1796-1798 manuscript plans for the invasion of England and Ireland by France. (4)
Appropriated by Adjutant-General Sir George Hewett;
Thence by descent;
Bonhams, London, 26 June 2019, lot 17;
Private collection.
(ii) Secret French plans and decree for a French invasion of Ireland 1 November 1796 (i.e. Bantry Bay expedition) under the command of General Lazare Hoche, probably translated by, and in the hand of, Theobald Wolfe Tone, pp9 foolscap
1796 [Barras] 'Report of the Citizen Director [Lazare] Carnot, made to the Executive Directory 11th Brumaire 5th year [1 November 1796], marked 'Secret'; bound with 'Summary of two plans of attack upon England & Ireland & the means of uniting them'; ends with 'Decree' of the Executive Directory for the implementation of said plan under the command of General Lazare Hoche, signed [Paul de] Barras [President of the Directory] and [Joseph Jean] Lagarde [Secretary-general of the Directory].
Starts: 'From the first moment of the Installation of the Executive Directory, you have thought, Citizen Colleagues, that the sole method of terminating a disastrous war was to arm ourselves with boldness & with energy...'
(iii) Humbert's instructions for 1798 expedition to Ireland, pp4 foolscap.
1798 Translation into English of General Humbert's orders for the 1798 expedition to Ireland, in hand of Theobald Wolfe Tone (probably the translator).
STARTS: 'Paris 1st Thermidor 6 An de la République [19 July 1798] Le Ministre de la Marine et des Colonies [Eustache Bruix] au Général de Brigade Humbert. The Executive Directory wishing to assist the U[nited. I[rishmen]. who have taken arms has given orders to send into Ireland troops & military stores & has given the chief comm[an]d to General Hardy...'
The orders go on to entrust General Humbert with a second expedition, what would become the former's legendary occupation of Mayo and brief campaign, until his defeat at Ballinamuck on 8 September 1798. This translation is almost verbatim the English rendering of Bruix's orders to Humbert, preserved in the French Marine archives, and which only slightly differ from those issued to Hardy.
(iv) A not very decipherable manuscript plan for the invasion of the Isle of Wight, with the landing of 12,000 men. Pp3 octavo.
(i) Tate was to conduct a guerrilla-style raid with a unit of irregular troops known at the Légion noire in remote parts of southwest Britain. Employing the tactics of unconventional warfare, he was to 'intercept' communications between ports, take small towns, and levy money from wealthy civilians for their subsistence. If engaged with troops, he was encouraged to make surprise attacks and ambushes by night, spread his men and attack in different points, engage in close combat, cut throats, sow confusion, foment uprisings among the labouring classes, and generally 'throw terror into the heart of England.'
The nature of this brief, rough draft cannot be in doubt. Stationed at Brest and awaiting the departure of the French fleet to Ireland, Tone wrote in his diary on 25 November, 1796 that he had been 'hard at work half this day translating' orders and instructions for a Col. Tate, an American officer' (Writings II, 397). The next day, Tone wrote that he had 'made a fair copy of Colonel Tate's instructions, with some alterations from the rough draft of yesterday...' (Writings II, 399.) These 'Secret instructions' appear to be only a fragment, or a rough draft. Tone wrote that in the first draft Tate's object was Liverpool, but this was changed to Bristol, which he was to 'burn to the ground.' (ibid). Tone was appalled at the role he was playing as Hoche's adjutant general, and at the consequences of the orders he had 'transcribed' on civilians: thousands 'and thousands of families reduced to beggary'. But the British had burned 'without mercy in America', and 'such a thing' was war.
Uncharacteristically for Tone, his English in this document is often clumsy, and the transfer of certain phrases from French too literal. This is common in novice translators, but in this case makes it possible to 'back-translate' the text into French; this reveals some phraseology typical of the period and this type of text. Clearly his knowledge of French was far more operational than he had claimed during the first weeks after his arrival in France in February that same year.
Tate, then aged sixty-nine, was an American military adventurer who had offered his services to the Directory. Hoche appointed him to lead, as Tone put it 'a buccaneering party into England'. Initially this guerilla-style operation was intended to divert attention from the far more substantial French expedition making its way to Ireland, creating panic and occupying troops in England. French decision-makers, Hoche included, also had an underlying motive: avenging the British-backed landing of French royalist troops at Quiberon in June, 1795, hence the irregular tactics Tate was to use. But after the failure of the expedition to Bantry Bay in December 1796, surprisingly Tate was still ordered to proceed. His raid on Fishguard, 22 February, 1797 was a brief and pathetic affair which later embarrassed French military historians. Tate surrendered after two days, and the episode is remembered as 'the Last invasion of England.' However his written orders were found on his person and published by the authorities, to expose to the English people the true intentions of the French. There are a few similar turns of phrase between this much lengthier public version, promoting subversive warfare, and these instructions, probably Tone's first rough draft. On Tate's person was also found a letter Tone had written to him after the failure of the Bantry expedition, offering his services if the 'affair' was still to go ahead. After Tone's arrest, Whitehall sent this letter to Dublin Castle to confirm the handwriting, as material to be produced at his trial.
Tone had been imprudent in the extreme to have kept these 'Secret instructions'.
(ii) Carnot, in charge of military affairs within the five-man Directory, and here displaying the Anglophobia he shared with Hoche, had received Tone for bilateral discussions about an Irish invasion as early as February 1796. A florid introduction makes metaphorical references to the ancient world, typical of the period: 'Shall Rome bow her lofty head beneath the yoke of the Carthaginians...?' Carnot then presents a 'Summary of two plans of attack upon England & Ireland & the means of uniting them.' He argues that Ireland should be the objective; due to her position on the Atlantic, 'the character' of her inhabitants, and her weak defences, Ireland was 'more exposed to an invasion than any other part of the British possessions in Europe.' There, the French force could reach the same ends, without exposing themselves to the same dangers as they would in Britain. The plan 'supposes' that Spain would unite with France in an assault to 'destroy the power of England', and that Spanish troops would also land in Ireland; this did not transpire in 1796. Two diversions would target England.
Extremely rare. Written records trace the decision by the French government to launch what would be known as the Bantry Bay expedition to Ireland, under Hoche's command, back to June 1796. This plan, dated 1 November, 1796, is not mentioned in Tone's otherwise informative and revealing diary. Clearly it gave the final assent to the naval expedition he sailed on in December. Though it ends 'the present decree is not to be published', the document states that only two copies were to be made, one for the relevant records office, the other for the Ministers of War [Claude Pétiet] and Marine [Laurent Jean François Truguet] who were henceforth in charge of implementing the invasion plan. There were thus at minimum three copies, and it is quite feasible that an additional copy had been sent to Hoche. He had just appointed Tone his adjutant, clearly trusted him, and needed to appraise him of developments. Possibly Tone had translated it simply to clarify his own understanding of it. The English version reads very fluently, and one would hardly know it is a translation
(iii) The orders go on to entrust General Humbert with a second expedition, what would become the former's legendary occupation of Mayo and brief campaign, until his defeat at Ballinamuck on 8 September 1798. This translation is almost verbatim the English rendering of Bruix's orders to Humbert, preserved in the French Marine archives, and which only slightly differ from those issued to Hardy.
The French strategy outlined here differs totally with the earlier plans for raids, 1796-7 (i.e. Tate's). Bruix only alludes to conventional warfare, his language is restrained, and any patriotic exhortations are subdued (in contrast to Carnot's 1796 plan). He advises Humbert to proceed with 'the utmost prudence' until linking up with Hardy, and not to attempt 'important operations' unless he had, or had significant numbers of Irish serving under him. Thus whether he should have engaged with the enemy at Castlebar or not is a matter of interpreting Bruix's orders. In every other regard, Humbert strictly adhered to his instructions; he was not to tolerate any 'outrage' against persons or property, and he was to ensure the manners, customs and religious worship of the Irish were respected. Breaches of discipline were to be severely punished.
The circumstances which led Tone to translate these orders and not specifically Hardy's are somewhat mysterious; they were also marked secret, but clearly he was given a copy. If he kept a diary after 30 June, 1798, it has not survived, and no correspondence refers to these orders. Tone arrived at the naval port of Brest on 1 August 1798, and was immediately assigned to serve under Hardy, not Humbert. He may have translated them simply to better grasp the content, to compare them with Hardy's, or to pass the time usefully. His brother Mathew served as a captain under Humbert, but sailed from La Rochelle, not Brest; it is unknown what contacts the two brothers had during their last days on French soil, if any.
Dr Sylvie Kleinman, March 2020
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In Part 2 of the sale there are wonderful collections of militaria, coins and banknotes. Militaria features the Glenn Thompson collection of badges, medals, uniforms, postcards and model soldiers. A one owner Irish coin collection ranging from Viking Dublin to Georgian Ireland includes many rarities. Banknotes include a collection of seldom seen specimens in slabbed high grade condition . The sale also includes collectable books by Seamus Heaney, Ernest Hemingway and Ian Fleming. Also offered are ranges of both sporting and entertainment memorabilia, much of it attractively framed.
PART ONE: Lots 1 to 365, Saturday 25 July at 1pm at The Freemasons Hall, Molesworth Street, Dublin 2
PART TWO (TIMED ONLINE ONLY): Lots 366-691, Sunday 26 July at 1pm
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