Welsh Journals

Search over 450 titles and 1.2 million pages

114 NOTABLE MEN OF WALES. the Freya's submission. Lord Whitworth was at once despatched to the Danish Court to place the matter on an amicable footing. A squadron accompanied him, and an agreement was come to on the subject; but Eussia, although an ally of England, took offence at the attack on the Freya, and particularly at the passage through the sound of a British squadron. A convention between Eussia and Sweden, agreeing to the re-establishment of an armed neutrality, was entered into, which was joined by Denmark, at the instigation of Eussia and Prussia. This menacing attitude of the three northern Powers was met by the despatch on the 12th of March, 1801, from Yarmouth Eoads of a squadron, under the command of Admiral Sir Hyde Parker, in the London, ninety-eight, with Vice-Admiral Lord Nelson in the St. George, ninety-eight, as his second in command, and fifteen, afterwards augmented to eighteen, sail of the line, with as many frigates, sloops, bombs, fire-ships, and smaller vessels as made the whole amount to about fifty-three sail; with also the Forty-ninth Eegiment, two companies of the Eifie Corps, and a detachment of artillery on board. Opposed to them were forty-one Eussian, Swedish, and Danish effective ships of the line. In answer to an enquiry whether Denmark would negotiate, she returned a reply of open defiance, and on the 30th of March the British fleet got under weigh, and proceeded into the sound in line ahead—the van division commanded by Lord Nelson in the Elephant, seventy-four, Captain Foley, into which ship, as a lighter and more active one than the St. George, he had on the preceding day shifted his flag; the centre division under the Commander-in-Chief; and the rear division under Admiral Graves. About noon, or soon after, the fleet anchored at some distance above the island of Huen, which is about fifteen miles from the city of Copenhagen, the Danish capital. The enemy's defences were soon ascertained to be of the most formidable description. At a council of war much was urged to forego, or, at least, to delay the attack; but Lord Nelson prevailed, and offered with ten sail of the line and all the small craft to carry the business through in a proper manner. Admiral Parker cheerfully accepted the offer, and granted to his enterprising second two sail of the line more than he had asked. To increase the danger and difficulty of navigating the narrow approach to Copenhagen the Danes had removed or misplaced the buoys; but Lord Nelson, accom¬ panied, amongst others, by Captain Brisbane, of the Cruiser, proceeded in his boat to ascertain and re-buoy the outer channel. On the morning of the 1st of April the British fleet weighed, and shortly afterwards re-anchored off the north-west extremity of the Middle Ground, a shoal which extends along the whole front of the city of Copenhagen, leaving an intervening channel of deep water, called the Konig Strife, or King's Channel, about