Action of 31 March 1800

Battle context

The action of 31 March 1800 occurred in the context of the prolonged siege of Valletta, the Maltese capital, which had been under French blockade for eighteen months by that point. Food shortages inside the city had been worsened by the interception of a French resupply convoy in mid-February, leaving the garrison in a deteriorating position. Counter-Admiral Villeneuve, commanding French naval forces on the island, dispatched the ship of the line Guillaume Tell under Counter-Admiral Decrès in a dual-purpose mission: to seek relief from France and to reduce the burden on the city's dwindling provisions by removing over 900 men from Valletta. The attempt to break out under cover of darkness on 30 March brought the Guillaume Tell into contact with a Royal Navy squadron under Manley Dixon, resulting in an engagement that produced significant British casualties. The sortie reflected the growing desperation of the French position on Malta and the tightening naval cordon that would contribute to the island's eventual fall.