HMS DREADNAUGHT: A John Phillips Novel

by Richard Testrake

The bungs were removed from the casks, and lengths of quick match were inserted into the loose powder inside. The bungs were replaced, being careful not to cut the quick match protruding, and the casks of powder were buried in the holes, and earth and rocks packed tight around them. The quick match from the separate barrels was connected, and a few feet of slow match was connected to the quick match.

  With all personnel a safe distance away from the explosive, the gunner lit the slow match, and walked away rapidly down the beach.

  When the burning ember of the slow match touched the quick match, it flashed toward the charge almost instantly, and the powder barrels exploded. Rock and earth flew, and the side of the embankment came down on the road.

  When the Marine officer reported to his ship’s captain, he said in order for the road to become usable for vehicular traffic again, he estimated it would take a dozen men most of a day to clear it. As they discussed the matter, the midshipman of the watch, who happened to be young Phillips, reported and stated civilians were coming to examine the road damage.

  Colonel Mendez and Captain Phillips went ashore in the company of a party of Marines. Mendez approached the band of suspicious men and women, who proved to be a band of Miguelettes, neighbors to the ones Mendez was working with.

  After speaking with their leader, Mendez came back to Phillips and told him he had informed that band of the possibility of a strong body of French troops coming along the coast road. There was a strong sentiment toward ambushing the column, but how to hold the enemy in place while they were being killed?

  Mendez asked if he could beg the gift of a few more kegs of powder. With the assistance of the new associates, this powder was planted along the road a few hundred yards to the north of the original demolition. This was charged like the first, except the match was not lit. Quick match was led up the hill away from the road, and covered with earth.

  A volunteer recruited from the partisans would remain behind, hidden in the rocks on the hill. The flame in a dark lantern he carried would ignite a few inches of slow match and away he would run. The man selected was shown the speed that quick match burned, and he was mightily impressed. A fathom’s length used as a test flashed from end to end in the blink of an eye.

  The site was gone over carefully so no evidence of their presence remained, then the partisans withdrew. Phillips had promised to bombard the enemy troops with his ship’s guns after the explosion.

  The party of Marines and seamen withdrew to the ship, and Dreadnaught sailed farther offshore. The pinnace was rigged for sail and set out along the coast on a scouting mission.

  She returned just after dark, and reported a formation of perhaps two hundred men, as well as numerous carts and wagons drawn by horse and oxen.

  The officer in command of the pinnace reported the column was fortifying a camp for the night, when he left the area.

  Word was sent ashore to the partisans, and all was ready to receive the column by morning. Just before noon sights, the enemy appeared. A troop of cavalry led the column, then infantry. Dozens of carts and wagons came along the coast road, then a final band of infantry came behind.

  Phillips knew then they should have planted the second charge of explosives farther down the road, but it was too late now.

  The cavalry clattered up to the site of the blown out area of the road. These mounted men could, with a little difficulty, get over the damage and attack those responsible, if they showed themselves.

  The remainder of the column began bunching up as they neared the obstruction.

  With the entire enemy column now observant for trouble, and closed up to the buried powder charge, the volunteer set fire to his fuse, and tried to run. It would have been better had he braved the explosion and remained where he was. A horseman saw him run, and was after him in a flash. A flash of his sabre in the afternoon sun, and the volunteer was down.

  He was avenged a moment later when the main charge exploded just as an infantry column was approaching it. The troops to the fore were decimated by the charge.

  The explosion was the signal for Dreadnaught to open fire. She was too far out for grape or case shot, but ball reached just fine. Just as she had done with the fortress, she kept up a steady fire with her broadside guns. The iron shot, hitting the stony surface of the road produced sharp fragments of stone which generated many injuries.

  Drivers of the carts and wagons, many of them civilians working under duress, left their vehicles, and ran for the side of the road, and tried to climb the embankment. The horsemen, their animals panicked by the explosion or injured by flying stones, were useless, many horses escaping and running off.

  The infantry troops in the front and rear of the column were powerless against the ship anchored hundreds of meters off shore. Their muskets would not begin to reach that far.

  Officers tried to save their men by marching them off the road to the east, but it was difficult climbing the embankment, especially with the big, iron cannon balls impacting around them. The march turned into a rout. With men running, the partisans went to work, cutting down individual troops, and seizing the dead soldier’s weapons.

  With the end of the action, all the wagons had been stopped and seized. Many of the cavalry had lost their horses, and there was left only a small detachment of infantry holed up behind rocks, who would have to begin a fighting retreat that night.

  Colonel Mendez had spent much of the day ashore, and Phillips feared he had been lost, but before sunset, he came riding up to the beach on a French horse, very put out because he was not permitted to bring his animal aboard.

  The partisans had a windfall of supplies. Many of the captured vehicles were loaded with stolen food and produce looted from the local villages. Others were packed with military supplies, including much needed musket ammunition. The French military used a .69 inch caliber ball in their muskets, while the British used a ball nearly ¾ of an inch in diameter.

  The French ammunition would fit in the British muskets furnished to the partisans, although the lead projectiles would be a trifle loose. Extra wadding would solve that difficulty.

  Even the draft animals hauling the carts would be of great value to the guerrillas, if not for work, then for food. The carts themselves could not travel off the road, so were burned in place after being emptied.

  Colonel Mendez left the Dreadnaught, and boarded his fishing boat. Loaded with captured weapons and ammunition, as well as food, he would return to his band, with welcome news for all.

  “The British heretics were no longer enemies, but welcome friends. Friends who, with their huge ship, could cause the most devastating damage to the French forces occupying their lands.”

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  The Dreadnaught spent the next two weeks bringing death and destruction to French occupation troops along the Atlantic coast of the Iberian Peninsula. She sailed back to Gibraltar having expended an extraordinary amount of powder and shot, and had given away most of her small arms and much beef and biscuit to the guerrillas.

  Phillips felt he was now in a poor position to meet up with an enemy ship of equal or superior power, and needed to re-supply.

  The governor was outraged at his spendthrift ways and refused to supply him. Collingwood was not at Gibraltar, and without news of his present location, there was nothing to do but return to Portsmouth.

  Leaving the ship in the care of Mister Watkins, Phillips posted to London, where he reported at the Admiralty.

  At first, there were some grim faces. Reports had already come in via fast mail packet from the Acting Governor in Gibraltar, and their context was not complimentary.

  However, Phillips had his logs and his own reports. What saved the day for him was a long report in the Spanish language from Colonel Mendez. Mendez claimed without the food, weapons and aid the Dreadnaught had supplied the guerrillas, the French forces there would be in a much stronger position. Spanish lives had been saved, and more weapons had been captured from the French than had been supplied
by HMS Dreadnaught.

  He recommended strongly that similar assistance should be supplied in the future.

  Phillips was sent away for a few days while all this data was digested. When he was called, he was told his actions in Spain were approved, and more ships were being ordered to the Spanish coast to see what could be managed.

  He was being sent back to Lord Collingwood in company with HMS Viceroy. She had overcome the manning and gunnery problems since last they met.

  There were misgivings about Viceroy’s captain. There were some who held he was much too junior a post captain to command a 36 gun frigate. Perhaps a post ship would be more suitable for him? “After all, wasn’t the Viceroy that sixteen gun transport that we recently rearmed?”

  About then, someone remarked what a powerful man Mullins Pater was in Lords!

  No further objections were announced.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  Dreadnaught and Viceroy set out for the Med, escorting a flock of transports. Most were dropped off at Gibraltar, but a few store ships accompanied them through the ‘Gut’ as they hunted for Collingwood. These were dropped off with the ships blockading Toulon, before retracing their route. They located one of his scouting frigates near Cadiz and were directed to his position off Huelva.

  It had been some time since they had last met, and there had been some derogatory reports written up about Dreadnaught’s captain, especially concerning his expenditure of stores.

  The admiral shrugged those reports off, regarding them merely as posturing by self-important admiralty clerks.

  “You did what you were expected to, which was making life difficult for the enemy. Now, I have a different task for you. Other ships are harassing the enemy on the coastal roads around Spain. The enemy has been forced to resume transporting men and materiel by sea.”

  “Actually, that is much more efficient for them than using roads. It is faster, and they can put a lot more cargo on a ship than a whole convoy of wagons and carts can carry. However, those ships are at our mercy and we shall show them none.”

  “I want you and Captain Mullins to cruise along the coast, searching for enemy shipping, which you will take, burn or otherwise destroy. I, of course, will not object if you can take enemy warships, but you should regard your main mission as stopping the flow of war supplies by sea. Captain Phillips, I wish you to proceed back into the Med to harass the French there, paying particular attention to the Catalan coast. The Catalans have been particularly vehement against their occupier, and the French have been merciless with them. Of course, the entire Spanish Mediterranean coast will profit by your attention, and if you should venture north to bring disruption into French waters, no one here will complain.

  “It may be to your advantage for you to secure a suitable tender to use. Should you capture such a vessel, you have my permission in advance to use her as you will, and postpone sending her into prize court until she is no longer needed.”

  “Captain, I am sure you will be speaking to a number of Spaniards regarding British actions on the peninsula. It is necessary that your interpreter should be an educated, knowledgeable person. To that end, I am sending you Ocean’s parson. He speaks beautiful Spanish. I have nothing to say about his sermons at Sunday divisions, though.”

  “Should you find suitable targets ashore to raid, again you have my permission, subject to the previous caveat.”

  “Captain Mullins, I will be glad if your Viceroy should ravage French interests from here up the Atlantic coasts of Spain and Portugal. You should do whatever you can to disrupt French communications by land and sea. If you would remain behind, I am sure Captain Thomas will introduce you to Ocean’s master, who may have some copies of our charts for you.”

  As soon as Vice Admiral Collingwood’s flotilla was hull down, HMS Viceroy approached Dreadnaught. By speaking trumpet, Captain Mullins agreed to come aboard the liner for dinner.

  It was a scratch meal, since Phillip’s cook had been given no notice. It was an out-of-sorts cook who hurriedly cobbled together some sort of repast. Mullins wondered where Dreadnaught was to patrol.

  “I believe I will go east and patrol up toward Cartagena. That is almost halfway to Catalonia. I’ll give the ant’s nest there a poke and see what comes out.”

  “Very well, sir. I’ll try to stir up the Atlantic coast of Spain and Portugal. Ocean’s sailing master told me there have been reports the French are planning on seizing Portugal. That ought to generate some traffic for me.”

  After the captains had finished their bottles, they bid each other good-bye and left on their respective courses.

  Almost immediately after passing Gibraltar, lookouts began reporting small craft. Phillips called in Lieutenant Watkins and alerted him as to their duties for the near future. “One of the first things I want to do early on, is to take a small vessel we can use as a tender. She should be fast, capable of being sailed with a minimum crew. She must be French or an ally. We want to avoid causing offence against any Spanish owners.”

  Watkins promised to inform all the watch-standing officers, but other than a plethora of small fishing vessels, they saw nothing that struck their interest until nearly to Almeria. There, they found a brigantine that had just cleared port. Flying the tricolor, Dreadnaught proceeded as if she was entering port. Flying the flag signal as if requesting a pilot, Dreadnaught neared the little merchantman.

  With a boarding party already in the boats hidden on her blind side, the quarterdeck nine pounder was made ready. As the rapidly approaching brigantine neared, she dipped her flag in respect to the supposed French warship’s ensign.

  The Dreadnaught signal crew dropped the tricolor in a rush, raising the British colors. As soon as it reached the peak, the gun fired a ball directly under the little vessel’s bow. There was confusion on board the brigantine, as they watched the broadside guns of the two decker emerge from behind her ports. As Phillips ordered another gun readied, the enemy vessel let fly her sheets, and dropped her flag.

  At the same time, a gun on shore fired. It was far out of range, but served to alert all defenses. There was a flurry of activity around two gun boats tied up at a quay, but Phillips was not worried about them. The only way they could harm his ship was in a flat calm, when they might pull up to his bow or stern and fire into him. As it happened though, there was plenty of wind and he could maneuver as he wished.

  The launches pulled away with their load of Marines and armed seamen. They reached the prize as the town’s church bells began pealing. Phillips began looking for his son, since he wanted to explain what was going on. Not at his station, there he was, seated in the blue launch’s stern as it made its way to the prize.

  Mister Horton, third officer, and in charge of the boarding party led his people as they swarmed up the side of the brigantine. The Royal Marines were slower, but they were soon aboard, and had the crew under control. A minute after boarding, the prize was under sail, and beating out of the harbor, towing the boats behind.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Once at sea, with no apparent trouble to face, Dreadnaught spoke the prize and requested Mister Horton to come aboard when he had a moment.

  Horton had a scribbled list that he consulted as he reported to his captain. “Sir, I found what I think is the manifest, but it not being in English, I couldn’t read it. I did make a quick list of what we could handily see down below. Up in the forepeak, there is leather harness, lots of it. Aft in the main hold, we found muskets in crates; hundreds of them. In the after hold, we found crates of musket cartridges, again thousands of them. Everything is jammed in tight, and other than what is on top, no easy way to get to it while we are at sea.”

  “What do you think of the vessel itself, Mister Horton? Do you think she will make us a good tender?”

  “Good enough, I think, Captain. She’s heavy right now, but after we unload some of the heavier cargo, I think she will be sprightly enough.”

  The line-of-battle ship, and her new consort sailed
on. As they neared a small fishing port, they spotted a pair of small boats puling in their net. As they dropped their net, and fled in panic, Phillips ordered a party into the jolly boat to attach a float to the abandoned net.

  “That net represents a major investment to those fishermen. Hopefully we can save it for them.”

  Their tender sailed after the fleeing fishermen, and brought them back. While waiting, Phillips had the parson called.

  He explained what was going on and asked him to translate what was said, when he interviewed the fishing crew.

  The sullen fishermen came aft, plainly upset over the loss of their net. Phillips asked the chaplain to tell them the net was being given back to them, and they could reclaim it at their leisure. The crew rushed to the port side where they saw the jolly boat straining at the huge net. While waiting for the boat to be pulled over to Dreadnaught, the parson questioned the fishermen as to their loyalties.

  They seemed outraged enough over the actions of the French, but said they could do nothing, since without arms, it would be suicide to distress the French.

  By this time, the fishing vessel was alongside. Phillips said they could have their nets back, and he was prepared to give them a gift to repay them for the loss of their catch. He had his barge crew pull them over to the tender to select a present.

  The curious fishermen climbed the sides of the prize and were led to the forward hatch. Below, bales of leather harness were jammed into place. A top bale had already been opened, and a set of harness, suitable for a draft horse was worked free. A fisherman examined the leather, but pointed to a letter N stamped into a strap. The chaplain spoke with the man, and translated for Phillips. Pointing to the stamp, he said it indicated property belonging to the government, as a Broad Arrow did for British government owned property.

  He said, anyone caught using it would be in much trouble. Going on to the next hatch, Phillips sent two men below to get a line on one of the crates of muskets. Using tackle from the main yard, the crate was extracted from the hold, and deposited on deck. A seaman came up with a crow, and pried the box open.