Portland Gazette, And Maine Advertiser

English Official Dispatches.

DOWNING STREET, AUG. 19, 1809.

DESPATCH,

From Lord CHATHAM to Lord CASTLEREAGH received this day; dated,

H. Q. MIDDLEBURGH, AUG. 16.

My Lord.-I have the honor to
acquainting your Lordship, that, on
the 13th instant the batteries be-
fore Flushing being completed, (and
the frigates, bombs and gun vessels
having at the same time taken their
stations) a fire was opened at about
half past one P. M. from fifty-two
pieces of heavy ordnance, which was
vigorously returned by the enemy.
An additional number of six twenty-
four pounders was completed the
same night, and the whole continued
to play upon the town with little or
no intermission, till late the following
day.

On the morning of the 14th inst.
about ten o'clock. the line of battle
ships at anchor in the Dyle passage,
led by Rear Admiral Sir Richard
Strachan, got under weigh, and
ranging up along the east line of de-
fence kept as they passed a most
tremendous cannonade on the town
for several hours, with the greatest
gallantry and effect. About four in
the afternoon, perceiving that the
fire of the enemy had entirely ceased,
and the town presenting a most aw-
ful scene of destruction, being on fire
in almost every quarter, I directed
Lieut. Gen. Sir Eyre Coote to send
in to summon the place; Gen Mon-
net returned for answer, that he
would reply to the summons as soon
as he had consulted a Council of
War; an hour had been allowed
him for the purpose; but a conside-
rable time beyond it having elapsed
without any answer being received,
hostilities were ordered to recom-
mence with the utmost vigor, and
about eleven o'clock at night, one
of the enemy's batteries advancing
upon the east Dyke, in front of Lieut.
Gen. Fraser's position. was most gal-
lantly carried at the point of the bay-
onet, by detachments from the 26th,
71st, and light battalions of the King's
German Legion, under Lieut. Col.
Parke, opposed to great superiority
of numbers; they took forty pri-
soners, and killed and wounded a great
many of the enemy.

I must not omit to mention, that on
the preceding evening an entrench-
ment in front of Major-Gen. Gra-
ham's position, was also forced, in a
manner equally undaunted, by the
14th regiment and detachments of
the King's German Legion, under
Lieut. Col. Nicholls, who drove the
enemy from it and made a lodgment
within musket shot of the walls of the
town, taking the guns and thirty
prisoners.

About two in the morning, the
enemy demanded a suspension of
arms for forty-eight hours, which
was refused, and only two hours
granted, when he agreed to surrender
according to the summons sent in,
on the basis of the garrison becoming
prisoners of war.

I have now the satisfaction of ac-
quainting your Lordship, that these
preliminaries being acceded to, as
soon as the admiral landed in the
morning, Col. Long. Adjutant-Gen.
eral, and Capt. Cookson, of the
Royal Navy, were appointed to ne-
gotiate the further articles of capitu-
lation, which I have now the honor
to enclose.. They were ratified a-
bout three this morning, when de-
tachments of the Royals on the right.
and of his Majesty's 71st regiment
on the left, took possession of the
gates of the town. The garrison
will march out tomorrow, and will
be embarked as speedily as possible.

I may now congratulate. your
Lordship on the fall of a place so
indispensably necessary to our future
operations, as so large a propor-tion
of our force being required to carry
on the siege with that degree of vig-
or and despatch which the means of
defence the enemy possessed, and
particularly his powers of inundation
(which was rapidly spreading to an
alarming extent) rendered absolutely
necessary.

Having hoped, had circumstances
permitted; to have proceeded up the
river at an earlier period, I had comn-
mitted to Lieut. Gen. Sir Eyre Coote
the direction of the details of the
sege, and of the operations before
Flushing, and I cannot sufficiently
express my sense of the unremitting
zeal and exertion with which he has
conducted the arduous services entru-
fted to him, in which he was ably
aided by Lieut. Col. Walsh and
Offeyroy, attached to him as assistants
in the Adjutant and Quarter-Master
General's department.

[The other paragraphs of this
despatch contain acknowledgements of the
Commander in Chief to the army and
navy for the spirit and intelligence man-
ifested by them. The corps distinguished,
are, the Royal Engineers, the Royal
Artillery, and a detachment of seamen,
which worked one of the batteries. The
officers named, are Col. Fyers, Lieut.
Col. D. Arcy, Brig. Gen. M'Leod:
and Captains Cockburn and Richard-
son of the navy. His Lordship also
mentions the transmission of returns of
the garrison of Flushing, deserters, &c.
and adds, that besides the killed, up-
wards 1000 wounded had been sent to
Cadiz previous to the complete invest-
ment of the town. The despatch was
sent by Major Bradford first aid to Lord
I have the honor to be, &c.
(Signed)
CHATHAM

FROM HOLLAND-OFFICIAL

August 24. The Gazette con-
tains another letter from Lord Chat-
ham, dated the 13th,.in which he
announces the surrender of Zierikzee
and Brouwershaven, Schouwen and Du-
iveland :--He also enclosed Gen.
Monnet's return of the garrison of
Flushing, amounting to 2803.-His
Lordship adds, that the enemy's force
opposed to him in Walcheren might
be computed at 9000 men

August 25. Letters from Flush-
ing, of the 18th, state, that the Steeple,
a large church, and a great
part of the town had been destroyed-
that most of the English ships
had proceeded up the Scheldt; that
ten French ships of the line, 15 frig-
ates, and about 20 gun boats, were
beyond Fort Lillo.

Dispatches from Lord Chatham
to the 20th, have been received.-A-
bout 5000 men were left in Wal-
cheren, under Gen. Fraser: the rest
had landed on South Beveland: the
whole fleet had assembled off Bath;
and great preparations were making
for the attack of Fort Lillo.

[From the Dutch Papers.]

Antwerp, Aug. 17. Reinforce-
ments, to the amount of 800 men
arrive here daily: the lines of Stein-
bergen and low grounds of Bergen,
are inundated. Gen, Gratien's corps
(6000) has returned to Holland: and
the Westphalian troops are advancing
to it, by forced marches.

Paris, Aug. 7. The troops from
Versailles and Paris, are concentra-
ting in Picardy, and will march
where danger calls them.

Rotterdam, Aug. 4. Gen. Cham-
barlhac occupies the left of the
Scheldt, with a strong army. He can
easily pass to the right, as he acts in
concert with Adm. Missiessy. A
great number of troops are on the
march for the defence of Antwerp.