Hawke had no opportunity of again distinguishing himself until 1759, when he was in command of the squadron blockading Brest. Having been driven by stress of weather into Torbay, he sailed from thence to resume his station off Brest, on the 14th of November, and on the same day Admiral Conflans put to sea with a strong fleet-though not equal to that of Hawke. The latter conjectured that the French had gone to Quiberon Bay, to attack an English squadron cruising there, and he pressed sail in that direction. Owing to strong head winds it was the 20th before he arrived off Belleisle. When that island bore about east, the French fleet was discovered. The weather was thick, and it was blowing a very fresh gale of wind from the northwest, with a heavy sea. Hawke made all haste to get his ships together, and then sent one of them in to make the land, and ascertain the exact position. Soon after the weather cleared, and the French fleet was seen, crowding sail to get away; and Hawke ordered a part of his fleet in chase, and followed with the rest. The fresh gale rendered it impossible for either fleet to carry much sail. Early in the afternoon the leading English ships caught up with the French rear, and a very animated action ensued. The French Rear-Admiral, Verger, in the Formidable, 80, was set upon by five or six ships at once, and was obliged to surrender, after having had two hundred men killed. The English Magnanime, 74, Captain Lord Howe, soon became closely engaged with the Thesée, 74; but the latter being disabled, dropped astern, and was engaged by the Torbay, while Howe pushed on in search of a fresh opponent, which he found in the Héros, 74. Captain de Kersaint, of the Thesée, imagining from a slight lull in the wind that he could fight his lower deck guns, unfortunately tried the hazardous experiment, and commenced firing at the Torbay. Captain Keppel, of the latter ship, followed de Kersaint’s example, and narrowly escaped the same fate. A heavy squall struck the Thesée, and she filled and went down; and out of her crew of 800 men only twenty were saved by the British boats. The Torbay shipped a great deal of water, but, by great exertions, was preserved. The Superbe, a French 70-gun ship, also capsized and sank, from the same cause. At 5 P.M. the Héros surrendered to Howe, and anchored, but the sea ran so high that they could not lower a boat to take possession of her. The night came on very dark, and exceedingly tempestuous, and, being among the rocks and shoals of a treacherous coast, and without pilots, it was considered prudent to discontinue the chase, and anchor. During the night the Resolution, 74, drove on shore, and was totally wrecked, with the loss of most of her crew.