136] ANNUAL REC^ISTER, 1813. 



CHAPTER XV. 



Naval Affairs ; Capture of La Cor eyre — Of La Pomona and a Store 

 Ship — Loax of the Manilla and Laurel — Capture of the Merinos — 

 Of the Rivoli — Of a Flotilla off Dieppe— Deslruction of two French 

 Frigates and a Brig near VOrient — Of a Danish Squadron near 

 Mardoe — Convoy brought out of Lauguillia — Another Attempt 

 . at the same Plate — The Attack Brig taken by the Danes. 



THE attention of the French 

 emperor has, during this year, 

 been so much engaged by his conti- 

 nental projects, thatthe mighty pre- 

 parations he seemed to be making 

 in the past year for contending with 

 Cireat Britain on the ocean, pro- 

 duced no sensible addition to the 

 power and enterprise of his navy, 

 which for the most part lay quiet 

 in port, and offered very few op- 

 portunities to the British com- 

 manders stationed in the European 

 seas of gratifying that ardour for 

 distinguishing themselves in their 

 country's service by which they are 

 so hotiourably characterised. 



An account arrived at the Admi- 

 ralty, in February, of the capture, 

 on November 19, by the Eagle, 

 Captain Rowley, of the French 

 frigate La Corey re, pierced for 40 

 guns, but mounting only twenty- 

 six eighteen pounders on the rnain- 

 deck, and two six-pounders on the 

 quarter-deck. She had a comple- 

 ment of 170 seamen, and 130 sol- 

 diers, was laden with wheat and 

 military stores, and was bound 

 from Trieste to Corfu. Slie had 

 two companions, which escaped 

 during the chace that began off 

 Fano, and terminated near Brin- 



disi. The action was short, as, in- 

 deed, the inequality of force would 

 have rendered a protracted resist- 

 ance only a fruitless waste of lives. 

 No one was hurt on board the 

 Eagle. 



In the same sea, off Lissa, a very 

 severe action was Ibught between 

 three English and three French 

 frigates, which did credit to the 

 bravery and conduct of both par- 

 ties, though success, as usuai, re- 

 mained to tlie English. The 

 French squadron having been de- 

 scried to the south of Lissa on No- 

 vember 28, the ships Alceste, Ac- 

 tive, and Unite were warped out 

 of the harbour of St. George, and 

 on the morning of the 29th eame 

 in sight of the enemy off the island 

 of Augusta. 1 he French commo- 

 dore formed in line, and for a 

 short time stood towards his anta- 

 gonists ; but finding the English 

 bearing upon him in close line un- 

 der full sail, he bore away to the 

 N.W. His rear ship separating. 

 Captain Murray Maxwell, the Bri- 

 tish commodore, detached the 

 Unite after her, and himself, in 

 the Alceste, commenced action 

 with the other two. On passing the 

 rearmost to get at the commodore, 



a shot 



