The Revolution of 1789, and the declaration of the French Republic in 1792, led in 1793 to renewed war. The successes of France’s new military leader, Napoleon Bonaparte, resulted in withdrawal of the English fleet from the Mediterranean, and the isolation of Britain as her erstwhile allies made peace with France. From the spring of 1797, invasion and defeat seemed imminent. Horatio Nelson had proved his abilities at the victory over the Spanish fleet at Cape St Vincent (February 1797). In early 1798 he was given command of a fleet, tasked to bring the French fleet, amassing at Toulon, to battle and defeat.
Naval battle depended not only upon seamanship, and command of the major guns of ships of the line, but also upon smaller arms and on hand to hand fighting. In 1755 Parliament approved the establishment of a force of 5000 marines (‘sea-soldiers’), and the practice of deploying army units aboard ship gradually ceased. An opening was thus created for men of small wealth to purchase a commission much more cheaply than was possible in the regular army, and for them to share, although far from generously, in prize money.
Captain of Marines in May 1798 aboard Zealous, commanded by Captain Hood, was William Darley. Hood was ordered from blockade duty off Cadiz to join Nelson’s fleet, already making for Toulon. By 7th June, when he came up with Nelson, the French fleet was known to have sailed, accompanied by an armada of transports, its destination and object unknown. The subsequent chase across the Mediterranean, Nelson’s inspired anticipation of Napoleon’s movements, its apparent failure when he was not discovered at Alexandria, and the eventual glorious return to fight at Aboukir Bay, are described by Darley in a letter to his fellow marine officer, Laurence Desborough.
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Duplicate of a letter from William Darley, Captain of Marines, aboard Zealous, at Aboukir, off the Nile, Egypt, 14 August 1798, to his friend and colleague Laurence Desborough, serving off Cadiz and recently ordered home
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As well as recounting the events of the chase, and the horrors of battle, the letter demonstrates Darley’s pride in the fleet, and his detestation of Napoleon and of French ambitions to world domination, a view confirmed by the motives expressed in the letters Darley had seized upon boarding Zealous’ adversary, Le Guerrier.
Please note: An annotated transcript of Darley's letter is available as a PDF file: please click on the link in the right-hand column.