Battle of The Basque Roads - The Attack

The Attack

On the evening of April 11, 1809 Cochrane led the way into Basque Roads with two explosion ships, followed by 25 other ships. Because of delays resulting from Gambier’s indecision, the French were alert to the British plan. Admiral Allemand, who had replaced Willaumez, had struck the topmasts and yards of the big ships, stowed their sails to reduce the amount of exposed flammable material, and placed a stout boom across the harbor entrance. Allemand had anchored his ships in an apparently impregnable position drawn up in two lines between the Ile d'Aix to the northeast and Ilôt Boyard to the southwest, that were defended by gun batteries.

On the night of April 11, 1809 Cochrane floated in on the flood-tide aboard the foremost explosion vessel with the other explosion ships following. Once he had reached the boom, Cochrane lit the fuse of the vessel and he and his handful of men swarmed into their boat, only to discover that they had left their pet dog behind, which they went back to rescue. They managed to escape with their dog just in time. A "boom" of heavy spars and chains the French had placed to prevent the British ships from engaging the French, more than a mile long, was broken in several places by the explosion ships. Unable to see clearly in the smoke, the panicked French gunners fired into the line of protecting frigates. Anchor cables were hastily cut to escape the surge of flame, and without sails, the ships piled up on the shoals.

Cochrane described the attack as follows:

"On the 11th of April, it blew hard, with a high sea. As all preparations were complete, I did not consider the state of the weather a justifiable impediment to the attack; so that, after nightfall, the officers who volunteered to command the fireships were assembled on board the Caledonia, and supplied with instructions according to the plan previously laid down by myself. The Imperieuse had proceeded to the edge of the Boyart Shoal, close to which she anchored with an explosion-vessel made fast to her stern, it being my intention, after firing the one of which I was about to take charge, to return to her for the other, to be employed as circumstances might require. At a short distance from the Imperieuse were anchored the frigates Aigle, Unicorn, and Pallas, for the purpose of receiving the crews of the fireships on their return, as well as to support the boats of the fleet assembled alongside the Caesar, to assist the fireships. The boats of the fleet were not, however, for some reason or other made use of at all.

"Having myself embarked on board the largest explosion-vessel, accompanied by Lieut. Bissel and a volunteer crew of four men only, we led the way to the attack. The night was dark, and, as the wind was fair, though blowing hard, we soon neared the estimated position of the advanced French ships, for it was too dark to discern them. Judging our distance, therefore, as well as we could, with regard to the time the fuse was calculated to burn, the crew of four men entered the gig, under the direction of Lieut. Bissel, whilst I kindled the portfires, and then, descending into the boat, urged the men to pull for their lives, which they did with a will, though, as wind and sea were strong against us, without making the expected progress.

"To our consternation, the fuses, which had been constructed to burn fifteen minutes, lasted little more than half that time, when the vessel blew up, filling the air with shells, grenades, and rockets; whilst the downward and lateral force of the explosion raised a solitary mountain of water, from the breaking of which in all directions our little boat narrowly escaped being swamped. The explosion-vessel did her work well, the effect constituting one of the grandest artificial spectacles imaginable. For a moment, the sky was red with the lurid glare arising from the simultaneous ignition of fifteen hundred barrels of powder. On this gigantic flash subsiding, the air seemed alive with shells, grenades, rockets, and masses of timber, the wreck of the shattered vessel. The sea was convulsed as by an earthquake, rising, as has been said, in a huge wave, on whose crest our boat was lifted like a cork, and as suddenly dropped into a vast trough, out of which as it closed upon us with the rush of a whirlpool, none expected to emerge. In a few minutes nothing but a heavy rolling sea had to be encountered, all having again become silence and darkness."