1807 - Boats of Porcupine at Zupiano, Zuliano, &c.


 
Contents

Next Page

Previous Page
 
Naval history of Great Britain - Vol. IV
by
William James
1807 Light Squadrons and Single Ships 344

aft, greatly damaged. The captured schooner was the Jeune-Richard, mounting six long 6-pounders and one long 18-pounder on a traversing carriage, with a complement, at the commencement of the action, of 92 men ; of whom 21 were found dead on her decks, and 33 wounded.

From the very superior number of the privateer's crew still remaining, great precaution was necessary in securing the prisoners. They were accordingly ordered up from below, one by one, and were placed in their own irons successively as they came up. Any attempt at a rescue being thus effectually guarded against, the packet proceeded, with her prize, to the port of her destination ; which, fortunately for the former, was not very far distant.

This achievement reflects the highest honour upon every officer, man, and boy, that was on board the Windsor-Castle; and, in particular, the heroic valour of her commander, so decisive of the business, ranks above all praise. Had Captain Rogers stayed to calculate the chances that were against him, the probability is, that the privateer would have ultimately succeeded in capturing the packet ; whose light carronades could have offered very little resistance at the usual distance at which vessels engage ; and whose very small crew, without such a coup de main, ay, and without such a leader, could never have brought the combat to a favourable issue.

On the 7th of October, in the evening, the British 22-gun ship Porcupine, Captain the Honourable Henry Duncan, having chased a trabacculo (one of the many variously rigged small vessels employed in the Mediterranean), into Zupiano, a harbour of the small island of that name in the Adriatic, despatched her cutter and jollyboat, under the orders of Lieutenant George Price, first of the ship, assisted by Lieutenant Francis Smith, to endeavour to bring the vessel out. As the two boats were rounding the point which forms the entrance of the harbour, a gun-boat, under the Italian flag, opened a fire of round and grape upon them. Observing this Captain Duncan recalled the boats ; but, as soon as it was dark, detached them again to attack the gun-vessel.

Having taken a guard-boat, sent by the latter to look out for them, mounting a 4-pounder swivel, and manned with French soldiers, the boats pushed on for the gun-vessel ; which, expecting the attack, had moored herself to the shore with four cables. In spite of this preparation, and of a heavy fire of grape and musketry opened upon them, Lieutenant Price and his party gallantly boarded and captured the Venetian gun-boat Safo, mounting one long 24-pounder and several large swivels, and commanded by Anthonio Ghega, enseigne de vaisseau, with a crew of 50 men, most of whom leaped overboard. This very gallant enterprise was executed with so slight a loss as one seaman and one marine wounded.

On the 27th of November Lieutenant Price, in the cutter of

^ back to top ^