The night of downfall

The clock struck ten-thirty on the evening of Monday, 24th July 1797. It was a dim, sweltering night in the village and port of Santa Cruz. Not a solitary beam of light pierced through the darkness. The eerie quietness was punctuated solely by the sporadic cannon blasts from a siege weapon positioned in front, bombarding the Paso Alto castle. Following orders, approximately 600 to 700 individuals embarked on the available boats: 180 embarked on the cutter Fox, and another 70 or 80 on a sizeable Spanish vessel they had seized. They were all British sailors and marines under the command of Rear Admiral Horatio Nelson in his final endeavour to seize Santa Cruz.