the mediterranean campaign of 1793–1796 was a major theater of conflict in the early years of the french revolutionary wars. fought during the war of the first coalition, the campaign was primarily contested in the western mediterranean between the french navy's mediterranean fleet, based at toulon in southern france, and the british royal navy's mediterranean fleet, supported by the spanish navy and the smaller navies of several italian states. major fighting was concentrated in the ligurian sea, and focused on british maintenance of and french resistance to a british close blockade of the french mediterranean coast. additional conflict spread along mediterranean trade routes, contested by individual warships and small squadrons.