By Leandro Carvalho
The great French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte resurrected, in 1803, King Philip II's will to invade England by sea. The idea went to Napoleon's head and cheered the French. However, the plan foundered together with the Napoleonic troops and the English navy declared its superiority over the French navy.
In February 1803, on the 18th, the French Emperor, Napoleon Bonaparte, convened a meeting with the English ambassador to France, Lord Whitworth. At that time, Bonaparte was furious with the English policy of breaching the Treaty of Amiens (1802), which ended the French Revolutionary Wars. It is interesting to note that the two countries were experiencing a period of peace.
Napoleon complained about England because, according to the Treaty of Amiens, she was supposed to leave the island of Malta in September 1802, which did not happen. The French emperor concluded that the English disobedience had only one explanation:England wanted to keep possession of the island that was in the Mediterranean Sea, to guarantee a strategic position to the British.
On the other hand, the English questioned France's indexation of the Piedmont region (currently Italy) and the presence of Napoleon's troops in Holland. England, supported by Russia and Prussia, wanted to end the peace agreement, but making everyone believe that France would break the peace period.
The diplomatic situation between France and England got worse every day. In April 1803, Napoleon carried out a military march with about 5,000 soldiers through the streets of Paris, in order to demonstrate to the English diplomat Lord Whitworth the French military power and that France would be ready to resume the conflicts. The English diplomat, in retaliation for the Napoleonic war policy, made it known to the French Foreign Minister, Charles-Maurice, that England would not cede the island of Malta for the next ten years and ordered France to leave Dutch territory immediately.
Napoleon did not accept the English decisions and soon announced the plan to invade England. Immediately, Whitworth requested that he be removed from France. The French Emperor mobilized a contingent of 480,000 troops along the English coast. However, the French navy was far inferior, at that time, to the English navy. England had 189 warships, while France had 47 ships – and most English ships were superior to French ships.
Napoleon had no idea of the warlike strength of the English navy. Despite being a great military strategist in land battles, the emperor had no experience in sea combat.
The French city of Boulogne was supposed to be the base from which French ships would depart and, still in 1803, Napoleon led the first French attempt to cross the English Channel. A duel attempt was initiated, but the sea was raging, great storms ensued and several French landing boats sank, throwing the French soldiers overboard.
In 1805, after the defeat of the French and Spanish navy by the English navy (which, once again, had demonstrated its naval superiority), Napoleon gave up invading England and spent his interests for the conquest of the European continent (continental Europe).
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