Napoleon in Egypt: Battle of Aboukir 1799

February 1799.

French General Napoleon Bonaparte has conquered Egypt.

But his grip on the country is threatened by revolt… and

the British have destroyed his fleet, cutting him off from reinforcements.

Now the Sultan has vowed to crush the foreign invader,

and two large Ottoman armies are being assembled to reclaim Egypt.

But Napoleon will not sit and wait for them quietly. He has decided

to strike first, before his enemies are ready.

The forces gathering in Syria, rumoured to be 50,000 strong, pose the greatest threat.

So they will be his first target.

On 10th February, Napoleon leads a force of just 13,000 men into

the Sinai Desert, bound for the Holy Land.

It’s all the men he can spare, with so many needed to hold down Egypt.

Nevertheless, it’s a highly-motivated, experienced and well-led force - organized

into four infantry divisions, and a cavalry brigade, commanded by Murat.

For Napoleon, speed and surprise are imperative – but things start to go wrong very quickly.

The French are again poorly prepared for the harsh

conditions and heat of the desert. Water is scarce. Food runs short.

At el-Arish, they unexpectedly find the town garrisoned by 3,000 Ottoman soldiers.

The siege holds Napoleon up for 11 days, and costs 400 casualties, both of which he can ill afford.

The garrison’s surrender is secured only with generous terms: they are disarmed but

allowed to leave, after swearing an oath not to take up arms against the French for a year.

The French army continues into Palestine - its fertile plains

and fruit trees a relief after the desert.

On 24th February, the French occupy Gaza,

where they are delighted to find large stores of food and ammunition, abandoned by the Ottomans.

Napoleon’s next objective is the port-city of Jaffa, held by 5,000 Ottoman soldiers.

His field guns blast away at its stone walls, until finally, a breach is made.

But when Napoleon sends a messenger to invite surrender, to spare both sides the horrors

of an assault – the Ottomans cut off his head, and display it from the city walls.

Enraged French soldiers storm the breach, and overwhelm the defenders.

Then they flood into the city, embarking on a killing spree that lasts 24 hours.

“The sights were terrible,” wrote one French witness, “the sound of shots, the shrieks of women

and fathers… piles of bodies, the smell of blood… the shouts of victors quarrelling about loot.”

The butchery is indiscriminate – women and children are slaughtered,

alongside 2,000 Ottoman soldiers.

The next day, order is gradually restored. But more horrors are to come.

In the aftermath of the sack of Jaffa,

Napoleon finds himself with 3,000 Ottoman prisoners, who have been promised their lives.