Salines and Santo-Stefano. In the squadron of the Marquis de Brézé on 22 May 1646, Paul led the disembarkation of Talamone in Tuscany and on 14 June was prominent in the Battle of Orbetello during which he destroyed two enemy frigates. Paul was promoted to chef d’escadre, and was sent to the gulf of Piombino in 1647 at the head of five ships and two fire ships, in order to assure the communication between the posts of Porto-Longone on the isle of Elba and Piombino on the mainland which had been taken over by the Marshal of Meilleraie. At the beginning of April 1647, Paul fought near Naples for five days against the Spanish fleet, which was much stronger, commanded by the Duke of Arcos, the Viceroy of Naples, and won a victory which grew his reputation further still. Chevalier Paul was also present on 22 December 1647 in a battle off the coast of Castellammare against an Austro-Spanish fleet. In June 1648, he attacked and stole, under canonfire of the city of Pozzoli, a ship full of grain sent by Genoa for the Viceroy of Naples. Some time after, accompanied by a knight of Perriere, he took two other ships filled with goods and sailed them to Porto-Longone. At the start of 1649, he crossed near Malta an English ship which had 36 cannons on its way to Smyrne with important cargo. This ship refused to salute the French pavilion and so Chevalier Paul attacked and sank the ship. From the enemy crew only three or four men were saved, and the other 140 crew members perished by drowning. During the same campaign, Paul captured many other goods, which were estimated to be worth more than 300 000 écus (silver coins). Having left from Provence in April 1650 on the Flagship La Reine, 52 canons and 600 crewmen and troops, Chevalier Paul was escorting some small warships filled with munitions when he discovered between Cap Corsica and the isle of Capraja five Spanish warships which had crossed in order to stop reinforcements, rations and munitions that France sent to Porto-Longone on the isle of Elba. Not wishing to flee this superior force, Paul engaged in combat and received more than 150 bullets on the side of his ship when at the same time he sent 1200 to his enemies. At the end of four hours of combat, the badly