Abukir

Abukir: see Abu Qir, Egypt.

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Abukir 

island and cape in Egypt, at the mouth of the Nile River on the Mediterranean Sea; a battle took place near there on Aug. 1–2, 1798, between the British, under Rear Admiral H. Nelson, and the French, led by Vice Admiral F. Brueys, during the Egyptian expedition of 1798–1801. The French fleet of 13 ships of the line and four frigates with 10,000 men and 1,183 guns lay at anchor in Abukir Bay, when, unexpectedly for the French, on August 1 the English fleet consisting of 14 ships of the line with 8,000 men and 1,012 guns approached Abukir. The battle began about 7 P.M. Nelson sent eight battleships, concentrating superior forces in the main direction, against the French vanguard of five battleships. Four of Nelson’s ships fired from the landward side, the others from the sea. Two English battleships fought against the ships of the French center. By 9 P.M., the vanguard and center of the French fleet had been thoroughly routed. The French rear guard under Rear Admiral P. C. Villeneuve, which had seen the destruction of the French ships only the day before, was defeated by noon of August 2. The French lost 11 battleships and two frigates; more than 6,000 Frenchmen were killed, wounded, or taken prisoner. The English lost about 900 men. The communication lines between France and Napoleon Bonaparte’s 30,000-man army in Egypt were broken.

REFERENCE

Istoriia voen.-mor. isk-va, vol. 2. Moscow, 1954. Pages 15–17.