Brenton's promotion to post captain was confirmed on 25 April 1800 by Vice Admiral Lord Keith, who had superseded St Vincent as commander-in-chief of the fleet. Command of "Speedy" was subsequently handed over to Lord Cochrane and Brenton was given a temporary position as captain of HMS "Genereux", a 74-gun ship of the line that had been captured from the French in February, pending the availability of a suitable ship to command. Brenton found "Genereux" undergoing extensive repairs at Port Mahon and in May she joined the British squadron blockading Genoa. Superseded by Captain Manley Dixon in June, Brenton departed "Genereux" for Gibraltar but finding no other ship was available for him to command he was ordered to return to England.