Instructions from the King to 1\1,Du Chaffault, Squadron Commander of the Navyー
Versailles, 12 May 1776 His Majesty has deemed proper to make a few changes in the Instructions which. he gave to M. Duchaffault on the 29th of March, 1776,2 and he will explain again his intentions with regard to the line of conduct which this officer will maintain during his campaign. Immediately after the three .. divisions which will compose M. Duchaffault's Squadron have joined ,off Cape St. Vincent where the general rendezvous was ordered to take place on 10 May according to the first instruction and which the division from Toulon will probably not be able to reach before a period betweell' the 15th and 20th or the 25th of the s~me month, M. Duchaffault will leave the vicinity of the Spanish coast and set sail for Ouessant going as far as.the opening of the Channel. When he will have reached this point, he will detach from his S,qu.adron a frigate and a corvette which he will direct to cruise along the Northern coast of Britanny, Normandy and Picardy, as far as Dunkerque. Before reaching Ouessant he will also detach a frigate and a corvette whose mission it will be to cruise along the Southern coast of Brittany, Belle Isle, Isle d'Yeu, the coast of Poitou, Saintonge, Guyenne and Gascony as far as Bayonne.
In compliance with this Instruction he will give particular orders to the Commanding officers of these frigate~. He will add to these recognition signals and he will assign a rendezvous where the detached ships will rejoin the Squadron after fulfilling their respecting missions. Such rendezvous might be Ouessant .being at the junction of both coasts to be covered by the said ships.
He will particularly recommend to the Commanding officers of the frigate and corvette sent into the Channel that they observe if the English have established cruises in the vicinity of French ports and question all vessels which they might meet, with the exception of English vessels, and thereby try to obtain intelligence as to which parts of the Channel are watched by English ships and frigates.
The Commanding officers of the two ships detached into the Gulf of Biscay will do likewise and will find out if the English have established cruises in the waters off the coast along which they will be sailing.
While the frigates and corvettes sent into the Channel and the Gulf of Biscay will be about their missions, M. Duchaffault will cruise with the rest of his Squadron between Ouessant and Cape Finisterre and he will return to Ouessant at the time when, according to his judgment, the ships detached into the Gulf will come back from their cruise; undoubtedly these ships will return sooner than those sent into the Channel. He will maintain the same cruise during the rest of his campaign, making sure to approach the coast of Brittany more often than the coast of Galicia.
M. Duchaffault will hail all vessels, except the English, which will come within range of his Squadron and .will attempt to obtain intelligence with regard to the position of the ships of H[is] B[ritannic] M[ajesty] which might be cruising in these waters as well as their number and their strength. However, he will avoid interfering with the trade, noting that he need only maintain his cruise in such a way that the English will fear getting caught between land and the French Squadron and therefore will not sail in the vicinity of the Ports and Roads on the French coast in order to intercept the vessels from New England which might try to reach the said Ports and Roads.
He will not seek to meet the ships of H.B.M. but if such an encounter cannot be avoided he will use much courtesy towards them, and if he has cause to approach them he will do so only with the utmost reserve.
In the. event that a Vessel from New England, belonging to the Insurgents, would be pursued by a ship of H.B.M. and would ask for the protection of the French Flag, M. Duchaffault will grant it to her, and if in spite of the declaration made to this effect the English ship still attempts to seize her, M. Duchaffault will oppose such an action and use the forces entrusted to him by His Majesty.
He will act likewise with regard to neutral Vessels having left European Ports and laden with ammunition or other kinds of assistance for the Insurgents in New England; and in the event that one of these Vessels should be pursued by English ships and would ask for the protection of the King's Squadron, M. Duchaffault would not allow that she be visited while under the protection of His Majesty's Flag.
It is possible that M. Duchaffault will meet cruizing ships belonging to His Catholic Majesty while in the vicinity of Cape Finisterre; in which case he will show suitable courtesy and trust towards the Commanding officers of these ships and they will exchange any intelligence they may obtain with regard to the cruises established by the English or anything which may be useful to the Service of both Monarchs.
If His Majesty wants to communicate some urgent order to M. Duchaffault, he will address to him letters in duplicate to Brest, L'Orient or Rochefort, as well as Le Havre or Dunkerque. M. Duchaffault will order the Commanding officers of the frigates and corvettes that he will have detached to anchor in each of these Ports in order to pick up the packets that might have been addressed there and to send themselves to His Majesty from the ports where they will have anchored any information which they will deem interesting. He will expressly recommend that they do. not stay in these Ports and even that they merely send their boat there while keeping under sail out at sea if the weather, the circumstance and the locality allow it.
M. Duchaffault will heedfully and exactly communicate to His Majesty any intelligence he may receive, and to this effect, he will send his packets by means of a cutter to the nearest Port.
He will not disclose the present Instruction to the General Officers and Commanders in his Squadron, and he will order the Commanding Officers of the frigates and corvettes that will be detached to keep secret the orders and instructions which they will have received from him.
He will make sure that the ships and other vessels of His Squadron beat to general quarters frequently by day and even by night, and he will recommend to the Captains and other Commanding Officers that they see to it that these calls to quarters be answered with the same care and precision as if they were about to give battle.
He will make evolutions as often as circumstances will permit either with the remaining ships once the others have been detached, or with the whole Squadron when all the ships will be gathered; furthermore he will act in accordance with the orders given to him in the Instructions of 29 March with respect to all matters which are not contrary to the present orders or which are not covered.
At Versailles, 12 may 1776
[signed] Louis [countersigned] de Sartine
