eight in the morning
This last fort , the bastions of which , from their retiring flanks being too short , is the only one accessible on the land side , but it was enfiladed from a neighbouring height . Bonaparte , at the siege of Saint Jean d'Acre , was destitute of siege artillery , and was not master of the sea . He had , therefore , many more obstacles to encounter than Ibrahim . During the first ten days the cannonade of the besiegers was not very vigorous , but on the 9th of December , five frigates having cast anchor before the place , with some gun-boats under sail , a general attack was made , and from eight in the morning until four in the afternoon the fleet and the batteries on shore kept up a well-directed fire . The besieged on their side were not inactive . The Egyptians experienced a heavy loss , and several of their ships were much cut up . From the 9th to the 18th the bombardment lasted night and day .