Hawke and Quiberon Bay

[LARSSON at VAX1.Mankato.MSUS.EDU]

This is from our Britanica Online:

EDWARD HAWKE, 1st BARON OF TOWTON:
"(b. Feb. 21, 1710, London, Eng.--d. Oct. 17, 1781, Sunbury, Middlesex), British
admiral whose naval victory in 1759 put an end to French plans to invade Great Britain during the
Seven Years' War (1756-63). 


   Hawke joined the navy in February 1720 and was promoted to rear admiral for his
distinguished service against the French in the War of the Austrian Succession (1740-48). In
October 1747 he captured six French warships in a brilliant action that took place off the coast of
Brittany. 

As commander of the fleet blockading the French naval station of Brest in 1759, Hawke
played a vital role in the conquest of Canada by the British when he prevented reinforcements
from reaching the French army in Canada. The French decided, as a counteroffensive, to invade
Great Britain; the French fleet at Brest was crucial to this plan. On Nov. 14, 1759, the French
admiral Hubert de Brienne, Count de Conflans, taking advantage of an opening in Hawke's
blockade, headed southeast from Brest along the French coast to pick up troops for the invasion.
Six days later Hawke's fleet of some 23 ships caught up with Conflans' 21-vessel squadron and
drove it into Quiberon Bay. During a three-hour battle and its aftermath, nine French ships were
destroyed, and the French unit was rendered incapable of further aggressive action. Hawke then
retired from sea duty. He served as first lord of the Admiralty from 1766 to 1771 and was made
a baron in 1776. 
"



(Sorry for the misformatting!)


Don Larsson, Mankato State U (MN)