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SUFFREN SAINT TROPEZ, PIERRE ANDRE DE...
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SUFFREN See also:SAINT TROPEZ, See also:PIERRE See also:ANDRE DE (1729-1788) , See also:French See also:admiral, was the third son of the See also:marquis de Saint Tropez, See also:head of a See also:family of nobles of See also:Provence which claimed to have emigrated from See also:Lucca in the 14th See also:century. He was See also:born in the See also:Chateau de Saint Canat in the See also:present See also:department of See also:Aix on the 17th of See also:July 1729. The French See also:navy and the See also:Order of See also:Malta offered the usual careers for the younger sons of See also:noble families of the See also:south of See also:France who did not elect to go into the See also: In Suffren's See also:time this service rarely went beyond a peaceful tour among the See also:Greek islands. During the Seven Years' See also:War he had the unwonted See also:good See also:fortune to be present as See also:lieutenant in the " Orphee " in the action with Admiral Byng (q.v.), which, if not properly speaking a victory, was at least not a defeat for the French, and was followed by the surrender of the See also:English See also:garrison of See also:Minorca. But in 1757 he was again taken prisoner, when his See also:ship the " Ocean " was captured by See also:Boscawen off See also:Lagos. On the return of peace in 1763 he intended again to do the service in the caravans which was required to qualify him to hold the high and lucrative posts of the Order. He was, however, named to the command of the " Cameleon, " a zebec—a See also:vessel of mixed square and See also:lateen rig See also:peculiar to the Mediterranean—in which he cruised against the pirates of the See also:Barbary See also:coast. Between 1767 and 1771 he performed his caravans, and was promoted from See also:knight to See also:commander of the Order. From that time till the beginning of the War of See also:American See also:Independence he commanded vessels in the squadron of See also:evolution which the French See also:government had established for the purpose of giving practice to its officers. His See also:nerve and skill in handling his ship were highly commended by his chiefs. In 1778 and 1779 he formed part of the squadron of D'See also:Estaing (q.v.) throughout its operations on the coast of See also:North See also:America and in the West Indies. He led the line in the action with Admiral John See also:Byron off See also:Grenada, and his ship, the " Fantasque " (64), lost 62 men. His letters to his admiral show that he strongly disapproved of D'Estaing's See also:half-hearted methods. In 178o he was See also:captain cf the Zele " (74), in the combined French and See also:Spanish fleets which captured a See also:great English convoy in the See also:Atlantic. His candour towards his See also:chief had done him no harm in theopinion of D'Estaing. It is said to have been largely by the See also:advice of this admiral that Suffren was chosen to command a squadron of five See also:ships of the line sent out to help the Dutch who had joined France and See also:Spain to defend the Cape against an expected English attack, and then to go on to the See also:East Indies. He sailed from See also:Brest on the 22nd of See also: The See also:campaign, which Suffren now conducted against. the English admiral See also:Sir See also:Edward See also:Hughes (172o?-1794), is famous for the number and severity of the encounters between them. Four actions took place in 1782: on the 17th of See also:February 1782, south of See also:Madras; on the 12th of April near See also:Trincomalee; on the 6th of July off See also:Cuddalore, after which Suffren seized upon the anchorage of Trincomalee compelling the small British garrison to surrender; and again near that See also:port on the 3rd of See also:September. No ship was lost by Sir Edward Hughes in any of these actions, but none were taken by him. Suffren attacked with unprecedented vigour on every occasion, and if he had not been See also:ill-supported by some of his captains he would undoubtedly have gained a distinct victory; as it was, he maintained his squadron without the help of a port to refit, and provided him-self with an anchorage at Trincomalee. His activity encouraged Hyder See also:Ali, who was then at war with the See also:Company. He refused to return to the islands for the purpose of escorting the troops coming out under command of See also:Bussy, maintaining that his proper purpose was to cripple the squadron of Sir Edward Hughes. During the north-east See also:monsoon he would not go to the islands but refitted in the See also:Malay ports in See also:Sumatra, and returned with the south-west monsoon in 1783. Hyder Ali was dead, but Tippoo See also:Sultan, his son, was still at war with the Company. Bussy arrived and landed. The operations on See also:shore were slackly See also:con-ducted by him, and Suffren was much hampered, but when he fought his last See also:battle against Hughes (April 20, 1783), with fourteen ships to eighteen he forced the English admiral to retire to Madras, leaving the See also:army then besieging Cuddalore in a very dangerous position. The arrival of the See also:news that peace had been made in See also:Europe put a stop to hostilities, and Suffren returned to France. While refitting at the Cape on his way See also:home, several of the vessels also returning put in, and the captains waited on him. Suffren said in one of his letters that their praise gave him more See also:pleasure than any other compliment paid him. In France he was received with See also:enthusiasm, and an additional See also:office of See also:vice-admiral of France was created for him. He had been promoted bailli in the Order of Malta during his See also:absence. His See also:death occurred very suddenly on the 8th of See also:December 1788, when he was about to take command of a See also:fleet collected'in Brest. The See also:official version of the cause of death was See also:apoplexy, and as he was a very corpulent See also:man it appeared plausible. But many years afterwards his See also:body servant told M. Jai, the historiographer of the French navy, that he had been killed in a See also:duel by the See also:prince de lblirepoix. The cause of the encounter, according to the servant, was that Suffren had refused in very strong See also:language to use his See also:influence to secure the restoration to the navy of two of the prince's relations who had been dismissed for misconduct. Suffren was crippled to a large extent by the want of loyal and capable co-operation on the part of his captains, and the vehemence of his own temperament sometimes led him to disregard prudence, yet he had an indefatigable See also:energy, a See also:wealth of resource, and a thorough understanding of the fact—so habitually disregarded by French naval officers—that success at sea is won by defeating an enemy and not by merely out-manoeuvring him; and this made him a most formidable enemy. The portraits of Suffren usually reproduced are worthless, but there is a good See also:engraving by Mme de Cernel after an See also:original by See also:Gerard. The See also:standard authority for the See also:life of Suffren is the Histoire du Bailli de Suffren by Ch. Cunat (1852). The See also:Journal de Bord du Bailli de Suffren dans l'Inde, edited by M. Mores, was published in 1888. There is an appreciative study in Captain See also:Mahan's Sea Power in See also:History. (D. Additional information and CommentsThere are no comments yet for this article.
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