On June 17th, 1816, L'Écho, L'Argus, La Loire and La Méduse set sail for Saint-Louis in Senegal. This expedition was to take possession of the colonies that France had before the Revolution. It was led by an incompetent aristocrat : Hugues Duroy de Chaumareys. La Méduse, an 150-ft long frigate, carried 395 people, mostly soldiers and sailors. On board were stocks of food for the colony, two longboats with a capacity of 100 passengers each, canoes and a skiff. The expedition, however, was a total disaster...