Wind, carronades, and the chance to break through

Repeated wind shifts opened gaps and carried British ships toward the French formation. Passing through the line let them fire from both broadsides while French gunners risked hitting their own ships if they returned fire. The range was short enough for carronades, weapons not included in the ships' nominal gun ratings, to add heavy close-range punishment. HMS Duke battered Glorieux for about ten minutes and helped force four French ships out of sequence. The resulting gap gave Formidable and five following British ships a route through the line, turning weather, gunnery, and local damage into a tactical breach.