'Nelson's Patent Bridge for Boarding First Rates' - The Battle of Cape St Vincent continued

By 2.pm, the Captain and Culloden were badly damaged.  The Captain had lost her fore-topmast and so became difficult to manoeuvre.  They were right in the thick of the action, receiving fire from several enemy ships.  At 2.15pm, Jervis sent Collingwood in the Excellent to pass through the enemy line and get close to them.  

So Collingwood set off ahead.  The first ship he came to was one of Santisima Trinidad's entourage, the Salvador del Mundo.  The Excellent fired heavily at her, until she surrendered - or, at least, it appeared to Collingwood that she had.  Relying on one of his allies to take possession of her, Collingwood sailed on. 

Next, he came to the San Isidro and let loose broadside after broadside upon her for 10 minutes until she, too, surrendered.  Now, the Excellent was able to come between Nelson's Captain, and the San Nicolas.  She poured a couple of broadsides into San Nicolas at such close range and with such force that they passed straight through and hit the San José on the other side!  As a result of such an onslaught, the San Nicolas and San José collided and their rigging became entangled.  It also meant that the crew of the Captain were given a break, enough to be able to make some hurried repairs to their own rigging. 

The Captain had sustained several casualties, including Nelson himself.  He was hit in the abdomen by a large splinter of wood flung into the air by a cannon shot, which hit him with such force that he would have been knocked off his feet had not Captain Miller caught him and stopped him from falling.  As the Excellent moved away towards Santisima Trinidad, exposing the San Nicolas once more to the Captain, Nelson spotted an opportunity.  With her wheel and rigging shot away, the Captain would be virtually impossible to move away, and the crew of the San Nicolas were temporarily occupied with trying to disengage her rigging from that of the San José.  Nelson ordered Captain Miller to take his ship closer, and rammed the San Nicolas.

Nelson called for a boarding party.  Miller offered to lead it, but Nelson insisted on leading it himself, which was extremely unusual for a commanding officer - but not unusual for him!  As ever, he led by example, knowing that it was a dangerous action and instinctively realising that, by putting himself at the forefront of the attack, his presence would boost the morale and courage of his men.

Clambering up onto the Captain's cathead (a sturdy beam at the bow of the ship which was used to support the anchor), a marine smashed one of San Nicolas' stern windows with the butt of his musket, and Nelson climbed through with the party close behind.  It turned out that he was climbing straight into the Spanish captain's cabin.

The cabin doors were locked and the Spanish fired at them through the windows with pistols.  Nelson's party broke through the doors with axes and stormed onto the quarterdeck, which must have been a shock to the Spanish commanders!  The Spanish commodore, Don Tomas Geraldino, was killed in the process.

Captain Edward Berry, who had not been given a ship and so had been on board the Captain as a volunteer, led another party along the Captain's bowsprit (a long pole extending forward from the prow of the ship) and jumped down onto the poop deck.  

It didn't take long for the officers of the San Nicolas to surrender the ship into Nelson's hands.

But Nelson hadn't finished yet.  The San Nicolas was still entangled with the San José, a larger, 3-decked ship that loomed above her and was being fired upon by the British Prince George and had already been battered by the Captain and Excellent.  Not only that, but Rear-Admiral Winthuysen had had both his legs blown off, and had been carried below deck where he was dying of his wounds.  Another 150 of her crew were killed or wounded.  Still, some of the remaining crew began firing their muskets out of the admiral's cabin at the stern, down onto Nelson's small boarding party.  If Nelson lost the element of surprise, and allowed them to muster a counter-attack, they could easily overwhelm him and his men.

Ever the opportunist, Nelson leapt (literally) at the chance to take another prize, in an action that was as daring and courageous as it was unique and unprecedented.

He ordered some of his marines to fire their muskets into the San José's stern, hailed Miller, still aboard the Captain, and ordered him to send reinforcements onto the San Nicolas to keep her under control, and he placed sentries to keep the officers locked down.  Then, Berry boosting him onto the main chains, he leapt over the side of the San José and onto the deck.  Almost as soon as he landed, the Spanish captain leaned over the quarterdeck rail and called out the surrender of the ship.

Nelson went up onto the quarterdeck where the captain presented him with his sword (the traditional symbolic gesture for a surrender) and informed him that the admiral was dying.  Nelson double-checked that the ship really had surrendered by asking the captain to swear it on his honour, then sent him to gather up the officers of the ship.  In a little ceremony which Nelson described as 'extravagant', the Spanish all handed him their swords, one by one, which he handed to one of his bargemen, William Fearney, who tucked them under his arm.  With him were Edward Berry, Lieutenant Pierson of the 69th regiment (who were serving as marines), and three men - whom Nelson fondly called "old Agamemnons" as they had served with him on that ship - John Sykes, John Thomson and Francis Cook.

This incredible action, of boarding one first-rate and then using her as a springboard from which to board another, became known as 'Nelson's Patent Bridge for Boarding First Rates'.

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Nelson Makes his Move - The Battle of Cape St. Vincent continued...

From his position in the Captain, near the rear of the British line, Nelson had a good view of events as they unfolded.  He saw as, at 1pm, the Culloden began to open fire upon the rear-most Spanish ships, with the Blenheim approaching behind.  He had seen Jervis' signals, and he saw that the Britannia was not turning.

Alarmingly, he then noticed that Córdova's division was beginning to turn to the east with the intention of getting round the rear-most British ships.  He knew that if he continued to follow the Britannia and ignore Jervis' order to turn, the Spanish would be given time to get past them and become a serious threat.  

So Nelson, in a remarkable display of initiative and ingenuity, took it upon himself to join the British van.  He wore out of the line - that is, he turned away from the wind (tacking involved turning into it), and away from the Spanish.  This was a faster way of turning, as it meant that the wind could catch the sails as the ship turned away from it.  He then cut back through the line, ahead of Captain Collingwood's Excellent, and sped towards the Spanish and Troubridge's Culloden.  Thanks to his quick-thinking and seamanship, he reached them just 10 minutes after the Culloden engaged.

It was a risky move, because as the Captain approached alone she would come under heavy fire from five big Spanish ships, which was potentially devastating.  But the Spanish gunnery was not very fast or accurate, which Nelson had probably counted on after his earlier visit to Cadiz and assessment of the Spanish ships and seamen.  

In contrast, the Captain's gunners were highly trained, disciplined and experienced, and subjected Córdova's ships to fast, heavy and accurate fire.  The move and devastating attacks took Córdova by surprise, and he gave up on his attempt to turn and continued on his original course.  Later, Captain Miller of the Captain described the manoeuvre as like "turning them as two shepherd's dogs wou'd a flock of sheep".

"Engage the Enemy More Closely"   

10 minutes after Nelson's move, Jervis signalled for the whole of the rear division to join him.  Abandoning the strategy of all turning at the same point, they rushed to get into the action where they could.  The Barfleur was a fast sailer, and Waldegrave had her wear in the same way as Nelson's Captain had done, and was able to join the line directly behind the Victory.  The Britannia and Namur were slower and reached the end of the line, and thus hardly took part in the battle at all.  The 64-gun Diadem was very quick, and joined the end of Parker's van division, behind the Irresistable.  Collingwood's Excellent, also a fast sailer under his seamanship, was able to get ahead of the Victory. 

Now he had a number of ships supporting the Culloden and Captain, Jervis signalled the fleet to 'engage the enemy more closely' - in other words, engage in a brutal, short-range melee attack.  This would later become Nelson's favourite signal, well-suited to his fierce and ruthless desire for short and decisive battles.  However, the speedy Diadem and Irresistible got a little carried away and Jervis later had to order them to cease firing as they came too close to the Victory and Excellent.

The monstrous Spanish flagship, Santisima Trinidad, was a much-desired prize, and the British van focussed their attacks on her, so much so that their commander, Rear-Admiral Parker, ordered them to move further up the Spanish line to make room for new British ships to enter the battle.  So the Blenheim, Prince George and Orion moved up ahead of the Captain.  Noticing that the Santisima Trinidad was the focus of the British attacks, five Spanish ships - the Mexicano, San José, San Nicolas, Soberano and Salvador del Mundo) moved close to protect her.

By this time, the Spanish were completely confused and disorganised and in no semblance of a line.  As the British van reached his fleet, Córdova signalled 'Each unit should enter combat as soon as it can'.  But because of the erratic positioning of the ships, some of the ones in the front didn't see the signal.

Later, Córdova said that the way the British fought, "in great good order, with a heavy and well-directed fire, decided the action in their favour."

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The Battle of Cape St Vincent - continued

 

Half an hour after his last signal, Jervis ordered the fleet to 'tack in succession'.  This meant that they would all turn at the same point, following the leading ship and keeping the line intact.

Troubridge had been prepared for this order, and as soon as he saw the signal immediately turned the Culloden, heading towards the main body of the Spanish.  But this manoeuvre was not without its difficulties.  During the turn, the ships would leave their sterns vulnerable to enemy broadsides, and Moreno recognised this.  If he could identify the turning point and position his ships there, he could cause significant damage.

The second British ship, the Blenheim, successfully followed the Culloden's turn.  The third ship, the Prince George, flagship of Rear-Admiral Parker who led the van division, also made the turn, but by this time the Principe de Asturias was coming to attack with four other ships.  The Orion then made the turn but the Colossus behind her was not so lucky.  She came under fire from Moreno's ships and some of her sails were destroyed, so she went out of control.  Moreno did not waste time in ordering his crew to prepare to board the Colossus but, as the British ship dropped out of the line, Captain Saumarez slowed the Orion so was able to cover her, and shot at the Principe de Asturias.  The Colossus continued to drift northwards, and the next ship in the British line, the Irresistible, was able to get alongside the Spanish ship and fire at her.  Under such heavy fire, there was no way the Spanish could even attempt to board the stricken Colossus.

As the Irresistible completed her turn, it was Jervis' flagship, the Victory, that next came under fire from Moreno's undeterred attacks.  But when the Victory came to a stop, the Principe de Asturias was forced to turn suddenly, putting her in the perfect position to receive massive broadsides from the British admiral's flagship.

Still, Moreno doggedly continued his attacks.  The Egmont, coming up behind the Victory, was fired upon by two of the ships in his division.  The Goliath came next and exchanged fire with the Principe de Asturias and Conde de Regla.  She managed to complete her turn, but the determined Spanish attack had left her rigging badly damaged.  

An hour after the British had cut the line, Moreno finally gave up, and decided to attempt to go around the front of the British line and join up with Córdova's division that way.  His repeated and determined attacks, coming under fire from several British ships, earned Nelson's praise, who later said that he "did everything which a good officer could do to attempt to cut through the British line".

Moreno may not have succeeded in penetrating the British line, but his defeat of the Colossus, and forcing the Victory to stop and fend him off, meant that Troubridge's Culloden was pulling ahead of the rest of the British line and was about to reach the Spanish fleet with little support and completely exposed to heavy Spanish fire.  

As Jervis went up onto the Victory's poop deck, the better to view and assess the situation, a seaman standing near him had his head blown off by a Spanish shot, covering him in brains and blood.  The Victory's captain, George Grey, initially thought that the blood was Jervis' own and rushed up to check he was ok.  Unfazed by the incident, Jervis continued his deliberations, but did ask for an orange so he could rinse his mouth.

 

If the Culloden continued on her current course, she'd put herself in grave danger.  So the obvious option seemed to be to signal for her to withdraw and wait for the rest of the British.  But this could give Córdova chance to escape, so instead Jervis altered his strategy.  He signalled to the Britannia, the flagship of Vice-Admiral Thompson leading the rear division, for 'the leading ship to tack and others in succession'.  This manoeuvre would effectively split the fleet into two lines, enabling the rear division to reach the Spanish and attack earlier than if they'd continued to the original turning point.  He followed this up with a signal to every ship to 'take up suitable stations for mutual support and engage the enemy as arriving up in succession'.

But Thompson in the Britannia did not follow the order, and did not turn.

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The Battle of Cape St Vincent - The Opening Shots

Admiral John Jervis, Commander in Chief of the British Fleet

 

Dawn on the 14th February 1797 was a misty one, with light breezes.  Following Admiral Sir John Jervis' orders, the British fleet had formed a close order of sailing during the night, and had maintained it until the morning.  So when, at 8.20am as the reports of enemy sightings began to come in, Jervis signalled the fleet to prepare for battle, they did not need to waste time forming up.  As soon as they reached the enemy, they would be ready to swoop down upon them.

The first reports suggested that there were only a small number of Spanish ships, so Jervis sent his three leading ships, the Culloden, Blenheim and Prince George, to cut them off.

Then, the sloop Bonne Citoyenne signalled that she had seen 8 ships, so Jervis sent the Irresistible and Colossus after them.  The Orion, commanded by Captain James Saumarez, went with them, though Jervis had not specifically ordered him to do so, but he always encouraged that kind of individual initiative.

The frigate Minerve then signalled that there were 20 ships.  These signals were all reported to Jervis by his First Captain, Robert Calder, one after the other:

"There are eight sail of the line, Sir John."

"Very well, sir."

"There are twenty sail of the line, Sir John."

"Very well, sir."

"There are twenty-five sail of the line, Sir John."

"Very well, sir."

"There are twenty-seven sail of the line, Sir John.  Near twice our own number."

Irritated, Jervis snapped, "Enough, sir!  The die is cast and if there are fifty sail I will go through them!" 

 

In the Spanish Fleet

The storm that had kept Admiral Córdova's fleet at sea for a week had also left it disorganised and in bad formation.  He wasn't expecting a big British attack, as he hadn't heard that Jervis' fleet had been strengthened by William Parker's squadron and so thought the enemy numbers were much less than they actually were.  

The Spanish were in 3 rough divisions.  Córdova himself, in the 4-decker beast Santisima Trinidad - one of the biggest ships of the time - led the centre division; Admiral Morales de los Rios in the 112-gun Concepción led the rear; and Admiral Juan Moreno in the 112-gun Principe de Asturias, led the van (the front).  Moreno's division also included the mercury-carrying urcas.

In the morning, Córdova heard the British signal guns, but he couldn't see the fleet and so sent the San Pablo and Pelayo, from the rear division, to the north - in the wrong direction, as it turned out - to have a look.  They did not make it back in time to participate in the battle.  

At 9am, the British ships were seen.  They were further to the east than Córdova had expected.

For the first time in days, the wind was good for getting into Cadiz.  Believing that the British couldn't have more than 9 ships, he thought his fleet could push past them and get his valuable convoy of urcas in to the port without engaging in a full-on battle.  But at 10am that hope was dashed as he received the report that there were 15 ships and they were heading straight for him. 

Córdova understandably thought that the British wanted the valuable convoy of urcas and so would attack the van first.  To protect them, he gave up on trying to get into Cadiz, and decided to turn his fleet, thus placing Moreno's division, including the urcas, at the rear and under the protection of the rest of the fleet.  

But under such conditions, with the lack of experience of his men and under the tension of knowing that battle was imminent, the turn was chaotic and left the fleet disorganised and only vaguely resembling any kind of line of battle.  They became bunched in groups, which meant that some ships would be unable to use their broadsides against the enemy without hitting one of their own.  Worse, Moreno's division became separated from the main body of the fleet.  Now, he had only five ships-of-the-line protecting the lightly-armed urcas, and the advantage of outnumbering the enemy was diminished.

 

The British Approach

In fact, Jervis was not after the urcas.  He didn't even know that they were anything other than fully-armed ships-of-the-line, and treated them as such.  He saw the gap opening up between the rear division and the rest of the Spanish fleet, and decided to take advantage of it and cut straight through, keeping the fleet separated and dealing with them in chunks.  

This strategy contradicted the standard tactics of the time, which involved forming a line parallel with that of the enemy and battering each other until one retreated.  But the enemy fleet barely formed a line, and one division was separate from the rest, forming a weakness which Jervis intended to take full advantage of. 

So he signalled for the fleet to form a line 'as most convenient'.  This meant that he was relying on his captains to intelligently and independently form an organised line of battle without wasting time forming up into a pre-determined order.  This was aided by the fact that they had maintained a close order of sailing throughout the night.  He was well aware of the skill of his captains and trusted them to do what was needed.  Half an hour later, he let them know that 'the admiral means to pass through the enemy's line'.

The British captains complied with his instructions cleanly, efficiently, and quickly, so quickly in fact that they bore down on the Spanish with a speed that took them by surprise.  Captain Cuthbert Collingwood later described the approach as like swooping down on their opponents 'like a hawk to his prey'.  

Nelson, in the Captain, moved behind Vice-Admiral William Waldegrave's ship, the Barfleur, in the rear division.  Captain Decres of the Barfleur hailed him to say 'he was desired by the vice-admiral to express his pleasure at being supported by Sir Horatio Nelson'.

The hero of the approach was Captain Thomas Troubridge in the Culloden.  He was at the lead of the British line, and raced to cut through the Spanish line before Moreno's division could catch up with the rest of them.  As the gap began to close, it looked as if the Culloden might collide with Moreno's ship Principe de Asturias.  But when the First Lieutenant told Troubridge this, he simply replied "Can't help it Griffiths, let the weakest fend off!".  This was exactly the attitude which Jervis had worked to infuse into his captains, and most admired.  As it turned out, the Principe de Asturias was the weakest - two broadsides from the Culloden saw her off and forced her to turn away.

 

Now the division of the Spanish fleet was complete.  As ship after ship passed through the gap, firing on Moreno's division, it became impossible for him to get past them.

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"By God, I'll not lose Hardy!"

After a long break, time to return to my series on the Battle of Cape St Vincent!

On the 9th February 1797, Nelson arrived at Gibraltar, having been unsuccessful in his search for the Spanish fleet.  His passenger, Gilbert Elliot, went ashore to report to the governor, but Nelson was itching to get back out to sea.  He turned down invitations to dine ashore, and even impatiently sent a note to Elliot's secretary asking for the party to be on board La Minerve by 8pm.  He knew that a battle was imminent and didn't want to miss it.  But one good thing to come out of the delay was that he was able to pick up Lieutenant's Culverhouse and Hardy after the exchange of prisoners.

Finally, Elliot finished his business ashore and boarded La Minerve.  But just as she set off, two Spanish ships emerged from nearby Algeciras and gave chase.  They began to close in, and as Nelson paced the quarterdeck with Colonel John Drinkwater, the Colonel asked him if an engagement was likely.  Nelson replied that it was possible, then looked up at his broad pendant flying from the mast, and added, 

"But before the Dons get hold of that bit of bunting I will have a struggle with them and sooner than give up the frigate I'll run her ashore."

But even as the Spanish frigates came close enough that Elliot began to prepare to throw his confidential papers overboard to stop them falling into enemy hands, a cry went up that a man had fallen overboard.  The officers who had been entertaining Elliot and his party in the cabin rushed up on deck, and Hardy quickly lowered a boat over the side of the ship, manning it himself.  But there was no sign of the man, so the crew of the boat started to row back to the ship.  

The current was against them, and they made slow progress.  The Spanish frigates were closing in, and it started to look as if poor Hardy would be captured again.  It was a tense few moments, until Nelson could take it no longer and cried,

"By God, I'll not lose Hardy!  Back the mizzen topsail."

So the ship slowed down enough that Hardy in his boat could catch up and get aboard.  It seemed certain that the Spanish ship the Terrible would force them into a fight, but all of a sudden she shortened sail and dropped back.  Nelson's slowing La Minerve had taken the Spanish commander by surprise, and he probably thought that Nelson had seen the British fleet and was luring him into a trap.  Whatever the reason, it allowed Nelson to escape.

During the night, Nelson turned to the south to make sure he threw off his pursuers, but found himself in the middle of the Spanish fleet!  Luckily, Minerve managed to creep through undetected in the darkness, and in the morning went north towards Cadiz.  Now he knew exactly where the enemy were, Nelson rushed to find Jervis and arrived on the 13th February.  Culverhouse and Hardy, having been prisoners of the Spanish, also had valuable information about the fleet.

 

Preparing for Battle

Two days before Nelson arrived back at the fleet, the convoy he'd sent from Elba got there.  The Southampton reported seeing the Spanish fleet, and that they had been damaged in the storm.  The Bonne Citoyenne brought yet another report, this time that the Spanish were 20 miles to the south-east, and heading for Cadiz.  So by the time Nelson arrived, Jervis had the fleet preparing for battle and sailing towards where the enemy had been seen.

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Nelson's Last Portrait

This is the last portrait taken of Nelson from life, and it sold recently at Sotheby's for £64,900.

Nelson by John Whichelo

It's one of the less 'pretty' portraits of Nelson but for that reason is also one of the more human and realistic.  The artist was John Whichelo, who created the chalk portrait when visiting Nelson at Merton in September 1805.  Nelson sailed from Portsmouth for the last time on 14th September, so the sitting really was squeezed in at the last moment.  

The portrait, showing Nelson in profile looking to the left, is very similar to the one Simon de Koster painted (below) in 1800.  That one was known to be one of Nelson's favourites of himself, so it's possible that either directly or indirectly, he influenced the 21-year-old Whichelo to create something similar.

Nelson by Simon de Koster

Whichelo kept the portrait himself for thirty-three years, until in 1838 he was employed in giving drawing lessons to the son of Rear-Admiral Sir William Parker.  Then he gave it to Parker with the note:

"Mr Whichelo most respectfully begs to send Sr Wm Parker the Head of the Late Illustrious Nelson.  Drawn by him from the Hero during his short stay at Merton the beginning of September 1805."

It remained with Parker's descendents ever since, until the recent sale.


See also: the Sotheby's listing

Prelude to Battle: Finding the Spanish Fleet, December 1796 - February 1797

Nelson arrived at Elba expecting to begin an evacuation of the garrison, but the British army officer General de Burgh had not had any orders to do so, so didn't agree to it.  Impatiently, Nelson sent Captain Thomas Fremantle in the Inconstant to go and get the viceroy, Sir Gilbert Elliot, from Naples.  He arrived on the 22nd January 1797, but he also didn't agree to evacuate the garrison.  In the end, Nelson agreed to take Elliot on La Minerve to Lisbon to speak with Admiral Jervis, and he did manage to take a convoy of naval supplies from the island. 

On the way back to Lisbon, Nelson had a scout about for the enemy fleet.  He had a peek into Toulon, where they were last seen, but they weren't there.  He continued along the coast to the Spanish port of Cartagena, but they weren't there either.  He came to the conclusion that they must be heading for the Straits of Gibraltar.

 

The Spanish Fleet

Meanwhile, in October the Spanish fleet under commander Langara, had joined the French fleet, under Rear-Admiral Pierre Villeneuve (who would appear more than once in the Nelson story!), at Toulon.  The combined fleets were then ordered to leave the Mediterranean and head north to help with the French invasion of Ireland.  

So in December they made a move.  Villeneuve was successful in dodging the British fleets, and got out of the Mediterranean and reached Brest, on the north-west coast of France - but, as it turned out, too late to help with the invasion, which failed. 

But Langara knew that the Spanish ships were in a poor state for a battle so stopped off at Cartagena on 6th December for supplies and repairs.  This action led to him being replaced by an impatient Spanish government, but his successor, Admiral José de Mazarredo, also refused to leave until the problems with ships, supplies and under-manning were solved.  He, too, was therefore replaced, by Admiral José de Córdova y Ramos.  The problem was that Spain didn't dedicate anywhere near enough resources to their navy in order to fight a successful war at sea.  Technically, their ships were some of the largest and finest in the world, but they were under-supplied and their crews were not skilled or trained particularly well.  For example, the Santisima Trinidad was a beast of a ship - with four decks and 130 guns, she was the largest ship in the world at that time.  But only 60 out of her 900 crew had the experience and skill needed to successfully man a ship of war.

In 1793, while captain of the Agamemnon, Nelson had visited Cadiz and had a look round the dockyard.  He wrote to his wife, Frances, concluding that "I am certain if our six barges' crews (which are picked men) had got on board one of their first rates they would have taken her.   Therefore in vain may the Dons make fine ships, they cannot however make men."  

This conclusion probably contributed to giving him the confidence that led to his remarkable actions in the forthcoming battle.

 

Jervis at Gibraltar

Having reached Gibraltar on the 1st December, Jervis' fleet was then caught in a violent storm.  Two of his ships - the Courageux and Zealous - were wrecked.  Another two - the Culloden and Gibraltar - ran aground.  The Culloden was refloated but the Gibraltar was so badly damaged that she had to go back to England for extensive repairs.  HMS Bombay Castle and the St George got stuck on a sandbank, and the latter had to go to Lisbon to repair.  The British fleet had now been reduced to 10 ships.  

As his ships were battered by the storm, Jervis watched the French fleet escape through the Straits and out into the Atlantic.  He assumed that the Spanish were following and worried that they would intercept Nelson and his convoy, so headed to Cape St Vincent to wait for him.  

On the 6th February 1797, Jervis was relieved to be reinforced by Rear-Admiral William Parker with his squadron of five ships, who also brought the news that the Irish invasion had failed and the French fleet were in Brest.  This gave Jervis a little breathing space and he could now focus on the Spanish knowing that the French were out of the way. 

All he had to do now was find them.

On the 1st of February, Córdova was ordered to take his 27 ships-of-the-line and 8 frigates to assist at the siege of Gibraltar.  Crucially, he was also ordered to pick up a convoy from Malaga and take it to Cadiz.  The convoy was made up of 5 'urcas', armed storeships carrying a valuable cargo of mercury.  

On the 5th of February, Córdova detached 3 ships of the line, with launches, into Algeciras, and on the 6th the rest of the fleet reached Cadiz.  But before the mercury ships could get into the port, a gale blew up which forced the whole fleet to stay out at sea for 8 days.  This was Jervis' opportunity to find them.

On the 9th of February, he received a report from the frigate Viper that the Spanish had gone through the Straits on the 5th and gone into Cadiz on the 6th.  But on the 10th, the Emerald reported that they were in fact still at sea.  

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