he
sailed again, accompanied in the "Foudroyant" on this occasion by Sir
William and Lady Hamilton, but not by the Hereditary Prince, nor the
Sicilian troops. On the 24th, at 9 P.M., he anchored in the Bay of
Naples. Flags of truce were at that moment flying on the castles of
Uovo and Nuovo, which were in the hands of the Neapolitan republicans,
and upon the frigate "Seahorse," whose commander had been the senior
British officer present, before Nelson's own appearance.

On the passage from Palermo, Nelson had received information that the
royalists,--with whom were co-operating some detachments of Russians
and Turks, as well as the British naval forces, under Captain Foote,
of the "Seahorse,"--had concluded an armistice with the French and
their Neapolitan allies, who were in possession of the castles. The
terms of the armistice, thus rumored, were that the castles, if not
relieved within twenty-one days, should then be surrendered; the
garrisons to march out with the honors of war, and to be transported
to Toulon in vessels to be furnished by the King of Naples. This
report was erroneous in important particulars, especially as to the
period of twenty-one days. What really had happened was, that a
capitulation had been concluded, which provided that the Neapolitan
insurgents should evacuate the two castles held by them--Uovo and
Nuovo--as soon as the transports were ready to take them to Toulon,
but not before. The French, in the castle of St. Elmo, were not
included in the arrangement, their only part being that it required
the ratification of their commander before becoming operative. This
ratification was given, and, when Nelson's squadron came in sight,[82]
the treaty had received the signature of all the parties interested;
the flags of truce indicating a cessation of hostilities until the
terms of the capitulation were carried into effect.

Nelson had been given full power by the King of the Two Sicilies to
act as his representative. He was also, as commander of the fleet, the
representative of the King of Great Britain among the allied forces,
which were acting in support of the royalist cause. The double
function introduces great confusion into the subsequent transactions,
especially as there are on record no formal credentials investing him
with the authority he claimed to have from the King of Naples. The
omission probably arose from the extreme shortness of his stay in
Palermo on the 21st--only two hours a