the action of 22 october 1793 was a minor naval engagement fought in the mediterranean sea during the war of the first coalition, early in the french revolutionary wars. during the engagement a lone british royal navy ship of the line, the 64-gun hms "agamemnon", attacked the french navy large frigate "melpomène", part of a larger squadron, off the coast of sardinia. although "agamemnon" chased "melpomène" some distance through the night and inflicted significant damage, the french frigate was able to escape following the arrival of the rest of its squadron under commodore jean-baptiste perrée. the french ships later anchored in corsican harbours to land reinforcements for the french garrison on the island, where the population was in open revolt.