As soon as it was known to be British, the Phoenix, 40-gun frigate; the Aventure and Zee-ploeg, national corvettes; the Patriot, and another ship of 20 guns, and three brigs of 14, Company’s cruisers; with more than twenty merchant vessels, ran themselves on shore under the extensive batteries of Batavia.  Another corvette, the William, struck to the Terpsichore as she was entering the road; but the line-of-battle ships had sailed a few days before to Griessee, a fortified harbour on the Sourabaya river, at the eastern extremity of the island.  The boats of the whole squadron, with five hundred picked men, commanded by the Admiral’s second son, Captain Fleetwood Pellew, of the Terpsichore, and covered by the fire from the frigates, were sent without delay to destroy the enemy’s ships.  The decision of Captain Pellew, which scarcely allowed them time to man their guns, made their fire almost harmless.  He boarded the Phoenix, whose crew quitted her on his approach; turned her guns on the other armed vessels; burnt all the shipping except three merchant vessels, which were brought away; and in less than two hours returned with the boats, having effected the whole service with no greater loss than one man killed and four wounded.

One of the ships lay at the little island of Onroost, which is piled and jettied all around, and contained a small and compact repairing yard for merchant vessels of all nations.  Two boats were sent to destroy her, with strict orders to injure nothing on shore; but unfortunately she drove alongside the jetty, and, to the great regret of the Admiral, the flames communicated to the buildings, and occasioned much damage.  The squadron sailed on the 1st of December, the Culloden and Belliqueux to return to India, the others for their respective stations.  Thus easily was completed an enterprise, as admirably planned as it was gallantly executed.  General Daendels, when he became Captain-General of Java and the Moluccas, some time after, sent a message to Sir Edward, that he hoped he would not pay him a visit without an invitation.

In the following June, the Admiral sent Captain Fleetwood Pellew in the Psyche, with the Caroline under his orders, to ascertain the condition of the Dutch line-of-battle ships at Griessee.  Captain Pellew displayed on this occasion the same spirit which had marked his former service.  The frigates reached their destination August 29th, and on the following day learned that the men-of-war were lying in the port dismantled, and very much out of repair.  They now proceeded to Samarang, where the Psyche arrived, and anchored off the port at midnight, the Caroline having parted company in chase.  At daylight she weighed, and stood into the road, where an armed schooner and a merchant brig were anchored near the batteries.  These were brought out by the boats, under a heavy but ineffectual fire.