She took advantage of that as Dreadnaught came up on her quarter. A section of her guns aft, probably all that could be slewed around enough to bear, spoke at full elevation. None of them came aboard, but a sudden plume of water off Dreadnaught’s bow showed they had the range.
While Phillips hesitated to open his lower lee gun ports, he had no qualms about using the eighteen pounders in the upper deck. Being heeled over, he did not have the range the enemy did, but even so, some of the shot made it to the enemy battleship.
As Dreadnaught moved up, more of her guns were able to bear on the enemy two decker. By the same token, the enemy was able to throw more shot at Dreadnaught, but the prowess of her gunners could not match those of the British sixty four. As a slugging match between the two adversaries commenced, guns were dismounted on both ships, and men were killed or disabled. To begin with, the larger French liner, armed with more and heavier guns, seemingly held the advantage, but the faster firing guns of Dreadnaught regained it. Nearly every broadside she fired disabled some important piece of the enemy. Guns were being dismounted and men killed or disabled.
At the same time, the two British frigates were moving into position. Lutine creeping into position on the battleship’s bow, let loose her volley of twelve pound shot. To avoid being run down, after firing she had to proceed on past then tack to come back and use her other broadside. Viceroy, with her eighteen pound long guns, as well as the thirty two pounder carronades she carried, came across her stern during the lull in Lutine’s attack, and hammered in her broadside
Dreadnaught let the wind push her toward the enemy and continued pumping shot into her. Finally, unable to sustain more damage, someone on the enemy quarterdeck pulled down the flag.
Afterward, it was learned her captain and first lieutenant were killed in the exchange previously with HMS Lutine. The remaining quarterdeck officers were little better than midshipmen themselves, and were simply not capable of fighting a ship-to-ship action.
Phillips sent Captain Wallace over to the prize with the remainder of his Marines. He followed in his barge to inspect the damage. While the battleship had been cruelly treated, there seemed nothing that good seamen could not repair.
The bosun set to work securing the forestay. It had been nearly shot through, and only a few strands of hemp were preventing the foremast from coming down. Phillips had not retrieved his carpenter from Lutine yet, but one of the mates had stepped into the breach, and was doing good work.
The French carpenter with his own mates, was not too proud to work for the British, so it seemed the work necessary to secure the ship was being competently performed.
Not wishing to get into anyone’s way, he made his way to the quarterdeck. The wounded had been removed, but many of the dead remained. Right aft, he discovered the French signal locker. Inside, among the multitude of flags, was a handwritten booklet of the French codes. The pages had been crudely sewn together. Plainly, it was the property of a junior officer serving as signal officer.
Normally, one would expect a document of this sort to go over the side when the ship was surrendered. Probably, with so many of the quarterdeck officers dead or disabled, the signal book had been overlooked.
Limpet was sent out on a reconnaissance patrol to see if she could discover the missing warships, but found no sign of them. Phillips determined the best course of action would be to proceed to Lisbon, and refit there. Perhaps they could take on a few Portuguese seamen.
*****
Lisbon, Portugal was a mass of humanity along with their animals and vehicles. People from the surrounding countryside, frightened by the stories of French invaders they had heard, had crowded into the city with all their belongings, and were living anywhere they could find a space to erect some type of shelter.
By the same token, British forces were coming in with every ship. An ornately plumed Hussar, an aide to the British envoy to the Portuguese Court, made his way out in a shore boat, with a letter inviting him to the Residence that evening. Grumbling to himself, he donned the heavy wool uniform coat his steward put out for him.
Once he was able to make it through the throng filling the reception room, he discovered his son Timothy standing by the ambassador’s chair.
It seemed Timothy had been taken into the embassy when the horse transport made port, and had been assisting The Right Honourable John Villiers, envoy to the Portuguese Court, who was having difficulty getting around after a mishap involving an overturned carriage. A new midshipman’s uniform had been furnished the lad, a much better fit than the worn and outgrown togs he wore when he landed. A new dirk at Timothy’s hip had polished silver fittings, and the lad looked fit for a royal reception. Serving as a sort of equerry, the young man was coming up in the world.
Retrieving his son, Phillip profusely thanked the envoy for his courtesy. Villiers gave him the latest news he had. He believed the missing two French line-of-battle ships had returned to France, It was thought the enemy would send smaller, more maneuverable warships to deal with the British supply ships they were trying to inhibit.
To that end, he had sent word to Admiral Collingwood, asking him to detach HMS Viceroy and Dreadnaught from his command, so they could, along with HMS Lutine, protect shipping between Lisbon and Britain.
Villiers was grateful with the present of the French naval codes for the next month, and assured Captain Phillips they would be put to good use.
When Phillips sailed again, it was as Commodore of his small squadron of two frigates, a cutter, and of course Dreadnaught. Phillips put his son aboard Limpet, feeling the lad would learn more seamanship there than aboard the big two-decker. In the coming weeks there was a great deal of work to be done.
The enemy had sent down some corvettes to prey on the shipping bringing needed supplies and men to the Army in Portugal. Much of the time, the squadron was unable to catch the nimble little corsairs, but several times they were able to retrieve British ships already taken.
Once though, a corvette had been chased away from a convoy by an alert escorting frigate. The corvette was pursued right into the arms of Phillip’s little squadron. The corvette’s commander rightly thought his best chance was to go right at Limpet, as usual at the end of the scouting line.
The little cutter, put herself right across the corvette’s path and fired off her little four pounder broadside. The corvette could have swatted the little cutter out of her way like a fly, but those four pound balls had killed a crewman on the corvette, as well as causing some material damage, so the enemy commander elected to change course to get around the pest.
After all, she was a long way from home and a source of supply to repair battle damage. And, of course, two frigates and a line-of-battle ship were coming up in a hurry. The corvette did not have time to finish off the cutter. The pest came around with her, continuing to fire those four pounders into the corvette. The cutter was also absorbing many of the eight pound balls the corvette was sending her way. A well placed ball had brought down her single mast which fell in a tangle of canvas and rigging. The Viceroy picked that moment to come booming up, with her guns trained on the corvette.
Wisely, the little ship let fly her sheets, and lowered her colors.
Limpet only had a surgeon’s mate, so her wounded were brought aboard the liner. One of the wounded was her carpenter’s mate. The cutter had some serious damage which it would be wise to repair right away.
Phillips called his carpenter, now returned from Lutine and asked who he could recommend to send aboard Limpet. “Well sir, Evans is my best man, and I hate to lose him but he deserves to get his warrant soon. Mayhap this would be his chance.”
A well-built young man came up top carrying his seabag in one hand and his tool box in the other. “Evans”, Phillips said, “I want you to go aboard Limpet and take over as her carpenter. You will still be rated carpenter’s mate, but this may be a route for you to obtain a warrant.”
Dreadnaught’s bosun began passing a cable though
a stern port so she could took the cutter in tow. None of the squadron had a spare spar that could serve as her mainmast, so she must be brought back to port at the end of a cable.
While the men were busy, Phillips peered through his glass at the cutter. With much relief, he saw his son on the little vessel’s foredeck. The petty officer was supervising the crew who had just caught the heaving line thrown over from Dreadnaught. They would haul this line in, and with it the heavier towing cable.
CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN
Phillips was much relieved to see his son at work on the deck of the cutter. It would have been all too easy for one of those shots from the corvette to have killed or wounded the boy.
As it was, Phillips felt fortunate the squadron had escaped with little more damage than the broken spar on the cutter. The corvette herself had little structural damage, and would be able to proceed to Lisbon on her own, although she would be escorted by Dreadnaught and the towed cutter.
When Dreadnaught arrived off the mouth of the Tagus, after her most recent cruise, the 98 gun line-of-battle ship HMS Ocean was present, flying the flag of Vice-Admiral Collingwood. Answering the summons from the admiral, Captain Phillips reported aboard her. The admiral congratulated him for his recent activities. Collingwood then told him his interlude off Portugal was over. His ship was needed to resume the interdiction of the French privateers and warships that were preying on British shipping.
Collingwood then elaborated upon the naval and political situation. “Napoleon has put the resources of his empire into rebuilding his fleet since Trafalgar. He has line-of-battle ships building all over Europe. He has two major problems. Manning them with trained sailors, and getting them to sea past our blockade.”
“Of course, he can conscript all the farm boys he wants, but how will he train them? He probably thinks they will learn what they need to know after a few cruises on a privateer or corvette. Of course, we know it takes years to fully train a good seaman, but I see no need to allow him to even partially train his people on these smaller warships.”
“You will get your ship ready in all respects for this task, making sure you have the proper expendables. If you need men, give a list to the flag captain. He expects a draft of Portuguese and Spanish seamen. I am sure he will allow you your share.”
“Now, I am giving you a couple of sloops-of-war to help you with your mission. That 64 of yours will not be able to go everyplace a shallow draft sloop will. One of the sloops will be that corvette you brought in the other day. She has been purchased for the fleet, and I am told she is in good condition as she is. We just need to give her some officers and a crew, and she will be ready to go.”
The small squadron set sail a week later. It had taken that long to find a crew for the ship-sloop HMS Supérieure, the former French corvette, now re-armed with 18 long sixes and eight 12 pounder carronades, as well as HMS Grasshopper, brig-sloop of 16 thirty two pound carronades and two long sixes.
Phillips was dubious about Supérieure’s crew. Admiral Collingwood had placed a levy upon the various ships presently in harbor, replacing the levied men with local Portuguese seamen as well as people from a draft sent from Britain. Of course, this draft consisted of whatever the Impressment Service had scraped up, as well as the sweepings of the gaols. However, no captain had a perfect crew, and it was up to each captain to bring his people up to standard.
Mister Anderson, former first officer of Viceroy was promoted to commander and given Supérieure, while Grasshopper was commanded by Commander Wilson. Phillips had not been able to retrieve his son from Limpet, since Collinwood had dispatched the cutter to Portsmouth before he had a chance to notify the lad.
Phillips was concerned about Timothy. Logically, the young man was safe enough; being aboard a dispatch cutter, he was unlikely to become involved in any desperate feats of combat, nor was an enemy likely to go to great lengths to take her. She was fast and agile, with no suggestion of a valuable cargo.
She was bound for Portsmouth, where hopefully, his wife could intercept him. He had sent Sarah many copies of a letter, by different ships, telling her about this mishap. If she could post to Portsmouth, perhaps with Captain Keaton, a neighbor of theirs as escort, she could locate him. Mister Harrison, commanding Limpet might not wish to deliver his midshipman up to his mother, but it was unlikely he would defy a senior post captain.
As Phillips saw it though, the cutter might not remain in Portsmouth long enough for his mother to locate him. After all, his letters would be on ships sailing long after Limpet had departed. She might very well drop off her pouches and sail forthwith to a different destination; one perhaps in a different part of the world.
Phillips of course, could contact someone in the Admiralty and ask Timothy be ordered home. However, if the lad was going to further his career in the Royal Navy, he did not need it to be known that he was to be at the beck and call of his parents, or influential officials at Admiralty.
The squadron proceeded south on her way, with Phillips exercising his two charges. Grasshopper’s crew was, as expected, well versed in seamanship, and her signal officer proficient. Her gunnery practice was not up to Phillips’s standards, but he understood the constraints her captain was operating under.
The Royal Navy was reluctant to fund powder and shot expended on practice, and any captain using his issued ammunition for such purposes might find himself being charged for the material.
Captains such as Phillips, who had been fortunate in the past with prizes, could purchase their own practice ammunition. A captain with a fresh, new commission as commander like Wilson of Grasshopper, or Anderson of Supérieure might well not have the funds for such purchases.
Phillips was prepared to buy some powder and shot for the pair, if unable to take it from a prize. In the meantime, their guns could be exercised without firing a shot, by running the guns in and out by hand. Not nearly as suitable as actually firing the guns, but very many Navy ships were training their crews by that method.
As the squadron made its way south in line abreast, Grasshopper was in the inshore position, because her draft was slightly less than Supérieure. Most of her guns were thirty two pounder carronades. This gave the ship massive firepower, but of course, were short range weapons.
Supérieure, armed with her long sixes could fire at a longer range, but with less effect. Dreadnaught remained to seaward of her flock to protect against any threat from that direction.
While meditating upon these matters, Mister Fife, his fourth lieutenant and signal officer broke in upon his thoughts.
“Captain, Grasshopper reports ‘Enemy in Sight’, close into land ahead.”
The officer peered at the flag signals of the brig-sloop through his glass. “Enemy is: three frigates, one brig and many merchant vessels.”
Phillips had his glass up also. Grasshopper was close to shore, ahead of the squadron and just passing a headland that protruded out from land. As signal flags began showing from Supérieure, their own masthead was heard from, reporting many sails coming out of a bay that was delineated on its northern side by the headland the squadron was approaching.
CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT
It appeared there were upwards of forty merchant ships in that enemy convoy, escorted by the three frigates and the brig. The enemy now appeared to be maneuvering to return to a town and harbor at the head of the bay, which they had earlier left.
Mister Jensen, the sailing master, was standing by the ship’s wheel. Phillips approached him and asked what he needed to know about this bay. Jensen had the rolled chart with him, which he spread out on the binnacle and pointed out the data. “As you can see, Captain, out here we have plenty of water under our keel. Approaching the harbor, you will notice a deeper trench in the bottom which will allow deep draft vessels to enter and depart.”
“Closer in to shore, you will note shoaling once out of the main channel. Our Grasshopper has the least draft, and can approach the closest to shore, once out of the channel. Wi
th our draft, we should approach no closer than the six fathom mark. I am considering the occasional obstruction on the bottom.”
“You will note the battery marked on shore. At last report consisting of six twelve pound guns. Perhaps mortars also, although that is not certain. A notation on the chart reports a barracks where the French army may house troops to protect that battery.”
As Phillips was poring over the chart, Watkins came up. “Captain, the enemy appears to be putting back into the harbor. Gunboats are coming out from the port.”
Taking one last look around with his glass, he ordered Mister Fife to signal Grasshopper to proceed into the harbor to prevent the convoy from approaching the port. Supérieure should back up Grasshopper, remaining a cable’s length farther out to allow for her slightly deeper draft. Dreadnaught would remain outside the six fathom line, and engage targets of opportunity.
The French brig, at the head of the convoy it was protecting, moved farther into the bay to ward off Grasshopper. The enemy brig was pierced for ten guns on her beam, nominally making her a match for Grasshopper. However, apparently she was unaware of the 32 pounder carronades Grasshopper carried; since she sailed up to her beam as if she meant to board the British brig. A 28 gun frigate was now right behind the enemy brig, giving her support.
As the brigs came together, both fired at the same moment. The enemy brig fired off her ten eight pounders, most of which came aboard Grasshopper, killing or wounding half a dozen men, and wounding the mainmast. On the other hand, eight thirty two pound balls smashed through the hull of the French brig. Oak splinters were sent flying by the low velocity impacts, and dozens of crew were down, with desperate damage being done to the brig.
HMS DREADNAUGHT: A John Phillips Novel Page 10
