A minor but strategically consequential naval raid that violated Genoese neutrality and ultimately contributed to the fall of Toulon to Republican forces in December 1793.
Key Facts
- Date
- 5 October 1793
- British commander
- Rear-Admiral John Gell
- French frigates captured
- 3 vessels, including Modeste
- British casualties
- 0
- Impérieuse seized
- 11 October 1793, at La Spezia
- Toulon fell to Republicans
- 17 December 1793
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Following the British seizure of Toulon at Royalist invitation, the surviving French Republican fleet was scattered across neutral Mediterranean harbours. Hood sought to neutralize isolated French frigates, including the Modeste sheltering in Genoa, to prevent them from threatening British naval operations.
On 5 October 1793, a British squadron under Rear-Admiral John Gell entered Genoa harbour, where ship's boats were launched and boarding parties captured the frigate Modeste and two smaller warships in defiance of Genoese neutrality. Six days later, HMS Captain separately seized the abandoned Impérieuse at La Spezia.
The raid inflamed the Republican faction in Genoa, who successfully prevented Austrian reinforcements from sailing to relieve the Allied garrison at Toulon. Outnumbered defenders were overwhelmed by a Republican assault on 17 December 1793, ending the Allied occupation of the port.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Rear-Admiral John Gell, Lord Hood (overall commander).
Side B
1 belligerent