Acre, defence of

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Acre, defence of, 1799. Bonaparte, in Egypt, advanced into Syria to menace the Turks, then in alliance with Britain. Sir Sidney Smith flung troops and guns into the fort of Acre, which resisted the French for two months. Bonaparte attempted to represent the rebuff as a great victory, explaining that there was no point in occupying a pile of rubble. But three months later he abandoned his troops and sailed back to France.

J. A. Cannon

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