page_title: Mauritius campaign of 1809–1811
section_title: Battle of Grand Port
hierarchical_section_title: Mauritius campaign of 1809–1811 / Campaign / Battle of Grand Port
caption_attribution_description: Artist Pierre Julien GilbertDescription English: Battle of Grand Port Visible are, from left to right: HMS Iphigenia striking her colours (actually happened the next day) HMS Magicienne being scuttled by fire HMS Sirius being scuttled by fire HMS Nereide surrendered French frigate Bellone French frigate Minerve Victor (background) CeylonOil on canvasCollection Musée national de la Marine &#160;&#160;Native nameMusée national de la MarineLocationParisCoordinates48°&#160;51′&#160;43″&#160;N, 2°&#160;17′&#160;15″&#160;E Established1827Web pagewww.musee-marine.frAuthority control : Q1286709 VIAF:&#8201;19144648200974718522 ISNI:&#8201;0000 0001 2259 2914 LCCN:&#8201;n50055356 Museofile:&#8201;M5026 WorldCat institution QS:P195,Q1286709Source/Photographer Med English: Battle of Grand Port Visible are, from left to right: HMS Iphigenia striking her colours (actually happened the next day) HMS Magicienne being scuttled by fire HMS Sirius being scuttled by fire HMS Nereide surrendered French frigate Bellone French frigate Minerve Victor (background) CeylonOil on canvas
context_page_description: The Mauritius campaign of 1809–1811 was a series of amphibious operations and naval actions fought to determine possession of the French Indian Ocean territories of Isle de France and Île Bonaparte during the Napoleonic Wars. The campaign lasted from the spring of 1809 until the spring of 1811, and saw both the Royal Navy and the French Navy deploy substantial frigate squadrons with the intention of disrupting or protecting trade from British India. In a war in which the Royal Navy was almost universally dominant at sea, the campaign is especially notable for the local superiority enjoyed by the French Navy in the autumn of 1810 following the British disaster at the Battle of Grand Port, the most significant defeat for the Royal Navy in the entire conflict. After their victory, the British used the original Dutch name of Mauritius for Isle de France. In 1814, Île Bonaparte was returned to France, who eventually renamed it La Réunion.
context_section_description: Even before the French garrison on Île Bonaparte had surrendered, Rowley had turned his attention eastwards to Isle de France. The British commander had decided that the best way to eliminate the threat of Hamelin's squadron was to blockade the island's principal ports by seizing the coral islands that marked the entrances to the harbours through the complicated coral reefs that surrounded Isle de France. These islands were fortified, and once in British hands could prevent French ships leaving or entering the harbours, effectively containing Hamelin's ships until Rowley was ready to launch an invasion. Detailed to lead this campaign was Captain Samuel Pym in Sirius and Willoughby in Nereide, with instructions to begin by seizing Île de la Passe at the entrance to the harbour of Grand Port on the south-eastern coast of Isle de France.
  Willoughby stormed Île de la Passe on 13 August and captured it, blocking the entrance to Grand Port. With the harbour secure, Willoughby raided along the coastline while Pym, reinforced by Henry Lambert in Iphigenia and Lucius Curtis in Magicienne, blockaded Port Napoleon. On 20 August, sails were spotted approaching Grand Port and Willoughby determined to trick the approaching ships into entering the channel under Île de la Passe, where he could attack and capture them. The squadron was Duperré's squadron returning from the African coast with their prizes and, despite misgivings from Captain Bouvet, Duperré was determined to enter Grand Port and reassured by recognition signals flown by Willoughby, who had captured the French codes on Île de la Passe. As the French passed the fort, Willoughby sprang his trap and opened fire, but a false French tricolour flying from Île de la Passe accidentally ignited as it was lowered. The fire spread to a ready magazine in the fort, which exploded, causing severe damage and casualties. In the confusion all but one of Duperré's ships successfully entered the harbour.
  Willoughby appealed to Pym for assistance and Pym brought Sirius, Iphigenia and Magicienne to support Nereide, launching an assault on Grand Port on 23 August. Pym had failed to properly reconnoitre the channel and Duperré had had the warning buoys removed, so that Pym's squadron was blindly sailing into a complicated system of reefs and channels. Sirius and Magicienne were soon irretrievably grounded while Iphigenia struggled to find a passage and was unable to close with the French squadron. Only Nereide reached Duperré's line and Willoughby's initial attack was so determined that the entire French squadron was rapidly driven ashore, only Bellone remaining in a position to exchange fire with the British frigate. A fortunate shot from Bellone cut Nereide's anchor cable and the British frigate swung around, presenting her stern to the French ships which raked her repeatedly. Willoughby managed to mitigate some of the effects by cutting the other anchor cable, which brought some of his guns within range of the French, but the balance of the battle had shifted. Over the next few hours his frigate was battered from the French ships and from guns ashore until she was a dismasted, battered hulk with over 220 of her crew killed or wounded.
  Nereide surrendered on the morning of 24 August and over the next three days Magicienne and Sirius were abandoned and burnt to prevent their seizure by the French. On the morning of 28 August, Iphigenia, laden with survivors from the grounded frigates, was confronted by Hamelin and his main squadron, which had taken seven days to travel from Port Napoleon. Hugely outnumbered, Lambert had no choice but to surrender, ending the worst British naval defeat of the entire war. Rowley arrived in Boadicea on 29 August but was unable to influence the outcome of the battle and was chased back to Saint Denis by Hamelin on Vénus. On the defensive, Rowley sent messages to Rodriguez, Madras and the Cape of Good Hope requesting urgent reinforcements as Bouvet began a blockade of Île Bourbon in the hope of trapping Boadicea.
  On 11 September the frigate HMS Africaine arrived fro
caption: Combat de Grand Port, by Pierre Julien Gilbert, Musée national de la marine
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