INTERESTING HISTORICAL EVENTS.

Pelorus Guardian and Miners' Advocate., Volume 18, Issue 40, 17 May 1907, Page 2

INTERESTING HISTORICAL EVENTS.

■ CAPTURE OF .GIBRALTAR. In 1704 Sin George Hooke had been sent into the Mediterranean with a strong fleet to assist Charles, Archduke of Austria; but he was so limited by instructions as to be unable to effect any enterprise of importance. Unwilling to return to England with a powerful squadron without having achieved anything he called a council of war, and it was determined to attack Gibraltar. On July 21, the fleet reached the bay, and 1,800 men, English and Dutch, commanded by the Prince of Hesse d’Armsladt, were immediately landed on the Isthmus. On the 2. ! 3rd the, ships commenced a brisk cannonade on the new mole, aud in live or six hours drove the enemy from their guns. Captain Whitaker, with the armed boats, was ordered to possess himself of the New Mole; but Captain Hicks and Jumper, who lay withtheir ships nearest the mole, auger to shai'i in every part of the glory, pushed ashore in their barges before the other boats could come up.On thoir landing, the Spaniards sprang a mine, which blew up the fortilications, killed two lieutenants and forty men and wounded sixty, The assailants, however, kept possession of the work, and being joined by Captain Whitaker, boldly advanced, and took a small bastion, halfway betwixt the mole and the town,,The Marquis de Salines, who was Governor thought proper to surrender, and the British colours, for the first time waved over the Rock of Gibraltar. No sooner were the Spaniards acquainted with the loss of this important fortress, than they made every effort to regain it. Foil-: ed in several attempts, they formed tlie extravagant and desperate scheme of surprising the garrison, although a British admiral was then before the town. On October 31, 500 volunteers took the sacrament, never to return until they had planted the Spanish flag on the battlements of Gibraltar! This forlorn hope was conducted by a goatherd to the south side of the rock, near the Cave guard. They mounted the rock, and during the first night lodged themselves unperceived in St. Michael’s Cave. j On the succeeding night they Charles V.’s Wall, and surprised aud massacred the guard at Middle EUIL' By the assistance of ropes and ladders they got up several hundreds of. the party appointed to support them; but being discovered a strong detachment of grenadiers marched up from the town, and attacked them with such spirit that 160 of them wore killed or forced over the precipice, and a colonel and thirty offi-. curs, with the remainder, taken pri-j soners. Several attempts to recover the fortress have been made, but with no better success. The greatest of all was the memorable siege of 1781 1 to 1782. General Elliott was governor, with a garrison of near 6,000 men. The Spanish army of 14.000 was encamped within a mile and a half of the gates, and had construct- . ed most extensive works. These General Elliott determined, if possible to destroy ; and accordingly on the night of November 27, a sortie . was made from the garrison, the • enemy surprised, and their works set on (ire and blown up. All this was ‘-fleeted in less than two hours, and with (he loss of one man only who being the first to mount a battery, encountered the Spanish captain of artillery, whom he wounded; but, being wounded also, he could not get off before the flames reached him. The works thus destroyed had cost (lie Spaniards the enormous sum of thirteen millions of piastres, equal to three mill-ions sterling. It was now determined to make the grand attack by sea and land which had been so long projected ; aud the command of this enterprise was given to the Duke of Grill on. From the arrival of this commandant the most active preparations wore made in constructing batteries, which, however were frequently destroyed by the garrison. The whole force of the allies consisted of forty-four largo ships of the line, three inferior twodeckers, ten battering-ships, live bomb-ketches, a great numbor of gun and mortar-boats, a large floating battery, many armed vessels, and nearly 300 boats. The land batteries were furnished with 246 peices of cannon, mortars, and howitzers; and the combined army amounted to 40,000. On September 13, the grand attack was made by sea, and mot by the garrison by a brisk fire of redhot balls. After a few hours, the admiral’s skip was observed to smoke, and eight more of the ships took lire in succession. Several ol the battering-ships exploded in the course of the following day, and the remaining eight ships also blew up with terrible explosions. Brigadier Curtis, with his squadron of gunboats, exerted himself most valiantly in the cause of humanity and saved upwards of three hundred persons from the ships which were on lire, who must otherwise have perished* Lord Howe afterwards arrived with a Meet, and reinforced the garrison.— “Spare Moments,”