The Duke of Beaufort

On 19^th July 1669 a strong French military force numbering 6 000 men arrived at Chandax, under the command of the Duke of Navaille and Admiral François de Vendôme. Despite the objections raised by Venetian supreme commander Francesco Morosini, the French insisted on employing aggressive tactics, and on the morning of 25^th June their forces sallied forth from the fortress. Though the operation initially met with some success and inflicted casualties on the Turks, it came to an ignominious end. The French were forced to beat a hasty retreat, leaving 500 dead including the hapless Duke of Beaufort.

One month later, on 24^th July, one of the mightiest vessels in the French fleet, the La Thérèse, was blown up and sank with all hands on board. Successive fiascos eventually led the French to abandon Chandax in August of the same year, plunging the remaining defenders into the depths of despair.