Troude's expedition to the Caribbean

rdf:langString Troude's expedition to the Caribbean

rdf:langString Action of 14–17 April 1809

rdf:langString Troude's expedition to the Caribbean:

rdf:langString Actions of 14–18 June and 6 July 1809

rdf:langString West Indies

rdf:langString Capture of La Furieuse, Aug' 6th 1809

rdf:langString United Kingdom

rdf:langString French Empire

rdf:langString Captain William Mounsey

rdf:langString Commodore Amable-Gilles Troude

rdf:langString Lieutenant Gabriel Kerdaniel

rdf:langString Vice-Admiral Sir Alexander Cochrane

rdf:langString Troude's expedition to the Caribbean:

rdf:langString the Napoleonic Wars

rdf:langString Began near Basse-Terre, concluded in the North Atlantic

rdf:langString Began near Îles des Saintes, concluded off Cape Rojo, Puerto Rico

rdf:langString British victory

rdf:langString Variously sloop HMS Bonne Citoyenne, frigate HMS Latona and other vessels

rdf:langString Three ships of the line and two frigates.

rdf:langString frigates Félicité and Furieuse

rdf:langString Five ships of the line and several smaller vessels.

rdf:langString Troude's expedition to the Caribbean was a naval operation by a French force under Commodore Amable-Gilles Troude during the Napoleonic Wars. The French squadron departed from Lorient in February 1809 in an attempt to reach and resupply the island colony of Martinique in the Caribbean Sea, then under invasion from a British expeditionary force. The force arrived much too late to affect the outcome of the successful invasion and took shelter from a British squadron in the Îles des Saintes, where they were blockaded by part of the British invasion fleet, led by Vice-Admiral Sir Alexander Cochrane. Two weeks after the French ships arrived, British troops invaded and captured the Saintes, constructing mortar batteries to bombard the French squadron. With his position unsustainable, Commodore Troude decided to break out. Attempting to escape under cover of darkness on 14 April, the French squadron was spotted by a number of small British ships stationed close inshore. These ships raised the alarm and the main British squadron followed in pursuit. The rearmost French ship of the line, Hautpoult, was closely followed by the small brig HMS Recruit, which succeeded in delaying Hautpoult long enough that the main British squadron was able to attack and overwhelm her in a running battle that lasted three days and ended off the coast of Puerto Rico. The British suffered 45 casualties, the French nearly 100. The remainder of the French squadron escaped, with the two surviving ships of the line sailing directly for France, eventually reaching Cherbourg in May. The French expedition's two frigates, both only partially armed, were detached during the action and took shelter in harbour at Guadeloupe. In June, heavily laden with trade goods, they attempted to escape to Europe, but were pursued by elements of the British blockade force. Félicité was overrun after four days of manoeuvre, submitting to the more powerful British frigate HMS Latona without a fight. Furieuse was able to escape immediate pursuit, but was subsequently discovered on 3 July by the smaller British ship HMS Bonne Citoyenne. In a fierce engagement two days later, the small British ship was able to defeat and capture the French vessel, which was later commissioned into the Royal Navy.