The
newspapers in June 1796 were full of the impressive victory of the Unicorn, the ship on which Jane's brother Charles
served. His captain was her Cousin Jane’s husband, and the family followed the ship
closely. Without loss of life or injury, the crew had fought ten hours with the
French ship La Tribune. Charles’s
ship won at last by striking down her mast.
Jane’s brothers, Frank and Charles, became admirals in
the Navy, and Frank was knighted. His first wife passed away, and in 1828 he
married Jane's dear friend, Martha Lloyd, who became “Lady Austen.” You can read more in Jane Austen’s Sailor Brothers by J.H.
and E.C. Hubbock (published in 1906).