornwell ; Title : " Sharpe ' s Prey " - Richard Sharpe and the Expedition to Copenhagen , 1807 Author : Alexander Kent ; Title : " The Only Victor " - Richard Bolitho and the siege of Copenhagen , 1807