Siege of Porto Ferrajo
Encyclopedia
The Siege of Porto Ferrajo was a French attempt to force the surrender of the Tuscan
fortress town of Porto Ferrajo (now Portoferraio) on the island of Elba
following the French occupation of mainland Tuscany in 1801 during the French Revolutionary Wars
. The Tuscan garrison was heavily outnumbered, but received significant support from British Royal Navy
forces who controlled the Mediterranean Sea
and ensured that supplies reached the garrison and that French supply convoys were intercepted. The French began the siege with 1,500 men in May 1801, later reinforced to more than 5,000, but could not make an impression on the fortresses defences, instead seeking to starve the defenders into submission with the support of a squadron of French Navy
frigates operating off the coast.
The presence of a small British naval squadron in the region rendered this plan impractical and additional British reinforcements under Rear-Admiral Sir John Borlase Warren and Lieutenant Colonel George Airey
strengthened the defenders to the point that sallies could be made against French offensive positions. The French subsequently lost all of the frigates sent to blockade
the port to patrolling British warships in a series of one-sided engagements, giving the British local dominance that allowed them to maintain the fortress. Despite a number of naval actions and one significant land engagement, the siege dragged on inconclusively for the summer and early autumn of 1801, and when the first articles of the Treaty of Amiens
were signed in October, the town was still under Tuscan control, although the provisions of the final agreement, signed in March 1802, granted the island to France.
at the battles of Marengo and Hohenlinden. After a year of warfare, the French and Austrians signed the Treaty of Lunéville
on 9 February 1801, which divided Northern Italy between the states and awarded the Grand Duchy of Tuscany
to the French. Included in this division was the island of Elba
in the Ligurian Sea
off the Western Italian coast, which at that time was shared between Tuscany and the Kingdom of Naples
. On 28 March 1801, the Treaty of Florence
was signed between Naples and France, officially turning the entirety of Elba over to French control, although it had not yet been surrendered by its Neapolitan and Tuscan commanders.
Although the Ligurian Sea was by this stage largely French territorial waters it, like the whole Mediterranean Sea
was in fact controlled by the British Royal Navy
, who had destroyed the French Mediterranean Fleet at the Battle of the Nile
off Egypt
in 1798. by 1801 British bases at Gibraltar
, Minorca
and Malta
allowed British naval forces to cruise throughout the sea largely unopposed, the remnants of the French fleet based at Toulon
forced to make short journeys between French bases to avoid interception and capture. It was therefore not until a large French squadron
under Rear-Admiral Honoré Ganteaume briefly asserted regional naval superiority that a French expeditionary force was able to secure Elba, sailing from Piombino
on 2 May 1801 under General Jean Victor Tharreau
with 1,500 men and landing unopposed at the Neapolitan town of Porto Longone
.
The invasion force rapidly spread across the island, meeting no resistance as the entire Neapolitan portion and almost all of the Tuscan region surrendered before them. Soon, all that remained in Tuscan hands was the fortress port town of Porto Ferrajo on the northern coast. This was a powerful defensive position, and the Tuscan commander Carlo de Fisson rejected Tharreau's demands that he surrender, his position strengthened by the presence of two British frigates HMS Phoenix
and HMS Mermaid
off the port. Tharreau responded by laying siege to the fortress, and was encouraged by the sudden departure of the two frigates. This allowed the small French frigate Badine to take their place and blockade
the port, with the intention of starving the defenders into surrender. Badine was soon joined by a squadron of three more frigates Carrère, Bravoure and Succés under the overall command of Captain Jacques-François-Ignace Bretel.
with 5,000 additional men and instructions from General Joachim Murat
to prosecute the siege more vigorously at the end of July. His efforts were almost immediately frustrated however by the arrival off Porto Ferrajo on 1 August of a powerful British squadron under Rear-Admiral Sir John Borlase Warren in HMS Renown
, whose ship chased Bravoure and Succés as far as Leghorn and reopened the sea passage into the port. At the same time, a small British force under Captain Gordon was landed from at Porto Ferrajo to augment the Tuscan garrison. At 14:30 on 3 August, a squadron of Warren's patrolling frigates, Phoenix under Captain Lawrence Halsted
, HMS Pomone under Captain Edward Leveson-Gower
and HMS Pearl under Captain Samuel James Ballard
discovered a sail off the western shore of Elba and gave chase.
The ship was the 38-gun Carrère under Captain Claude-Pascal Morel-Beaulieu, carrying 300 barrels of powder and escorting a convoy of small coastal vessels carrying military supplies from Porto Ercole to Porto Longone. Although Carrère turned away from the British pursuit and actively engaged the lead ship Pomone with stern-chaser cannon mounted in the rear of the frigate, the vessel was too laden to escape its opponents and after a ten minute chase as Pearl cut off the route to Porto Longone and Pomone manoeuvered into a firing position, Captain Morel-Beaulieu surrendered. The delay caused by the brief chase had however allowed the coastal ships to disperse and flee so that all of them avoided capture and some even reached Porto Longone. Carrère was a modern ship seized from the Republic of Venice
after the Treaty of Campo Formio
in 1797 and had suffered "tolerably severe" casualties in the engagement from a complement of 352. The ship was subsequently taken into the Royal Navy under the same name, although its active service lasted less than a year before the ship was retired. Losses on Pomone were limited to two killed and four wounded, two of whom subsequently died.
, summoned after Halsted had received an intelligence report detailing Watrin's demand that the French ships sail from Leghorn.
Minerve was the closest to the arriving French vessels and immediately gave chase, Cockburn signalling to Halsted and Leveson-Gower to join him. On sighting the British frigates Bretel turned back northwards towards Leghorn, but by 09:00 all three British warships were gaining on his small squadron. Unable to escape pursuit and with Minerve rapidly approaching, Bretel drove Succés ashore at Vada beach near Cecina
in the hope of luring Minerve away from Bravoure, but Cockburn instead simply fired on the grounded vessel in passing before continuing towards the remaining ship while Bretel surrendered to Pomone. Captain Louis-Auguste Dordelin made desperate attempts to reach Leghorn before he was overtaken, but a northerly wind drove him back repeatedly and eventually he was forced to drive his frigate ashore under the Antignano battery, 4 nautical miles (7.4 km) south of Leghorn harbour. Battered by waves, all three masts fell overboard and the ship became a total wreck. Although a small British boarding party came aboard Bravoure under Lieutenant William Kelly, it was only able to bring off a few prisoners before abandoning the wreck under heavy fire from batteries ashore, Kelly refusing to burn the wreck to spare the lives of the many French sailors still trapped on the ship. To the south, Succés was dragged off the beach and repaired. The ship had been captured by the French in February 1801, and was soon restored to the Royal Navy under its former name of HMS Success.
while Warren had returned with his powerful squadron. Plans were then drawn up for a force of seamen, Royal Marines
and Tuscan auxiliaries to launch an amphibious operation against the French batteries that overlooked the mouth of the harbour. 449 Marines and 240 seamen were detached from Renown, HMS Gibraltar, HMS Dragon
, HMS Alexander
, HMS Genereux
, HMS Stately
, Pomone, Pearl and the brig
HMS Vincejo under the command of Captain George Long of Vincejo and Captain John Chambers White from Renown and joined by approximately 1,000 Tuscan troops. Landings were made on the morning of 14 September, troops moving inland against the batteries in two columns while Dragon and Genereux bombarded a fortified tower at Marciana
.
The attack began well with several batteries destroyed and 55 prisoners of war taken, but soon the greater French numbers began to tell and the landing parties were pushed back to their beachheads in some confusion, having lost 32 killed including Captain Long, 61 wounded and 105 missing, of which 15 dead, 33 wounded and 77 missing were British troops. General Watrin claimed this as a victory, inflating the numbers engaged and inaccurately claiming to have caused 1,200 casualties to the allies as well as 200 captured. He also claimed to have dismasted a frigate and destroyed several smaller craft with fire from his batteries, although none of the British warships reported any damage.
Although Warren departed the region soon afterwards with most of his squadron, Watrin was still unable to make an impression on the walls of Porto Ferrajo, and Airey held the town against the French for the last few weeks of the war until news arrived of the ceasefire that accompanied the provisional signing of the Treaty of Amiens
on 1 October. In March 1802 under Article XI of the final terms of the Treaty, the entire island was turned over to the French and remained in French hands throughout the Napoleonic Wars
.
Grand Duchy of Tuscany
The Grand Duchy of Tuscany was a central Italian monarchy that existed, with interruptions, from 1569 to 1859, replacing the Duchy of Florence. The grand duchy's capital was Florence...
fortress town of Porto Ferrajo (now Portoferraio) on the island of Elba
Elba
Elba is a Mediterranean island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino. The largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago, Elba is also part of the National Park of the Tuscan Archipelago and the third largest island in Italy after Sicily and Sardinia...
following the French occupation of mainland Tuscany in 1801 during the French Revolutionary Wars
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts, from 1792 until 1802, fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states...
. The Tuscan garrison was heavily outnumbered, but received significant support from 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...
forces who controlled the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
and ensured that supplies reached the garrison and that French supply convoys were intercepted. The French began the siege with 1,500 men in May 1801, later reinforced to more than 5,000, but could not make an impression on the fortresses defences, instead seeking to starve the defenders into submission with the support of a squadron of 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...
frigates operating off the coast.
The presence of a small British naval squadron in the region rendered this plan impractical and additional British reinforcements under Rear-Admiral Sir John Borlase Warren and Lieutenant Colonel George Airey
George Airey
-Biography:Father of the better known general and staff-officer, Richard Airey, he was born in 1761. He entered the army as ensign in the 71st regiment in 1779, and was promoted lieutenant in 1781, when he exchanged into the 48th regiment, and went with it to the West Indies...
strengthened the defenders to the point that sallies could be made against French offensive positions. The French subsequently lost all of the frigates sent to blockade
Blockade
A blockade is an effort to cut off food, supplies, war material or communications from a particular area by force, either in part or totally. A blockade should not be confused with an embargo or sanctions, which are legal barriers to trade, and is distinct from a siege in that a blockade is usually...
the port to patrolling British warships in a series of one-sided engagements, giving the British local dominance that allowed them to maintain the fortress. Despite a number of naval actions and one significant land engagement, the siege dragged on inconclusively for the summer and early autumn of 1801, and when the first articles of the Treaty of Amiens
Treaty of Amiens
The Treaty of Amiens temporarily ended hostilities between the French Republic and the United Kingdom during the French Revolutionary Wars. It was signed in the city of Amiens on 25 March 1802 , by Joseph Bonaparte and the Marquess Cornwallis as a "Definitive Treaty of Peace"...
were signed in October, the town was still under Tuscan control, although the provisions of the final agreement, signed in March 1802, granted the island to France.
Invasion
In 1800, French First Consul Napoleon Bonaparte advanced into Italy, achieving victories against the Austrian EmpireAustrian Empire
The Austrian Empire was a modern era successor empire, which was centered on what is today's Austria and which officially lasted from 1804 to 1867. It was followed by the Empire of Austria-Hungary, whose proclamation was a diplomatic move that elevated Hungary's status within the Austrian Empire...
at the battles of Marengo and Hohenlinden. After a year of warfare, the French and Austrians signed the Treaty of Lunéville
Treaty of Lunéville
The Treaty of Lunéville was signed on 9 February 1801 between the French Republic and the Holy Roman Emperor Francis II, negotiating both on behalf of his own domains and of the Holy Roman Empire...
on 9 February 1801, which divided Northern Italy between the states and awarded the Grand Duchy of Tuscany
Grand Duchy of Tuscany
The Grand Duchy of Tuscany was a central Italian monarchy that existed, with interruptions, from 1569 to 1859, replacing the Duchy of Florence. The grand duchy's capital was Florence...
to the French. Included in this division was the island of Elba
Elba
Elba is a Mediterranean island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino. The largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago, Elba is also part of the National Park of the Tuscan Archipelago and the third largest island in Italy after Sicily and Sardinia...
in the Ligurian Sea
Ligurian Sea
The Ligurian Sea is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea, between the Italian Riviera and the island of Corsica. The sea is probably named after the ancient Ligures people.-Geography:...
off the Western Italian coast, which at that time was shared between Tuscany and the Kingdom of Naples
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...
. On 28 March 1801, the Treaty of Florence
Treaty of Florence
The Treaty of Florence was signed on March 28, 1801 between France and the Kingdom of Naples. Naples ceded some central Italian possessions, the island of Elba, and the Athena of Velletri to France. French garrisons were imposed in several Italian towns, and Neapolitan harbours were closed to...
was signed between Naples and France, officially turning the entirety of Elba over to French control, although it had not yet been surrendered by its Neapolitan and Tuscan commanders.
Although the Ligurian Sea was by this stage largely French territorial waters it, like the whole Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
was in fact controlled 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...
, who had destroyed the French Mediterranean Fleet at the Battle of the Nile
Battle of the Nile
The Battle of the Nile was a major naval battle fought between British and French fleets at Aboukir Bay on the Mediterranean coast of Egypt from 1–3 August 1798...
off Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
in 1798. by 1801 British bases at Gibraltar
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
, Minorca
Minorca
Min Orca or Menorca is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. It takes its name from being smaller than the nearby island of Majorca....
and Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
allowed British naval forces to cruise throughout the sea largely unopposed, the remnants of the French fleet based at Toulon
Toulon
Toulon is a town in southern France and a large military harbor on the Mediterranean coast, with a major French naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region, Toulon is the capital of the Var department in the former province of Provence....
forced to make short journeys between French bases to avoid interception and capture. It was therefore not until a large French squadron
Ganteaume's expeditions of 1801
Ganteaume's expeditions of 1801 was a major French Navy operation of the spring of 1801 during the French Revolutionary Wars. A French naval squadron from Brest under Contre-Admiral Honoré Ganteaume, seeking to reinforce the besieged French garrison in Egypt, made three separate but futile efforts...
under Rear-Admiral Honoré Ganteaume briefly asserted regional naval superiority that a French expeditionary force was able to secure Elba, sailing from Piombino
Piombino
Piombino is an Italian town and comune of circa 35,000 inhabitants in the province of Livorno . It lies on the border between the Ligurian Sea and the Tyrrhenian Sea, in front of Elba Island and at the northern side of Maremma.-Overview:...
on 2 May 1801 under General Jean Victor Tharreau
Jean Victor Tharreau
Jean Victor Tharreau , 15 January 1767, Le May-sur-Èvre – 26 September 1812, was a General of Division in the Army of the French Empire....
with 1,500 men and landing unopposed at the Neapolitan town of Porto Longone
Porto Azzurro
Porto Azzurro is a comune in the Province of Livorno in the Italian region Tuscany; it is on the island of Elba, located about 130 km southwest of Florence and about 90 km south of Livorno. It formerly called Porto Longone, and in 1557 Jacob VI Appiani, Prince of Piombino, granted Spain...
.
The invasion force rapidly spread across the island, meeting no resistance as the entire Neapolitan portion and almost all of the Tuscan region surrendered before them. Soon, all that remained in Tuscan hands was the fortress port town of Porto Ferrajo on the northern coast. This was a powerful defensive position, and the Tuscan commander Carlo de Fisson rejected Tharreau's demands that he surrender, his position strengthened by the presence of two British frigates HMS Phoenix
HMS Phoenix (1783)
HMS Phoenix was a 36-gun Perseverance-class fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. The shipbuilder George Parsons built her at Bursledon and launched her on 15 July 1783. She served in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars and was instrumental in the events leading up to the battle of Trafalgar...
and HMS Mermaid
HMS Mermaid (1782)
HMS Mermaid was a 32-gun Active-class fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy .-Design and construction:Mermaid was one of the eight ship Active class, designed by Edward Hunt. She was initially ordered from the shipwright George White, of Woolwich Dockyard Shipwright on 27 August 1778, and laid down...
off the port. Tharreau responded by laying siege to the fortress, and was encouraged by the sudden departure of the two frigates. This allowed the small French frigate Badine to take their place and blockade
Blockade
A blockade is an effort to cut off food, supplies, war material or communications from a particular area by force, either in part or totally. A blockade should not be confused with an embargo or sanctions, which are legal barriers to trade, and is distinct from a siege in that a blockade is usually...
the port, with the intention of starving the defenders into surrender. Badine was soon joined by a squadron of three more frigates Carrère, Bravoure and Succés under the overall command of Captain Jacques-François-Ignace Bretel.
Reinforcements
For the next three months the siege continued with little significant activity on either side, until the arrival of General François WatrinFrançois Watrin
François Watrin was a French infantry commander during the French Revolutionary Wars....
with 5,000 additional men and instructions from General Joachim Murat
Joachim Murat
Joachim-Napoléon Murat , Marshal of France and Grand Admiral or Admiral of France, 1st Prince Murat, was Grand Duke of Berg from 1806 to 1808 and then King of Naples from 1808 to 1815...
to prosecute the siege more vigorously at the end of July. His efforts were almost immediately frustrated however by the arrival off Porto Ferrajo on 1 August of a powerful British squadron under Rear-Admiral Sir John Borlase Warren in HMS Renown
HMS Renown (1798)
HMS Renown was a 74-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy. She was to have been named HMS Royal Oak, but the name was changed to Renown on 15 February 1796....
, whose ship chased Bravoure and Succés as far as Leghorn and reopened the sea passage into the port. At the same time, a small British force under Captain Gordon was landed from at Porto Ferrajo to augment the Tuscan garrison. At 14:30 on 3 August, a squadron of Warren's patrolling frigates, Phoenix under Captain Lawrence Halsted
Lawrence Halsted
Sir Lawrence William Halsted GCB was an officer of the Royal Navy who served during the American War of Independence and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars....
, HMS Pomone under Captain Edward Leveson-Gower
Edward Leveson-Gower
Edward Frederick Leveson-Gower DL, JP , styled The Honourable from birth, was a British barrister and Liberal politician...
and HMS Pearl under Captain Samuel James Ballard
Samuel James Ballard
Samuel James Ballard was a Vice-Admiral in the Royal Navy, baptised 28 March 1765 at St Thomas, Portsmouth, the son of Samuel Ballard, a burgess and chandler of Portsmouth, and Lydia née Flint daughter of James Flint of Epsom in Surrey.-Naval career:Ballard entered the navy in December 1776, under...
discovered a sail off the western shore of Elba and gave chase.
The ship was the 38-gun Carrère under Captain Claude-Pascal Morel-Beaulieu, carrying 300 barrels of powder and escorting a convoy of small coastal vessels carrying military supplies from Porto Ercole to Porto Longone. Although Carrère turned away from the British pursuit and actively engaged the lead ship Pomone with stern-chaser cannon mounted in the rear of the frigate, the vessel was too laden to escape its opponents and after a ten minute chase as Pearl cut off the route to Porto Longone and Pomone manoeuvered into a firing position, Captain Morel-Beaulieu surrendered. The delay caused by the brief chase had however allowed the coastal ships to disperse and flee so that all of them avoided capture and some even reached Porto Longone. Carrère was a modern ship seized from the Republic of Venice
Republic of Venice
The Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...
after the Treaty of Campo Formio
Treaty of Campo Formio
The Treaty of Campo Formio was signed on 18 October 1797 by Napoleon Bonaparte and Count Philipp von Cobenzl as representatives of revolutionary France and the Austrian monarchy...
in 1797 and had suffered "tolerably severe" casualties in the engagement from a complement of 352. The ship was subsequently taken into the Royal Navy under the same name, although its active service lasted less than a year before the ship was retired. Losses on Pomone were limited to two killed and four wounded, two of whom subsequently died.
September
Although Warren departed soon afterwards leaving just a frigate squadron behind, the siege continued throughout August. French forces dominated Elba but were unable to make an impression on the walls of the fortress while Royal Navy forces controlled access to the island by sea, providing supplies for the defenders and denying them to the French. Part of ensuring British that French supplies were intercepted was through the blockade of the port of Piombino on the Italian mainland, a duty entrusted to Captain Halsted on Phoenix. At the end of August, Watrin learned that Phoenix was alone off the port and sent a message to Leghorn, where the remainder of the French squadron still lay at anchor, instructing them to attack the isolated British warship using their superior numbers. Succés and Bravoure sailed on 31 August and arrived off Piombino at 06:30 on 2 September to discover that Phoenix had been joined by the frigates Pomone and HMS Minerve under Captain George CockburnGeorge Cockburn
Admiral of the Fleet Sir George Cockburn, 10th Baronet GCB was a British naval commander of the late 18th through the mid-19th centuries. He held important commands during the Napoleonic Wars and the War of 1812 and eventually rose to become Admiral of the Fleet and First Sea Lord.-Naval...
, summoned after Halsted had received an intelligence report detailing Watrin's demand that the French ships sail from Leghorn.
Minerve was the closest to the arriving French vessels and immediately gave chase, Cockburn signalling to Halsted and Leveson-Gower to join him. On sighting the British frigates Bretel turned back northwards towards Leghorn, but by 09:00 all three British warships were gaining on his small squadron. Unable to escape pursuit and with Minerve rapidly approaching, Bretel drove Succés ashore at Vada beach near Cecina
Cecina
Cecina may refer to:*Cecina, Tuscany, a town in the Italian Province of Livorno*Cecina , a river in Italy*Cecina , a Spanish and Mexican culinary specialty made of beef*Farinata, a Tuscan culinary specialty made of chickpea flour...
in the hope of luring Minerve away from Bravoure, but Cockburn instead simply fired on the grounded vessel in passing before continuing towards the remaining ship while Bretel surrendered to Pomone. Captain Louis-Auguste Dordelin made desperate attempts to reach Leghorn before he was overtaken, but a northerly wind drove him back repeatedly and eventually he was forced to drive his frigate ashore under the Antignano battery, 4 nautical miles (7.4 km) south of Leghorn harbour. Battered by waves, all three masts fell overboard and the ship became a total wreck. Although a small British boarding party came aboard Bravoure under Lieutenant William Kelly, it was only able to bring off a few prisoners before abandoning the wreck under heavy fire from batteries ashore, Kelly refusing to burn the wreck to spare the lives of the many French sailors still trapped on the ship. To the south, Succés was dragged off the beach and repaired. The ship had been captured by the French in February 1801, and was soon restored to the Royal Navy under its former name of HMS Success.
Counter-attack
With the French threat by sea eliminated, the Royal Navy was free to go on the offensive, and command of the Porto Ferrajo garrison was placed in the hands of Lieutenant Colonel George AireyGeorge Airey
-Biography:Father of the better known general and staff-officer, Richard Airey, he was born in 1761. He entered the army as ensign in the 71st regiment in 1779, and was promoted lieutenant in 1781, when he exchanged into the 48th regiment, and went with it to the West Indies...
while Warren had returned with his powerful squadron. Plans were then drawn up for a force of seamen, Royal Marines
Royal Marines
The Corps of Her Majesty's Royal Marines, commonly just referred to as the Royal Marines , are the marine corps and amphibious infantry of the United Kingdom and, along with the Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary, form the Naval Service...
and Tuscan auxiliaries to launch an amphibious operation against the French batteries that overlooked the mouth of the harbour. 449 Marines and 240 seamen were detached from Renown, HMS Gibraltar, HMS Dragon
HMS Dragon (1798)
HMS Dragon was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 2 April 1798 at Rotherhithe. She was designed by Sir William Rule, and was the only ship built to her draught....
, HMS Alexander
HMS Alexander (1778)
HMS Alexander was a Royal Navy 74-gun third-rate. This ship of the line was launched at Deptford on 8 October 1778. During her career she was captured by the French, and later recaptured by the British. She fought at the Nile in 1798, and was broken up in 1819...
, HMS Genereux
French ship Généreux (1785)
The Généreux was a French Téméraire class ship of the line.She was launched in 1785 at Rochefort. With the Guillaume Tell, she was one of only two ships to escape the British attack at the Battle of the Nile in August 1798....
, HMS Stately
HMS Stately (1784)
HMS Stately was a 64-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 27 December 1784 at Northam.-Operational life:She was converted for use a troopship in 1799, but was reverted to a fully armed warship once war resumed after the end of the Treaty of Amiens.-Battle of Zealand...
, Pomone, Pearl and the brig
Brig
A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
HMS Vincejo under the command of Captain George Long of Vincejo and Captain John Chambers White from Renown and joined by approximately 1,000 Tuscan troops. Landings were made on the morning of 14 September, troops moving inland against the batteries in two columns while Dragon and Genereux bombarded a fortified tower at Marciana
Marciana
Marciana is a town and comune in the province of Livorno, Tuscany , located in the western Elba Island....
.
The attack began well with several batteries destroyed and 55 prisoners of war taken, but soon the greater French numbers began to tell and the landing parties were pushed back to their beachheads in some confusion, having lost 32 killed including Captain Long, 61 wounded and 105 missing, of which 15 dead, 33 wounded and 77 missing were British troops. General Watrin claimed this as a victory, inflating the numbers engaged and inaccurately claiming to have caused 1,200 casualties to the allies as well as 200 captured. He also claimed to have dismasted a frigate and destroyed several smaller craft with fire from his batteries, although none of the British warships reported any damage.
Although Warren departed the region soon afterwards with most of his squadron, Watrin was still unable to make an impression on the walls of Porto Ferrajo, and Airey held the town against the French for the last few weeks of the war until news arrived of the ceasefire that accompanied the provisional signing of the Treaty of Amiens
Treaty of Amiens
The Treaty of Amiens temporarily ended hostilities between the French Republic and the United Kingdom during the French Revolutionary Wars. It was signed in the city of Amiens on 25 March 1802 , by Joseph Bonaparte and the Marquess Cornwallis as a "Definitive Treaty of Peace"...
on 1 October. In March 1802 under Article XI of the final terms of the Treaty, the entire island was turned over to the French and remained in French hands throughout the Napoleonic Wars
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...
.