Order of battle in the Algeciras campaign
The Algeciras campaign, or Battles of Algeciras, was a brief naval campaign fought between a combined French and Spanish Navy force and a British Royal Navy force during 4–13 July 1801. A French squadron, seeking to join the Spanish fleet and a number of French ships of the line at the Spanish Atlantic base of Cadiz, sailed from Toulon on 13 June under Contre-amiral Charles Linois. Rounding the British naval base of Gibraltar on the southern coast of Spain on 4 July, Linois learned that a British squadron under Rear-Admiral Sir  James Saumarez was on station off Cadiz. Seeking to avoid battle with Saumarez's much larger force, Linois anchored in the Spanish port of Algeciras, close to Gibraltar. Saumarez discovered Linois there on 6 July and attacked at 08:30, his ships hampered by light winds and Linois's strong defensive position. During the battle, in which the French squadron was heavily supported by fire from Spanish shore batteries and gunboats, the British ship HMS "Hannibal" grounded and could not be refloated. Two of the French ships were also driven ashore, but the fire of the Spanish batteries and the lack  of wind all contributed to Saumarez calling off the attack at 13:35, leaving "Hannibal" stranded and isolated. Captain Solomon Ferris was left with no option but to surrender as the remainder of the British force limped back to Gibraltar. Linois called on the Spanish forces in Cadiz for reinforcements and on 9 July a relief squadron was sent consisting of six ships of the line and two frigates under . Arriving on 9 July, this force anchored in Algeciras until Linois was ready to sail on 12 July, the large combined squadron departing westwards with the wind during the evening. Saumarez  followed, sending HMS "Superb" to attack the Spanish rearguard. During the opening stages of the second battle "Superb" set the 112-gun Spanish ship "Real Carlos" on fire and captured the French "Saint Antoine". "Real Carlos" later drifted into the "San Hermenegildo", spreading the fire to her compatriot. Both ships exploded at 00:15 on 13 July with enormous loss of life. The British squadron pressed on with the attack, and at 05:15 on 13 July HMS "Venerable" and HMS "Thames" attacked the French "Formidable" off the Spanish coast. In a fierce engagement, "Formidable" brought down "Venerable"<nowiki>'</nowiki>s masts and  drove the ship on shore, the French ship escaping with the rest of the squadron to Cadiz. "Venerable" was later salvaged and returned to Gibraltar, while Saumarez reinstated the British blockade of Cadiz. First Battle of Algeciras. British squadron. The British squadron was formed from the force enforcing the Cadiz blockade to ensure that the Spanish fleet stationed there did not put to sea. One ship from the squadron was absent during the battle; HMS "Superb" had been detached to the Guadalquivir River and, along with the frigate HMS "Thames", did not reach Algeciras in time to participate, turning back  to Cadiz on 6 July and observing the later movements of the combined squadron. All of the British squadron was heavily engaged, but "Hannibal" and "Pompée", isolated at the head of the British line by calm winds, took the heaviest damage. "Pompée" had to be towed to safety by the boats of the squadron and "Hannibal" was grounded and eventually forced to surrender. Between them "Pompée" and "Hannibal" took more than half of the total British casualties. French squadron. Linois's squadron was well defended, situated in a strong position and covered by Spanish forts and gunboats augmented by shore  parties from the French ships, which were carrying more than 1,500 French soldiers. The ships of the line were all heavily engaged, with "Desaix" and "Indomptable" driven ashore and "Formidable" also badly damaged. All three required extensive repairs before they were seaworthy. "Murion" was close inshore and thus only lightly damaged, but the Spanish batteries, gunboats and the town of Algeciras itself all suffered severe damage. Second Battle of Algeciras. British squadron. Saumarez's squadron was all suffering from the effects of the first battle, especially "Caesar" which had had its masts replaced in just four days. "Pompée" was so  badly damaged that Saumarez abandoned the ship in the Gibraltar dockyards and redistributed the crew throughout the squadron. The only fresh ships were "Superb" and "Thames", which had rejoined the squadron on 10 July after shadowing the combined squadron's approach to Algeciras. In the battle, only "Superb", "Venerable" and "Thames" were engaged, the other ships trailing too far behind the combined squadron to play an active role in the combat, although their presence did discourage Moreno from continuing the battle on the morning of 13 July. French and Spanish squadron. The combined squadron was formed on 9 July by  the merger of Linois's battered force at Algeciras and Moreno's relief force. It totaled five Spanish ships of the line and four French and was much larger than its British opponent. However, all of Linois's ships were badly damaged from the first battle and the captured "Hannibal" was so battered that Moreno ordered it to return to Algeciras with the frigate "Indienne" on 12 July. Neither took any part in the battle. Much of the combined squadron was not engaged in the second battle, managing to escape Saumarez's pursuit and reach Cadiz safely. The rearguard of  Rear Carlos, "San Hermengildo" and "Saint Antoine" was overwhelmed in the night however and "Formidable" only escaped after a fierce engagement on the Spanish coast the following morning.