Sidney Smith's Western Squadron raids, capture, and escape

In HMS Diamond, Smith worked with the Western Squadron officers selected for daring independent operations. He sailed so close to Brest that French defenses initially assumed no British captain could be reckless enough to approach them. Smith then occupied and fortified islands as forward blockade bases, sacrificing small vessels to supply their garrisons. A later attempt to cut out a French ship ended in capture when the wind failed, but Royalist help eventually enabled his escape from prison and return across the Channel.