Page "Battle of the Nile" Paragraph 39

For ten minutes after the explosion there was no firing ; sailors from both sides were either too shocked by the blast or desperately extinguishing fires aboard their own ships to continue the fight.

During the lull, Nelson gave orders that boats be sent to pull survivors from the water around the remains of Orient.

At 22: 10, Franklin restarted the engagement by firing on Swiftsure.

Isolated and battered, Blanquet's ship was soon dismasted and the admiral, suffering a severe head wound, was forced to surrender by the combined firepower of Swiftsure and Defence.

More than half of Franklin < nowiki >'</ nowiki > s crew had been killed or wounded.

By 24: 00 only Tonnant remained engaged, as Commodore Aristide Aubert Du Petit Thouars continued his fight with Majestic and fired on Swiftsure when the British ship moved within range.

By 03: 00, after more than three hours of close quarter combat, Majestic had lost its main and mizzen masts while Tonnant was a dismasted hulk.

Although Captain Du Petit Thouars had lost both legs and an arm he remained in command, insisting on having the tricolour nailed to the mast to prevent it from being struck and giving orders from his position propped up on deck in a bucket of wheat.

Under his guidance, the battered Tonnant gradually drifted southwards away from the action to join the southern division under Villeneuve.

Throughout the engagement the French rear had kept up an arbitrary fire on the battling ships ahead.

The only noticeable effect was the smashing of Timoléons rudder by misdirected fire from the neighbouring Généreux.