Action of 12 May 1796
Action of 12 May 1796 | |||||||
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Part of the French Revolutionary Wars | |||||||
The cutter Mary Ann and HMS Sylph, Thomas Whitcombe | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Great Britain | Batavian Republic | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Lawrence Halstead | Unknown captain | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
3 frigates 1 sloop |
1 frigate 3 brigs 1 cutter | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
1 killed 3 wounded |
6 killed 28 wounded 1 frigate captured 2 brigs captured 1 brig destroyed 1 cutter destroyed |
The action of 12 May 1796 was a minor naval engagement during the
In his frigate HMS Phoenix, Halstead was able to cut the Batavian frigate Argo off from the shore and bring it to battle, forcing it to surrender in just 20 minutes as other British ships closed with the combat. The remainder of the Batavian squadron had dispersed eastwards away from the frigates and Duncan's fleet, pursued by the frigate HMS Pegasus and brig-sloop HMS Sylph. After a lengthy chase, Phoenix caught the cutter Duke of York, Sylph seized the brig Mercury, while Pegasus succeeded in driving the other brigs, Echo and Gier ashore, where both were believed wrecked. Duncan's blockade of the Texel was instrumental in British control of the North Sea, and a year later it would achieve a decisive victory at the Battle of Camperdown.
Background
In February 1793, the
In August 1795, the Batavian Navy sent a
For the rest of the year, Argo operated from the Norwegian coast, unable to make any significant cruises due to the attention of British warships operating in the region. By May 1796, Duncan's fleet was now actively cruising against the Batavian Navy, commanding a
The departure of the Batavian squadron was noticed by Donnelly's small blockade force, which shadowed the Batavian ships as they passed southwards down the coast of Jutland, losing sight of them at 22:00 on 11 May. Donnelly correctly guessed the Batavian force's destination, and ordered Sylph to separate, the two vessels following different courses, instructing White to proceed to Duncan's blockade fleet and meet Donnelly there if he was unable to rediscover the Batavian squadron en route.[6] Pegasus and Sylph encountered one another shortly before 05:00 on 12 May close to Duncan's fleet south of the Texel but without having located the Batavian squadron. Argo and her consorts had sailed close to the Danish and German coasts during the night, seizing in passing a British cutter named Duke of York, travelling from Yarmouth to Hamburg. At dawn on 12 May the Batavian ships were off the Batavian coast sailing southwest towards the Texel anchorage.[6]
Battle
On hearing Donnelly's report, Duncan immediately despatched a small squadron to the mouth of the Texel to wait for the arrival of the Batavian squadron. Command of this squadron was given to Captain
The Batavian captain, finding such a large force bearing down on him, ordered the brigs and cutter to separate from the frigate, turning with the wind in an effort to escape with Donnelly close behind. He also turned Argo away from the pursuing Phoenix, but was unable to decide whether to fight or flee and as a result changed course a number of times.
Phoenix was joined soon after the surrender of Argo by the 74–gun ship of the line HMS Powerful under Captain William O'Bryen Drury and together the ships took possession of the frigate while the chase of the remainder of the Batavian squadron continued.[6] At 10:00 two of the brigs turned towards the Batavian coastline to seek shelter and two of the leading British ships, Pegasus and the 50–gun HMS Leander under Captain Maurice Delgarno, turned in chase. Donnelly sought to interpose his ships between the brigs and the coast, but found that this would have slowed his vessels so much that the Batavian brigs would have an opportunity to escape. He therefore maintained pursuit and watched the Batavian ships, Gier and Echo driven ashore at the Batavian village of Bosch. Sailing as close to the shore line as safely possible, Delgarno detached cutters to investigate the state of the grounded ships, determining that one had been damaged beyond repair while the other, having initially grounded, had been driven over the shoal into deeper water on the far side. In his report on the action, Duncan considered that a storm which swept the area on the day following the action probably drove the brig back onto the shoal and destroyed it.[6]
The last survivors of the Batavian squadron were harried along the coast by the faster forces in the British fleet with Sylph overhauling the 16-gun Mercury, forcing it to surrender just before 11:00. The Batavian captain had thrown 14 cannon overboard in an effort to lighten his ship and allow it to escape British pursuit, but without success. Later in the day, Halstead's Phoenix was able to seize the Batavian prize Duke of York, completing the destruction of the entire Batavian squadron.[7]
Aftermath
Halstead brought his prizes back to Britain, where both Argo and Mercury were purchased for service by the Royal Navy as HMS Janus and HMS Hermes respectively as both of the Batavian names were already in use by the Royal Navy.[8] British losses in the engagement were one man killed and three wounded, all suffered on Phoenix during the engagement with Argo. Apart from the losses in that exchange, no other casualties, either British or Batavian were reported.[5] The action was the only significant engagement fought off the Batavian coast during 1796 as Duncan's force kept the main Batavian fleet contained within its anchorage in the Texel. In October 1797 however the main Batavian fleet was able to break out and sail on a raiding cruise towards the English coast. Duncan intercepted the fleet on its return to the Texel and inflicted a decisive defeat on the Batavians on 11 October at the Battle of Camperdown.[9]
Notes
References
- ISBN 1-86176-013-2.
- Gardiner, Robert, ed. (2001) [1996]. Fleet Battle and Blockade. Caxton Editions. ISBN 978-1-84067-363-0.
- ISBN 0-85177-905-0.
- ISBN 1-84119-183-3.