How Britannia Came to Rule the Waves Part 23

The two admirals going up on board the _Slaney_. The _Cormorant_ leading, broke through a boom of great strength, pa.s.sed across the river, and various vessels quickly taking up their position, opened their fire on the forts, which, though defended for some time, at length yielded, their garrisons taking to flight. A squadron of gunboats, with the English and French admirals on board, then made their way up to Tientsin, a large city midway between Pekin and the sea. The emperor, now fearing that his capital itself would be attacked, came to terms.

The fleet, however, remained ready to compel him to keep to them, should he attempt to evade fulfilling his engagements. In the meantime a small squadron, consisting of the _Retribution_, Captain Barker, the _Furious_, Captain S. Osborn, the _Cruiser_, Commander Bythesea, the gunboat _Lee_, Lieutenant Jones, and surveying-vessel _Dove_, Commander Ward, made a voyage up the Yang'tse Kiang, 600 miles above Nankin, to a city of importance called Hang-keo. From the shallowness of the water the larger vessels frequently grounded, and on pa.s.sing Nankin, then in possession of a formidable army of rebels, which attacked them, they had to fight their onward way. At length the _Retribution_ could proceed no farther, but Osborn leading the rest reached Hang-keo in safety. On their way back the larger vessels again grounded, but being released by a flood, the whole succeeded in returning to Shanghai.

Sir Michael Seymour returning home, was succeeded by Admiral J. Hope, with his flag on board the _Chesapeake_. Besides six larger vessels, he had under his command a squadron of nine gunboats. Each boat was armed with two long guns and two howitzers, and before they went into action the admiral sent on board each from the _Chesapeake_ an additional 32-pounder and an organised crew to work it. Those who knew the Chinese best were very sure, as the result proved, that the emperor did not intend to keep the terms of the treaty. Admiral Hope arrived off the Peiho on the 8th of June, and as soon as he attempted to ascend it for the purpose of proceeding to Pekin to announce the arrival of the British amba.s.sador, he discovered that the forts had been greatly strengthened, and that obstructions of all sorts had been placed across the river. Strong booms had been carried from side to side, and iron stakes driven into the bottom at intervals, reaching within two feet of high-water mark. The Chinese having neglected to remove the obstructions, after the admirals had waited several days, Mr Bruce and the French amba.s.sador having arrived, the admiral sent in to say that unless his demands were immediately complied with he should force his way. A force of blue-jackets and marines 700 strong were told off to storm the forts, and the admiral, s.h.i.+fting his flag to the _Plover_, led his squadron of gunboats, accompanied by those of the French, towards the forts. During the night Captain Wills with three boats had broken the first boom with barrels of gunpowder, and pus.h.i.+ng on, was examining the inner one, when the moon rising revealed his position to the Chinese, who opened so warm a fire on him that he was compelled to retire. The plan proposed was to attack the works on the river side with the gunboats, and the batteries being silenced, to storm with the landing-party. The gunboats, as far as they were able, took up the position allotted to them, but from the shallowness of the water, the _Starling_ and _Banterer_ got aground. No sooner did they open fire than the Chinese began blazing away from a line of heavy guns, which, in a short time, played havoc among them. The _Plover_ was almost knocked to pieces, and her commander killed, 30 of her crew being killed or wounded, and the admiral himself severely hurt. He, however, s.h.i.+fted his flag on board the _Opossum_, whose commander was shortly afterwards wounded, and her screw becoming fouled, she drifted down the stream. On this Admiral Hope went on board the _Cormorant_, and on her deck, lying in his cot, issued his directions till overcome by loss of blood.

Captain Shadwell then took the command. The engagement continued with great fury on both sides, but the _Lee_ and _Haughty_ were both nearly destroyed. The tide having sunk several feet, the English guns produced less effect on the fort than at first. At the end of four hours, however, nearly all the Chinese guns on the left bank were silenced, though those on the right still continued their fire. It was determined, therefore, to storm the forts on that side, and late in the evening the force destined for that purpose was landed, led by Captains Shadwell and Vansittart and Colonel Lemon, of the marines, and supported by Commanders Commerell and Heath. The gallant Captain Tricault led a body of French, and the boats of an American man-of-war a.s.sisted in landing the men. Scarcely, however, had they jumped on sh.o.r.e, unable to obtain the slightest shelter, than the Chinese opened a tremendous fire on them with jingalls, rifles, and muskets, and every gun that could be brought to bear. In a few minutes numbers were hit, Captain Vansittart was mortally wounded, Captain Shadwell's foot was smashed, and Colonel Lemon fell, severely hurt. The command now devolved on Commerell, who gallantly led forward his men; but two ditches and a wide extent of mud intervened between them and the fort, and so thickly did the shot rain down on them that, before they got twenty yards, 300 were killed or wounded, and they were compelled to retreat--many unfortunate fellows being suffocated in the mud. Of the numerous vessels which had run on sh.o.r.e, all were got off with the exception of the _Cormorant, Plover_, and _Lee_, which were knocked to pieces to prevent them falling into the hands of the Chinese. In this disastrous affair above 80 men had been killed and 350 wounded, many of whom died from their hurts.

The Chinese were not allowed, however, for any length of time to boast of their victory. The Peiho was again entered, the town of Pehtang was occupied and the Taku Forts again attacked from the sea and land.

Though the army lost a good many men in the operations, not one on board the gunboats was killed. The booms across the river were broken through, the iron stakes drawn, and Admiral Hope pus.h.i.+ng on in the _Coromandel_ with a squadron of gunboats, arrived before Tientsin, which yielded to the first summons.

After this the duties of the steamers consisted chiefly in conveying the heavy siege trains of baggage and provisions for the supply of the army in the neighbourhood of Pekin, when after his army had been thoroughly defeated, and at the moment that his city was about to be stormed, the emperor yielded to all the demands of the allies. The emperor had acted with great treachery in the negotiations for peace, imprisoning and torturing the English envoys and escort, so as a lesson to him and his people, his celebrated Summer Palace was burnt to the ground, thus showing them that had they thought fit Pekin itself might have been treated in the same manner.

RUSSIAN WAR--1854-55.

Russia had shown her evident intention of laying violent hands on Turkey, by destroying with a treachery unworthy a civilised nation a Turkish squadron at Sinope, and England and France being bound by treaty to protect the Ottoman Empire, without delay each despatched a fleet into the Black Sea. That of England was under the command of Admiral Dundas, who had his flag on board the _Britannia_, of 120 guns, his second in command being Rear-Admiral Sir Edmund Lyons, whose flag flew on board the _Agamemnon_, of 91 guns, a name known to fame. The other s.h.i.+ps were the _Trafalgar_, of 120 guns, the _Queen_, of 116, the _Albion_, 91, _Rodney_ and _London_, 90, _Vengeance_, 84, _Bellerophon_, 80, _Sanspareil_, 70, _Arethusa_ and _Leander_, 50, _Tribune_ and _Curacoa_, 31, _Retribution_, steam-frigate, 28, _Diamond_, 26, _Terrible_ and _Sidon_, steam-frigates, 22, _Highflyer_, steam-sloop, 21, _Furious_ and _Tiger_, 16, the former a steam-frigate, the _Niger_, 13, and nine steam-sloops. The French fleet consisted of 15 sail of the line, and 21 frigates and smaller vessels.

From the first Admiral Lyons contemplated an attack on Sebastopol, and in order to ascertain the strength of its fortifications, Captain Drummond, of the _Retribution_, before war was actually declared, was sent there with a despatch for the Russian governor. He ran in during a fog, and had brought up before even his presence was discovered. Having sent his despatch on sh.o.r.e, he waited for an answer, making good use of his time, and when it arrived, having exchanged salutes with the governor, he stood out again with the valuable information he had obtained. Peace not having been actually broken, the _Furious_, Captain Loring, was sent to Odessa to bring off the British consul, or any British subjects who might wish to leave it. As the frigate was receiving them on board, the garrison, notwithstanding the flag of truce she carried, fired on her. This treacherous conduct deserved a prompt punishment. A fleet accordingly on the 17th of April sailed for that port, off which they anch.o.r.ed on the 20th. The line-of-battle s.h.i.+ps could not get close enough to the walls, and a squadron of English and French steam-frigates under Captain Jones, of the _Sampson_, stood in and delivered their broadsides. Having done so, one after another in succession steamed rapidly round out of gunshot, to return again and fire as before. The Russian guns returned the compliment with red-hot shot, which set the _Vauban_ on fire. Captain Mends, of the "gallant _Arethusa_," remembering the fame of her name, though he had only his sails to depend on, ran in as close as the depth of water would allow, and opened a heavy fire from his 9-inch sh.e.l.l guns, and repeated his manoeuvres till recalled by a signal from the flag-s.h.i.+p. Ultimately some gunboats with rockets were directed to try their powers; at last flames burst forth from several parts of the works, and at one o'clock the magazine in the princ.i.p.al fort exploding cast destruction around.

The batteries having been now silenced, the squadron stood closer in and destroyed moat of the vessels which had taken shelter behind the mole.

Soon after the fleet retired from before Odessa, the _Tiger_, which had been stationed off the coast, ran on sh.o.r.e. While attempts were being made to get her off the Russians brought down a field battery, from which they opened so brisk a fire that Captain Gifford, being mortally wounded, and several of his men hit, he was compelled, in order to save their lives, to haul down his flag.

Another visit to ascertain the strength of Sebastopol was paid by Captain Tatham, of the _Fury_. Disguising her like an Austrian packet, which he knew was expected in the harbour, he boldly stood in on the 10th of May, running past two brigs of war, and having sufficiently looked about him steamed as calmly out again, hoisting the British colours as soon as he had got out of shot. While still in sight of the batteries he captured a Russian schooner, and was carrying her off, when some frigates getting under way, chased him and compelled him to abandon his prize. The fleets now proceeded off Sebastopol, sending away some of their s.h.i.+ps in order to induce the Russians to come out and fight them. All their efforts proved vain, and Sir Edmund Lyons scoured the Black Sea till not a Russian vessel of any size remained on its bosom.

Some months thus pa.s.sed, when the army having been collected at Varna, Sir Edmund Lyons, to whom the task was intrusted by the commander-in-chief, embarked them on board the transports destined for their reception. Admirably were the arrangements made, both for their embarkation and landing on the sh.o.r.es of the Crimea. Indeed, difficult as were both operations, they were carried out without the loss of a man, and with that only of one or two horses drowned. While the army marched towards the Alma, the fleet proceeded along the sh.o.r.e. Some of the steamers standing in, put to flight the few Russian troops their guns could reach. For some time it was hoped that the Russian s.h.i.+ps would come out of Sebastopol and give battle to the allied fleets; but all hopes of their doing so were lost when the Russians, having arranged some of their finest line-of-battle s.h.i.+ps across the harbour, scuttled them, and their masts were seen slowly descending beneath the surface.

No hopes remaining of a naval engagement, each s.h.i.+p supplied a contingent of men, who were formed into a naval brigade, under Captain Stephen Lus.h.i.+ngton, a body of the French seamen being employed in the same manner. None of the brave fellows employed in the siege performed a greater variety of duties, or behaved with more gallantry, than did the British blue-jackets on sh.o.r.e. They fought in the batteries, armed with some of their own heavy s.h.i.+p's guns dragged up by themselves from the sh.o.r.e, carried the scaling-ladders in many an a.s.sault, a.s.sisted to land the stores, and were for some time the princ.i.p.al labourers in forming a road between Balaclava and Sebastopol. Led by the gallant Captain Peel, they took an active part in the a.s.sault on the Redan, on which occasion they lost 14 killed and 47 wounded. They were ever-active in succouring those who had been left on the field of battle, whether blue-jackets or red-coats, and many who might have perished owed their lives to their courage and activity. During the engagement known as the Little Inkerman, on the 26th of October Mr Hewett, mate of the _Beagle_, while in command of a Lancaster gun, was greatly instrumental in the defeat of the Russians. Having received a message by a sergeant from an officer, who thought the battery would be taken in reverse, to spike his gun and retreat, he replying that he only received orders from his own captain, got his gun round to bear on the Russians, and blowing away the parapet, poured his fire down on them in a way which compelled them to abandon their object.

As soon as the troops on sh.o.r.e were ready to open with their batteries, the combined fleets prepared to perform their parts in attacking the sea faces of Sebastopol. By this time Admiral Dundas had given up the command of the fleet to Sir Edmund Lyons, who, as before, directed all the operations. The _Agamemnon_ and _Sanspareil_ were the only line-of-battle s.h.i.+ps fitted with screws, but there were steamers sufficient to tow all into action, or to a.s.sist them out again if necessary. The final arrangements were made on the 16th between the English and French admirals, when it was settled that the French and Turks should attack the forts on the south side of the harbour, and the English those on the north. Early on the morning of the 17th the order to weigh was given--the fleets having been collected in Kazatch Bay, some distance to the north of the city. The French and Turks, who formed one line, naturally led; the _Britannia_ followed, close to the _Charlemagne_, the rearmost of the French line. An insh.o.r.e squadron had been formed, consisting of the _Agamemnon, Sanspareil_, and _London_, which was afterwards joined by the _Albion_ and other s.h.i.+ps. The _Britannia_, the most southern of the British s.h.i.+ps, took up her position opposite Fort Constantine; next to her in succession were the _Trafalgar, Vengeance, Rodney_, and _Queen_. The _Agamemnon_, piloted by Mr Ball in the little steam-tender _Circa.s.sia_, glided on till she was about 750 yards from Fort Constantine, close to a shoal, which prevented her nearer approach. The _London, Sanspareil_, and _Albion_ followed her, but were unable to get quite as near the fort as she was.

The admiral had warned Mr Ball that his little vessel would probably be sunk, and promised to keep a boat ready to save him and his crew should she go down; but undaunted by the danger, he stood on amid a perfect shower of shot and sh.e.l.l, sounding as he went, till the line was cut from the leadsman's hand by a shot from the batteries; but another leadsman immediately took his place, and the _Circa.s.sia_, without a man killed, though frequently hulled, steamed out of harm's way.

Immediately the _Agamemnon's_ anchor was dropped, she opened her fire, as did the other s.h.i.+ps in succession. Fortunately, from being so close in, the Russian shot mostly pa.s.sed over her, as the guns had been trained for a longer range; but the s.h.i.+ps to the north of her suffered considerably. Happily, one of the first sh.e.l.ls she fired reached the powder-magazine in the fort, which, blowing up with a tremendous explosion, drove the Russians from their guns, and though they again returned, it was to find that a large number of them had been dismounted, while the upper part of their works were crumbling to pieces from the effects of the fire from the British s.h.i.+ps. From their lower batteries, however, and from various forts on the heights, so hot was the Russian fire, that the _Albion_ and _London_, terribly shattered, were compelled to haul off. The _Sanspareil_ also brought up so close to the _Agamemnon_ as to be unable to use her foremost guns, and had to get under way to take up a better berth, and for a time the _Agamemnon_ stood the brunt of the battle in her part of the line. The _Sanspareil_, however, again quickly came to her support, and the _Albion_, having repaired some of her damages, returned; but as the _London_ was unable to do so, the admiral signalled to the _Rodney_, the _Queen, Bellerophon_, and _Arethusa_, to come to his a.s.sistance. A short time afterwards the _Queen_, set on fire by a sh.e.l.l, was compelled to retreat, and the _Rodney_ got on sh.o.r.e at the end of the bank; but a large portion of her crew having joined the naval brigade, she had but few men on board, and therefore fought only her main-deck guns, and though in so exposed a position, escaped with comparatively little loss.

For five hours the whole fleet kept up perhaps the most tremendous cannonade that has ever been fired from British or any other s.h.i.+ps, when night coming on, the _Agamemnon_ made the signal for the fleet to retire, she herself being the last to leave her station. Though during that time the upper portions of some of the Russian batteries had been knocked away, and a large number of people killed and wounded in them, the furious cannonade which had been so long kept up produced no result to compensate the British for a loss sustained of 44 killed and 266 wounded, besides the damages received by many of the s.h.i.+ps, two of which, the _Albion_ and _Arethusa_, had to go to Malta to be repaired.

Though the French s.h.i.+ps suffered more than ours, they lost under 200 men killed and wounded. The steamers had gallantly performed their part in towing the s.h.i.+ps in and out of action, notwithstanding the showers of shot and sh.e.l.l directed at them. Altogether, the admirals came to the conclusion that it was useless attempting to batter down the stone walls of the fortifications, or to again expose their s.h.i.+ps to such a fire as they had that day endured.

A portion of the allied fleets still remained before Sebastopol, and hara.s.sed the garrison by sending into the harbour two fast, strongly-armed steamers night after night, which, always keeping in motion, fired their shot into the city, and rapidly steamed out again before the enemy could get their guns to bear on them. On one of these occasions the admiral's son, while directing the course of his vessel, was so severely wounded that he died shortly afterwards.

During the winter months of 1855 no operations were undertaken by the fleet, but as soon as the finer weather allowed the s.h.i.+ps to navigate the Black Sea, an expedition sailed for Kertch, a town of importance at the extreme eastern point of the Crimea, containing immense magazines of corn, with which from thence the beleaguered garrison was supplied.

Just as the expedition was sailing, however, Canrobert, who had supreme authority over the French naval forces, forbade Admiral Brueys from proceeding, and Sir Edmund magnanimously gave up the enterprise for a time at the earnest request of his colleague. A fortnight afterwards, however, General Pelissier succeeding Canrobert, authorised the French admiral to proceed in support of the English. An overpowering fleet accordingly sailed towards the entrance of the Sea of Azov. As soon as the s.h.i.+ps appeared off Kertch, the Russians blew up their fortifications without firing a shot, and evacuated the place. The only officer who had an opportunity of distinguis.h.i.+ng himself was Lieutenant McKillop, commanding the _Snake_, of 4 guns. Perceiving a Russian steamer in the offing, he obtained leave to chase her, which he did till she got under the forts of Yenikale, when both fort and steamer opened their guns on him. Undaunted, he returned the salute, throwing his sh.e.l.ls upon both his opponents, and in three-quarters of an hour set the steamer on fire.

He was still blazing away at the fort, when three other steamers were seen approaching, and they also, as he refused to run, began to attack him, the guns of each one of them being of heavier calibre than his. He continued engaging them till a.s.sistance sent by the admiral arrived, when the whole of the Russian vessels were captured.

While the larger s.h.i.+ps proceeded in various directions along the coast, a squadron consisting of the smaller vessels and gunboats were sent into the Sea of Azov, under Captain Lyons, of the _Miranda_, to attack the numerous stores of corn and other provisions acc.u.mulated at different spots along the sh.o.r.es. On the return of the _Miranda_ to Sebastopol, Captain Lyons was succeeded by Commander Sherard Osborn in the _Vesuvius_. Although the duties imposed on the squadron were not apparently of a very heroic character, they were attended with a considerable amount of risk, and were carried out in a most spirited and gallant manner. In several places the magazines and stores were protected by large bodies of the enemy, who fought courageously in their defence, but were invariably defeated by the determination and activity of the British seamen. Taganrog and other places were protected by heavy batteries, which, however, did not prevent the little squadron from attacking them and coming off victorious. For many months the steam-vessels were thus employed moving about from one place to another.

Wherever they were least expected, the officers landed with parties of men, and did not hesitate to proceed either up the rivers or some way inland wherever they gained intelligence that storehouses existed, and in no instance failed to set them on fire. Many hazardous and gallant acts were performed. In this way the squadron were of the most essential service to the allies, and by almost depriving the garrison of Sebastopol of their means of support, were mainly instrumental in the reduction of the great fortress. In a short time scarcely a Russian trading-vessel on those waters had escaped destruction or capture. The vessels of the squadron were everywhere, and often, when espied by troops of Cossack cavalry from the sh.o.r.e, there would be a race between them and the vessels who should first arrive at the store-houses, which the latter had destined to destruction, while the steamers' long guns played on the Cossacks, and generally sent them galloping away inland out of range of fire, so that when they reached the store-houses they found them burnt to the ground. One of the last places attacked was Gheisk, in the neighbourhood of which, extending for fully four miles along the sh.o.r.e, were collected in huge stacks quant.i.ties of corn and hay; while close to the town, under the protection of its batteries, were large piles of timber, cured fish, numerous boats, and naval stores of all descriptions. The place was protected by a strong force of infantry and cavalry. Notwithstanding, Captain Osborn proceeded to attack it with the gunboats _Grinder, Boxer, Cracker_, and _Clinker_; but the shallowness of the water would allow them to get only just within range of the batteries. The squadron was, however, supplied with a number of large boats which could carry heavy guns, and these he brought close in to the sh.o.r.e in order to cover the landing-parties, distributing them in four divisions, under Commander Kennedy and Lieutenants Ross, Day, and Strode, with directions to land at intervals of a mile from each other, and then driving the Russians before them to set fire to the stores. To protect the stores, the Russians had thrown up light breast-works along the whole of their front, but they were not such as to arrest British blue-jackets for a moment. Fortunately, the wind blew directly on sh.o.r.e, and thus as soon as the boats opened fire the smoke was driven in the faces of the enemy. The seamen quickly landing, notwithstanding the warm fire with which they were received, drove the Russians before them, and the stacks being at once ignited, the dense volumes of smoke which arose from them completely concealed the movements of the British, whose only object being to destroy the corn and hay, did not follow the enemy. Success attended every one of the operations; in a little more than six hours every stack was blazing, as were the piles of timber, the boats, naval stores, and dried fish, under the protection of the batteries at Gheisk--the whole work being accomplished with the loss only of five men wounded.

To prevent the escape of any of the Russian s.h.i.+ps on the fall of Sebastopol, the allied squadron brought up across the harbour, when the enemy having already sunk the remainder of their line-of-battle s.h.i.+ps, set fire to all their steamers, thus with their own hands destroying the whole of their fleet. The English and French fleet then sailed for Kinburn, standing on the sh.o.r.e of a shallow bay full of shoals. On their way they appeared off Odessa, in order to mislead the Russians, and then proceeded direct for their destination. The troops, consisting of 5000 British, and a large number of French, were landed on the 15th, and some of the gunboats stood in, and began firing to distract the garrison. The roughness of the sea, however, prevented the s.h.i.+ps from commencing the grand attack till the 17th. The smaller steamers and gunboats then advanced, circling round and delivering their fire in rapid succession, silencing the Russian guns, killing the men, and forcing them to take refuge under ground. About noon the line-of-battle s.h.i.+ps, English and French, entered into action in magnificent order close to the batteries, while a squadron of steamers, led by Sir Houston Stuart and the French rear-admiral, approached the forts on the northern side, and began pouring in their broadsides. Not for a moment was there a cessation of the thundering roar of the guns, while the whole fleet and doomed fortress became shrouded in dense wreaths of smoke, the gunboats on the other side keeping up their fire with fearful effect.

The fire from the French floating batteries, which had lately been sent out at the suggestion of Napoleon, was most effective, while their power of resistance was fully as great as had been expected, the heavy shot by which they were frequently struck falling harmless from their iron sides, while the sh.e.l.ls s.h.i.+vered against them like gla.s.s. The bombardment from the larger s.h.i.+ps had continued scarcely a quarter-of-an-hour when a white flag was seen flying from the ramparts as a token of submission, and as if by magic the firing ceased. In a short time afterwards the old Russian general appeared to deliver up his sword, and he and a large staff of officers, who were permitted to retain their swords, became prisoners.

The Russians themselves blew up Oczakov, which was to have been attacked, while Sir Houston Stuart led a squadron up the Boug, and destroyed a battery on its sh.o.r.e. Had not the Russians soon afterwards come to terms, not a place of importance on their southern coasts would have been left in their possession.

OPERATIONS IN THE BALTIC.

While one British fleet was attacking the Russians on the southern sh.o.r.es of their empire, another of still greater power was sent up the Baltic to prove to them that no part of their coasts was safe. Great results were naturally expected from it, and, indeed, England had never before sent so really powerful a fleet to sea--not on account of the number of the s.h.i.+ps, but from their means of inflicting injury, most of them possessing steam power, while their guns were more effective than any which had before been used. The fleet consisted of the _Duke of Wellington_, of 131 guns, _Neptune, Saint George_, and _Royal George_, 120, _Saint Jean d'Arc_, 101, _Princess Royal, James Watt, Nile_, and _Majestic_, of 91, _Caesar_ and _Prince Regent_, of 90, _Monarch_, 84, _Cressy_, 80, _Boscawen_ and _c.u.mberland_, 70, _Edinburgh, Hogue, Blenheim_, and _Ajax_, of 60, _Imperieuse_ and _Euryalus_, of 51, and _Arrogant_, of 46, besides frigates, sloops, and numerous paddle-steamers, the whole under the command of Admiral Sir Charles Napier. Gallant and energetic as he had always proved himself, he was now sixty-eight years of age, and those who knew him best feared too truly that his energies had begun to fail him, and that he would have acted more wisely by remaining on sh.o.r.e. The French also sent a considerable fleet to take part in the operations. The first portion of the fleet entered the Great Belt on the 25th of March, and proceeding to the Gulf of Finland, established a rigorous blockade. Napier then, moving towards Helsingfors, prevented a junction of the two portions of the Russian fleet, while in the meantime Admiral Plumridge, scouring the Gulf of Bothnia, captured a large number of merchantmen.

One of the first exploits in the Baltic was performed by Captain Yelverton, of the _Arrogant_, and Captain W.H. Hall, of the _Hecla_, who, running up a narrow creek, made their way to the town of Ekness, eight miles from the sea, where, after a sharp engagement with some batteries, they carried off a large merchant-vessel under the noses of the enemy. The fleets then appeared off Cronstadt, the approaches to which had been carefully surveyed by the indefatigable Captain Sulivan, of the _Lightning_, but the strength of the fortifications induced the admirals to believe that it would be useless to attack it, and they in vain endeavoured to tempt the Russian fleet to come out and give them battle. Bomarsund was the first place of importance a.s.sailed. It was attacked on the land side by the English artillery and French troops, as well as by the English and French marines, with a brigade of seamen who were landed after a fort which was in their way had been blown to pieces, while thirteen s.h.i.+ps of the allied fleet a.s.sailed it from the sea. The s.h.i.+ps directed their fire against a large circular fort mounting nearly 100 guns, with a garrison of 2000 men, when the shot soon shattered the huge ma.s.ses of stone, which literally crumbled away before them, and in a short time the garrison, seeing that resistance was useless, yielded, and Bomarsund was taken possession of. It was, however, said that the works, though apparently strong, had been constructed by contract, and were therefore less able to withstand the shot hurled against them than the other fortresses which Russia possessed on her sea-board. Still, if such was the case, it does not detract from the praise due to those who had made the attack. The whole fortress was forthwith blown up, with the exception of one portion, which was allowed to stand for a few days to enable the _Edinburgh_ to try some of her heavy guns against it, and it was finally levelled with the rest of the works.

The winter season coming on, compelled the fleet to return to England.

Whatever may be said of the gallant old admiral's conduct during the war, it was acknowledged that the crews of his s.h.i.+ps, though inexperienced when they set sail, returned in a high state of efficiency.

While these proceedings were taking place in the Baltic, in order as much as possible to annoy the Russians in all portions of their vast territory, a small British squadron, consisting of the _Eurydice_, Captain Ommaney, the _Miranda_, Captain Lyons, and the _Brisk_, Commander Seymour, were sent into the White Sea, where, though they found it impossible to attack Archangel, they destroyed several government establishments. The _Miranda_ also, steaming up the river Kola for thirty miles, attacked the capital of Russian Lapland, of the same name, and, with her yardarms almost over the walls, set the city on fire and destroyed most of the public buildings and magazines. In spite of the hot fire with which his s.h.i.+p was a.s.sailed from the batteries, Captain Lyons returned from his gallant enterprise without losing a man, and, after capturing a fleet of merchant-vessels, rejoined Captain Ommaney.

The most unfortunate event of the whole war occurred on the Pacific coast, when a small English and French squadron, in attempting to take a number of Russian vessels anch.o.r.ed off Petro Pauloffsky, they were driven off, while by bad management the whole of the Russian vessels escaped.

The following year Admiral Dundas, being appointed to the command in the Baltic, sailed in the _Duke of Wellington_, of 130 guns, with Rear-Admiral Sir Michael Seymour as his second in command in the _Exmouth_, of 90 guns, and numerous other line-of-battle s.h.i.+ps, block-s.h.i.+ps, and smaller vessels, nearly all fitted with the screw, and upwards of twenty gunboats. At the end of May the fleet arrived off Cronstadt, when the two admirals, going on board the _Merlin_, which, under the command of Captain Sulivan, had been actively surveying that and other places in the Baltic, stood in to examine the works and the Russian fleet protected by them. They were not long in coming to the conclusion that the place, if not impregnable, would be most difficult to a.s.sail, while it was ascertained that a vast number of torpedoes had been placed in all directions in the shallow waters over which the s.h.i.+ps must pa.s.s. Many had been put down in the preceding year, but, though looked for, none had been discovered; this year, however, several were fished up, and one was brought on board the _Exmouth_, when, while Admiral Seymour and his officers were examining it, it exploded in their midst. Though the admiral was wounded, as were several other officers and men, not one was killed. The _Merlin_, also, while pa.s.sing over a shallow, exploded two, one of which drove in her side, breaking or disabling everything in that portion of the s.h.i.+p, though, happily, without committing any further damage. The greater number discovered had not been properly set, and thus had become injured from various causes. The boats, by carefully creeping wherever they were likely to be placed, ultimately discovered nearly the whole which it was supposed had been laid down. Very different would have been the result had they been constructed as torpedoes are at the present day, when in all probability many of our s.h.i.+ps would have been destroyed.

The Russian fleet kept securely within their fortifications while the English and French remained off Cronstadt. All intention of attacking it being abandoned, the allies proceeded in different directions. The smaller vessels cruised off the coast, destroying all the government magazines and stores they could reach, and capturing innumerable merchant-vessels; while the admirals were preparing for an attack on the fortress of Sveaborg, which had been considerably strengthened since the preceding year. It stands on three islands, round the whole circ.u.mference of which the works form an almost unbroken line, and within them are vast a.r.s.enals full of all descriptions of warlike stores; while in front of the fortress lies a cl.u.s.ter of rocky islets.

The pa.s.sages between these islets had been carefully surveyed by Captain Sulivan, and on each of those nearest the fortress, mortar batteries were now placed, while the mortar-boats formed in a line outside them.

The gunboats and mortar-vessels in different divisions were directed to stand in among the islets, where there was sufficient room for their movements, while the whole were covered by the frigates, which took up their stations outside. Some of the princ.i.p.al buildings in the fortress had been selected as targets, and so well had Captain Sulivan placed the mortar-vessels, that the sh.e.l.ls thrown from them fell exactly on the spots at which they were aimed, as was ascertained by the cloud of smoke which rose from each. Hitherto it had been considered necessary not to fire more than seven shots in an hour from a mortar, but Captain Wemyss, who had charge of the mortar-vessels, considering that should such a plan be adopted, the enemy would have time to extinguish the flames they produced, determined to allow a much less interval to elapse, and sent no less than thirty sh.e.l.ls an hour from each mortar. The gunboats were in the meantime performing their part, moving rapidly in circles, each boat firing as she brought her guns to bear on the fortifications.

Besides their ordinary armament, each vessel had received on board from the line-of-battle s.h.i.+ps a 10-inch gun, and two of them, the _Snapper_ and _Stork_, had been armed with long Lancaster guns. These were detached to attack a large three-decker at anchor between the islets, and so furious a fire did they open that flames several times burst out from her, while in a short time nearly seventy of her crew had been killed. The Russians, with their numerous guns, fired away rapidly in return. Though the gunboats were within range, their small size and quick movements made them difficult marks to hit, and only one or two were struck. The batteries thrown up on the small islets were throwing sh.e.l.ls at the same time, while the _Arrogant, Cornwallis, Hastings_, and _Amphion_ attacked the Drumsio and Sandham batteries, and kept them amply employed. About noon, some sh.e.l.ls fell into several powder-magazines, which blew up with successive explosions, casting huge fragments of masonry and numberless sh.e.l.ls into the air, proving the destruction which had been produced. The bombardment continued during the whole day, and not till sunset did Admiral Dundas withdraw the gunboats, or till some time afterwards the mortar-vessels, when the boats of the fleet, armed with rockets, were sent off to attack Vargon and the other princ.i.p.al islands, under Captain Caldwell, of the _Duke of Wellington_. Thus fearfully the unhappy garrison were annoyed during the whole night, and at daybreak the gunboats and mortar-vessels again began to play on the batteries. The mortars, however, were so considerably worn by the firing of the previous day, that one or two burst, and none were so effective as before. East Svarto, which had before escaped, was now attacked by a division of English and French mortar-boats, placed by Captain Sulivan considerably nearer the fortifications than they had hitherto ventured. Their fire was replied to by some heavy guns, which the enemy had brought up, but no damage was received from them. In a short time, dense columns of smoke and forked flames ascending in all directions showed that the buildings, magazines, and a.r.s.enal were being destroyed, and when night came on, one unbroken sheet of flame ascended from the fortress. To prevent the enemy from attempting to extinguish it, the rocket-boats were again sent in, and effectually performed their object. The conflagration continued, raging all night, and on the morning of the 11th there was no sign of its abatement. The admiral was therefore satisfied that the work he had undertaken was accomplished, and as the Russians had ceased to fire, he discontinued the action. The whole of the operation had been accomplished without the loss of a single man killed, and scarcely 16 in the British fleet wounded; but the slaughter among the unfortunate Russians was prodigious. Of one whole regiment but few had survived, and at Vargon and Svarto a large number of the garrison had been killed.

Had sh.e.l.ls not been used, and an attempt simply been made to destroy the fortress with the s.h.i.+ps' heavy guns, the allies would probably have been driven away with severe loss, without making any impression on its ma.s.sive walls. It was the first time in the history of war that sh.e.l.ls had been thrown from a distance at which the besiegers could not be reached by the enemy's shot, or that shot had been discharged from vessels moving at so rapid a rate as to render it scarcely possible for the besiegers to strike them. These circ.u.mstances, with the use of torpedoes, showed that a new era in marine warfare had commenced, and that from henceforth the style of fighting which had existed down to the period of Algiers and Navarino was about entirely to be changed.

No other operation of importance was undertaken, and the winter approaching, the admiral sent home the sailing-vessels and gunboats, though he did not finally quit Kiel till the first week in December, when soon afterwards the whole fleet arrived safely in England.

Happily, the various reverses he had experienced induced the Emperor of Russia to see the hopelessness of continuing the war, and to sue for peace.

From the time of the Crimean war and onwards, the British Navy has happily never had occasion to engage in warfare with the s.h.i.+ps of any of the other great Powers. Individual s.h.i.+ps and "naval contingents,"

however, have taken part in operations of more or less importance, and the first action in which a British vessel was opposed to an ironclad, took place in 1877, when the cruiser _Shah_ engaged for some hours the Peruvian turret-s.h.i.+p _Huascar_.

In the course of one of the numerous revolutions that so often convulse the South American Republics, the latter vessel had become little better than a pirate, by levying contributions on various seaport towns, but having been venturesome enough to deal with British vessels in the same way, the _Shah_ and the _Amethyst_ were sent to demand satisfaction.

The _Huascar_, however, paid no attention, and at last the British s.h.i.+ps opened fire on her.

The _Shah_ was a fast cruiser armed with heavy guns, but was wholly unarmoured, while the _Amethyst_ was only a small sloop, also unarmoured. The _Huascar_ was a small, low, turret-s.h.i.+p of the _Devastation_ type, with only one ten-inch gun mounted in her turret, but she was thickly armoured, and obtained a great advantage by taking up such a position that the _Shah_ had frequently to cease fire for fear of sending her shot into the adjacent town of Ylo.

The combat continued for three hours without result, as the _Shah_ had to keep at long-range; her shot repeatedly struck her opponent, but without result, owing to her armour. One sh.e.l.l however pierced the armour, and bursting inside, killed one man and wounded several more.

None of the _Huascar's_ shot struck the _Shah_ although they fell close on every side. Night put an end to the combat, and enabled the _Huascar_ to escape. In the course of the action the _Shah_ fired the first Whitehead torpedo ever used in actual warfare; the distance however, was too great and it failed to reach the mark. Next day the _Huascar_ surrendered to her own government.

The next occasion on which British wars.h.i.+ps were engaged was at Alexandria in July 1882. There had been trouble in Egypt for some time, and a month previously many Europeans had perished at the hands of the Alexandrian mob. A "National" party, headed by Arabi Pasha, was preparing revolt, and it was found that the fortifications of Alexandria were being strengthened, which would give serious trouble if marines had to be landed again to give protection to the Europeans. As the French declined to co-operate in any way, the British Government were left to deal with the matter alone, and, as the Egyptians declined to surrender the forts, pending the restoration of order, notice was given that the forts would be bombarded unless the demands were complied with. No answer being forthcoming, seven of the most powerful ironclads proceeded to bombard the forts, and after firing the whole day, drove the Egyptians from their guns and silenced the forts, blowing up a couple of magazines, and dismounting many of the guns. A large number of the Egyptians were killed, while on our side, only six men were slain, the armour giving efficient protection. The armour of the flag-s.h.i.+p however, was once perforated by a 10-inch sh.e.l.l, which dropped smoking on the deck, but a brave gunner, named Israel Harding, rushed upstairs, flung water on it to extinguish the fuse, and then dropped it into a bucket of water. For this brave deed, he was awarded the Victoria Cross.

Later on, our sailors gave great a.s.sistance during the expedition sent to relieve General Gordon in Khartoum, manning the gunboats which advanced up the Nile to that city, only to find that he had been murdered whenever it became known that they were at hand.

CHAPTER TWENTY.

THE EVOLUTION OF THE MODERN WARs.h.i.+P.

We may now pa.s.s on from the history of the doings of the British Navy to the history of the s.h.i.+ps themselves, and the appliances with which our sailors fought. We have seen that in the time of King Alfred, when the Navy, properly so-called, came into existence, s.h.i.+ps had but one deck, or were nearly altogether open, and had but one or two masts with large square sails, being propelled in calms and contrary winds by long oars.

For purposes of offence they were fitted with beaks or rams to pierce the sides of the enemy, and were provided with catapults or other engines for hurling missiles, and with tubes for projecting Greek fire to create smoke and set their opponent on fire. The main tactics of the time, however, consisted in grappling with the enemy and transforming the combat into a hand-to-hand melee.

When cannon were first mounted on board s.h.i.+p, about the year 1335, they were fired over the bulwarks, and the gunners were thus fully exposed to the enemy's fire. About the year 1500, however, the Dutch introduced the modern practice of pointing the guns through ports in the s.h.i.+p's side, so that the gunners would be sheltered from all shot that could not pierce the sides. This improvement was soon universally adopted, and by the beginning of the sixteenth century, s.h.i.+ps resembling on the whole the sailing s.h.i.+p of modern times had been evolved, having one or two tiers of guns. But as the fight was still at comparatively close quarters--owing to the guns being small, and of no great range,-- wars.h.i.+ps were fitted with c.u.mbrous "forecastles" and "aftercastles" (see ill.u.s.tration on page 69), and with heavy tops on the masts, to contain musketeers, in order to command the enemy's deck. These features greatly detracted from their seaworthiness, and made them unwieldy, c.u.mbrous craft.

As the centuries went on, experience gradually remedied the mistakes of the earlier builders. Artillery also was improved, and tactics no longer depended to the same extent on boarding and hand-to-hand fighting. High "forecastles" and "aftercastles," and heavy tops, thus became of little use and were discarded, as were also the oars used on smaller craft, as the art of sailing became better understood and vessels more seaworthy. For similar reasons the navigating and fighting sections of the crew, hitherto distinct, were merged into one, only a small number of "marines," as they are now called, being retained to perform military duties for which fully trained seamen were not required.

English naval architects seem to have had little inventive genius till a late period. The early s.h.i.+ps were all imitations from the Genoese or other maritime people of the Mediterranean, while latterly the best vessels were either taken from the French or else copied from them. For instance the model for all the 80-gun s.h.i.+ps built at the beginning of the nineteenth century was the _Canopus_, which was taken from the French, under the name of _Franklin_, at the Battle of the Nile in 1798.

The _Belleisle_, a "74," captured in 1795, bore a conspicuous part in the battle of Trafalgar. Many frigates also, whose names are known to fame, were acquired in the same way and performed useful service against their former possessors.

In the early part of the eighteenth century British men-of-war were of insufficient size for the guns they were made to carry, with the result they worked and sailed heavily, while in heavy weather their lower batteries could seldom be used. The smaller the vessel the thinner is her planking, and the more liable are her crew and structure to suffer from the shot of the enemy. Other nations realised this long before we did, especially the Americans, who built forty-four gun frigates almost as large as our "seventy-fours," while their planking was even thicker.