311
to inform him that the Tsar Pavel had been murdered on
March 23rd, and that his successor, Aleksandr I, had ordered
his fleet to abstain from all hostilities. On April 25th Parker
anchored again in Kjoge Bay, and on May 5th he received
orders to give up the command to Nelson and return home.
The new commander wasted little time. He was. by no
means certain of the Tsar's intentions, and he considered it
essential to prevent the ships from Revel from reaching
Kronstadt. He therefore weighed anchor on May 7th and
steered for Revel. Leaving his small craft off Bornholna, he
sent the Edgar 74, Saturn 74, Russell 74, Raisonnable 64,
Agamemnon 64, Glatton 54, and a frigate to cruise off Karls-
krona, and wrote at the same time to Palmquist that the
Swedish squadron would be attacked if it put to sea. With
the rest of the fleet, twelve battleships,* one frigate, and two
sloops, he proceeded to Revel, and arrived there on the 14th,
to find that the Russian fleet had got away to Kronstadt a
fortnight before.
The Bussian Bevel fleet had consisted of the following
eighteen battleships :
Blagodat 130, Rostislav 100, Saratov 100, Evsevii 100,
Syevernyi Orel 74, Sofia Magdalina 74, Aleksyei 74, Vsevolod
74, Sysoi Velikii 74, Maksim Ispovyednik 74, Glyeb 74, Moskva
74, Zatchatie Sv. Anny 74, Yaroslav 74, Izyaslav 74, lanuarii
66, Archistratig Michail 72, Netron menya 66.
On May 2nd it had left Bevel, and on the 6th it had reached
Kronstadt, where a miscellaneous, squadron had been stationed
to defend the approaches to the harbour. This squadron con-
sisted of two unrigged battleships., nine frigates, two bomb
vessels, four bomb cutters, twenty-three floating batteries^ and
a few rowing vessels, but as it proved there was no need for
these preparations.
On arriving at Revel, Nelson announced that he had come
on a friendly visit, but the Tsar failed to see things in this
light, and on the 16th Nelson was informed that the Tsar
considered his presence as a threat and an insult. Nothing
was to be gained by staying where he could only cause friction,
and on May 17th he put to sea. Off Bornholm he was re-
joined bv the rest of his fleet, and on the 24th he arrived
for provisions at Bostock with some ships, while others went
to Danzig or to Kjoge Bay, and a few remained off Bornholm
under Bear-Admiral Totty, who had recently arrived from
England with three battleships. Nelson had already applied
to be relieved on the ground of ill-health, and on the 13th he
heard that his application had been granted. He had arrived