Battle of Abukir (1799) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Battle of Abukir (1799) |
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| Part of the French Campaign in Egypt and Syria during the War of the Second Coalition | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 France |
 Ottoman Empire |
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Napoleon Bonaparte Joachim Murat (WIA) Géraud Duroc (WIA) Jean Lannes (WIA) François Lanusse Jacques-François Menou |
Mustafa Pasha (POW) Sir William Sidney Smith Patrona Bey Hassan Bey |
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| Strength | |||||||
| 9,000 infantry 1,000 Cavalry 17 guns |
5,000 under Mustapha Pasha, 2,000 under Hassan Bey 30 guns |
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| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 220 killed in action 600 wounded |
2,000 killed in action 11,000 drowned 5,000 captured 2,000 missing and unaccounted for |
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The Battle of Abukir (also spelled Aboukir or Abu Qir) was a major battle fought on July 25, 1799. In this battle, the French army, led by Napoleon Bonaparte, defeated the Ottoman forces under Seid Mustafa Pasha. This fight was part of the French campaign in Egypt.
It's important to know that this wasn't the first big fight in this area. A famous naval battle, called the Battle of the Nile, happened here on August 1, 1798. After the French army returned from a campaign in Syria, Ottoman troops arrived in Egypt. They were brought by the British fleet, led by Sidney Smith. Their goal was to end French control in Egypt.
Mustafa Pasha was a skilled commander. He knew that charging French soldiers in their strong square formations was a bad idea. So, he decided to build two defensive lines on the beach to protect his army. This would let him start his invasion of Egypt safely. However, Napoleon quickly saw a problem with this plan. If the Ottoman troops were defeated, they would have nowhere to run.
The French attacked the Ottoman positions. They quickly broke through the first defensive line, which wasn't even fully built yet. The second line was much stronger, and the French had to pull back for a short time. At this moment, a brave cavalry general named Murat saw his chance. He charged with his cavalry, quickly scattering the exposed Ottoman soldiers.
Murat's charge was so fast that he rode right into Mustafa Pasha's tent and captured the Turkish commander. Murat even cut off two of the Pasha's fingers with his sword! In return, Mustafa Pasha shot Murat in the jaw. Luckily, Murat was treated right away and was back on duty the very next day.
The Ottoman army panicked and fled. Many soldiers tried to swim to the British ships, which were two miles offshore, but most of them drowned. Others ran to Abukir castle, but they soon surrendered. The Ottoman army was almost completely destroyed. The French, however, lost fewer than 1,000 soldiers. News of this great victory reached France before Napoleon returned in October. This made him even more popular, which was very helpful given the problems in the French government at the time. This battle helped France keep control of Egypt for a while longer.
Why the Battle Happened
Even though Egypt was officially part of the Ottoman Empire, it had been mostly independent for hundreds of years. France had thought about taking over Egypt since 1774. In early 1798, Napoleon Bonaparte suggested invading Egypt. His bigger plan was to weaken British power in the Middle East. He hoped to use Egypt as a first step to capture Constantinople and then invade India. He also wanted to help local groups fight against the British. This plan was approved, and in July 1798, a French army of over 40,000 soldiers landed in Alexandria.
With help from the British, the Ottomans declared war on France. In 1799, they sent two armies to take back Egypt. One army traveled by sea with the British fleet. The other marched down the Syrian coast. Napoleon decided to attack first. In February 1799, he marched north, capturing Gaza City, El Arish, and Jaffa. But then he was stopped at Acre for over two months.
The city of Acre was defended by Djezzar Pasha, the Ottoman governor. He was helped by Antoine Le Picard de Phélippeaux, a British engineer who had studied with Bonaparte. The British Navy kept sending supplies to Acre. Napoleon's own army was weakened by a terrible sickness, so he had to retreat. This ended his plans to capture Constantinople.
Abukir is a small, narrow piece of land that sticks out from the Egyptian coastline. It's about 35 kilometers northwest of Alexandria. This peninsula is very important because it controls the paths to Rosetta (to the east) and Alexandria (to the west). A lake south of Abukir, sometimes called Lake Ma'adieh, formed in 1770. This made Abukir reachable only by three narrow roads.
On July 14, 1799, a British fleet with 16,000 Ottoman soldiers landed at Abukir. These troops were led by Mustafa Pasha, a seasoned commander. The Ottoman soldiers quickly defeated 300 French troops near Abukir and then attacked the Abukir fortress. The fortress was defended by only 35 French soldiers, who surrendered three days later. The Ottomans now controlled the peninsula.
Mustafa Pasha was very proud of this success and was in no hurry to march on Cairo. Murad Bey, an Egyptian leader who had joined him, joked about the French being afraid. But Murad Bey, who knew the French well, warned the Pasha to be glad the French were retreating, because if they turned around, the Ottoman army would disappear like dust.
Napoleon had been chasing Murad Bey near Cairo. But then, on July 15, he received an urgent message from Marmont, the military governor of Alexandria. Marmont reported that a large fleet of British and Ottoman ships had arrived off Abukir and landed 10,000 troops. Napoleon immediately sent orders for his generals to gather their forces at Damanhur, south of Abukir. He himself left Cairo with most of his troops, leaving only a small police force.
Napoleon quickly assembled about 10,000 infantry and 1,000 cavalry at Damanhur. He was worried the Ottoman army might march further into Egypt. So, he set out right away without waiting for all his troops. He arrived near Abukir on July 24. He was relieved to find the Ottoman army waiting there. Napoleon learned that the enemy commander was Mustafa Pasha, a leader who had won battles against the Russians. This would be a different kind of fight than those against the Mamluks.
Mustafa Pasha knew Napoleon's strengths: his clever tactics, fast decisions, and the strength of his square formations. To counter these, Pasha fortified his army in two strong defensive lines along the peninsula. Both sides of his army were protected by the shores. This stopped the French from attacking from the sides and forced them to attack head-on. Napoleon approached Abukir with about 7,700 infantry and 1,000 cavalry. The Ottoman forces were estimated to be between 7,000 and 18,000 men.
The Battle Begins
Napoleon camped his army on the night of July 24. The next morning, July 25, he ordered an attack on the Ottoman army. Mustafa Pasha had arranged his army in two strong defensive lines. Both ends of his lines were protected by the shores of the peninsula. Lanusse's French division was on the left, and Lannes' division was on the right. Murat led the cavalry at the front.
The Turkish defenses on their western side, facing Lanusse, were not yet finished. Lanusse's division managed to break through this Turkish line after fierce fighting. Lanusse used this breakthrough to move around behind the first enemy line. This caused widespread panic among the Turkish defenders on that side. With nowhere to go, many tried to swim to the nearby Turkish and British ships. Sadly, almost all of them drowned.
The French then attacked the second Turkish line, which was very well defended. The French attack was pushed back by heavy fire from Turkish and English ships. As the French retreated, hundreds of Ottoman soldiers came out of their defenses and chased them.
After the first Turkish line was broken, Napoleon thought about moving his cannons to two hills in front of the second line. This line seemed impossible to attack. But then he saw that the western bay of Abukir stretched out like a cape. He moved his cannons there instead. This allowed the French cannons to fire on the Ottoman army's right side. The Ottomans moved their right side slightly inland, which left a small gap in their line. A wave of panic spread through the Turkish lines. Within minutes, Murat found himself charging deep into the Turkish camp, where he found Mustafa Pasha's tent. The Pasha came out and shot Murat in the jaw. Murat quickly swung his sword, cutting off two of the Pasha's fingers, and ordered his men to capture him.
Outside the Pasha's tent, the chaos continued. The Turkish army completely broke apart. Thousands of soldiers fled to the sea on both sides of the peninsula. A few thousand Turks retreated north and took shelter inside the fort of Abukir. These included the Pasha's son. They were joined by some English marines sent by Sidney Smith. The French bombarded the fort day and night. The Turkish officers inside soon agreed to surrender. However, their soldiers refused. They had heard about how badly Ottoman prisoners were treated by the French at the Siege of Jaffa.
Napoleon then left for Alexandria and put Lannes in charge of the siege. Mustafa Pasha, who was now a French prisoner, wrote several letters to the trapped Turks, telling them to surrender. But they refused, vowing to defend the fort to the very end. Pasha's second letter scolded them for continuing to fight and spilling more blood. At this point, the Turks agreed to a ceasefire. A French colonel named Bertrand used this ceasefire to look closely at the fort. A small fight broke out later. The Turks came out of the fort and captured some houses in front of it. Lannes wanted to attack and push them back. But Bertrand advised him to wait until the siege trenches were finished. This would force the Turks back into the fort without French casualties.
The Turks, encouraged by their small success, made another attack and captured more buildings on June 28. After this, they even attacked French positions on Sheikh hill. Lannes could not hold back any longer and ordered an attack to drive the Turks back into the fort. During the fighting, he was wounded and had to leave. General Menou then took command of the siege. The Turks made yet another attack, capturing a bridgehead to the fort. Davout, who was in the siege trenches, attacked the Turks and drove them back into the fortress.
On July 30, French cannons and mortars began firing on the fort. That night, French engineers started digging tunnels under the fort to blow it up. But on August 2, at dawn, the Turks simply walked out of their fort. They were starving and many were confused from drinking seawater during the siege. After holding out for 8 days, they just walked out and asked for mercy.
What Happened Next
The French had very few losses: only 220 dead and 600 wounded. The Turkish losses were huge: 2,000 dead on the battlefield, 11,000 drowned, 5,000 captured, and 2,000 missing. Napoleon famously said that "not a single one escaped." This wasn't entirely true, as Sidney Smith sent boats to rescue some Turks from the water. Among those rescued was a 30-year-old officer named Muhammed Ali. Six years later, he would become the ruler of Egypt and make many changes.
In the battle, the French captured 100 Ottoman flags, 32 cannons, 400 horses, and three special ceremonial flags belonging to Pashas. The captured cannons included two small English ones, which had been gifts from the King of England to the Sultan. These cannons were given to a French cavalry group. For his brave charge and capturing the Turkish Pasha, Napoleon promoted Murat to a higher general rank. He gave Murat much credit for the victory at Abukir. Lannes was also promoted, and Bertrand became a colonel.
The victory at Abukir gave the French a few months of peace in Egypt. Desaix continued to chase Murad Bey in Upper Egypt. Murad Bey would soon make a peace deal with the French and even become their ally.
Napoleon learned about the situation in Europe from Mustafa Pasha. A large group of countries was now fighting against France. Napoleon had been completely unaware of these events because the British navy was blocking the coast. An envoy sent to Sidney Smith to exchange prisoners received the latest newspapers from Smith. Smith also told the envoy that the French government had called Napoleon back to Paris. Napoleon read the newspapers, which confirmed the serious problems France faced in Europe. Many of the Italian lands he had conquered were now taken back by the Austrians, and there was another rebellion in France. Sidney Smith then lifted the blockade of the Egyptian coast, saying his ships needed supplies. This gave Napoleon a chance to escape from Egypt.
On August 23, Napoleon secretly left Egypt. He left the command to Kléber. He sailed on the frigate Muiron with several of his generals and scientists. He only told Kléber in a letter on the very day he left. This made his troops and generals very upset, especially Kléber, who felt betrayed. Kléber later sent a strong letter to the French government, telling them the real, difficult situation of the French army in Egypt.
In the long run, France could not stay in Egypt. Jean Antoine Verdier defeated a second Turkish attack at Damietta on November 1. Kléber managed to keep French rule over the country thanks to his victory at Heliopolis on March 18, 1800. But less than a month later, he was murdered in Cairo. Kléber's replacement, Menou, was not a strong military leader. He was defeated at Canopus (near the Abukir battlefield) and surrendered on September 2. The French army returned to France on British ships.
The Battle of Abukir became one of the most celebrated French victories. It is shown on a stone carving on the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. A street in Paris, the Rue D'Abukir, was also named after this victory.
See also
- Battle of the Nile or Battle of Abukir Bay (1798)
- Battle of Abukir (1801)
