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Chapter 772: Ranger Tactics

British merchant ships had no idea that they would be attacked by French frigates, even with a Royal Navy cruiser escorting them.

Chaos erupted on board.

The second mate ordered the sailors to toss cargo overboard, hoping to lighten the ship and increase speed for an escape.

The gunnery officer cracked his whip, herding the gunners who were cowering in the hold, shouting for them to return fire.

In an era rife with pirates, merchant ships were always equipped with cannons. Naturally, these merchant vessels were no match for purpose-built warships in terms of firepower, number of guns, or defensive capabilities.

The merchant ship's gunners were remarkably lucky; their first shot, an 18-pounder cannonball, struck the Far Sight's hull.

However, the merchant ship's short-barreled cannon only left a dent in the Far Sight's side before drawing a far more ferocious barrage in return.

After more than a dozen broadsides, the French frigate had riddled the merchant ship with holes, but the British oar-powered vessel behind them was catching up.

In the age of sailing warships, it was incredibly difficult to sink an opponent with solid shot. It usually required dozens of broadsides, or sheer luck in scoring a hit below the waterline.

The captain immediately changed tactics, ordering them to abandon the now immobilized target and pursue another merchant ship that had just vanished over the horizon.

Meanwhile, a nautical mile away, the British merchant ship 'Box Jellyfish' was engulfed in flames under the Great Tide's fierce bombardment. Sailors, licked by the flames, leaped into the sea, their screams audible even to Madeno.

Half an hour later.

The Far Sight had circled widely but failed to locate the British merchant ship that had fled southeast. It seemed that ship's captain possessed extensive experience in maritime escapes.

Madeno heard the order to abandon the chase and shook his head regretfully, but quickly found peace with it.

For that merchant ship to have escaped so quickly, it must have jettisoned all its cargo into the sea, which would be enough to sting the British for a while.

He glanced at the British oar-powered vessel that persistently trailed them, scoffing with a smile.

'In an hour at most, that ship will be shaken off as its rowers' stamina dwindles,' he mused.

Immediately after, the Far Sight turned southwest, hurrying to the agreed-upon coordinates to rendezvous with the other two ships in the squadron.

At two in the afternoon, the three French warships regrouped, exchanging flag signals and sharing their recent victories.

Both the Seagull's Wing and the Great Tide had sunk their targets. In contrast, the Far Sight, aiming for a "double kill," hadn't managed to sink a single one.

Shortly after, the flagship, Seagull's Wing, signaled orders for the squadron to return and completely destroy the immobilized merchant ship.

However, they had barely sailed seven or eight nautical miles north when the combat alarm blared again.

Madeno looked up at the lookout. The lookout pointed to the distant sea and exclaimed:

"There's a British cruiser 1.5 nautical miles ahead!"

Unbeknownst to them, the British commander, Hicks, was furious, driven to a frenzy after three of his merchant ships were destroyed right under his nose.

He had ordered his warships to search the nearby waters for the French frigates, hoping to sink one or two to regain some honor.

At that moment, the British cruiser spotted the French warships and immediately charged forward with murderous intent.

After confirming there was only one cruiser nearby, the French frigate squadron's flagship, Seagull's Wing, decisively gave the order to attack.

Madeno's heart pounded once more.

It was easy enough to overpower merchant ships with their speed, but for their small frigates to challenge a 44-gun cruiser felt like three hunting dogs trying to take on a brown bear!

However, he then recalled the "Ranger Tactics" they had been trained in, and his tension slightly eased. He turned and shouted to the surrounding sailors, "What are you staring at? Get back to your stations immediately!"

The British cruiser approached the Seagull's Wing without fear. Once it entered range, its ferocious firepower could cripple the frigate within minutes.

However, the French squadron's flagship deftly turned, aiming its three 32-pounder cannons from the stern at the British cruiser.

Meanwhile, the Far Sight and the Great Tide each executed an arc, heading toward the British warship's stern.

Ten minutes later, the Seagull's Wing's stern guns were the first to open fire.

The French's favored long-barreled cannons finally showcased their theoretical range advantage.

Relying on its thick hull, the British cruiser gritted its teeth and gave chase. However, its bow guns were extremely weak—the prevailing tactic of the era was broadside-to-broadside exchanges with heavy cannons, so who would mount heavy guns at the bow or stern?—leaving it almost defenseless and unable to return fire.

Only after the British warship had pursued for four nautical miles did it finally realize that the French frigate ahead was merely toying with it, maintaining a controlled speed. Though the three 32-pounder cannons at its stern had only hit twice, they had still punched two noticeable holes in its bow.

Immediately, the other two French frigates surged forward from the rear flank.

Hicks hastily ordered a turn, bringing his broadside to bear on the French, but the Seagull's Wing immediately swung about and, at lightning speed, moved in on his stern.

The three frigates circled the British cruiser like agile birds, seizing every opportunity to unleash a few shots, then using their superior speed to disengage when the enemy closed in.

This was the "Ranger Tactics" formulated by the French Naval General Staff for steam warships: avoid direct confrontations, fully utilize their superior speed and maneuverability, and slowly wear down powerful yet clumsy enemy ships.

Over twenty minutes later, Hicks's flagship was riddled with damage, especially near the starboard waterline, where a 24-pounder cannonball had struck. Though the breach wasn't large, if the ship maneuvered significantly, water would gush in...

A powerful wave of fear suddenly surged in Hicks's heart.

'At this rate, I'll be sunk sooner or later,' he realized.

He began to regret breaking up his squadron to search for the French warships. If the 'Starry Dream' had been nearby, the two ships could have covered each other, and they wouldn't have fallen into such a passive situation.

He didn't know, however, that because the French Navy's steam warships had been in service for such a short time, neither the captains nor the crews had fully mastered "Ranger Tactics." Otherwise, his ship would have been sunk ten minutes ago.

Nevertheless, the French frigates had plenty of time to play with him...

...

Eleven nautical miles off the Port of Marseille, the British Mediterranean Fleet flagship, HMS Victory, floated on the sea like a towering mountain.

This first-rate battleship, over 70 meters long, displacing more than 3,000 tons, and armed with 108 cannons, was the pride of the Royal British Navy, its combat power ranking among the top three in the world.

At that moment, in the spacious officers' mess aboard the Victory, Lord Hood, Commander-in-Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet, was grimly reviewing orders just received from the British Naval Command.

"...Your Lordship has failed in your duties, resulting in repeated attacks on merchant ships in the Mediterranean Sea..."