With all attention on the enemy’s quarterdeck seemingly directed at smashing the little protector, Badger put herself at long gun range on the frigate’s stern and opened fire. This woke them up, and the frigate wore around and came toward Badger. The large ship’s sails and rigging, as well as her hull, had been much battered by the heavy carronades of her previous opponent and she was unable to close Badger. After drawing the enemy away from the escort, Phillips put his ship about and went toward the pirate brig now lying between the two Indiamen. The pirate was trying to put boarders over onto her intended victim but both merchants had heavy guns which they were using with effect on the fragile pirate.
Badger came up astern and fired a full broadside into the brig’s stern, which essentially destroyed the small ship. She tried to pull away, but was hemmed in on both sides and no longer had enough intact canvas to pull ahead. Badger sat on her stern and pounded her mercilessly with grape and case shot.
When the former horde of pirates on her decks were mostly down, torn and bleeding, Badger turned away and made for the frigate again.
The enemy frigate had used this respite to get herself in some semblance of order again and came forward to meet Badger. Phillips had no idea of the state of affair aboard the enemy, but noted when her gun-ports opened, only about half of the guns appeared. The big ship had lost her main topmast in the previous fight and many of her remaining sails were nothing but holes and tatters.
Easily evading the frigate’s maneuvers, he sailed around her, again catching her with a bow rake, which did the frigate no good indeed. Again and again he punished the frigate relentlessly, pouring much of his shot supply into her.
The difficulty was, this shot was only nine pound ball, and the heavy frigate absorbed this with much less damage than a smaller ship might. Eventually, noting the former escort brig was on the verge of sinking, and one of the Indiamen was not much better, he decided to break off and see what he could do to assist.
The frigate could not be considered beaten, by any account. She was still a large, heavily-constructed ship with some powerful guns still extant. She had been pummeled so severely, however by both the escort brig, as well as Badger, that her captain no doubt considered it wise to leave the fight for a time and hopefully return to it later. By this time, she had lost a distressing number of her original crewmen that she had brought from France. Previously, it had been possible to replace them with native pirate crewmen of the area, but with the defeat of the pirate-crewed brig, this might no longer be possible. While eager to plunder lightly defended merchant ships, the pirate leaders of the area were not anxious to waste their men needlessly. Should he enter a pirate base for recruiting, the native South Asian members of his crew would certainly be consulted, by the pirate chieftains. Their advice might well be negative. When Badger gave up the engagement, the frigate did likewise.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Lady Hamilton was in a most foul mood. She had no warning that married life was to be like this! She had always imagined she would be a spinstress for the remainder of her life. With a face shaped much like her favorite horse and a body reminiscent of the village blacksmith back home, she had never imagined a man would wish to marry her. She had been her father’s pride and joy since her mother’s death early in her childhood.
Riding to the hounds with her father was her most favorite pastime in her youth, until a bad jump left her parent bedridden for the remnant of his life. She spent the rest of her youth caring for him, spurning the few potential suitors available, letting all thoughts of marriage or children pass by. One of the father’s last acts though, knowing he was in the final weeks of life, was to arrange a marriage with a young cavalry officer home on leave from service with an East Indian cavalry unit. The father well knew the young man was not the ideal mate for his beloved daughter, but he well knew he did not have the time left to search for another. Besides, he knew his daughter was a most determined woman, one not inclined to be ruled by a man younger than herself.
The lad was younger than she by a good many years. He had joined the forces since his older brother was in line to inherit the title. Following the demise of the officer’s parent though, the brother too passed after eating some bad oysters in his London club. The new Lord Hamilton, after succeeding to the title, found he was impoverished, his father and brother having squandered the bulk of the estate in high living. He had a title and a respected name but the family lands were mortgaged to the hilt and he needed more than his Indian Army pay to support the expenses a cavalry officer must service.
The no-longer young woman brought forward for his inspection, like a potential brood mare, was certainly not the type of bride most young men dreamed of but she was rich, and brought a substantial dowry to their union. This would pay off most of the estate’s debts and purchase his captaincy. For this, he was willing to sacrifice beauty. After all, there were plenty of beautiful, willing women available in India.
Lady Hamilton had no thoughts either of love for her new husband, but her father had wanted her to marry and she was determined to make it a success. She knew well the marriage was strictly a business transaction, In effect, her virginity and fortune were being traded for a noble name and title.
The new Lord Hamilton decided he would like to return to the colors in India, where he could use the funds his wife had brought to the marriage to amass an even larger fortune as well as providing entertainment of a more sensual nature. His new wife had other ideas though. From other officer’s wives she had met, she had learned of the escapades young officers were apt to indulge in with the young native women there.
She had no intention that she should follow her husband’s wishes for her to stay in England while he went off to sow his wild oats with her money. Accordingly, against his protests, she accompanied him on the voyage east on the East India Company ship, Guildford.
She had never been of a delicate constitution, and she was not bothered in the beginnings by sea sickness, unlike many of her fellow passengers, both male and female. However, nearing the Cape of Good Hope, she began having attacks of nausea, enough so that she began foregoing meals in the wardroom and began taking what little food she could bear in her cabin. Her maid divulged her difficulty with other servants and soon the pregnancy was common knowledge around the ship, although she herself was completely unaware of the problem.
In addition to her constant nausea, the irritating activity aboard ship and the occasional sound of gunfire in the distance was now bothering her. Her maid told her pirate ships were pursuing but she was not concerned by that. Did they not have a powerful warship to protect them, as well as numerous Indian Army officers aboard who would see them safe?
Another day later, she learned there was indeed cause for alarm. One of the pursuing ships was a powerful French National ship with much more force than the little escort brig. As the pursuers approached, the escort brig went out to greet them. Initially, the smaller stranger attempted to engage the escort. The escort skillfully dodged the attempted attack by the enemy and fired into the pirate. However the enemy might dodge, the sail handling abilities of the escort were superior to those of the enemy vessel.
Meanwhile, the larger enemy frigate closed within gun range of the closer of the John Company ships. Firing at long range, she scored a few hits and there was pandemonium among that ship’s passengers, as the heavy iron balls smashed through everything encountered. Then, apparently seeing her consort was being roughly handled by the escort, the big frigate broke away and went to the rescue.
Again, the brig was able to keep away from the clutches of the frigate, occasionally striking some blows of her own. But the frigate, with more and heavier guns, was able to connect with a few of its own, and the escort was not able to withstand this punishment. She tried to keep her distance and fight from afar, since clearly the frigate’s gunnery was not effective at long range. She kept this up till late afternoon, when damage aloft prevented the little ship from evading the frigate
any longer.
The enemy then closed right in and fired off two broadsides which effectively put the escort out of action.
During this action, the pirate brig, although much battered, had closed in on the Company ships again, attacking the Guildford this time. Firing from a distance at first, she moved in closer when she realized this big ship’s gunnery practice was not up to standard. Lady Hamilton, aboard Guildford, noticed some officers pointing off to the west and saw a three-masted ship flying a red ensign and commission pennant approaching.
The officers and crew of the pair of Company ships became emboldened with the sight of a rescuing ship and began to take action. As the pirate closed on Guildford, the other Company ship wore around and approached on her other beam.
The gunners of both ship’s had gained their confidence by now and the gunnery practice improved dramatically. Neither of the big Indiamen had a large number of guns but those they did have were of large caliber. The Company ship’s gun crews were limited, with little training, but there were plenty of men aboard serving in the Forces who did not complain about lending their skills to serve a gun.
As the pirate ran aboard Guildford, her horde of boarders began howling aboard. As they did, the forewarned passengers and crew met them with whatever weapons came to hand. Lord Hamilton had dashed briefly to their cabin and Lady Hamilton had a moment of panic. When he came back on deck though, he was armed with a pair of ornate horse pistols and a richly engraved cavalry saber his father had given him when he entered military service with the Company. Handing one pistol to his wife, he entered the fray armed with his other pistol and the saber.
No one needed to show Lady Hamilton how to use a firearm. She had been shooting since she was ten. She opened the frizzen to check the priming, then steeled herself for action. It came sooner than she wished. As her husband lunged at a pirate with his saber, the thug stepped inside and thrust a long-bladed kris to the hilt into Hamilton’s stomach.
Without a word being said, Lord Hamilton had meant for his wife to use the pistol as a last resort, in case the ship was taken and she was about to be dragged off into slavery or worse. No one needed to tell Lady Hamilton her duty.
Without uttering a word, Lady Hamilton stepped forward, thrust the pistol into the pirates own stomach and fired. She then stooped across her victim and picked up her mortally wounded husband’s sword.
It was not common in that day and age for women to be proficient in the use of such a weapon. Her father though, was an unconventional man who had no son, and did not worry about the conventions of society. He taught his daughter to fence when she was but a girl. It had been some years since she had practiced, but she still remembered the feel of a blade in her hand.
As pirates swarmed aboard, she lunged and parried with abandon, her mind red with rage at these murderers! She was a naturally strong woman and the thought of her husband dying now because he had tried to protect her gave her added strength. Seeing her fell several pirates with the blade led others to join her. An elderly woman whom Hamilton knew only as Lady Argyle’s companion had somehow acquired a musket and presented, fired and re-loaded the weapon as though she was an infantry soldier firing at the butts. More than one person reflected this woman might be useful to Wellington on the Peninsula.
Others, more used to the cut and thrust of combat, came too. A Major of Light Infantry was there with his batman. The major had a pair of expensive fowling pieces which the batman loaded for him, while he calmly picked off the swarming pirates. Seamen, both Native Indian and British came forward with cutlasses and pikes. The deck of the Indiaman was higher than the pirate brig, which was anyway low in the water from battle damage. The pirates were forced to scramble up the sides of the big merchant ship, and there the passengers and crew of the Guildford awaited them. If a pirate’s hand grasped the railing to clamber aboard, it was apt to be slashed by a cutlass or an ornate epee. Many of the Lascar crew were armed with pikes, with which they were adept. Soon it was hard to find a pirate still on his feet on the bloody decks.
The crashing of guns woke Lady Hamilton from her preoccupation with killing pirates. That little British ship had come up and fired into the pirate brig, again and again. Every shot seemed to down a whole swath of the enemy. When the little ship had reduced the population of pirates greatly, she left to engage the big frigate.
When Badger returned later, the fighting was over. Seamen and passengers from both ships had boarded the pirate, which was so damaged that it was in a sinking condition. No one was of a mind to take any prisoners, so those living were either dispatched promptly or consigned to the deep.
Lady Hamilton was sad and proud and glad. She was sad because the husband whom she had earlier disparaged was dead, in her defense. She was proud of her activities during the conflict and she was glad because the ship’s doctor, after examining her for injuries, had explained the reason for her recurring nausea. She was pregnant.
CHAPTER TWENTY ONE
The enemy frigate did not care to dispute this presumptuous sloop-of-war any longer and set what sail she could to get away from the scene. She was certainly not defeated, and her commander knew if he could just get to grips with the little warship he could make her strike. However, his ammunition supply was nearly gone and he had no place to resupply his badly damaged warship with stores and men. His consort was gone, as was any good will he might have with the numerous pirates in the Indian Ocean. He could see that little warship leaving the Company ships and returning to face him. It was now time to leave.
The decks of the escort brig were awash, with much of her crew in the water, these men greatly concerned about the presence of sharks. Men armed with muskets lined the sides to deter the big predators, while others jumped into the ship’s boats towing behind. The survivors were brought aboard Badger and the brig was left to soon begin its descent into the depths. With the big frigate sailing away, Phillips now felt free to see what needed to be done with the Company ships.
When Phillips climbed aboard the Guildford, he was met by her second officer, now in command; the captain slain in the recent fighting and the first mate badly injured. A most fearsome looking woman stood beside him, her arm and frock covered with gore, holding onto an ornate, curved saber in one hand with grim determination, and a strangely shaped dagger in the other.
When the ship’s acting captain took him aside he related how this formidable woman had been armed by her husband with his pistol. The husband had jumped into the fray with his cavalry sword, only to be cut down with a kris-wielding pirate. The lady, enraged, fired her single shot into the attacker’s stomach, snatched up her husband’s saber, and began to slash about. It was not clear how many of the enemy she had slain, but her actions were a major impetus for others to pick up weapons and join in. As a souvenir of the battle, she had appropriated the bloody dagger that had slain her husband and no amount of persuasion could make her part with it.
The pirate brig was useless, so one of her guns was pointed down a hatch and fired. The sinking vessel was left behind while attention was given to the wounded Indiaman.
Phillips would have liked to return to the fray with the fleeing frigate, but his own ship had received some telling wounds, and his supply of shot was reaching a critical level. With the addition of what able-bodied crew of the escort brig that were still available, Badger did have an adequate crew. He judged his best action would be to escort the ships back to Cape Colony. The monsoon season had just about ended and the normal trade wind pattern about to resume. He did not wish to try to sail across the Indian Ocean against the prevailing winds with the ships in this condition.
There was some difficulty getting back to Cape Colony. The monsoon winds, which had earlier seemed to be dying had returned in strength, and they had to constantly beat into that wind out of the south-west to try to make their westing. However, at length, the trade winds returned and Badger and her convoy finally sailed in to safe harbor.
She remained for six
weeks, making repairs and attempting to recruit seamen. Unable to lure many skilled seamen aboard, he was able to sign on some Native Africans. These people had been captured in some far off tribal war and now found themselves enslaved in Cape Colony. He was made aware of their situation by a missionary who intended to devote his life with the local natives. He did not speak the native’s language but one of his local flock did, at least to some extent.
Phillips found these people were owned by a Dutch burgher who was dismayed by the inability of his overseers to make these slaves work. The problem was, it developed, the men were of a warrior caste in their tribe. It was unseemly for them to work in fields and cultivate crops. It seemed they would rather suffer the lash or die than perform what they considered ‘women’s work’.
Phillips asked the evangelist whether he thought these men would like to be soldiers at sea. They would fight the King’s enemies along with the white crew members. It seemed the answer was this would not be against their caste. However, when the owner of the slaves heard of this, he was exceedingly upset and threatened Phillips with legal proceedings. In front of the English magistrate Phillips argued that he needed the men to crew his ship and in any case was prepared to pay the owner for every slave.
This was an entirely different matter, when the slave’s owner found he would be paid a guinea for every slave taken aboard Badger. Since they refused to work for him anyway, he felt this was pure profit. With the money, he could purchase tools and trinkets with which to trade for other natives captured in their incessant tribal wars, people perhaps more amenable to farm work.
Sails Across the Sea: A Tim Phillips Novel (War at Sea Book 8) Page 10