In the early part of 1800, the establishment was completed by volunteers from the Irish militia; and on the 3rd of March the regiment embarked for England, where it arrived, a splendid corps of disciplined men, and it was soon afterwards selected to proceed on foreign service.
The Spanish monarch had united with France, in the war against Great Britain, and an attack on the ports of Spain formed part of the plan for employing the disposable force of the country. The Thirteenth embarked from England on the 31st of July, and sailed, with the expedition under Lieut.-General Sir James Pulteney, to the bay of Corunna, and a landing was effected on the coast of Galicia, with the design of attacking the fortress of Ferrol; but after viewing the town and its defences, Sir James Pulteney resolved not to lose time in attacking this place, and the troops re-embarked and proceeded to join General Sir Ralph Abercromby, who commanded a British force in the Mediterranean. The united forces appeared before Cadiz, and summoned the governor to surrender; but a disease was ravaging the city at the time, and the fleet quitted the coast for fear of infection, and proceeded to Gibraltar.
At this period a veteran French army, which had been vauntingly styled the ‘Army of the East,’ was holding Egypt in subjection, and meditating scenes of conquest in distant regions; and the British government resolved to employ the disposable force of the kingdom in delivering Egypt from the French yoke. The Thirteenth, commanded by Lieut.-Colonel the Honorable Charles Colville, were selected for this enterprise: they mustered seven hundred and thirty-seven rank and file, fit for duty, and formed part of the second brigade under Major-General Cradock.
After experiencing much severe weather at sea, the fleet arrived at the island of Malta, where the troops went on shore, and the abundance of fresh provisions which the island afforded, with the comforts of the beautiful city of Valetta, soon restored and reanimated the troops.
Leaving Malta on the 20th of December, the armament sailed to Marmorice, in Asiatic Turkey, where the fleet anchored in a spacious bay surrounded by mountains, while gun-boats were being procured for the expedition, horses for the cavalry, and a plan of co-operation arranged with the Turks.
1801
On the 23rd of February, 1801, the fleet again put to sea, and arriving off Alexandria on the 1st of March, bore down at sunset into the bay of Aboukir. On the morning of the 8th of March, as the rays of light gilded the horizon, one hundred and fifty boats laden with soldiers approached the shore, which was crowded with French troops assembled to oppose the landing. The murmuring sound of a thousand oars, urging forward the élite of a brave army, whose arms glittered in the rays of the morning sun, was soon lost in the loud thunder of cannon, and a storm of bullets from the shore cut furrows in the surface of the water; a few boats were struck and began to sink, others stopped to save the men, and a momentary check was given; but the impulse returned with increased ardour, and pressing through the storm of grape and musketry, the rowers forced their boats to the beach. The soldiers instantly leaped on the shore, formed as they advanced, and rushing up the heights with supernatural energy, charged with bayonets, and overthrew the opposing ranks. A sharp combat ensued; the Thirteenth regiment landed during the action, and the French were driven from their position, with the loss of three hundred men, eight pieces of cannon, and many horses. Thus was the first step gained towards the accomplishment of this brilliant enterprise; and the landing on the shores of Egypt ranks among the splendid achievements of the British arms.
Advancing towards Alexandria, the troops arrived, on the 12th of March, at the vicinity of Mandora Tower, and on the succeeding day marched through a wood of date trees to attack the enemy on the ridge of heights in front. As the British emerged from among the trees, the French advanced from the high ground and commenced the action. The brigade to which the Thirteenth belonged was advancing in column, when it was charged by a body of French cavalry, which was repulsed by the ninetieth regiment, forming the advance guard of the right column. Major-General Cradock instantly formed the brigade under a heavy fire, and the gallant conduct of the regiments was equal to the most sanguine expectation of their commander. The French were driven from their position, and compelled to retreat over the plains into the lines on the heights before Alexandria.