The second engagement took place four days later when a force of boats launched from a British frigate squadron attacked the town of Jean-Rabel itself, capturing a large number of merchant ships in the harbour that had been seized by French privateers.
In the spring of 1797, most British forces in the region were deployed in the Leeward Islands against the colonies of Spain, which had recently entered the war on the French side.
Although by 1797, Britain maintained a measure of regional maritime supremacy, the French colonies were strongly held and provided numerous and well defended harbours from which warships and privateers could launch attacks against British trade convoys.
In response, British forces in the Caribbean were split, with the majority attached to a fleet under Rear-Admiral Henry Harvey, which captured Trinidad in February 1797 before unsuccessfully attacking Puerto Rico.
Giving chase, the large warship pursued the frigate to Mostique Inlet near Jean-Rabel, where Harmonie anchored in shallow water off the rocky shoreline.
At 17:00 both British ships were able to fire several broadsides at the French frigate without response, but there was no noticeable damage and the wind remained strong and so Ogilvy retired for the night to a safe distance.
[6] Alerted to the presence of the large number of prize ships at Jean-Rabel by Harmonie's unsuccessful cruise, Parker ordered Captain Hugh Pigot, commander of the British frigate HMS Hermione, to recapture them.
[7] Pigot had a reputation as a successful coastal raider: on 22 March, Hermione had attacked and destroyed a number of small French vessels off Puerto Rico.
[9] During the evening of 20 April the sea was calm with a strong easterly current, which enabled Pigot's squadron to close within 2 nautical miles (3.7 km) of the port of Jean-Rabel unobserved.
[8] These operations firmly established British control of the waters around Saint-Domingue, eliminating a significant opponent in the French Harmonie and destroying a port used frequently by privateers to store their prizes.