The new Whig government recalled Rodney largely because he was associated with the Tories, not because of battlefield failure. News that he had defeated the French at the Battle of the Saintes made the decision politically embarrassing. Public and royal anger made a routine partisan replacement look like punishment of a victorious commander. The controversy helped move field commands away from automatic partisan replacement once officers were deployed.
Notable Point · 22:07-24:17
Victory at the Saintes collides with a political recall
Rodney's victory dispatch crossed the order replacing him, illustrating the fading practice of changing deployed commanders merely because governments changed.