Keppel's signals fail to reunite the fleet at Ushant

Harland turned his van to pursue the French rear, while Palliser's ten ships remained scattered after the earlier chase order and suffered heavily. Victory's damaged masts and rigging made her turn take about an hour. Harland eventually joined Keppel, but Palliser's division stayed several miles away; the narrative raises damage and misunderstanding among the possible reasons before discussing the later court-martial. Keppel sent HMS Fox to demand that Palliser join, then signaled the individual ships directly. They reunited only after darkness had fallen. The French commander had declined to attack the divided British force and used the night to escape, leaving the fleets about twenty miles apart by daylight.