India's forgotten theatre of the American Revolution

Alms, James, captain of the H.M.S. Monmouth (1728-1791). Monmouth's Log Book.

€ 18.500,00

The remarkable original logbook of Captain James Alms, containing a first-hand account of the final battle of the American Wars of Independence. Fought between British and French forces (the latter the new American allies) half a world away from the rebelling American colonies, the final shots fired in the American Revolution were sent across the water at the Bay of Madras, sparking the Second Anglo-Mysore War, and are recorded herein.

The Treaty of Paris which ended the Revolutionary War had in fact been signed over two weeks previously, but the news had yet to reach India. Thus, the Battle of Cuddalore took place on the 20th of September. This sea battle was fought in the naval strategy called the "line of battle", each fleet forming a miles-long single-file line which faced off at close range and fired broadside until the enemy line retreated or was destroyed. As witnessed by Alms:

"The French fleet to windward, bearing down; 10 p[as]t 12 the Signal to form the line E[as]t & West; [...] ½ past 4 the Enemy began their attack on our rear: when the Admiral made the Signal to engage, began the Engagement with the Enemys [sic] fourth Ship in the line & continued firing till ½ past 7, when being dark both fleets ceased".

Though no one on the Bay of Madras knew it, this was the end of the American Revolution. Alms records "19 people Wounded in action" and three or more deaths, recorded hour by hour as men succumbed to their wounds, while the rest worked hard on repairs: "People variously employ'd Knotting & Splicing, repairing the Sails, Shot Holes & the fore yard which had been shot through". After an attempt to chase down the French, the British retreated to the "Madras Roads" to rest, attempt to salvage the most damaged ships, and take on supplies. It was likely there that the news of the Treaty arrived, and Alms and his crew embarked on a return to England.

Alms was at the end of a long and illustrious career in the Royal Navy: he had been instrumental in the capture of Havana, fought in the War of the Austrian Succession and the Carnatic and Seven Years' Wars, and had lost his son in action in a naval battle a year before. While the Battle of Cuddalore would go on to spark the Second Anglo-Mysore War, it was the final chapter of both the American Revolution and the H.M.S. Monmouth and her captain; the final entry in the log book records the date of decommissioning of the Monmouth.