Battle of Bantry Bay The Battle of Bantry Bay was a naval engagement fought on 11 May 1689 during the Nine Years ' War . The English fleet was commanded by Arthur Herbert , 1st Earl of Torrington ; the French fleet by François Louis de Rousselet , Marquis de Châteaurenault . Apart from the inshore operations at La Rochelle in 1627 – 28 , the Battle of Bantry Bay was the first time English and French navies had met in fleet action since 1545 . The battle near the southern Irish coast was somewhat inconclusive but the French , endeavouring to supply King James II in his attempt to re - establish his throne , had managed to unload their supplies for James ' s Irish campaign . But although the French failed to follow up their tactical success with strategic gain , Château - Renault had inflicted considerable damage on the English fleet . Background . Following the ' Glorious Revolution ' in 1688 , James II of England lost his throne to William , Prince of Orange . The new William III reigned jointly with his wife Mary . James fled to France and was given succour by his co - religionist , Louis XIV , but was determined to regain his throne . In this endeavour Louis was willing to support James , primarily for two reasons : firstly , he fervently believed in the Stuart king ’ s God - ordained right to the English throne ; secondly , and primarily , the war in Ireland would divert William ' s energy and forces away from the Spanish Netherlands , a theatre which would later become the main focus for both William ' s and Louis ' s efforts during the conflict . While in France , James built up an army to support his Lord Deputy in Ireland , the Earl of Tyrconnell . James had already sent financial help , but it was not until March 1689 that he was ready to sail in person to lead the campaign . After landing in Kinsale with 100 French officers and about 2 , 500 mixed troops , James , together with Tyrconnell – whom he now made a duke – travelled to Dublin . James hoped to quickly establish control over Ireland before pressing on to Scotland or England , but this was impossible while Protestant strongholds in northern Ireland remained outside his control . The campaign , therefore , urgently required supplies and equipment from France , but English Parliamentarians , acutely worried of the situation developing in Ireland , were determined to use the Royal Navy and frustrate James ’ s designs . Battle . The newly appointed commander - in - chief of the English main fleet , Arthur Herbert , did not go to sea until the beginning of April , leaving behind a number of ships which had mutinied for overdue pay . Herbert ' s fleet of 19 ships sailed on 4 April ; it was off Cork by 12 April , seeking to intercept enemy vessels . The French fleet , consisting of 24 third - and fourth - rate vessels , two frigates , a number of fireships , and transports carrying weapons and supplies for James ’ s campaign , left the port of Brest on 6 May . As the French approached southern Ireland Herbert ' s squadron had made offloading supplies at Kinsale impossible , thus forcing Château - Renault to anchor his fleet in Bantry Bay . The following morning on 11 May , as the French were landing 1 , 500 men with money , arms and ammunition , Admiral Herbert ’ s fleet came into view . The French weighed anchor , and a running battle ensued in the confined waters of the bay . Initially the two fleets opposed each other in parallel lines but Château - Renault , enjoying the weather gage , drove Herbert from the bay into the open sea . The ensuing battle – which in total lasted four hours – was somewhat inconclusive , but the French had protected the transports which managed to unload . When the French broke off the action late in the afternoon in order to return to the anchorage , Herbert ' s ships were too damaged to follow , and he had suffered many casualties . Aftermath . The fleets withdrew : Château - Renault returned to Brest on 18 May , seizing on the way seven Dutch merchant vessels bound from the West Indies . Herbert sailed for the Scilly Isles , before reaching Spithead , via Plymouth , on 22 May . For both the French and English however , the battle was equally unsatisfactory . Although the damage sustained to Herbert ’ s ships was enough to lay his squadron up for two months in Portsmouth ( during which time the Irish waters were completely uncovered ) , Château - Renault failed to press his advantage – much to the dismay of his junior flag - officers , Job Forant and Jean Gabaret . William was also unsatisfied with the outcome ; nevertheless , the King created Herbert Earl of Torrington , mainly in recognition of his work the previous year during the ' Glorious Revolution ' . Moreover , the King knighted two of Herbert ’ s captains , John Ashby who had led the van , and Cloudesley Shovell , and ordered a gratuity of ten shillings a head for the seaman . James , meanwhile , had begun the Siege of Derry , the capture of which would open communications with Jacobite forces in Scotland ; three French frigates under Captain Duquesne were assigned to support him . In response , the Scottish parliament commissioned two small cruisers , the " Pelican " and the " Janet " to oppose the French squadron , but , on 20 July , they were both taken by Duquesne in the North Channel . The Allies now began to build up their naval strength in the Channel ; the fleet would soon comprise 34 English and 20 Dutch ships of the line , with four frigates and 17 fireships . After rendezvousing with victuallers , the Anglo - Dutch squadrons patrolled south of Kinsale to prevent further French supplies reaching Ireland . However , when the French Brest fleet – now joined by Tourville ’ s squadron of 20 rated vessels and four frigates – set sail on 15 August , it cruised in the Bay of Biscay , posing no threat to England or English communications with Ireland . The French , therefore , were unable to prevent Admiral Rooke relieving the siege of Londonderry on 10 August , or , forestall Marshal Schomberg ' s army from England landing near Carrickfergus on 23 August . With Schomberg ' s reinforcements , the Williamite army opposing James in Ireland now amounted to some 40 , 000 troops .