Battle of Mahé Louis in December 1799 had restored absolute British control. The importance of the East Indies to British trade encouraged a number of French plans to threaten the region, of which the most advanced was the invasion, in 1798, of Egypt by a French Army under General Napoleon Bonaparte. Although the campaign saw initial success, the annihilation of the French Mediterranean Fleet by Sir Horatio Nelson at the Battle of the Nile on 1 August 1798 effectively doomed the campaign to failure. Later in the year Bonaparte considered building a squadron at Suez in the Red Sea, but the plans were
Siege of Malta (1798–1800) without discovering their presence, and arrived off Alexandria on 28 June ahead of Bonaparte. Believing that the French must have had a different objective, Nelson turned northwards the following day to investigate the coast of Anatolia and missed Bonaparte's arrival on 30 June by less than 24 hours. Unopposed, Bonaparte landed his army and marched on Alexandria, capturing the city and turning inland. The fleet was ordered to anchor in nearby Aboukir Bay and await further instructions. On 1 August, Nelson returned to the Egyptian coast and discovered the French fleet at anchor. Attacking immediately, Nelson's ships managed to capture