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140 HISTORY OF THE INDLVN NAAT.
having only eight sail at the time on the India Station. Some
losses were occasioned by English ships sailing into Madras,
not knowing it had been taken by the French, and Commodore
Griffin did not consider himself strong enough either to recover
that place or to reduce Pondicherry, in which the French had
mounted one hundred and eighty pieces of cannon, and had still
further strengthened with six additional forts, the whole being
held by a garrison of five thousand men.
On the 29th of July, 1748, Admiral Boscawen arrived from
England at Fort St. David, with six sail of the line and other
ships, when steps were immediately taken for a combined mili-
tary and naval expedition against Pondicherry. Admiral
Boscawen, says Grose, had under his command the largest fleet
*' ever seen together in the East Indies ; for it consisted of nine
ships of the line, two frigates, a sloop, and two tenders, besides
fourteen of the Company's ships, having three thousand five
hundred and eighty sailors on board." The Eoyal troops con-
sisted of twelve hundred men, eight hundred marines, and eighty
artillerymen, and those of the Company, under Major Lawrence,
of seven hundred and fiftymen, including two hundred "topasses,"
with seventy artillerymen ; the Admiral also landed eleven
hundred seamen from the fleet. But the French Governor, M.
Dupleix, w^as able to make a successful defence, and, as the ships
could not approach near enough to the works to inflict any
damage, the siege was raised, the sailors and heavy guns were
re-embarked, and the troops marched for Fort St. David on
the 6th of October, Thus terminated this expedition with the
loss of seven hundred and fifty-seven soldiers, forty-three artil-
lery, and two hundred and sixty-five seanien. The peace of
Aix-la-Chapelle, signed on the 7th of October, put an end to
hostilities for a brief space. In the following April occurred a
great hurricane, in which Admiral Boscawen's flag-ship, the
' Namur,' seventy-four guns, with seven hundred men foundered,
the ' Pembroke,' sixty guns, and ' Apollo,' w-ere both wrecked,
with the loss of all hands, and two of the Company's ships were
stranded near Cuddalore.
Peace was not long maintained between the two countries,
and, on the resumption of hostilities, Admiral Pocock. com-
manding the Royal fleet on the return to England of Admiral
Watson,* the victor of Gheria, was joined on the 24th of March,
1758, by Commodore Stevens with reinforcements fronj England.
He accordingly weighed from Madras on the 17th of April with
a squadron of nine sail, including the Company's ship ' Protector,'
* Admiral Watson, who so ably seconded Clive at Calcutta, died soon after at
that city of fever, and a monument was erected to his memory by the East India
Company in the Cathedral. George II. created his son, a child aged eight years
of age, a Baronet, on account of his fatlier's services, and it may be mentioned
as a curious case of longevity, that this gentleman lived to the age of ninety -three,
and only died so lately as the 26th of August, 1844.