six in the morning
Some of them were now almost abreast of the Resolution , and the iron shower tore through her sails and cut her rigging . She answered with a broadside from both sides , and the battle commenced in earnest . In all the annals of British seamanship there is no more heroic story than that of the fight between the Resolution and the six French men of war . From six in the morning until half past three in the afternoon she maintained the unequal contest , still keeping on under full sail toward her port , only yawing occasionally to pour a broadside into one or other of her foes . They were now running along the coast , and the peasants on the distant hills must have watched with astonishment the unequal fight as the vessels pressed on past them . By half past three the Resolution was little more than a wreck . Her sails were riddled with holes , many of her spars shot away , her sides ragged and torn , and many of her crew killed , but the remainder of the crew still fought their guns unflinchingly .