Patrol - 1721 - March 23 - Double Assault

Ships in Action:
Captains of the Squadron

Captain Collister - HMS Longbow, Mercy fifth rate.

Captain Raven - Mordaunt Sleek fourth rate.

Captain Viscout Wick - Dauntless fifth rate.

Captains of the Royal Secret Service

Captain Christopher Fulbann - Dauntless fifth rate.

Captain Corpse Maker - Trinidad fifth rate.

Captain Red Dragon - Mont Blanc fourth rate.

Action Setup:
With our great nation attacking two ports, both de'Lisle in the lesser Antilles and Portobelo on the Spanish Main, and little action at either, a squadron was formed off de'Lisle to rectify the situation. Plans were drawn up to clear the shipping lanes and take, sink or burn any pirate vessels in the area. The ultimate goal was to complete the assault on de'Lisle that had begun earlier.

The Action Itself:
Captain Dragon acted as commodore as our squadron entered the area from the southwest. Either immediately prior to, or simultaneously as we closed on the port, all pirate activity ceased. This remained to be the case for the remainder of the evening. In the course of the next couple of hours we successfully destroyed scores of pirate ships and raised the contention around de'Lisle. We were joined by a couple more British squadrons comprising roughly ten Captains, amongst others Captain Earl Berett and Captain Ventura, and continued harrassing pirate ships in the vicinity of de'Lisle. Eventually the port fell to the pressure of the British assault, and will soon be the location of a port battle. Thus, having successfully completed the assault on de'Lisle, the squadron set sail for Portobelo, our second target of the night.

Upon reaching Portobelo we hailed the many fellow British Captains present and beat to quarters. There were at least two British squadrons operating off Portobelo, and we had the good fortune of never finding ourselves short of Spanish fleets to engage. After a violent hour of engagements, the Spaniards had lost dozens of ships and Portobelo found itself under attack. The port is now also awaiting a battle.

The Result:
Portobelo and de'Lisle have both been assaulted, and will soon be in British hands.

Lessons Learned:
Persistent attacks from many British squadrons can successfully bring about assaults on enemy ports remarkably quickly. Weight of numbers in the hostile zone around enemy ports also discourages enemy activity and gives us total freedom to wreak havoc to the best of our outstanding ability.

I also must compliment my fellow Captains on their general attitude and demeanour. I had a most enjoyable time and appreciated their company, which also, I feel, added to the success of the patrol.