The Battle for Saint Helena, 1818
Napoleon rose sharply hearing the recognizable sound of volleyed gunfire and a few cannon, distant from his Longwood prison
As proven at the island of Capri and Murat's successful assault, St Helena now found itself under attack. Just like on Capri, Hudson Lowe found himself the commander of another island garrison under siege.
The French Bonapartists' actually got a plan together to free Napoleon. The plan run secretly by the American based "Bonapartist League" gained ground under French émigré leaders associated with Joseph in New York, a cell in Philadelphia, Jerome wandering the US eastern coast, a settlement in Alabama, General Lallemand and General Rigaud from Champ d'Asile in the Mexico province of Tejas, and New Orleans Mayor Nicholas Girod.
The British Forces
There were 821 white inhabitants, a garrison of 820 men on the East India Company's payroll, 1,475 men from the King's troops (infantry, engineers etc.) and 352 people as their families, 618 Chinese indentured laborers, 24 Lascars, 500 free blacks and 1,540 slaves. In total, 6,150 people on the island.
Present were the "53rd regiment (600 men), the St Helena regiment (600 men), the 66th regiment (700 men), The St Helena artillery (300 men), a detachment of the Royal Artillery (60 men) and a troop of mounted dragoons (20 men)." Supposedly there were 500 cannon present on the island.
The offshore English squadron consisted of a couple of "Man of War" and several smaller vessels.
"The Naval Force under a Rear Admiral consisted of the flagship HMS Newcastle (60 guns) to guard the port, a frigate kept watch on the other approach to the island and two brigs cruised one to leeward and one to windward of the island for weeks on end without dropping anchor."
The French Forces
General Charles Lallemand as the Commander and General Rigaud, as the Second in Command. The French forces were organized into Cohorts as they had been at Champ d'Asile. Recruitment doubled their original number from the 400 in Texjas and the overall strength totaled 876 men, all veterans of the Napoleonic wars and fanatic Bonapartists. Small cannon numbered: eight 6 pounders, two 3-pounders, a 1&1/2-pounder, and four 1-pounders at Champ d'Asile and had been brought with them.
The French organized a small five ship naval force, not as well armed as the British, but each ship was faster and better built. Two were newly made clipper types, built in the United States. One was a light fast-sailing schooner, armed with four 12‑inch guns, built in Philadelphia. Another was a 200-ton schooner called La Séraphine armed like a pirate ship built in New Orleans. The others were older vessels and what could be bought from unscrupulous sellers like Lafitte and You in New Orleans.