Ringdove, they being a-head of the other ships; and by the animated fire kept up from them, one of the enemy’s frigates was very soon dismasted; upon which their crews began to desert them, and before long they were both observed to be in flames.
Captain Ballard now ordered the boats to land under the orders of Captain Cameron, of the Hazard, who gallantly stormed the batteries; which, together with their magazines, and the frigates, each pierced for 44 guns, and laden with stores and provisions for the garrison of Guadaloupe, were completely destroyed by 7 o’clock.
In the execution of this service, Captain Cameron, Mr. G. Jenkins, first Lieutenant of the Blonde, and several men, were slain; Lieutenant C. W. Richardson, and many others, wounded. The enemy’s loss was also supposed to be very severe, as their ships, although not fully manned, had on board at the commencement of the action, about 450 troops and artillerymen. Only 7 prisoners were taken.
Towards the latter end of Jan. 1810, Captain Ballard escorted a division of the army destined for the attack of Guadaloupe, from St. Lucia to the Saintes, where he remained three days, exercising his seamen and marines on shore, and making arrangements with Brigadier-General Harcourt for the debarkation of the troops[1]. From thence he proceeded with the squadron under his orders, and transports, towards Trois Rivieres, for the purpose of drawing the enemy’s attention from the other division of troops, which had already been landed at the village of St. Mary, under the superintendence of Commodore Fahie, and was then pushing through the difficult pass of Trochien. Having succeeded by his manoeuvres in deterring the enemy from attacking that division, he anchored between Basseterre and Ance la Barque, and landed the remainder of the troops without opposition, the enemy having evacuated their batteries, which were immediately taken possession, of by the marines of his squadron. Sir Alexander Cochrane had in the mean time anchored in the bay of Trois Rivieres.
From this period till the surrender of the island, Captain Ballard commanded the detachment of seamen and marines attached to the second division of the army; and his active co-operation was thus noticed by the commander of the forces, Lieutenant-General Sir George Beckwith:–
“GENERAL ORDERS.
“Head Quarters, Beau Fallon, Guadaloupe, Feb. 7, 1810.
“The commander of the forces desires to convey his best acknowledgments and thanks to Commodore Ballard, Captain Ballard, Captain StanMi, Captain Elliott, and to Captain Flin, of the Royal Navy, for their great and effectual services with the second division of the army to leeward, under the command of Brigadier-General Harcourt, and to the other officers and seamen of the fleet employed under their orders; without whose exertions the troops could not have been victualled in their present positions, nor
- ↑ It should here be observed, that the Sceptre’s crew had been trained to the use of the broad-sword, on the passage from England.
