French Revolutionary Wars: Campaigns of 1801

French Revolutionary Wars

The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts, from 1792 until 1802, fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states...

continued in 1801 with the French bringing the war against the Second Coalition to a close.

By 9 February, the Austrians had signed the Treaty of Lunéville

Treaty of Lunéville

The Treaty of Lunéville was signed on 9 February 1801 between the French Republic and the Holy Roman Emperor Francis II, negotiating both on behalf of his own domains and of the Holy Roman Empire...

, ending the war on the continent. The war against the United Kingdom continued (with Neapolitan harbours closed to her by the Treaty of Florence

Treaty of Florence

The Treaty of Florence was signed on March 28, 1801 between France and the Kingdom of Naples. Naples ceded some central Italian possessions, the island of Elba, and the Athena of Velletri to France. French garrisons were imposed in several Italian towns, and Neapolitan harbours were closed to...

, signed on 28 March), and the Turks invaded Egypt in March, losing to Kleber

Kléber

Kléber may refer to:* Jean Baptiste Kléber , a French general* Kléber de Carvalho Corrêa , a Brazilian football player* Kléber de Souza Freitas , a Brazilian football player...

at Heliopolis

Heliopolis (ancient)

Heliopolis was one of the oldest cities of ancient Egypt, the capital of the 13th Lower Egyptian nome that was located five miles east of the Nile to the north of the apex of the Nile Delta...

. The exhausted French force in Egypt, however, surrendered in August.

The naval war also continued, with the United Kingdom maintaining a blockade of France by sea. Non-combatants Russia, Prussia

Prussia

Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...

, Denmark, and Sweden joined to protect neutral shipping from British attacks, but were unsuccessful. British Admiral Horatio Nelson defied orders and attacked the Danish fleet in harbor at the Battle of Copenhagen

Battle of Copenhagen (1801)

The Battle of Copenhagen was an engagement which saw a British fleet under the command of Admiral Sir Hyde Parker fight and strategically defeat a Danish-Norwegian fleet anchored just off Copenhagen on 2 April 1801. Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson led the main attack. He famously disobeyed Parker's...

, destroying much of the fleet of one of France's more steady allies during the period. An armistice prevented him from continuing into the Baltic Sea

Baltic Sea

The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...

to attack the Russian fleet at Reval (Tallinn

Tallinn

Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...

). Meanwhile off Gibraltar, the outnumbered French squadron under Linois rebuffed a first British attack under Saumarez

James Saumarez, 1st Baron de Saumarez

Admiral James Saumarez, 1st Baron de Saumarez , GCB was an admiral of the British Royal Navy, notable for his victory at the Battle of Algeciras.-Early life:...

in the first battle of Algeciras, capturing a line-of-battle ship. In the second battle of Algeciras, four days later, the British captured a French ship and sank two others, killing around 2000 French for the loss of 12 British.

See also