Action of 14 December 1798 The Action of 14 December 1798 was a naval skirmish between the 32 - gun British frigate , HMS " Ambuscade " , and the French 24 - gun corvette " Bayonnaise " . Vastly outgunned and outmanoeuvered , " Bayonnaise " boarded and captured " Ambuscade " . Events . On 14 December , as she sailed about 30 nm off Ré , " Bayonnaise " met the 32 - gun frigate HMS " Ambuscade " , cruising off Oléron under captain Henry Jenkins . Prelude . " Ambuscade " was waiting to meet with HMS " Stag " and blockade the Gironde estuary . " Bayonnaise " was a 24 - gun corvette laden with a strong crew augmented by a 40 - soldier party of the " régiment d ’ Alsace " , under Army captain Nicolas Aimé . At dawn , " Ambuscade " detected " Bayonnaise " and assumed she was " Stag " ; " Bayonnaise " also detected " Ambuscade " , and , correctly assuming that she was a superior British warship , turned around to flee . From this manoeuver , " Ambuscade " understood that the sail was French and gave chase . Around noon , " Ambuscade " had closed in to cannon range , and the fight began . Battle . After one hour , the British had gained the upper hand , damaging the hull and rigging of the corvette . As " Ambuscade " came off the stern of " Bayonnaise " in an attempt to rake her , one of the British frigate ' s starboard 12 - pounders burst . The explosion destroyed the " Ambuscade " ' s boats , left 13 of her sailors dead and wounded , and confused the crew . " Bayonnaise " attempted to take advantage of the confusion to escape south , but " Ambuscade " gave chase again and caught up with the corvette around 3 PM . As the frigate sailed on the port side of the corvette on a parallel course , overtaking her , " Bayonnaise " backed sail and turned hard to port , ramming " Ambuscade " . The bowsprit of " Bayonnaise " cut down " Ambuscade " ' s mizzen , wounding part of the crew standing on the poop deck , and entangling the two ships . Both ships fired a last broadside and closed their gunports . " Bayonnaise " lost numerous men , and her captain , Richer , had an arm shot off . Nevertheless , French grapeshot and musketry fire cleared the decks of the " Ambuscade " . Most of the British officers were wounded and taken below deck , leaving only ailing lieutenant Joseph Briggs in command . Having grappled the corvette to the frigate , the French used the " Bayonnaise " ' s bowsprit to bridge the gap between the ships and climb onto the taller " Ambuscade " . The French boarded and seized a light gun loaded with grapeshot , which they used to clear the forecastle of its defenders . The quarterdeck of " Ambuscade " suffered the explosion of a powder box , which destroyed the wheel and the stern boat . After a bloody , 30 - minute melee , purser William Beaumont Murray , last British officer still standing , surrendered " Ambuscade " . During the battle , " Ambuscade " had had 15 killed and 39 wounded , including Jenkins and his two lieutenants , and " Bayonnaise " 25 killed and 30 wounded , including Richer and his lieutenant . Aftermath . " Bayonnaise " had lost almost all of her rigging , was leaking and had her rudder damaged . " Ambuscade " had lost her mizzen mast and sustained damage from explosions on board , but was otherwise intact and sea worthy . " Ambuscade " towed " Bayonnaise " to Pertuis d ' Antioche and Rochefort . They arrived the next day . " Ambuscade " was taken into French service as " Embuscade " . " Lieutenant de vaisseau " Richer was promoted to " capitaine de vaisseau " ( jumping three ranks ) , and the ensigns of " Bayonnaise " , Corbie , Frouin , Guigner , Kinzelbach and Potier de la Houssaye , were promoted to " Lieutenant de vaisseau " . Captain Jenkins was later court - martialled , accused of letting his ship , crewed by young sailors , be boarded by a stronger party , while he had a strong advantage at gunnery and manoeuvre . He wasacquitted . The battle was used as a propaganda coup by the French government . Several paintings of the event were subsequently commissioned , notably a large painting by young Louis - Philippe Crépin which is now one of the main exhibits of the Musée national de la Marine in Paris .