History

The Battle of Aboukir (also known as the Battle of the Nile in English or معركة أبي قير البحرية in Arabic) was an important naval battle between the British and French fleets in Aboukir Bay, near Alexandria in Egypt between the 1st and August 2, 1798. Napoleon Bonaparte wanted to invade Egypt in order to threaten the British possessions in India and obtain the exit of the United Kingdom from the Second Coalition. Bonaparte's fleet heading for Egypt was chased by the British fleet led by Admiral Horatio Nelson. For more than two months, Nelson chased the French and narrowly missed them on several occasions. Bonaparte was aware of the British threat and he applied absolute secrecy to his destination. He was able to capture Malta and land in Egypt without being intercepted by Nelson. Once the army landed, the French fleet dropped anchor on July 27 in Aboukir Bay, 32 km north of Alexandria and deployed on a formation which, according to its commander, Vice-Admiral François Paul de Brueys d'Aigalliers, represented a formidable defensive position. When Nelson arrived on August 1, he discovered the French formation and immediately launched an attack. During the approach, the British fleet split up and one part passed between the French ships and the coast while the other opened fire from the open sea. Trapped by cross-fire, the French avant-garde ships had to capitulate after three hours of fierce combat, while the center was able to repel the first British attack. Nevertheless, it was again attacked by the British who had received reinforcements and, at 10 p.m., the French flagship the Orient exploded. With the death of Brueys, the vanguard and the center destroyed, the rearguard of the French fleet tried to escape but only two line vessels and two frigates succeeded, out of a total of 17 vessels engaged. The battle overturned the strategic situation in the Mediterranean and it enabled the Royal Navy to obtain a dominant position which it maintained until the end of the war. She also encouraged other European countries to join the Second Coalition against France. The French army isolated in Egypt tried to advance in Palestine but it was pushed back during the siege of Saint-Jean-d'Acre in 1799 and Bonaparte returned to France. Nelson, who had been wounded during the battle, became a hero in Europe and was knighted Viscount Nelson. The battle remained alive in the collective unconscious, at least British, and it was mentioned in the famous poem of 1826 Casabianca by Felicia Hemans.