Maurice Gillet (Montoir, 8 March 1763 – Nantes, 14 April 1833) was a French navy officer.
Born to a family of sailors, Gillet started sailing in 1793 on the
''Northumberland''. On 1 July 1793, he was promoted to lieutenant, and served on the frigates ''Carmagnole'' and
''Cocarde nationale''.
Having raised to captain by 1796, Gillet served on the
''Mucius'' and
''Républicain'', before taking command of the 80-gun
''Franklin'' in March 1798.
On ''Franklin'', Gillet was flag officer to
rear admiral Armand Blanquet du Chayla
Count Armand Simon Marie Blanquet du Chayla (9 May 1759 – 29 April 1826) was an officer in the French Navy, most famous as second in command of the French fleet during its defeat at the Battle of the Nile.
Early actions
Du Chayla was born ...
, second-in-command of the French fleet of Toulon during the
Mediterranean campaign of 1798
The Mediterranean campaign of 1798 was a series of major naval operations surrounding a French expeditionary force sent to Egypt under Napoleon Bonaparte during the French Revolutionary Wars. The French Republic sought to capture Egypt as the fi ...
. He took part in the
Battle of the Nile, where he was gravely wounded at the chest and had to be carried below unconscious, while commander Martinet took over.
Gillet was taken prisoner when ''Franklin'', with only three guns left and half her crew casualties, struck her colours. He was taken to England, and later released.
In September 1803, Gillet resumed his naval career by supervising the 2nd gunboat division of the flotilla in
Boulogne. In August, incapacitated by his injuries sustained at Aboukir, Gillet requested to be relieved, while giving command of his ships to commander Regnauld. On 26 August, a naval skirmish opposed 90 French brigs and luggers to the British
''Immortalité'', ''Harpy'',
''Adder'' and ''Constitution'', sinking the later.
IMMORTALITE
/ref>
Gillet was found to have been ashore while his division fought, and was consequently destituted by Decrès. He never managed to resume his naval career.
Sources and references
* ''Dictionnaire des capitaines de vaisseau de Napoléon'', Danielle & Bernard Quintin, SPM, 2003,
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gillet, Maurice
French Navy officers
1763 births
1833 deaths