_Bridgewater_ and _Kingfisher_ had come up before. Admiral Watson
was on board the _Kent_, and Admiral Pocock on the _Tyger_. The
fleet anchored out of range of the Fort at the Prussian Gardens, a
mile and a half below the town, and half a mile below the narrow
passage in which the ships had been sunk.

On the 19th Admiral Watson formally announced the declaration of
war,[46] and summoned the Fort to surrender. The Governor called a
council of war, in which there was much difference of opinion. Some
thought the Admiral would not have come so far without his being
certain of his ability to force the passage; indeed the presence of
so many deserters in the garrison rendered it probable that he had
secret sources of information. As a matter of fact, it was only when
Lieutenant Hey, the officer who had brought the summons, and, in
doing so, had rowed between the masts of the sunken vessels,
returned to the _Kent_, that Admiral Watson knew the passage was
clear. Renault and the Council were aware that the Fort could not
resist the big guns of the ships, and accordingly the more
thoughtful members of the council of war determined, if possible, to
try and avoid fighting by offering a ransom. This apparently gave
rise to the idea that they wished to surrender, and an English
officer says:--

"Upon the Admiral's sending them a summons ... to
surrender, they were very stout; they gave us to understand
there were two parties in the Factory, the Renaultions and
the anti-Renaultions. The former, which they called the
great-wigg'd gentry, or councillors, were for giving up the
Fort, but the others vowed they would die in the breach. To
these high and lofty expressions the Admiral could give no