Action of 2 March 1808
The action of 2 March 1808 was a minor naval battle between the Royal Navy's 18-gun Cruizer-class brig-sloop HMS Sappho, and the 28-gun, Danish two-decker brig Admiral Yawl, during the Gunboat War. Sappho, under the command of Captain George Langford, discovered and chased Admiral Yawl, which was steering a course to intercept several merchant vessels to leeward. After a short engagement Sappho captured Admiral Yawl, commanded by Jørgen Jørgensen.
| Action of 2 March 1808 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Gunboat Wars | |||||||
HMS Sappho capturing the Danish brig Admiral Jawl, Francis Sartorius | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| United Kingdom | Denmark–Norway | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| George Langford | Jørgen Jørgensen | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 1 brig-sloop | 1 brig | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 2 wounded |
1 killed 2 wounded 1 brig captured | ||||||
Admiral Yawl (her actual name was Admiral Juel), appears in references under a variety of names including Admiral Yorol and Admiral Juul. No ship of this name is recorded as having been commissioned in the Royal Danish Navy (nor by her previous French name of Christine Henrietta), although four ships of more modern time have been named for Niels Juel who was an admiral in the late seventeenth century. The ship Admiral Juel in this engagement was a merchant ship turned privateer. Her commander Jørgen Jørgensen (or Jürgensen) is not included in Topsøe-Jensen's work on Danish Naval officers, or in Project Runeberg/DBL.