The action of 10 December 1800 was a minor engagement of the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

in which the Spanish privateer

gunboat A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies. History Pre-ste ...

''San Francisco Javier'', alias ''Poderoso'', under Don Miguel Villalba, captured a hired brig of the Royal Navy commanded by Lieutenant Charles Niven (or Nevin). On 20 December the British hired armed brig ''Sir Thomas Pasley'' (or ''Admiral Pasley'', or ''Pasley''),Gaceta de Madrid, Vol. 2, p. 1225-122

r left Plymouth,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

with despatches for Lisbon,

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

, and

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

. After calling at Lisbon, ''Sir Thomas Pasley'' was off

Ceuta Ceuta (, , ; ar, سَبْتَة, Sabtah) is a Spanish autonomous city on the north coast of Africa. Bordered by Morocco, it lies along the boundary between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. It is one of several Spanish territorie ...

when on 10 December a Spanish gunboat approached using sails and sweeps. At the time of the engagement ''Pasley'' was armed with two 6-pounder guns and fourteen 12-pounder carronades. She had a crew of 45 men. The Spanish gunboat, which was armed with one long 24-pounder and two 6-pounder guns, placed herself astern of ''Pasley'' and proceeded to fire on the brig. The wind died down, preventing ''Pasley'' from maneuvering to bring her two 6-pounder bow-chasers to bear. The British tried to move the guns to the stern, but the carronades left them no space in which to place the guns. The British sailors were left to respond to the Spanish cannon fire with no more than small arms fire. Spanish boarding parties took the brig at the third attempt, having shot away the British

halyard In sailing, a halyard or halliard is a line (rope) that is used to hoist a ladder, sail, flag or yard. The term ''halyard'' comes from the phrase "to haul yards". Halyards, like most other parts of the running rigging, were classically made of ...

during the skirmish. Niven had been wounded in three places, and the master was also badly wounded. In addition, the British had lost three other sailors killed and six more wounded. The Spaniards took their prize to Ceuta, and then

Algeciras Algeciras ( , ) is a municipality of Spain belonging to the province of Cádiz, Andalusia. Located in the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula, near the Strait of Gibraltar, it is the largest city on the Bay of Gibraltar ( es, Bahía de Algeci ...

. Niven faced a court-martial for the loss of his ship and was honourably acquitted.

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* * * * {{coord missing, Mediterranean Conflicts in 1800 Naval battles involving the United Kingdom Naval battles involving Spain Naval battles of the Napoleonic Wars Captured ships