Action of 22 October 1793

The action of 22 October 1793 was a minor naval engagement fought in the Mediterranean Sea during the War of the First Coalition, early in the French Revolutionary Wars. During the engagement a lone British Royal Navy ship of the line, the 64-gun HMS Agamemnon, attacked the French Navy large frigate Melpomène, part of a larger squadron, off the coast of Sardinia. Although Agamemnon chased Melpomène some distance through the night and inflicted significant damage, the French frigate was able to escape following the arrival of the rest of its squadron under Commodore Jean-Baptiste Perrée. The French ships later anchored in Corsican harbours to land reinforcements for the French garrison on the island, where the population was in open revolt.

The engagement is notable for being the first action of the war fought by Captain Horatio Nelson, then a junior captain in the Mediterranean Fleet. Nelson would go on to lead naval shore parties in the Invasion of Corsica the following year, during which the entire French squadron was captured or destroyed. He later achieved notable successes in a number of crucial battles during the war and is remembered as one of Britain's greatest military heroes.