Unbeknown to Bompart's force, Humbert's army and the rebellion as a whole had been defeated by British troops a week before Bompart departed France. Bompart's squadron too was woefully understrength consisting of only a single ship of the line and eight frigates carrying 3,000 men. This small force faced a large proportion of the British Channel Fleet, which was prepared for a second invasion attempt after Humbert's army had landed unopposed in August. As a result, Bompart's force was spotted just a few hours after he left Brest and he was then chased into the Atlantic Ocean by several British frigates which followed him for a week until he was able to lose them in heavy weather. This weather persisted throughout the campaign, causing significant damage to both sides in a series of storms.
The delay caused by the pursuit of Bompart by the frigates under George Countess allowed the British to dispatch a more substantial squadron under Warren to the Donegal coast. Thus when Bompart arrived in the lee of Tory Island, he soon found himself threatened on all sides by a superior British force. Despite the damage his ships had suffered in the heavy weather conditions, Bompart attempted to escape but was swiftly run down and defeated in battle, his flagship and three frigates being captured and towed into Lough Swilly. Among the prisoners seized on board the flagship was Theobald Wolfe Tone, leader of the United Irishmen, whose capture and subsequent death signified the end of the rebellion. Over the next week, the scattered French survivors desperately attempted to reach the safety of French harbours in the face of dozens of British warships cruising along their homeward route. Only two made it, three others being hunted down and captured, one just a few miles from the entrance to Brest. The French never again attempted an invasion of Ireland.
^As the casualties from Hoste were not broken down to distinguish between killed and wounded in the dispatches immediately following the battle, only an overall casualty total is available for the French squadron.
General
Brooks, Richard (1959). Battlefields of Britain & Ireland. Weidenfeld & Nicolson. ISBN0-304-36333-2.