Allemand's escape from Lorient facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Allemand's escape from Lorient
Part of the French Revolutionary Wars
Date 9 March 1812 – 29 March 1812 Location Lorient - Brest Result French success
Belligerents
France	Great Britain
Commanders and leaders
Admiral Zacharie Allemand	Admiral John Gore
Strength
4 ships of the line 4 frigates 2 corvettes	4 squadrons
Casualties and losses
-	-

Allemand's escape from Lorient was an important event during the French Navy's operations in 1812. French warships were stuck in Lorient, blocked by the British Navy. But under Admiral Zacharie Allemand, they managed to sneak out and sail to Brest. British ships chased them, but they couldn't catch the French fleet or make them fight.

Why the Escape Was Needed

By 1812, the British Royal Navy was much stronger than the French Navy. Most French ships were stuck in their own ports. They were blocked by the British, who wouldn't let them leave.

The French had good warships, but they mostly stayed in port. They rarely left because of the strong British blockade. Also, some events had spread out French ships to smaller ports. This made their main fleets weaker.

In 1812, Admiral Zacharie Allemand was given a mission. The government wanted him to gather the scattered French ships. He was to bring them all to the main port of Brest.

Allemand went to Lorient, where British ships were blocking the port. These British forces were led by Admiral John Gore. They had four large ships of the line, four smaller frigates, and some corvettes. These included the 80-gun HMS Tonnant and other powerful ships.

Allemand decided to wait for the perfect chance to leave. He spent five months in Lorient, planning his escape carefully.

Allemand's Daring Escape

In the middle of the night, between March 8 and 9, Admiral Allemand made his move. He sailed out with four ships of the line and two corvettes. His own ship was the Eylau.

His squadron also included the 74-gun Golymin, Marengo, and Vétéran. The corvettes were Diligente and Echo.

In the early afternoon, the British ship Tonnant checked the port of Lorient. It found almost no warships there, only one large ship. The next day, Tonnant returned and confirmed that Allemand had escaped. Admiral Gore then gathered his British ships to start a chase.

At 1:00 PM on March 9, the French ships were spotted by HMS Diana. This British ship, led by Captain William Ferris, followed them closely. The next afternoon, HMS Pompee joined the chase. At the same time, two other British ships, HMS Tremendous and HMS Poictiers, also started chasing the French.

During the night of March 10, Pompee lost sight of Diana. Suddenly, Pompee found itself being chased by two unknown ships. It tried to escape and had to dump 80 tons of water to speed up. The next morning, Diana, Pompee, Poictiers, and Tremendous met up. They saw the French squadron again and chased them until 2:00 PM, when thick fog made them lose contact.

On March 15, the French squadron met the British frigate HMS Nyaden. The frigate was damaged but managed to escape. It then quickly warned a group of merchant ships to change their route. This helped the merchant ships avoid the French squadron.

Allemand finally reached Brest on March 29. He had successfully avoided the three or four British squadrons that were chasing him. In Brest, he joined other French ships, including the Nestor and several frigates.

What Happened Next

The successful journey to Brest allowed the French to rebuild a strong fighting fleet. Most of the ships that arrived from Lorient were brand new. They included a powerful 80-gun ship and the strong 74-gun Vétéran. The Vétéran was almost as strong as an 80-gun ship.

Admiral Allemand's reputation grew even stronger. His earlier trip in 1805 was called the "invisible squadron" because he was so good at avoiding the British. This escape further proved he was a very skilled and lucky officer.

However, neither Allemand nor the fleet in Brest took part in any major battles after this.