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Capture of Belle Île

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Background

In 1756, Britain and France had formally gone to war after initial clashes in North America. The French began the war successfully by capturing Menorca a British island in the Mediterranean. After this Britain had gained the initiative at sea and had begun a series of naval incursions on the French coast, such as the Raid on Rochefort (1757) and the Raid on Cherbourg (1758), pioneered by the Southern Secretary William Pitt. While the practical success of these was limited, they caused serious alarm throughout France and forced the French government to detach large numbers of troops to guard coastal areas against further British raids. Pitt suspended the campaign in late 1758 following an unsuccessful landing at Saint Cast, while remaining open to the idea of further operations against the vulnerable French coast.

In 1759, France attempted to launch a major invasion of Britain, but following the naval defeats of Lagos and Quiberon Bay and a near continuous British blockade of French ports, this plan had to be abandoned; for much of the remainder of the war the French navy remained at anchor. From 1757, the British launched a series of attacks on French colonies around the globe, leading many of them being captured. The Conquest of Canada in 1759-60 left Britain in control of a large area of formerly French territory, and Pitt anticipated that this would lead to a peace agreement, as many in Paris sought to bring an end to the costly war.

Pitt had planned to send an expedition to capture Mauritius, a major French naval base in the Indian Ocean. However, with the likelihood of a peace congress fast approaching Pitt wanted something more immediate and tangible which could be exchanged for captured British or German territory, rather than the Mauritius which would take a long time to capture and news of which would take months to reach Europe. He was also aware of Spain's potential entry into the war, which would also make it prudent to keep ships closer to home to protect against a possible invasion.

Pitt now decided to switch the focus of an expedition to the French coast. The island of Belle Île was located close to Lorient and the major naval centre of Brittany and offered command of the Bay of Biscay. He now advocated that it should be seized and turned into a British military base which could then be used as a staging point for further attacks on the French mainland. Pitt had originally proposed an attack on Belle Île in October 1760, but it was strongly opposed by the Duke of Newcastle and vetoed by King George II on the grounds that more focus should be given to the ongoing campaign in Germany. Pitt now revived the project, helped by the fact that the old King had died and been succeeded by his grandson.

Both Lord Anson and Sir Edward Hawke were opposed to such an expedition, but Pitt was not put off by the opposition of two of Britain's most respected admirals. On 25 March George III signed secret orders now making Belle Île the target. The command of the army was to be given to General Studholme Hodgson while Admiral Augustus Keppel, already experienced in amphibious operations from his role in the Capture of Goree, was to command the naval elements.

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