On the evening of 1 June 1855 the Anglo-French squadron, which consisted of 5 paddle steamers and 16 armed launches (on loan from the main allied fleet at Sevastapol) commanded by Captain Edmund Lyons (son of Rear Admiral Edmund Lyons) and Captain Béral de Sedaiges, anchored 8.5 miles of Taganrog in 18 feet of water. On the 2nd HMS "Recruit" was sent forward to reconnoiter Taganrog and sound the shoals off the town. On the 3rd the "Recruit" returned and under a flag of truce requested the surrender of the military depot for destruction, the withdrawal of military forces five miles away from the city and the evacuation of the civilian residents. Accompanying the "Recruit" were the British paddle steamer "Danube", the French paddle "aviso" "Mouette", and many small launches from larger ships operating elsewhere. These included 12 British armed steam launches (each with a 24 pounder boat howitzer and/or a rocket launcher), 4 similarly armed French launches, and the raft "Lady Nancy". This latter raft occupies an interesting place in the history of naval architecture as Commander Cowper P. Coles of HMS "Stromboli" had erected an protected cupola on her, and placed a 32 pounder within. From this sprang ultimately the modern turret used aboard warships.