Action of 10 November 1808
Encyclopedia
The Action of 10 November 1808 was a minor naval engagement of the Napoleonic Wars
, in which a British frigate
defeated and captured a French frigate in the Bay of Biscay
. The action formed part of the blockade of the French Biscay ports during the war by the British Royal Navy
, a strategy designed to prevent ships from entering or leaving French harbours, thus eliminating foreign trade with France and damaging the French economy as well as cutting France off from her overseas colonies. The French ship in the action, Thétis
, was destined for the French held West Indian island of Martinique
with a cargo of flour and military supplies, including over 100 soldiers to reinforce the island's garrison.
Thétis had not even cleared the French coast when she was discovered by a patrolling British frigate of the inshore squadron, a unit tasked with watching the entrance to the French Biscay ports, principally Brest
, and intercepting any ships seeking to enter or leave the harbours. This frigate, HMS Amethyst
chased Thétis and brought her to battle, closing with the French ship but preventing the soldiers aboard Thétis from boarding the British ship and using their superior numbers to overwhelm her with heavy and accurate gunfire. The battle lasted more than six hours and the French suffered over 130 men killed, including the captain and many of the soldiers aboard, before the crew of Amethyst was able to storm and capture Thétis. Within minutes additional British forces arrived, attracted by the sound of gunfire, and helped secure the badly damaged Thétis for the journey to Britain.
The battle was a blow for the French defenders of Martinique, who were isolated from France and suffering from shortages of military and food supplies. Although another supply frigate broke through the blockade and arrived in December 1808, the island was surrounded by British bases and was invaded and captured in January 1809. Other French colonies were seized over the next two years as the blockade cut off French communications with their overseas territories. Amethyst and her captain Michael Seymour
were active in this campaign, capturing a second French frigate, Niémen, at the Action of 6 April 1809
.
had lasted five years. Although the French had conquered large swathes of mainland Europe, they were unable to exert any significant influence at sea, where the British Royal Navy
had been dominant since the Battle of Trafalgar
in October 1805. A vital part of Royal Navy strategy was the implementation of a close blockade of the major French seaports by squadrons of frigate
s and ships of the line, intended to intercept and capture any ships attempting to enter or leave French harbours. The greatest French Atlantic seaport, and consequently the most important target for the Royal Navy, was Brest
, situated on the Northern Biscay coast. Watching Brest were a large number of warships, divided into the inshore squadron designed to watch the coast directly and formed principally of frigates and small fast vessels, and the offshore squadron formed from heavy ships of the line and tasked with intercepting French fleets and battle squadrons spotted by the inshore squadron.
The efficiency of the British blockade was such that communication and reinforcement between France and her colonies was dangerous for the ships involved and so was severely limited. This led to shortages and disaffection among the French colonists, especially in the Caribbean
, where they were surrounded by hostile British harbours and constantly raided and blockaded by British ships. The island of Martinique
was one of the more important French islands in the West Indies, but by late 1808 the island's economy had been crippled by the British blockade, and food stocks, military supplies and morale were all running low. In the summer a French dispatch vessel was intercepted by British warships, warning of the desperate state of the island's defences; similar messages that did reach France safely prompted an urgent response by the French Navy
.
The frigate Thétis
, stationed to the south of Brest at Lorient
, was selected to carry supplies to Martinique and given a full complement of 330 men, 40 cannon
and a new captain, Jacques Pinsum. Supplies were loaded, including over 1,000 barrels of flour and 106 soldiers to reinforce the garrison at Martinique. Secrecy was tight: to prevent the British discovering Thétis' mission, even the local shore defences were not informed of the frigate's departure early on 10 November 1808.
The French efforts to hide the frigate's mission and departure were initially successful: the British ships in the area were unaware of Thétis' s intentions before she sailed. They were however prepared for any French movement and were launching regular patrols, in particular two ships under the command of captains Michael Seymour
and Frederick Lewis Maitland
, HMS Amethyst
and HMS Emerald respectively. Both captains were experienced and veteran officers: Seymour had lost an arm at the Glorious First of June
15 years earlier, and they had agreed to hunt together, communicating regularly and with an understanding that all prize money
won would be shared equally across both crews. After several weeks sailing in tandem, the frigates separated in early November.
saw a frigate moving rapidly westwards. As they had not been informed of any French movements at that time, the battery fired two warning shots at the ship to establish her identity. The frigate, Thétis, replied with her recognition signal and the firing stopped, but the sound had attracted the attention of HMS Amethyst, then approaching Groix from the west. Within a few minutes, Seymour's lookouts had spotted the French frigate and Amethyst immediately gave chase. Pinsum followed his orders to avoid combat and made all sail south-west, intending to escape into the Atlantic. By 21:00, Amethyst was close enough to fire her bow-chasers, small guns positioned at the front of the ship, at the French frigate and was attacked in turn from the French stern chasers. Certain that his quarry was an enemy, Seymour launched signal rockets in the hope of attracting attention from other ships of the inshore squadron that might intercept the French ship, and he received answering flashes from the north-east as Captain Sir Thomas Hardy joined the chase in HMS Triumph
.
By 21:15, Pinsum realised that his heavily laden ship could not outrun Amethyst and reduced his speed, turning sharply in front of the British ship in an attempt to rake
her. Seymour was prepared for the manoeuvre and countered it by turning sharply away from Thétis so that the French broadside
fell harmlessly into the sea and both frigates performed a complete circle before returning to their previous course. Seymour then swung back towards the French ship, bringing Amethyst alongside and pouring a heavy fire into Thétis, which replied in kind. For 25 minutes, the frigates continued firing on one another from close range as they sailed westwards. At 21:40, Pinsum again attempted to rake Amethyst, trying to cross the British ship's stern as she pulled ahead. Seymour countered by slowing his ship and the French rigging became tangled in the British, the firing continuing as the crews worked to free their ships from one another. Separating a few minutes later, the frigates continued their close-range duel. Amethyst again pulled ahead at 22:05, Seymour successfully crossing the bow of the French ship from port and raking her before swinging back along the starboard side to resume the close range exchange of broadsides.
French fire was taking its toll on the British ship, and at 22:20, Amethyst' s mizzenmast was shot through and collapsed on the quarterdeck
, smashing the wheel and impeding Seymour's command of his ship. Thétis began to pull ahead and Pinsum attempted to rake Amethyst in her disorganised state, turning sharply to starboard but coming to a sudden halt as her own mizzenmast collapsed. With their ability to manoeuvre severely hindered, Amethyst and Thétis gradually closed on one another, Pinsum ordering the soldiers on his frigate to board the British vessel and capture her, while Seymour prepared for the eventuality by loading his cannon with two roundshot and his carronades with double loads of grapeshot. At 23:00, Pinsum suddenly swung his frigate towards Amethyst, the bows colliding and rebounding and the French stern swinging towards the British. At his signal, the soldiers and sailors crowded onto the deck and railings, ready to leap on to the British ship and engage her crew in hand-to-hand combat. With seconds remaining, Seymour ordered his gunners to fire. The double-shotted broadside, fired at point-blank range, killed or wounded over 100 men, including most of the officers. Only four guns were still serviceable on the French ship, which was set alight in three places due to the proximity of the British muzzle flashes.
under Captain Philip Broke
, arrived, attracted by the gunfire. Together, the three British ships removed the prisoners from Thétis and affected improvised repairs: Thétis had lost her remaining masts shortly after she had been boarded and Amethysts were in immediate danger of collapse. British casualties in the engagement were severe, with 19 killed and 51 wounded, but French losses were several times larger, with 135 dead and 102 wounded.
In Britain, Seymour's victory was rewarded: Seymour himself was presented with a commemorative medal, £100 (with £625 to share among the wounded) and the freedoms
of Cork
and Limerick
, although there were suggestions that he should receive a knighthood. In addition, first lieutenant Goddard Blennerhasset was promoted to commander, the junior officers were advanced and Thétis was purchased by the Royal Navy as HMS Brune, the crews of Emerald and Amethyst profiting from the prize money. Four decades later the battle was among the actions recognised by a clasp attached to the Naval General Service Medal, awarded upon application to all British participants still living in 1847. Amethyst had been severely damaged in the engagement and repairs took 71 days to complete at Plymouth
. Five months later, Seymour and Maitland were specially selected to hunt the Niémen, en route to Île de France
, in the Bay of Biscay. Again, Emerald was absent when the frigate was brought to action and again Seymour was able to capture his opponent after a fierce encounter in the Action of 6 April 1809
. Although Seymour praised the bravery of Thétis' surviving French officer, Lieutenant Joseph Dedé, Dedé later swore in court that Thétis had not surrendered until after Triumph and Shannon arrived, a statement that contradicts not only British testimony, but also Dedé's own insistence on the night of the battle that he had not seen any other ships during the action. Historian William James
suggests that this was a deliberate attempt to appeal to the French naval authorities to avoid responsibility for the defeat.
The failure of the supplies and reinforcements carried on Thétis to reach the Caribbean may have had an effect on the outcome of the subsequent invasion of Martinique
in January 1809. Except for one reinforcement frigate, Amphitrite
, none of the subsequent French efforts to transport supplies or soldiers to Martinique were successful, and a large British expeditionary force was able to overwhelm the island's poorly-supplied defenders in a brief campaign. The tightening blockade also affected other French colonies, preventing the despatch of food and military supplies and contributing to the captures of both Île de France and Guadeloupe
in 1810.
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
, in which a British frigate
Frigate
A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
defeated and captured a French frigate in the Bay of Biscay
Bay of Biscay
The Bay of Biscay is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Brest south to the Spanish border, and the northern coast of Spain west to Cape Ortegal, and is named in English after the province of Biscay, in the Spanish...
. The action formed part of the blockade of the French Biscay ports during the war by the British Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
, a strategy designed to prevent ships from entering or leaving French harbours, thus eliminating foreign trade with France and damaging the French economy as well as cutting France off from her overseas colonies. The French ship in the action, Thétis
French frigate Thétis (1788)
Thétis was a 40-gun Nymphe-class frigate frigate of the French Navy.From 1790, she served in various diplomatic missions in the Indian Ocean, before returning for a refit in Brest in 1793. From 1795, she was shuttled from France to Guadeloupe...
, was destined for the French held West Indian island of Martinique
Martinique
Martinique is an island in the eastern Caribbean Sea, with a land area of . Like Guadeloupe, it is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. To the northwest lies Dominica, to the south St Lucia, and to the southeast Barbados...
with a cargo of flour and military supplies, including over 100 soldiers to reinforce the island's garrison.
Thétis had not even cleared the French coast when she was discovered by a patrolling British frigate of the inshore squadron, a unit tasked with watching the entrance to the French Biscay ports, principally Brest
Brest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
, and intercepting any ships seeking to enter or leave the harbours. This frigate, HMS Amethyst
HMS Amethyst (1799)
HMS Amethyst was a Royal Navy 36-gun Penelope-class fifth-rate frigate, launched in 1799 at Deptford. Amethyst served in the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars, capturing several prizes. She also participated in two boat actions and two ship actions that won her crew clasps to the...
chased Thétis and brought her to battle, closing with the French ship but preventing the soldiers aboard Thétis from boarding the British ship and using their superior numbers to overwhelm her with heavy and accurate gunfire. The battle lasted more than six hours and the French suffered over 130 men killed, including the captain and many of the soldiers aboard, before the crew of Amethyst was able to storm and capture Thétis. Within minutes additional British forces arrived, attracted by the sound of gunfire, and helped secure the badly damaged Thétis for the journey to Britain.
The battle was a blow for the French defenders of Martinique, who were isolated from France and suffering from shortages of military and food supplies. Although another supply frigate broke through the blockade and arrived in December 1808, the island was surrounded by British bases and was invaded and captured in January 1809. Other French colonies were seized over the next two years as the blockade cut off French communications with their overseas territories. Amethyst and her captain Michael Seymour
Sir Michael Seymour, 1st Baronet
Sir Michael Seymour, 1st Baronet KCB was an officer of the Royal Navy. He served during the French Revolutionary and the Napoleonic Wars, eventually rising to the rank of Rear-Admiral.-Family and early life:...
were active in this campaign, capturing a second French frigate, Niémen, at the Action of 6 April 1809
Action of 6 April 1809
The Action of 6 May 1809 was a small naval battle fought between the French frigate and several British frigates, principally , as part of the blockade of Brest, France during the Napoleonic Wars...
.
Background
By November 1808, the Napoleonic WarsNapoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
had lasted five years. Although the French had conquered large swathes of mainland Europe, they were unable to exert any significant influence at sea, where the British Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
had been dominant since the Battle of Trafalgar
Battle of Trafalgar
The Battle of Trafalgar was a sea battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French Navy and Spanish Navy, during the War of the Third Coalition of the Napoleonic Wars ....
in October 1805. A vital part of Royal Navy strategy was the implementation of a close blockade of the major French seaports by squadrons of frigate
Frigate
A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
s and ships of the line, intended to intercept and capture any ships attempting to enter or leave French harbours. The greatest French Atlantic seaport, and consequently the most important target for the Royal Navy, was Brest
Brest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
, situated on the Northern Biscay coast. Watching Brest were a large number of warships, divided into the inshore squadron designed to watch the coast directly and formed principally of frigates and small fast vessels, and the offshore squadron formed from heavy ships of the line and tasked with intercepting French fleets and battle squadrons spotted by the inshore squadron.
The efficiency of the British blockade was such that communication and reinforcement between France and her colonies was dangerous for the ships involved and so was severely limited. This led to shortages and disaffection among the French colonists, especially in the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
, where they were surrounded by hostile British harbours and constantly raided and blockaded by British ships. The island of Martinique
Martinique
Martinique is an island in the eastern Caribbean Sea, with a land area of . Like Guadeloupe, it is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. To the northwest lies Dominica, to the south St Lucia, and to the southeast Barbados...
was one of the more important French islands in the West Indies, but by late 1808 the island's economy had been crippled by the British blockade, and food stocks, military supplies and morale were all running low. In the summer a French dispatch vessel was intercepted by British warships, warning of the desperate state of the island's defences; similar messages that did reach France safely prompted an urgent response by the French Navy
French Navy
The French Navy, officially the Marine nationale and often called La Royale is the maritime arm of the French military. It includes a full range of fighting vessels, from patrol boats to a nuclear powered aircraft carrier and 10 nuclear-powered submarines, four of which are capable of launching...
.
The frigate Thétis
French frigate Thétis (1788)
Thétis was a 40-gun Nymphe-class frigate frigate of the French Navy.From 1790, she served in various diplomatic missions in the Indian Ocean, before returning for a refit in Brest in 1793. From 1795, she was shuttled from France to Guadeloupe...
, stationed to the south of Brest at Lorient
Lorient
Lorient, or L'Orient, is a commune and a seaport in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France.-History:At the beginning of the 17th century, merchants who were trading with India had established warehouses in Port-Louis...
, was selected to carry supplies to Martinique and given a full complement of 330 men, 40 cannon
Cannon
A cannon is any piece of artillery that uses gunpowder or other usually explosive-based propellents to launch a projectile. Cannon vary in caliber, range, mobility, rate of fire, angle of fire, and firepower; different forms of cannon combine and balance these attributes in varying degrees,...
and a new captain, Jacques Pinsum. Supplies were loaded, including over 1,000 barrels of flour and 106 soldiers to reinforce the garrison at Martinique. Secrecy was tight: to prevent the British discovering Thétis
The French efforts to hide the frigate's mission and departure were initially successful: the British ships in the area were unaware of Thétis
Sir Michael Seymour, 1st Baronet
Sir Michael Seymour, 1st Baronet KCB was an officer of the Royal Navy. He served during the French Revolutionary and the Napoleonic Wars, eventually rising to the rank of Rear-Admiral.-Family and early life:...
and Frederick Lewis Maitland
Frederick Lewis Maitland (Rear Admiral)
Rear Admiral Sir Frederick Lewis Maitland, KCB was an officer in the Royal Navy during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. He rose to the rank of rear admiral and held a number of commands...
, HMS Amethyst
HMS Amethyst (1799)
HMS Amethyst was a Royal Navy 36-gun Penelope-class fifth-rate frigate, launched in 1799 at Deptford. Amethyst served in the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars, capturing several prizes. She also participated in two boat actions and two ship actions that won her crew clasps to the...
and HMS Emerald respectively. Both captains were experienced and veteran officers: Seymour had lost an arm at the Glorious First of June
Glorious First of June
The Glorious First of June [Note A] of 1794 was the first and largest fleet action of the naval conflict between the Kingdom of Great Britain and the First French Republic during the French Revolutionary Wars...
15 years earlier, and they had agreed to hunt together, communicating regularly and with an understanding that all prize money
Prize money
Prize money has a distinct meaning in warfare, especially naval warfare, where it was a monetary reward paid out to the crew of a ship for capturing an enemy vessel...
won would be shared equally across both crews. After several weeks sailing in tandem, the frigates separated in early November.
Battle
At 18:42 on 10 November 1808, the garrison of a French defensive gun battery on the island of GroixGroix
Groix is an island and a commune in the Morbihan department of the region of Brittany in north-western France.Groix lies a few kilometres of the coast off Lorient. Several ferries a day run from Lorient to Groix....
saw a frigate moving rapidly westwards. As they had not been informed of any French movements at that time, the battery fired two warning shots at the ship to establish her identity. The frigate, Thétis, replied with her recognition signal and the firing stopped, but the sound had attracted the attention of HMS Amethyst, then approaching Groix from the west. Within a few minutes, Seymour's lookouts had spotted the French frigate and Amethyst immediately gave chase. Pinsum followed his orders to avoid combat and made all sail south-west, intending to escape into the Atlantic. By 21:00, Amethyst was close enough to fire her bow-chasers, small guns positioned at the front of the ship, at the French frigate and was attacked in turn from the French stern chasers. Certain that his quarry was an enemy, Seymour launched signal rockets in the hope of attracting attention from other ships of the inshore squadron that might intercept the French ship, and he received answering flashes from the north-east as Captain Sir Thomas Hardy joined the chase in HMS Triumph
HMS Triumph (1764)
HMS Triumph was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 3 March 1764 at Woolwich.In 1797, she took part in the Battle of Camperdown, and in 1805 Triumph was part of Admiral Calder's fleet at the Battle of Cape Finisterre....
.
By 21:15, Pinsum realised that his heavily laden ship could not outrun Amethyst and reduced his speed, turning sharply in front of the British ship in an attempt to rake
Raking fire
In naval warfare, raking fire is fire directed parallel to the long axis of an enemy ship. Although each shot is directed against a smaller target profile than by shooting broadside and thus more likely to miss the target ship to one side or the other, an individual cannon shot that hits will pass...
her. Seymour was prepared for the manoeuvre and countered it by turning sharply away from Thétis so that the French broadside
Broadside
A broadside is the side of a ship; the battery of cannon on one side of a warship; or their simultaneous fire in naval warfare.-Age of Sail:...
fell harmlessly into the sea and both frigates performed a complete circle before returning to their previous course. Seymour then swung back towards the French ship, bringing Amethyst alongside and pouring a heavy fire into Thétis, which replied in kind. For 25 minutes, the frigates continued firing on one another from close range as they sailed westwards. At 21:40, Pinsum again attempted to rake Amethyst, trying to cross the British ship's stern as she pulled ahead. Seymour countered by slowing his ship and the French rigging became tangled in the British, the firing continuing as the crews worked to free their ships from one another. Separating a few minutes later, the frigates continued their close-range duel. Amethyst again pulled ahead at 22:05, Seymour successfully crossing the bow of the French ship from port and raking her before swinging back along the starboard side to resume the close range exchange of broadsides.
French fire was taking its toll on the British ship, and at 22:20, Amethyst
Quarterdeck
The quarterdeck is that part of a warship designated by the commanding officer for official and ceremonial functions. In port, the quarterdeck is the most important place on the ship, and is the central control point for all its major activities. Underway, its importance diminishes as control of...
, smashing the wheel and impeding Seymour's command of his ship. Thétis began to pull ahead and Pinsum attempted to rake Amethyst in her disorganised state, turning sharply to starboard but coming to a sudden halt as her own mizzenmast collapsed. With their ability to manoeuvre severely hindered, Amethyst and Thétis gradually closed on one another, Pinsum ordering the soldiers on his frigate to board the British vessel and capture her, while Seymour prepared for the eventuality by loading his cannon with two roundshot and his carronades with double loads of grapeshot. At 23:00, Pinsum suddenly swung his frigate towards Amethyst, the bows colliding and rebounding and the French stern swinging towards the British. At his signal, the soldiers and sailors crowded onto the deck and railings, ready to leap on to the British ship and engage her crew in hand-to-hand combat. With seconds remaining, Seymour ordered his gunners to fire. The double-shotted broadside, fired at point-blank range, killed or wounded over 100 men, including most of the officers. Only four guns were still serviceable on the French ship, which was set alight in three places due to the proximity of the British muzzle flashes.
Aftermath
Amethyst continued firing on Thétis for the next 80 minutes, almost without reply, until 12:20, when the British crew were able to board and seize Thétis unopposed, the two frigates tangled together by their rigging. Pinsum and over 130 of his men were dead, with over 100 wounded. Seymour's most immediate problem was to secure his prize: many of the unwounded prisoners were transferred to Amethyst under guard and at 01:05, the frigates were cut apart by severing the tangled rigging. Ten minutes later, Triumph appeared out of the darkness and at 01:30 a second frigate, HMS ShannonHMS Shannon (1806)
HMS Shannon was a 38-gun Leda-class frigate of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1806 and served in the Napoleonic Wars and the War of 1812...
under Captain Philip Broke
Philip Broke
Rear Admiral Sir Philip Bowes Vere Broke, 1st Baronet KCB was a distinguished officer in the British Royal Navy.-Early life:Broke was born at Broke Hall, Nacton, near Ipswich, the eldest son of Philip Bowes Broke...
, arrived, attracted by the gunfire. Together, the three British ships removed the prisoners from Thétis and affected improvised repairs: Thétis had lost her remaining masts shortly after she had been boarded and Amethysts were in immediate danger of collapse. British casualties in the engagement were severe, with 19 killed and 51 wounded, but French losses were several times larger, with 135 dead and 102 wounded.
In Britain, Seymour's victory was rewarded: Seymour himself was presented with a commemorative medal, £100 (with £625 to share among the wounded) and the freedoms
Freedom of the City
Freedom of the City is an honour bestowed by some municipalities in Australia, Canada, Ireland, France, Italy, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain, the United Kingdom, Gibraltar and Rhodesia to esteemed members of its community and to organisations to be honoured, often for service to the community;...
of Cork
Cork (city)
Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster. Cork has a population of 119,418, while the addition of the suburban...
and Limerick
Limerick
Limerick is the third largest city in the Republic of Ireland, and the principal city of County Limerick and Ireland's Mid-West Region. It is the fifth most populous city in all of Ireland. When taking the extra-municipal suburbs into account, Limerick is the third largest conurbation in the...
, although there were suggestions that he should receive a knighthood. In addition, first lieutenant Goddard Blennerhasset was promoted to commander, the junior officers were advanced and Thétis was purchased by the Royal Navy as HMS Brune, the crews of Emerald and Amethyst profiting from the prize money. Four decades later the battle was among the actions recognised by a clasp attached to the Naval General Service Medal, awarded upon application to all British participants still living in 1847. Amethyst had been severely damaged in the engagement and repairs took 71 days to complete at Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
. Five months later, Seymour and Maitland were specially selected to hunt the Niémen, en route to Île de France
Mauritius
Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...
, in the Bay of Biscay. Again, Emerald was absent when the frigate was brought to action and again Seymour was able to capture his opponent after a fierce encounter in the Action of 6 April 1809
Action of 6 April 1809
The Action of 6 May 1809 was a small naval battle fought between the French frigate and several British frigates, principally , as part of the blockade of Brest, France during the Napoleonic Wars...
. Although Seymour praised the bravery of Thétis
William James (naval historian)
William M. James was a British lawyer turned naval historian who wrote important naval histories of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, 1793-1815.-Career:...
suggests that this was a deliberate attempt to appeal to the French naval authorities to avoid responsibility for the defeat.
The failure of the supplies and reinforcements carried on Thétis to reach the Caribbean may have had an effect on the outcome of the subsequent invasion of Martinique
Invasion of Martinique (1809)
The invasion of Martinique of 1809 was a successful British amphibious operation against the French West Indian island of Martinique that took place between 30 January and 24 February 1809 during the Napoleonic Wars...
in January 1809. Except for one reinforcement frigate, Amphitrite
French frigate Amphitrite (1808)
The Amphitrite was a 44-gun Armide class frigate of the French Navy.Amphitrite, under frigate captain Trobriand, departed Cherbourg for Martinique on 10 November 1808, along with Vénus, Junon, Cygne and Papillon, under contre-amiral Hamelin...
, none of the subsequent French efforts to transport supplies or soldiers to Martinique were successful, and a large British expeditionary force was able to overwhelm the island's poorly-supplied defenders in a brief campaign. The tightening blockade also affected other French colonies, preventing the despatch of food and military supplies and contributing to the captures of both Île de France and Guadeloupe
Guadeloupe
Guadeloupe is an archipelago located in the Leeward Islands, in the Lesser Antilles, with a land area of 1,628 square kilometres and a population of 400,000. It is the first overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. As with the other overseas departments, Guadeloupe...
in 1810.