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were exhausted, and they so unruly that we were obliged to be safely housed that night.” 29
It was clear that the appearance of the French had caused great consternation among the
townspeople. Mrs. Almy noted that orders had been given that upon the appearance of the
American army on the island, houses within three miles of the town was to be burned, all
livestock on the island except a single cow per family were to be driven into town. All the
wells outside of Newport were ordered filled in and blocked. Her up-island relatives fled
into Newport with all their belongings. She wrote, “Heavens! What a scene of wretchedness
before this once happy and flourishing island.” On 7 August, the French shelled part of the
town. Mrs. Almy described the sheer pandemonium of the attack with “women crying and
children falling down.” Taking her children with her, Mary Almy ran with them to a house
she thought might be safe from the shelling laying flat on the ground until a broadside had
passed overhead and then jumping up and running until the sound of the next salvo. She ex-
claimed, “to attempt to describe the horrors of that night, would pronounce me a fool, for no
language could put it in its proper colors. Fire and sword had come amongst us and famine
was not afar off, for the want of bread was great.” Fleet Greene concurred with Mary Almy
and noted that in addition to the loss of livestock, “all carriages, wheelbarrows, shovels, pick-
axes, &c, are taken from the inhabitants….A number of trees cut down and put in the road
to obstruct the Provincials march….The army continues to lay waste the land, cutting down
orchards and laying open fields.” 30
By 9 August 1778 the Americans had landed over 6000 troops on the north end of the island
– the British and Hessian outposts had fled to the safety of their lines in town. However, on
this very same day, a small fleet from New York under the command of Lord Howe arrived off
Narragansett Bay to challenge that of French Admiral d’Estaing. And while d’Estaing had origi-
nally planned to land approximately 5000 troops to assist their American allies, he now weighed
anchor without landing any of them and prepared to engage Howe in a decisive sea battle.
However, despite the best laid plans of the Americans and French, the weather turned
against both fleet commanders. In fact, it was likely a hurricane that had moved up from the
Caribbean. For three days the storm tossed and damaged both fleets and widely scattered
them. Several of the largest French ships, including d’Estaing’s flagship, the Languedoc had
been totally dismasted. While Howe was able to retreat to New York City with its extensive
shipyards and repair facilities, d’Estaing limped back into Narragansett Bay with Newport’s
yards still in enemy hands. Thus he decided to leave the environs of Newport for American-
held Boston to refit his damaged fleet. This decision, of course, left the Americans alone in
their quest to liberate Newport. even so, the american ranks, now swelled with local militia,
still outnumbered the British and Hessian forces. Ominously, after d’Estaing had decided
to depart for Boston, Sullivan’s militia began to dissipate. Still the Americans pressed the
British into their outer Newport fortifications and began exchanging cannon fire. However,
with his militia rapidly departing his force daily, Sullivan decided that now the French no
longer controlled the Bay, his best move was to retreat off the island before he was trapped by
British naval power now returning from New York. Indeed on 27 August 1778, three British
frigates, the Sphinx, the Nautilus, and the Vigilant dropped anchor in Newport and were the

29 Mary Almy, 5 August 1778, 22.
30 Mary Almy, 8 August 1778, 26; Fleet Greene, unpaginated.