Although the two fleets both had eight ships in their lines, the British had an advantage in firepower: the 90-gun HMS London was the largest ship of either fleet (compared to the 80-gun Duc de Bourgogne), while the French fleet also included the recently captured 44-gun Romulus, the smallest vessel on either line.
 When Arbuthnot spotted the French fleet to his northeast at 6 am on March 16, they were about 40 nmi (74 km) east-northeast of Cape Henry.
 Arbuthnot came about, and Destouches ordered his ships to form a line of battle heading west, with the wind.
 Between 8 and 9 am the winds began shifting, but visibility remained poor, and the two fleets manoeuvred for several hours, each seeking the advantage of the weather gage.
 From 0815, he French were sailing close-hauled and had the weather gage, and around 0930, Destouches ordered to wear ship in sequence.
As they executed the order, the topsail yards of Ardent and Éveillé broke, slowing and disorganising the Destouches' battle line, and the British seized the opportunity to close in.
Destouches ordered another turn, further closing to the British, but allowing Ardent and Éveillé to repair and return to their stations, which they did by 1100.

By 1 pm the wind had stabilised from the northeast, and Arbuthnot was coming up on the rear of the French line as both headed east-southeast, tacking against the wind.
 Destouches ordered to wear ship in sequence again, and brought his line around in front of the advancing British line.
 With this manoeuvre he surrendered the weather gage (giving Arbuthnot the advantage in determining the attack), but it also positioned his ships relative to the wind such that he could open his lower gundecks in the heavy seas, which the British could not do without the risk of water washing onto the lower decks.

Arbuthnot responded to the French manoeuvre by ordering his fleet to wear.
 When the ships in the van of his line made the maneuver, they were fully exposed to the French line's fire, and consequently suffered significant damage.
At 1330, the vanguards of both squadron engaged, the French Crossing the T of the three first British ships.
Robust, Europe, and Prudent were virtually unmanageable due to damage to their sails and rigging.
 Arbuthnot kept the signal for maintaining the line flying, and the British fleet thus lined up behind the damaged vessels.

As Conquérant closed in to Robust, a cannonball struck her wheel, killed four helmsmen and sending her Into the wind.
the 74-gun Royal Oak and the 100-gun London closed within pistol range, but a lucky shot from Conquérant took off London's topsail yard, forcing her to stop.
Conquérant remained exposed for another 30 minutes before she managed to establish a jury rigging and return to the French battle line.

After one hour, Destouches at this point again ordered his fleet to wear in succession, and his ships raked the damaged British ships once more before pulling away to the east.
The British ships were too damaged to pursue.
Although the two fleets both had eight ships in their lines, the British had an advantage in firepower: the 90-gun HMS London was the largest ship of either fleet (compared to the 80-gun Duc de Bourgogne), while the French fleet also included the recently captured 44-gun Romulus, the smallest vessel on either line.  When Arbuthnot spotted the French fleet to his northeast at 6 am on March 16, they were about 40 nmi (74 km) east-northeast of Cape Henry.  Arbuthnot came about, and Destouches ordered his ships to form a line of battle heading west, with the wind.  Between 8 and 9 am the winds began shifting, but visibility remained poor, and the two fleets manoeuvred for several hours, each seeking the advantage of the weather gage.  From 0815, he French were sailing close-hauled and had the weather gage, and around 0930, Destouches ordered to wear ship in sequence. As they executed the order, the topsail yards of Ardent and Éveillé broke, slowing and disorganising the Destouches' battle line, and the British seized the opportunity to close in. Destouches ordered another turn, further closing to the British, but allowing Ardent and Éveillé to repair and return to their stations, which they did by 1100. 
By 1 pm the wind had stabilised from the northeast, and Arbuthnot was coming up on the rear of the French line as both headed east-southeast, tacking against the wind.  Destouches ordered to wear ship in sequence again, and brought his line around in front of the advancing British line.  With this manoeuvre he surrendered the weather gage (giving Arbuthnot the advantage in determining the attack), but it also positioned his ships relative to the wind such that he could open his lower gundecks in the heavy seas, which the British could not do without the risk of water washing onto the lower decks.
Arbuthnot responded to the French manoeuvre by ordering his fleet to wear.  When the ships in the van of his line made the maneuver, they were fully exposed to the French line's fire, and consequently suffered significant damage. At 1330, the vanguards of both squadron engaged, the French Crossing the T of the three first British ships. Robust, Europe, and Prudent were virtually unmanageable due to damage to their sails and rigging.  Arbuthnot kept the signal for maintaining the line flying, and the British fleet thus lined up behind the damaged vessels.
As Conquérant closed in to Robust, a cannonball struck her wheel, killed four helmsmen and sending her Into the wind. the 74-gun Royal Oak and the 100-gun London closed within pistol range, but a lucky shot from Conquérant took off London's topsail yard, forcing her to stop. Conquérant remained exposed for another 30 minutes before she managed to establish a jury rigging and return to the French battle line.
After one hour, Destouches at this point again ordered his fleet to wear in succession, and his ships raked the damaged British ships once more before pulling away to the east. The British ships were too damaged to pursue.
Battle of Cape Henry