1811	Light Squadrons and Single Ships	372

point, reported to amount in the whole to 300, Lieutenant Henderson accompanied by Lieutenants Haye and Mears and Mr. Friend, and the small-arm men and marines, landed on the right, in order to take possession of a hill that appeared to command the creek ; leaving Lieutenant Gibson to push for the gun-boats, the moment a concerted signal should be made from the top of the hill. After dislodging several soldiers, who fired upon them during their ascent, Lieutenant Henderson and his party gained the summit, and found themselves immediately above the gun-boats and convoy. Having made the preconcerted signal, Lieutenant Henderson descended the hill, exposed to the fire of one of the gun-boats and several soldiers ; but the attack had been so well planned, and was so nobly executed, that the boats under Lieutenant Gibson boarded the gun-vessels immediately after Lieutenant Henderson's men had fired two volleys into them. Being attacked so warmly, the crews of the gunboats, except three men and several others that were wounded jumped overboard and got on shore just as the frigate's boats came alongside. The guns in the vessels were immediately turned towards the flying enemy ; and the British, without experiencing any further resistance, took possession of the whole convoy. Ten of the latter were burnt by the captors, and the remaining 18 vessels, along with the three gun-boats, were brought safely out ; nor was there the usual drawback of a serious loss to lessen the value of the exploit, four men only having been wounded in the British boats.

On the 26th of May, in the morning, the British 18-gun brig-sloop Pilot, Captain John Toup Nicolas, observing four settees on the beach almost immediately under the town of Strongoli, near the entrance of the gulf of Taranto, despatched her boats to bring them off, under the orders of Lieutenants Alexander Campbell and Francis Charles Annesley, Mr. Roger Langland the master, master's mate Henry Pierson Simpson, midshipman John Barnes (the second), and Mr. Scotten the carpenter. The Pilot herself at the same time anchored off the spot, but, on account of the shoal water, not so close as was desirable.

In spite of an opposition from 75 gens d'armes, all dragoons, and 30 regular foot soldiers, sent from Cotrone, and above 40 of the civic militia, Lieutenant Campbell and his party effected a landing ; and, after dislodging the enemy from an advantageous position behind a bank and in a tower within half musket-shot of the beach, launched three of the vessels, and destroyed the fourth, because unable from shot-holes to float. The whole of this service was executed with no greater loss than one marine slightly wounded.

On the 6th of September, early in the morning; the Pilot, cruising off the town of Castellan in the same neighbourhood, observed an armed ketch secured to the walls of the castle of

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