Directory_and_Chronicle_1841 — Page 541

524

Capture of Amoy.

SEP.

The 23d. The headmost ships quite out of the Lamma channel. The following was the

QUEEN.

Order of sailing.

Bentinck, surveying vessel.

PHLEGETHON.

COLUMBINE.

WELLESLEY.

BLENHEIM.

MARION.

SESOSTRIS.

NEMESIS.

MODÉSTE.

DRUID, wing ship.

bearing a detach- 7 Transports,

ment of the 49th, and the whole of

}luduy{u t[l[ k{}

transports.

6 Provision

8 Transports, bearing a detach- ment of the 26th, the 55th entire, with Engineers and Artillery.

BLONDE, wing skip.

PYLADES.

CRUIZER.

ALGERINE.

25th. At noon a little to the westward of Breaker Point, the ships making good progress.

25th. At noon about 70 miles from Chapel Island, and the order of sailing pretty well preserved by the whole squadron. During the afternoon, the wind increased considerably from the southeastward; at dark, with a strong breeze, the ships ran into Amoy. The whole squadron, however, was not anchored till rather a late hour, in a fine moonlight evening. In taking up her auchorage, the Columbine ran foul of the Wellesley, not without some serious damage, Mr. William Maitland having been struck with great violence, and others narrowly escaping. Some guns were fired from Quemoy, as the squadron passed.

Thursday, the 26th,-just two years since the English were driven from Macao, was signalized by operations, thus announced by

CIRCULAR.

To her Britannic Majesty's subjects in China.

Her majesty's plenipotentiary, &c., has the highest degree of satisfaction in announcing to H. M. subjects, and others who feel an interest in the question, that the city of Amoy, with its very extensive and formidable line of batteries and fleet of gun-boats and war-junks (the whole_mounting upwards to five hun dred pieces of cannon), was taken possession of on the 26th instant, after a short but animated defense on the part of the Chinese, by H. M.'s naval and land forces, under the command of their excellencies, rear-admiral sir William Parker, K. C. B., and major-general sir Hugh Gough, K. C. B. This brilliant achievement has been happily accomplished with a very trifling loss; and, in addition to the works, all of which have been dismantled and destroyed, and the guns spiked and broken, immense magazines full of munitions of war have been either remov- ed, or rendered useless.

Arrangements are now in progress for leaving a detachment of troops on the small island of Koolangsu (which is separated from the town of Amoy by a chan- nel of deep water), and some of H. M's ships will likewise remain at this port, whilst the great body of the expedition advances to the northward, so that British