1810	Death of Lord Collingwood	215

And the number of seamen and marines, voted for the service of the same year, was 145,000. *

Owing to the vigilance of the British blockading force, France was unable, during the whole of the present year, to get a fleet to sea. Napoléon, however, still went on increasing his navy. At Antwerp two new 80-gun ships, the Friedland and Tilsitt, were launched, and the keels of two three-deckers intended to carry 110 guns each, and to be named Hymen and Monarque, were laid upon the vacant slips. Towards the latter end of the summer 10 sail of the line evinced a disposition to put to sea from the Scheldt, but were restrained from making the attempt by a squadron of seven or eight sail of the line, under Rear-admiral Sir Richard John Strachan in the St.-Domingo, cruising off Flushing.

Since the 6th of January, Sweden, owing to a change in her dynasty, had made peace with France ; and on the 19th of November declared war against England. But Vice-admiral Sir James Saumarez, with five or six sail of the line, prevented either the Swedish or the Russian fleet from being in any degree troublesome.

Brest was this year a port of little consequence, containing in its road but three sail of the line, including one ship from Rochefort or Lorient, and about as many frigates. These were vigilantly watched by a British squadron outside; as were the few remaining ships of the line, that lay in some of the minor French ports, along the Channel and Bay of Biscay frontiers:

At the commencement of the present year the command upon the Mediterranean station was still in the hands of Vice-admiral Lord Collingwood, But his lordship was in so infirm a state of health, that on the 5th of March he quitted Minorca in the Ville-de-Paris, bound to England for his recovery ; leaving the fleet under the temporary command of Rear-admiral Martin, in the 80-gun ship Canopus. On the 7th of March, at 8 p.m., Lord Collingwood expired. The immediate cause of this distinguished officer's death was a stoppage in the pylorus or inferior aperture of the stomach : he had nearly attained his 60th year.

The French force in Toulon remained much the same as at the close of the preceding year ; but we shall defer entering into particulars until we have given some account of a successful expedition in the Adriatic against the island of St.-Maura, the ancient Leucadia ; and which, with the neighbouring island of Corfu, was still occupied by a French garrison.

On the 21st of March, early in the morning, the above expedition, consisting of the British 74-gun ship Magnificent, Captain George Eyre, 38-gun frigate Belle-Poule, Captain James Brisbane, and 16-gun brig-sloop Imogene, Captain William

* See Appendix, No. 13.

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