Contents Preface Acknowledgements Sources Illustrations The Data Bibliography Introduction Chronology and Fleet Actions Glossary and Abbreviations Abstract of Annual Statistics
vi vi vi vii vii viii viii x xiv xvi
Chapter 1 First Rates of 100 guns 1 Chapter 2 Second Rates of 90 and 98 guns 10 Chapter 3 Third Rates Ships of 80 guns 27 Ships of 66 to 70 guns 38 Ships of 74 guns 56 Ships of 64 guns 90 Chapter 4 Fourth Rates Ships of 60 guns 113 Ships of 50 guns 134 Chapter 5 Fifth Rates Ships of 40 to 44 guns 162 Ships of 32 to 38 guns 185 Chapter 6 Sixth Rates Frigates of 28 or 30 guns 224 Post Ships of 20 to 24 guns 242 Chapter 7 Ship (three-masted) Sloops 273 Chapter 8 Two-masted Sloops 294 Chapter 9 Cutters and Schooners 322 Chapter 10 Miscellaneous Vessels Bomb Vessels 338 Fireships 344 Hired Vessels 351 Exploration and Discovery Vessels 354 Armed Store Ships and Transports 356 Yachts 361 Miscellaneous Harbour Craft 364 Appendix A The American Navy 1775-1785 368 Appendix B Construction Costs for British Warships 1789 369 Appendix C Dockyard Launchings (and Master Shipwrights) 1714-1793 369 Index 373
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T
he three-deckers, particularly the First Rates, were rarely brought into service in peacetime, and earlier vessels saw little active service even in wartime. The First Rates, in fact, served largely as deterrence weapons before about 1778, with the lack of real activity that such a label signifies. This results in an embarrassing brevity in the service histories of these ships, although this brevity only reflects reality. The London, as an extreme example, went through two rebuildings between 1697 and her final taking to pieces in 1747, and was only recommissioned for one six-month period in this half-century. Apart from a brief period between the 1703 and 1716 Gun Establishments, the 42pdr gun was traditionally the primary weapon in the LD battery of the First Rate from 1637 until late in the 18th century. The standard 42pdr gun at the start of the 18th century was a weapon of 9½ft length. Under the 1703 Establishment of Guns, First Rates were intended to be re-armed with 32pdrs (then still called demi-cannon) instead of the 42pdrs (cannon-of-seven), but the 42pdrs were restored in the 1716 Establishment of Guns, and now were of 10ft length and 65cwt. At the same time the MD battery was upgraded from 18pdrs to 24pdrs. In 1778 Keppel arranged to have the Victory’s 42pdrs replaced by 32pdrs. This arrangement remained unique until 1790, when other First Rates were ordered to replace their 42pdrs by 32pdrs at the earliest opportunity. Nevertheless, some First Rates were not re-armed with 32pdrs until early in the 19th century.
BRITANNIA. The sole First Rate provided for under the 1677 ‘30 Ships’ Programme, and designed as well as built by Sir Phineas Pett. Significantly larger than her predecessors (except the 1637 Sovereign); initially found to be rather crank, but was girdled (widened) in 1691-92, and subsequently regarded as the best First Rate in the fleet. Britannia Chatham Dyd. [M/Shipwright Phineas Pett to end 1680, completed by Robert Lee] Dimensions & tons: (1677 ‘Establishment’) 165ft 0in, 137ft 8in x 46ft 0in x 19ft 2in. 1,550 bm; (as completed) 167ft 5in, 136ft 0in x 47ft 4in x 19ft 2½in. 1,62070/94 bm. (as girdled by AO 3.10.1691) 167ft 5in, 135ft 8in x 48ft 8in x 19ft 8in. 1,70913/94 bm. [There are wide variations in the data recorded in official records; the above represents the best available deductions.] Men: 780 (war) / 580 (peace). Guns: (1703 Establishment) LD 28/26 x 32pdrs; MD 26/24 x 18pdrs; UD 28/24 x 9pdrs; QD 12/10 x 6pdrs; Fc 4/4 x 6pdrs; RH 2/2 x 6pdrs. Ord: 5.3.1678. L: 8.1682 then laid up. Refitted at Chatham under Special Commission of 1684-88 (for £2,315 for hull, and £2,138 for rigging & stores). Girdled 1691-92. Commissioned 2.1691 under Capt. John Fletcher; flagship of Adm. Sir Edward Russell 1692-93 (with David Mitchell Capt. of the Fleet); at Battle of Barfleur 19.5.1692; in Action in La Hougue Bay 23/24.5.1692; paid off 12.1695. Recommissioned 2.1696, still under Fletcher, as flagship of Adm. Lord (John) Berkeley off the French coast; paid off 10.1697. Major Repair 1700-01. Recommissioned 1.1702 under Capt. John Leake, as flagship of Adm. Russell (the now Earl of Pembroke); paid off 6.1702. Recommissioned 2.1705 under Capt. John Norris, as flagship of Adm. Sir Cloudisley Shovell; in attack on Barcelona 1705; paid off 8.1707 and laid up 1709. By August 1714 this ship was incapable of further service, and was to be BU in 1715 to be RB 1716-19 (see below).
(A) Vessels in service or rebuilding at 12 August 1714 At the death of Queen Anne, there were nominally seven First Rates in the British Navy; however the Queen and Royal William had both been taken to pieces (BU) and were rebuilding, and thus appear only under their new guise below. The remaining five First Rates were all lying in Ordinary (i.e. reserve); of these the Royal Sovereign and Royal Anne were both described as being in good condition, and the London as needing ‘small repairs’, while both the Britannia and Victory were in need of rebuilding. Following the inauguration of the Hanoverian regime, the Victory was renamed Royal George on 27 October 1714, but on 9 September 1715 the name Victory was restored to this ship, and the name Royal George was bestowed instead on the former Queen, then about to be re-launched. All the First Rates were established with 100 guns and 780 men in wartime, and with 90 guns and 580 men in peace; the exception in 1714 was the Royal Sovereign, which by then had been classed as carrying 110 guns with 850 men, although apparently this distinction was not perpetuated. Owing to the practice of rebuilding, the origins of the First Rates in particular were somewhat confused and needs some explanation. No entirely new First Rates were built between the Britannia of 1682 and the Royal George launched in 1756. In principle, throughout the period of the Establishments, the British Navy maintained on the Navy List seven such First Rates, but often several were only maintained in theory, as ships taken to pieces for ‘rebuilding’ would not be re-completed – or even restarted – for some considerable period.
VICTORY. The rebuilding of this ship in the 1690s was somewhat circuitous. The old Second Rate Victory (built 1666) was ordered to be rebuilt by AO 10.11.1690, but seemingly this ship was condemned by survey and was BU in 1691 (by AO 5.3.1691); instead the Royal James (built 1675) was renamed Victory 3.3.1691, and finally paid off 2.1694 for this purpose. Victory Chatham Dyd. [M/Shipwright Robert Lee] Dimensions & tons: 163ft 1in, 136ft 0in x 45ft 4in x 18ft 6in. 1,48663/94 bm. Men: 780 (war) / 580 (peace). Guns: (1703 Establishment) LD 26/24 x 32pdrs; MD 28/26 x 18pdrs; UD 28/24 x 9pdrs; QD 12/10 x 6pdrs; Fc 4/4 x 6pdrs; RH 2/2 x 6pdrs. RB Ord: 1691. K: ?early 1694. L: 1695. Commissioned 10.1695 under Capt. Thomas Jennings. In 1.1696 under Capt. Stafford Fairbourne, then 2.1696 under Gabriel Hughes (temp._ and 5.1696 Capt. Edward Whitaker, as flagship of Vice-Adm. Matthew Aylmer; paid off 6.12.1697. Recommissioned 2.1702 (but not manned!) under Capt. David Greenhill. In 2.1703 under Capt. Christopher Myngs, as flagship of Rear-Adm. Sir John Munden (who was dismissed by the Queen, in spite of exoneration by a court-martial in 1702); paid off 5.1703. Recommissioned 12.1704 under Capt. John
1
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Hartnell; laid up by AO 26.1.1705, and company transferred to Royal Sovereign; paid off 16.2.1705. In dockyard hands 1709-1714; renamed Royal George 27.10.1714, but name restored to Victory 9.9.1715. ‘Taken down to Middle Deck’ (by AO 6.6.1716) at Cork 6 – 7.1716, ‘to draw less (water) at … moorings and (be) more easily transported between moorings, saving trimming the hull’; never subsequently recommissioned. Docked at Portsmouth 16.3.1721 to BU. Partly burnt by accident 1721, and taken to pieces at Portsmouth (for £507.8.4d) 4.1721 to RB. ROYAL SOVEREIGN. The most prestigious ship in the fleet, the old Royal Sovereign – originally built in 1637, and rebuilt in 1660 and 1685 – was largely destroyed in an accidental fire at Chatham in January 1696. Her replacement, nominally a ‘rebuilding’, thus in practice involved building an entirely new ship, and the talented shipwright Fisher Harding was transferred deliberately to Woolwich and given virtually a free hand in creating the highly successful replacement. The proposed dimensions under Harding’s draught were 173ft x 49ft 6in x 19ft. Royal Sovereign Woolwich Dyd. [M/Shipwright Fisher Harding] Dimensions & tons: 174ft 6in, 141ft 7in x 50ft 3½in oa (50ft 0in for calc.) x 19ft 1in. 1,88271/93 bm. Men: 780 (war) / 580 (peace). Guns: (1703 Establishment) LD 28/26 x 32pdrs; MD 28/26 x 18pdrs; UD 28/24 x 9pdrs; QD 12/12 x 6pdrs; Fc 4/2 x 6pdrs. RB (in theory) Ord: 29.10.1697. L: 25.7.1701. Commissioned 1.1702 under Capt. Thomas Ley (died 19.9.1702), with 2nd Capt. John Fletcher, as flagship of Adm. Sir George Rooke (-1703), for Cadiz; at Battle of Vigo Bay 12.10.1702; in 1703 Capt. James Wishart replaced Ley; paid off 10.1703. Recommissioned 2.1705 under Capt. John Hartnell, as flagship of Vice-Adm. Sir Stafford Fairbourne, with Shovell and Peterburgh in the Mediterranean; paid off 10.1706. Recommissioned 1.1708 under Capt. James Littleton; paid off 7.1708, but recommissioned 12.1708. Fitted as a flagship by AO 26.2.1809. Recommissioned 1.1709 under Capt. Stephen Martin, as flagship of Adm. Sir John Leake; paid off 16.5.1709 and laid up at Chatham. Fitted out at Chatham by AO 1.1.1710. In 12.1709 under Capt. James Littleton, with 2nd Capt. James Moneypenny, as flagship of Adm. Sir Matthew Aylmer; paid off 10.1710. Not subsequently put back into service until ‘Great Repair’ of 1723-29. ROYAL ANNE Group. In 1702 both the Saint Andrew and the London were ordered to be rebuilt, and enlarged to the dimensions specified below, in order to carry the same Establishment as the larger First Rates. The former ship, originally built in 1670 at Woolwich, was renamed Royal Anne by AO 8.7.1703. The latter, originally built in 1670 at Deptford, had already been rebuilt once at Chatham in 1679. Dimensions & tons: 167ft 0in, 137ft 6in x 47ft 6in x 19ft 0in. 1,650 bm. Men: 750. Guns (1703 Establishment): LD 26/24 demi-cannon (32pdrs); MD 28/26 culverins (18pdrs); UD 28/24 demi-culverins (9pdrs); QD 12/10 x 6pdrs; Fc 4/4 x 6pdrs; RH 2/2 x 6pdrs. Royal Anne Woolwich Dyd. [M/Shipwright William Lee] As rebuilt: 170ft 0in, 140ft 6in x 48ft 0in x 19ft 4in. 1,72182/94 bm. Ord: 6.3.1702. L: 25.4.1704. Commissioned 7.1705 under Capt. Richard Hughes, as flagship of RearAdm. John Jennings, then of Vice-Adm. Sir George Byng, for the Channel and Bay of Biscay. In 1706 under Capt. William Passenger (-1707), still Byng’s flag (-1709), for the Mediterranean; at Alicante 7.1706. In 1708 under Capt. James Moneypenny (-1709), in the Channel in 1708 and the Mediterranean 1709. In 1710 under Capt. Bartholomew Candler, as flagship of now Adm. Sir John Jennings; laid up at Chatham by AO 26.8.1710 until ordered to be RB (by AO
Chapter 1.indd 2
21.3.1727), and taken down at Chatham 5.1727 (RB in 1756 as Royal George – see below). London Chatham Dyd. [M/Shipwright Benjamin Rosewell.] As rebuilt: 168ft 0in, 137ft 6in x 48ft 0in x 19ft 2in. 1,68510/94 bm. Ord: 6.3.1702. L: 2.7.1706. Commissioned 12.12.1706 under Capt. William Clevland; paid off 23.6.1707. Docked at Chatham 3.7.1718 for a Large Repair which apparently turned into another RB (see below). The new Establishment of Dimensions introduced in June 1706 (henceforth the ‘1706 Establishment’) fixed what was intended as a permanent standard for the overall size and proportions of each Rated ship from 30 guns up to 90 guns, but the First (and also the Sixth) Rates were deliberately excluded from consideration, apparently – in the former case – because they were infrequent enough for each new one to be considered on its merits. Nevertheless in practice the Royal Sovereign of 1701 seems to have been accepted as the ideal size for a 100-gun ship, and its dimensions were to form the basis of the more detailed Establishment brought into use in 1719. QUEEN. Originally built in 1673 as the Royal Charles, this ship was renamed Queen and rebuilt in 1693 as a ship of 1,658 bm, and was in 1714 again being rebuilt. She was to be renamed Royal George before being re-launched. Men: 750. Guns (1703 Establishment): LD 26/24 demi-cannon (32pdrs); MD 28/26 culverins (18pdrs); UD 28/24 demi-culverins (9pdrs); QD 12/10 x 6pdrs; Fc 4/4 x 6pdrs; RH 2/2 x 6pdrs. Royal George Woolwich Dyd. [M/Shipwright Jacob Acworth to 11.1714, then John Naish to 7.1715, completed by John Hayward] Dimensions & tons: 171ft 9in, 139ft 7in x 49ft 3in x 19ft 6in. 1,80084/94 bm. Ord: 29.8.1706. K: 3.5.1709. L: 30.9.1715. C: 18.10.1715. First cost: 28,707.2.5¾d including fitting. Not recommissioned until 1741. Renamed Royal George by AO 9.9.1715. Great Repair at Chatham (for £25,465.4.8d) 3.1735 – 3.1737. Commissioned 1741 under Capt. Edward Falkingham (-1742), for Norris’s fleet. Repaired and fitted as a 90-gun ship (but remained classed as First Rate) at Chatham (for £18,092.12.6d) 8.1742 – 7.1745. In 1744 under Capt. Charles Cotterel, at Chatham; by AO 15.11.1744 fitted as a flagship; recommissioned 10.1745 under Capt. Thomas Harrison (-1748), as flagship of Adm. Edward Vernon in the Downs; paid off 6.1748. Surveyed 5.1.1749 and 28.1.1749. Proceeded to Sheerness under Capt. Roger Martin 1755 and surveyed there 8.11.1755. Renamed Royal Anne 10.1.1756 (exchanged names with new ship building at Woolwich). Refitted at Portsmouth (for £8,449.0.11d) to 1756. Recommissioned 2.1755 (still under Martin); in 5.1756 under Capt. Clark Gayton, then 1757 Capt. John Barker and 10.1757 Capt. Sir William Burnaby (-1760); joined Hawke’s fleet 21.9.1759 but parted company (in distress) 12.10.1760; paid off 1.1761. Surveyed 10.1764 and 7.3.1767. BU at Portsmouth (by AO 10.3.1767, for £767.4.8d) completed 9.4.1767. ROYAL WILLIAM. This vessel had originally been built at Chatham in 1670 as the Prince, and rebuilt at Chatham as a ship of 1,568 bm in 1692,when she was renamed. Although theoretically this vessel was in existence for almost a century following her rebuilding in 1719 (at a cost of £30,794.0.5½d), she was actually laid up from her re-launch in 1719 (and saw no service at all) until she was reduced to a Second Rate of 84 guns in 1756. Royal William Portsmouth Dyd. [M/Shipwright John Naish] As rebuilt: 175ft 4in, 142ft 7in x 50ft 3½in x 20ft 1in. 1,91823/94 bm. Draught 14ft 3½in / 16ft 4in. Ord: 1.1.1714. K: 31.7.1714. L: 3.9.1719.
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Royal George, as completed 1715. The ship was not commissioned until 1741, so may well have looked different on entering service.
(B) ������������������������������������ Vessels acquired from 12 August 1714 The 1719 Establishment provided the first standards to which First Rates should be built since the partial Establishment of 1677 (the 1706 Establishment had excluded any standards for First Rates). In fact, the 1719 Establishment took the highly successful Royal Sovereign (rebuilt by Fisher Harding at Woolwich in 1704) as its model, and the Royal William and Britannia had been rebuilt to the same dimensions and set of scantlings when they were launched in 1719. Thus all three of these vessels should be taken as being ‘to the 1719 Establishment’ even though they actually predated that standard. The 1716 Establishment of Guns had fixed the ordnance for all First Rates as shown below, with the demi-cannon (32pdrs) of the 1703 Gun Establishment reverting to 42pdrs - these and the 24pdrs being specified as 10ft guns, the 12pdrs as 9½ft guns, and the 6pdrs as 9ft guns. (Establishment) Dimensions & tons: 174ft 0in, 140ft 7in x 50ft 0in x 20ft 0in. 1,86942/94 bm. Men: 850. Guns: LD 28 x 42pdrs; MD 28 x 24pdrs; UD 28 x 12pdrs; QD 12 x 6pdrs; Fc 4 x 6pdrs. A further order, for the Victory, was placed 21.3.1727, but no major work took place prior to the proposals which led to the 1733 Establishment. Similarly the Royal Anne was actually taken to pieces in May 1727 to be ‘rebuilt’ at Woolwich, but no attempt to start work on her was begun until 1746. A fine contemporary model of the Royal William as designed in 1714, now in the collection of the US Naval Academy Museum at Annapolis. Although one of the longestlived warships of the eighteenth century, the ship never served in this configuration, but was cut down to 84 guns (by removing the forecastle and quarterdeck) in 1755; in this guise she fought in the Seven Years War and the American Revolution.
Not commissioned (as First Rate). Remained laid up at Portsmouth until 1756. In 1746 consideration was given to cutting her down to 2½ decks, but this scheme was turned down in 1748. Under AO of 1.11.1755 it was ordered that she be reduced to 84 guns (on three decks); she was re-registered as a Second Rate by AO 9.4.1757 and her subsequent history appears in Chapter 2. ____________________________________________________
Chapter 1.indd 3
BRITANNIA. The vessel taken to pieces in 1715 was RB in 1716-19, initially specified as to be ‘to the dimensions of the Soveraigne, viz: 174ft 6in x 50ft x 19ft 10in. 1,882 tons.’ Unlike the Royal William, launched the same year and also to the 1719 Establishment, the Britannia retained circular port wreaths on the QD. Apart from her two years’ stint off Lisbon, this vessel saw no active service. Men: 780. Guns: LD 28 x 42pdrs; MD 28 x 24pdrs; UD 28 x 12pdrs; QD 12 x 6pdrs; Fc 4 x 6pdrs. Britannia Woolwich Dyd [M/Shipwright John Hayward] As rebuilt: 174ft 6in, 141ft 6½in x 50ft 2in x 19ft 10in. 1,89477/94 bm. Ord: 5.6.1716. K: 1716 (or later). L: 3.10.1719. C: 31.10.1719. First cost: £29,393.10.1d (presumably including fitting).
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Small Repair at Chatham (for £868.15.3d) 9 – 10.1730. Fitted at Chatham as a flagship (for £11,870.19.10d) 9.1733 – 4.1734. Commissioned 1734 under Capt. Tancred Robinson, with 2nd Capt. Thomas Whitney, as flagship of Adm. Sir John Norris; to the Tagus in 1735-36 (Whitney Capt. when Robinson made Rear-Adm. 3.1736). Fitted at Chatham as hospital ship (by AO 1.12.1744, for £4,574.3.5d) 2 – 7.1745; recommissioned as such 7.1745 under Lieut. Bosville Williams, for Sheerness; paid off 6.1748. Surveyed 24.12.1748 and 24.1.1749. BU at Chatham (by AO 14.9.1749, for £631.10.11d) completed 16.1.1750, done in 33 days. LONDON. On 23.9.1718 the London was ordered to be repaired, and on 5.12.1718 this was altered to make her undergo a Middling Repair, which was carried out at Chatham Dyd; when re-launched in 1721 her dimensions and tonnage had been altered by girdling to those shown below (clearly, she was not to the Establishment): London Chatham Dyd. [M/Shipwright Benjamin Rosewell.] As rebuilt: 168ft 0in, 137ft 6in x 48ft 4½in x 19ft 2in. 1,71151/94 bm. Men: 780. Guns: LD 28 x 42pdrs; MD 28 x 24pdrs; UD 28 x 12pdrs; QD 12 x 6pdrs; Fc 4 x 6pdrs. Ord: 5.12.1718. L: 25.10.1721. First cost: £27,632.7.9d. Not commissioned (again!). Made a church ship in 1746, and BU at Chatham (by AO 29.7.1747) completed 10.1747. ROYAL SOVEREIGN. While no new First Rates were produced to the 1719 Establishment, the Royal Sovereign (see above) underwent what was officially a Great Repair (but in practice amounted to a virtual rebuilding) at Chatham between 1723 and 1729, from which she emerged technically conforming to the 1719 Establishment. She was not to be brought into service for another twelve years; she underwent further work at Chatham (for £13,245.8.10d) from 10.1739 to 5.1740, and was fitted there as a flagship (for £5,122.7.7d) from 11.1740 to 4.1741. Royal Sovereign Chatham Dyd. [M/Shipwright Benjamin Rosewell.] As rebuilt: 175ft 0in, 140ft 0in x 50ft 3½in x 20ft 1in. 1,88346/94 bm. Men: 780. Guns: LD 28 x 42pdrs; MD 28 x 24pdrs; UD 28 x 12pdrs; QD 12 x 6pdrs; Fc 4 x 6pdrs. Ord: 18.2.1724. K: 5.10.1723. L: 5.3.1729. First cost: £34,720.4.4d. Commissioned 2.1741 under Capt. Robert Allen, for Norris’s fleet. Refitted at Chatham (for £8,231.19.8d) 12.1743 – 3.1744. Recommissioned early 1744 under Capt. William Davies, then 8.1744 Capt. Thomas Hanway, with Norris’s fleet in the Channel. At the Nore in 5.1745, under the Broad Pendant of Capt. Thomas Smith. In 10.1745 under Capt. John Orme; in approaches to the Thames 12.1745. Surveyed 3.1.1748, but not repaired. Fitted at Chatham for Channel service as a 90-gun ship (for £10,888.19.4d) 10.1755 – 5.1756. Recommissioned 10.1755 under Capt. William Boys; at the Nore 1756, then in Western squadron 1757; flagship of the now Adm. Thomas Smith in 10.1757, in the Downs; at Spithead 1758; paid off 3.1759. Fitted to lie in the Downs (for £3,354.13.7d) 9.1759; recommissioned 10.1759 under Capt. Robert Hathorn (-1762), at Spithead; in harbour service 176162; flagship of Vice-Adm. Francis Holburne 1763. Surveyed 9.9.1763 and found to need a Great Repair (estimated to take 2¼ years and cost £29,207) but ‘the officers remark upon this ship that her frame appears sounder than could have been expected for a ship of her age, and that she has a great character for sailing well, but as her scantling is too small for the weight of metal lately establish’d for ships of 100 guns they proposed the reducing of her to an 84-gun ship’; had this proposal been accepted, the ship would doubtless have been re-classed as a Second Rate and re-armed similarly to the Royal William, but it
Chapter 1.indd 4
was not done; instead she was resurveyed 10.4.1768 and (under AO 18.4.1768) was BU at Portsmouth (for £778.18.8d) 17.5.1768. In the review of the 1719 Establishment which took place in April 1732, the senior Master Shipwrights at various Dockyards submitted their views on the dimensions and tonnage which they considered ‘proper’ to a 100-gun ship (as well as other classes). Their views as regards the 100-gun First Rates were fairly conservative, and they suggested only small changes as follows (only Ward and Stacey specifying keel length and tonnages): John Ward 174ft 0in 140ft 7½in 50ft 0in 20ft 0in 1,870 bm Richard Stacey 175ft 0in 141ft 2½in 50ft 4in 20ft 6in 1,90284/94 bm John Hayward 174ft 0in 50ft 0in 20ft 4in Joseph Allin unstated 51ft 0in 20ft 0in VICTORY. In May 1733 Acworth, the Surveyor, produced his own proposals, which made no change to the length and only slight increases in breadth and depth for the First Rate. A single First Rate was built to this 1733 Proposed Establishment (the Establishment was never formally adopted). Nominally a ‘rebuild’, in actuality the previous Victory had been taken to pieces in 4.1721. The draught and contemporary model reveal this ship to have been very high-sided and consequently leewardly, a factor which probably contributed to her wrecking in 1744. Unusually, she had four rows of lights and three galleries at the stern. Dimensions & tons: 174ft 0in, 140ft 7in x 50ft 0in x 20ft 6in. 1,86942/94 bm (1733 Establishment). Men: 850. Guns: LD 28 x 42pdrs; MD 28 x 24pdrs; UD 28 x 12pdrs; QD 12 x 6pdrs; Fc 4 x 6pdrs. Victory Portsmouth Dyd. [M/Shipwright Joseph Allin] As built: 174ft 9in, 141ft 7in x 50ft 6in x 20ft 6in. 1,92056/94 bm. Ord: 21.3.1727 and 11.9.1733. K: 8.1733. L: 23.2.1737. C: 8.1740. First cost: £38,239.2.1d to build, plus £12,652.14.2d fitting (as a flagship). Commissioned 1740 under Capt. Thomas Whitney, with 2nd Capt. Samuel Faulkner, as flagship of Adm. Sir John Norris; damaged in collision with Lion 16.7.1740 (Victory carried away her head and bowsprit), and returned to Portsmouth under Capt. Richard Lestock (temp) in 8.1740. In 1741 restored to Channel fleet under same command (Whitney died 9.12.1741). In 12.1741 under Capt. Samuel Faulkner, from 1744 as flagship of Adm. Sir John Balchen; sailed 28.7.1744 to relieve French blockade of Lisbon; escorted convoy to Gibraltar; on return, wrecked with all hands on the Casquets (off Alderney) in a storm 5.10.1744. The 1741 Proposed Establishment provided for First Rates to be of the following dimensions; however, no First Rates were ever built to this Establishment. Dimensions & tons (1741 Establishment): 175ft 0in, 142ft 4in x 50ft 0in x 21ft 0in. 1,89269/94 bm. 1745 Establishment design. Following the adoption of the new Establishment in November 1745, an order for the rebuilding of the Royal Anne to this specification was placed with Woolwich in 1746; this put into effect the long-delayed rebuilding first ordered in 1727 (since when the remains of the Royal Anne had actually been a few piles of timbers in store at Woolwich). However, the final design added 10in to the breadth of the ship. The new ship exchanged names with the Royal George on 19.1.1756, just a month before her launch. A second ship was ordered to the same draught in 1751; although launched in 1762, the Britannia was not brought into service until 1778. Establishment Dimensions & tons: 178ft 0in, 144ft 6½in x 51ft 0in x 21ft 6in. 1,99970/94 bm. Design Dimensions & tons: 178ft 0in, 144ft 6½in x 51ft 10in x 21ft 6in.
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VESSELS ACQUIRED FROM 12 aUGUST 1714
2,06558/94 bm. Men: 850. Guns: LD 28 x 42pdrs; MD 28 x 24pdrs; UD 28 x 12pdrs; QD 12 x 6pdrs; Fc 4 x 6pdrs. Britannia’s 42pdrs were subsequently replaced by 32pdrs, and in the 1790s she fitted 12 x 32pdr carronades in place of all 12pdrs except 2 each on QD and Fc. Royal George Woolwich Dyd. [M/Shipwright Thomas Fellowes to 5.1752, then Thomas Slade (for 3 weeks), Adam Hayes (to 3.1753) and Edward Allin (to 12.1755), completion being by Israel Pownoll.] As built: 178ft 0in, 143ft 5½in x 51ft 9½in x 21ft 6in. 2,04681/94 bm. Draught 14ft 8in / 16ft 1in. Ord: 29.8.1746 as Royal Anne (nominally a ‘rebuild’ of the Royal Anne was ordered in 1727, and the old ship taken to pieces that year; but no work was done until 1746). K: 8.1.1747. Renamed Royal George 19.1.1756. L: 18.2.1756. C: 1.5.1756. First cost: £54,661.2.10d to build (£65,274.8.2d including fitting). Commissioned 10.1755 under Capt. Richard Dorrill; with the Western squadron 5.1756. In 7.1756 under Capt. John Campbell, then ?1.1757 under Capt. Matthew Buckle, as flagship of Vice-Adm. Edward Boscawen; in Rocheford expedition 9.1757. In 1758 under Capt. Piercy Brett, as flagship of Adm. Lord George Anson. In 11.1758 under Capt. Alexander Hood, then in 1759 under Dorrill again (-sick 6.1759). In 6.1759 under Campbell again; flagship of Adm. Sir Edward Hawke 11.1759 (-3.1761); at Battle of Quiberon Bay 20.11.1759. In 3.1760 under Capt. William Bennett; at Spithead Review 7.1760; in 8.1760 Campbell again; in 12.1760 Bennett again; with Hardy’s fleet in Autumn 1762; paid off 18.12.1762. Large repair at Plymouth (for £41,979.9.9d) 5.1765 – 2.1768. Fitted at Portsmouth for Channel Service (for £11,745.3.11d) 5.1778 – 4.1779. Recommissioned 7.1778 under Capt. Thomas Hallum, then 11.1778 under Capt. John Colpoys,
Chapter 1.indd 5
The Battle of Quiberon Bay, which took place in treacherous inshore waters on a stormy November evening in 1759, was probably the most visually dramatic fleet engagement of the eighteenth century, and a favourite subject for marine artists. This engraving after a painting by Richard Paton, conflates various incidents, but clearly shows Hawke’s flagship, the Royal George, at the centre of the action.
as flagship of Vice-Adm. Sir Robert Harland (Western Squadron); from 6.1779 flagship of Vice-Adm. George Darby, then 8.1779 flagship of Rear-Adm. Sir John L. Ross (-12.1781). From 12.1779 under Capt. John Bourmaster; participated in attack on Caracas convoy 8.1.1780, in action with Langara 16/17/1.1780, and in relief of Gibraltar 19.1.1780; coppered 4.1780; part of Geary’s Fleet from Summer 1780, and Darby’s Fleet from Autumn 1780. From 11.1781 under Capt. Henry Cromwell, as flagship of Rear-Adm. Richard Kempenfelt; in Barrington’s Squadron from 4.1782. Under Capt. Martin Waghorn from 5.1782, with Howe’s fleet. Foundered 29.8.1782 at Spithead, where most aboard drowned (including Kempenfelt). Britannia Portsmouth Dyd. [M/Shipwright Pierson Lock to 12.1755, Edward Allin to 5.1762, completed by Thomas Bucknall.] As built: 178ft 0in, 145ft 2in x 52ft 0½in x 21ft 6in. 2,09126/94 bm. Draught 13ft 6in / 18ft 6in. Ord: 28.3.1751. K: 1.7.1751. L: 19.10.1762. First cost: £41,729.7.1d (with extra charges up to 1764, total £45,844.2.8d). Small Repair at Portsmouth (for £6,371.11.11d) 4 – 8.1772. Fitted at Portsmouth for Channel service (for £15,597.16.0d) 6.1778 – 4.1779. Commissioned 8.1778 under Capt. John Moutray. In 4.1779 under Capt. Charles Morice Pole, as flagship of Vice-Adm. George Darby 4.1779 then 6.1779 Rear-Adm. Sir John Lockhart Ross. Coppered at Portsmouth 1.1780; in 6.1780 under Capt. Thomas Allen, 8.1780 under Capt. James Bradby, then 4.1782 Capt. Benjamin Hill; paid off 3.1783. Between Middling and Great Repair at Portsmouth (for
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7 Ship Sloops
U
ntil the 1750s sloops – being mainly designed for police-type operations – had remained small vessels which could be easily operated by a two-masted rig; only two sloops were completed with a ship rig. However, the period of experimentation which (in 174546) began under the Anson Board witnessed a number of variations in hull form as well as in sailing rig. In 1753 the new two-masted Cruizer, and the somewhat older Raven and Saltash were refitted as three-masted ships. In 1754 the Tavistock and Trial, and in 1755 the Ferret (a prize), Hazard, Swallow and Swan followed suit; all these small sloops had previously being rigged as snows – and their details will be found in Chapter 8. In 1755 the new Alderney class were begun as snows (and thus they are covered in Chapter 8), but while on the stocks the design was altered to complete two of them as ship-rigged vessels – the first to be completed as such for the British Navy. The adoption of the ship rig enabled the quarterdeck to be extended to facilitate the handling of the mizzen sails. From 1757 the larger 14-gun and 16-gun sloops which were built were all ship-rigged, and constructed along the lines of miniature frigates with complete quarterdecks and forecastles. Indeed, for a number of years all the new ship-rigged sloops were officially described as ‘frigates’, even though they were unrated vessels. By the 1770s building had concentrated on the larger craft, and these all mounted a main armament of 6pdr guns. Until the advent of the carronade, they also carried a number of swivel guns (½pdr projectiles) mounted on their quarterdecks. It is worth noting that in practice the purpose-built fireships (see Chapter 10) served as additional sloops until such time as they were needed for their intended (but obviously one-time!) rôle.
24.4.1747. In 6.1747 under Cmdr. John Midwinter (-1748); with Hawke’s squadron 10.1747; to Jamaica (reporting 2nd Battle of Finisterre); took privateer Nuestra Señora de la Concepcion in the West Indies 30.3.1748. Surveyed 10.5.1749; Small Repair at Deptford (for £1,894.18.6d) 11.1749 – 3.1750; fitted there (for £1,436.12.7d) 1 – 4.1752. Recommissioned 2.1752 under Capt. Andrew Cokburne (-1755); sailed for Newfoundland 5.1752; in Newfoundland 1753-55. In 8.1755 under Capt. Robert Digby, then 10.1755 Cmdr. Edward Gascoigne, at Jamaica. Surveyed 5.11.1756; Small Repair and fitted at Portsmouth (for £2,711.1.8d) 11.1756 – 4.1757. Recommissioned 1757 under Cmdr. John Boles (-1760); sailed for the Leeward Islands 29.6.1757; in Impressment Service 1759. In 11.1760 under Cmdr. Francis Reynolds, at Belleisle; took privateer Le Duc de Bourbon 18.10.1761. In 4.1762 under Cmdr. Francis Richards; sailed for North America 3.8.1762; paid off 1.1764. Surveyed 6.1764, and again in 1768; Great Repair at Portsmouth (for £4,937.9.10d) 4 – 5.1769. Recommissioned 3.1769 under Cmdr. Thomas Pasley; sailed for West Africa 14.6.1769, 21.2.1770 and again 5.12.1770. In 1771 under Cmdr. George Young; sailed for West Africa 29.12.1771; off Lundy 1773. Fitted at Plymouth (for £1,183.18.9d) 9 – 11.1773. In ?6.1773 under Cmdr. Samuel Warren (-1777); sailed for West Africa 19.11.1773 and again 12.12.1774; sailed for Leeward Islands 10.1.1777. In 9.1777 under Cmdr. Charles Hope; saved (with Camel and Druid) convoy from 36gun Raleigh 4.9.1777. In 2.1778 under Cmdr. Lewis Robertson; at St Lucia 14 – 15.12.1778; taken by 32-gun La Boudeuse off St Eustatius 13.1.1779. Porcupine (James) Taylor & (John) Randall, Rotherhithe. Dimensions & tons: 94ft 4¼in, 76ft 47/8in x 27ft 95/8in x 12ft 0¾in. 31375/94 bm. Purchased on stocks under AO 19.7.1746. (named 15.9.1746) L: 20.9.1746. C: 7.11.1746 at Deptford Dyd. First cost: £2,417.16.0d to build, plus £1,931.4.8d fitting. Commissioned 9.1746 under Cmdr. Augustus Hervey; took privateer Le Bacquencourt in the Channel 3.1.1747. In ?4.1747 under Cmdr. Alexander Campbell, in the West Indies; took privateers La Comtesse de Gênes 24.6.1747 and L’Elisabeth 28.6.1747. In 9.1747 under Cmdr. George Tindall and ?3.1748 Cmdr. George Blanckley, still in Leeward Islands. Small Repair at Deptford (for £2,273.3.6d) 3 – 4.1749. Recommissioned 5.1750 under Capt. John Fergussone (-1755), for the West coast of Scotland. Defects made good at Plymouth (for £1,875) 1.1755. In 1756 under Cmdr. Alexander Campbell; took privateer La Geneviève in the Channel 6.2.1757; then under Cmdr. Robert Man in 4.1757 and Cmdr. Broderick Hartwell in 11.1757. In 8.1758 under Cmdr. George Hamilton; sailed for North America 22.9.1758. In ?5.1759 under Cmdr. John Jervis, at Quebec, then 9.1759 under Cmdr. John Macartney, in the St Lawrence. In 1761 under Cmdr. James Harmood; in Havana operations 6.6 – 13.8.1762; paid off 3.1763. Sold at Deptford (for £1,215) 31.3.1763. ____________________________________________________
(B) Vessels in service at 26 June 1751 VESSELS PURCHASED ON STOCKS (1745 – 1746). The RN’s first (and until 1753, only) ship-rigged sloops. Both were purchased on the stocks from James Taylor and John Randall, while building as two-masted sloops, and were completed as three-masted ships while fitting out at Deptford. By 1762 both seem to have been re-rated as two-masted sloops. Men: 110 (by 1749, 125). Guns: UD 16 x 6pdrs; also carried 14 x ½pdr swivels. Weasel (or Weazle) (James) Taylor & (John) Randall, Rotherhithe. Dimensions & tons: 94ft 6¾in, 76ft 43/8in x 27ft 6¼in x 12ft 0in. 30765/94 bm. Purchased on stocks 22.4.1745. (named 20.5.1745) L: 22.5.1745. C: 24.6.1745 at Deptford Dyd. First cost: £2,387.0.0d to build, plus £2,073.12.7d fitting. Commissioned 5.1745 under Cmdr. Thomas Craven, for the Downs (during Autumn / Winter 1745); took privateer Le Renard in the Channel 23.11.1745. In 2.1746 under Lieut. Hugh Palliser; took privateers La Revanche 27.3.1746, La Charmante 1.4.1746, L’Epervier 29.7.1746, Le Delangle 3.8.1746, and La Fortune and La Jeantie 8.10.1746. In 11.1746 under Cmdr. Samuel Barrington; took (with Lys) privateer La Gorgonne and La Charlotte on the Dutch coast
(C) Vessels acquired from 26 June 1751 The general development of the quarter-decked sloop after the 14-gun snowrigged Merlin and Hind classes of 1743-46 saw a noticeable rise in both
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The British assault on Quebec, 13 September 1759. The supporting ships in the St Lawrence river include the sloop Porcupine.
length (by about 5ft) and breadth (about 1ft) to accommodate an additional pair of 6pdrs and improved stowage capacity. The next batch – and the majority of sloops over the next quarter-century – were ship-rigged to improve the sailing ability of the type. Nevertheless by the early 1760s the trend was to revert to smaller designs, albeit still ship-rigged. In the early 1750s a number of existing two-masted (snow-rigged) sloops were converted to ship rigs by the addition of a mizen mast (and sometimes the repositioning of other masts). Two newbuilding sloops (Alderney and Stork) were actually completed with ship rigs; but as these 4pdr-armed sloops were in other respects part of the program of similar two-masted vessels built in the 1750s, they are for convenience to be found in the following chapter (Ch. 8). FAVOURITE Class. 16-gun ships designed by Thomas Slade, approved 11 January 1757 as ‘frigates’ (i.e. specifically as three-masted ships). The contract with Sparrow was signed on 31 January 1757 to launch the ship in 9 months at £7.18.0d per ton; the contract with Snooks was agreed on identical conditions on 8 March 1757 by Commissioner Rogers. A third vessel was ordered to be built at Deptford, but this order was on 17 April 1761 replaced by a new order to a modified design, to be built at a merchant yard. These ships were finally re-classed as sloops in 1769. Dimensions & tons: 96ft 4in, 79ft 10in x 27ft 0in x 8ft 6in. 30951/94 bm. Men: 125. Guns: UD 16 x 6pdrs; also carried 14 x ½pdr swivels. Favourite Earlsman Sparrow & Co (Co = ‘Mr. Bridger’), Shoreham. As built: 96ft 4in, 79ft 10in x 27ft 2in x 8ft 6¼in. 31337/94 bm. Ord: 11.1.1757. (named 17.3.1757) K: 18.3.1757. L: 15.12.1757. C: 26.2 – 4.4.1758 at Portsmouth. First cost: £2,445.7.6d to build, plus £2,271.8.10d fitting. Commissioned 11.1757 under Cmdr. Timothy Edwards; sailed 1.5.1758
Chapter 7.indd 2
with convoy for Gibraltar, thence to the Mediterranean; took (with St Albans) 36-gun La Loire. In 8.1759 under Cmdr. Philemon Pownoll; assisted at capture of L’Achille and La Bouffonne 17.7.1761; took (with Active) the Register ship Hermione 21.5.1762. In 8.1762 under Cmdr. Bonovrier Glover; paid off 3.1763. Fitted at Sheerness (for £1,539.18.0d) 4 – 7.1763; recommissioned 4.1763 under Cmdr. William Hamilton (-1767); in Irish Sea 1763-66; refitted at Plymouth (for £1,347.16.0d) 4 – 5.1766; to Newfoundland 1766-67; paid off 12.1767. Surveyed 9.1.1768; Great Repair and fitted at Sheerness (for £4,266.14.0d) 3 – 9.1768; recommissioned 8.1768 under Cmdr. William Maltby (-1770) for Particular Service; classed as 16-gun sloop 1769; in Falkland Islands dispute 1770 (Serrient surrendered 6.1769); rescue of the Swift’s company 9.1770. Possibly refitted at Portsmouth (for £1,097.11.9d) 10 – 11.1770. Recommissioned 7.1771 at Portsmouth under Cmdr. Robert Biggs (-1775); sailed for Leeward Islands 15.8.1771; paid off 10.1775. Great Repair and fitted at Deptford (for £5,860.6.6d) 11.1775 – 10.1776; recommissioned 7.1776 under Cmdr. William Fooks (-1779); sailed for Leeward Islands 24.11.1776. In 5.1779 under Cmdr. John Manley; laid up at Portsmouth 11.1779; paid off 1780; to Deptford 5.1783. Sold at Deptford (for £530) 21.10.1784. Tamar (or more usually ‘Tamer’) John Snooks (or Snook), Saltash. As built: 96ft 4in, 78ft 95/8in x 27ft 4in x 8ft 3½in. 31315/94 bm. Ord: 11.1.1757. K: 15.3.1757. (named 5.1.1758) L: 23.1.1758. C: 23.1 – 28.5.1758 at Plymouth. First cost: £2,445.7.6d to build, plus £3,305.12.9d fitting. Commissioned 1.1758 under Cmdr. John Hughes, for Anson’s fleet; cruising and Western squadron 1759-60; took privateers Le Chasseur and Le Conquérant 29.4.1759, and L’Hercule 5.5.1760. In 11.1760 under Cmdr. Thomas Lee; paid off 3.1763. Fitted at Portsmouth (for £1,039.6.3d) 4 – 5.1763; recommissioned 3.1763 under Cmdr. William Forster; sailed for Newfoundland (fishery srvice) 26.5.1763. Refitted
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ship sloops - vessels acquired from 26 june 1751
and bottom coppered at Deptford (for £5,075.5.5d) 4 – 6.1764; recommissioned ?4.1764 under Cmdr. Patrick Mouat, as Byron’s consort in the Pacific; in 4.1765 under Cmdr. James Cumming; paid off 8.1766. Surveyed 24.9.1766 and 6.10.1766; Large Repair and fitted, copper taken off and sheathed at Deptford (for £3,079.0.4d) 9.1766 – 10.1767; recommissioned 10.1767 under Cmdr. Anthony Hunt, for the Falkland Islands; paid off 6. 1770. Re-rated sloop (vice ‘frigate’), and fitted at Deptford (for £1,851.19.7d) 9 – 11.1770; recommissioned 10.1770 for Falkland Islands dispute. In 1.1771 under Cmdr. Charles Hay (died 3.1772); sailed for North America 18.6.1771. In 1773 under Cmdr. John Cross, then 4.1774 Cmdr. Edward Thornbrough, at South Carolina, and ?6.1776 Cmdr. Christopher Mason. Renamed Pluto 23.9.1777 and fitted as a fireship at Deptford (for £5,377.7.11d) 8.1777 – 6.1778; recommissioned 4.1778 under Cmdr. Henry Pemberton, for the Channel. In 7.1778 under Cmdr. James Bradby; at Battle of Ushant 27.7.1778. Refitted and coppered at Plymouth (for £1,303.0.2d) 5.1780; recommissioned 8.1780 under Cmdr. Thomas Geary; taken by French 24-gun Le Duc de Chartres off the Scilly Isles 30.11.1780. Flora Deptford Dyd. Ordered 11.1.1757. K: - Cancelled 17.4.1761 (replaced by new order for the Nautilus below). Modified FAVOURITE Class. The order for the Deptford vessel mentioned above was on 17 April 1761 ordered to be moved to a merchant yard, and this contract was signed with Hodgson on 20 April, to launch in 9 months at £7.15.0d per ton; the design had by now been modified by Slade and was for a longer ‘frigate’, with a much increased depth in hold. This ship was finally re-classed as a sloop in 1769. Dimensions & tons: 98ft 0in, 80ft 9in x 27ft 0in x 12ft 8in. 31417/94 bm at contract (later altered to 27ft 0¾in breadth, 31454/94 bm). Men: 125. Guns: UD 16 x 6pdrs; also carried 14 x ½pdr swivels. Nautilus Thomas Hodgson, Hull. As built: 98ft 0in, 80ft 75/8in x 27ft 4in x 12ft 8in. 31647/94 bm. Ord: 17.4.1761. K: 5.1761. (named 5.11.1761) L: 24.5.1762. C: 9.6.1762 at builders. First cost: £2,434.18.0d to build, plus fitting £1,582.0.0d. Commissioned 3.1762 under Cmdr. Peter Forbes; took (with Lion) privateer Le Sans-Souci 12.8.1762; sailed 13.12.1762 to take news of the Peace to North America, then to bring (troop) transports from Senegal. In 7.1763 under Cmdr. William Locker (-1768); paid off 10.1763, then recommissioned; sailed for Jamaica 21.2.1764; paid off 3.1768. Surveyed 6.6.1768; Great Repair and fitted (for £4,877.3.3d) 9.1768 – 4.1769; recommissioned 3.1769 under Cmdr. John Chapman; sailed for Newfoundland 7.6.1769. In 7.1770 under Cmdr. James Howell Jones (01773), at Newfoundland. In 6.1773 under Cmdr. Wiliam Parker; paid off 1774. In 1775 under Cmdr. John Collins, in North America (in 1776 temp under Cmdr. Christopher Mason); in 2.1778 under Cmdr. John Becher; in Penobscot operations 7 – 8.1779. In 4.1779 under Lieut. Thomas Farnham. Paid off (put out of commission by Vice-Adm. Marriot Arbuthnot at New York) in 6.1780 and sold 10.1780. Ex-FRENCH PRIZES (1757-1761). Under AO of 19 April 1757 several ships were ordered to be purchased to serve as ‘frigates’ (i.e. ship sloops). These included the first five French privateers listed below. Another five prizes were added – similarly as ‘frigates’ - during the remainder of this war. Beaver (French mercantile Le Trudaine, built 1748 at St Malo), 18 guns. Dimensions & tons: 94ft 11½in, 76ft 5¼in x 28ft 7¾in x 11ft 1in. 33360/94 bm. Men: 120. Guns: UD 18 x 6pdrs; also carried 12 x ½pdr swivels. Taken 15.9.1756 by Ipswich. Purchased (under AO 19.4.1757) 28.4.1757
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for £1,834 for hull, masts & spars, + extra for furniture & stores. Named 5.5.1757, and fitted as ‘frigate’ by Henry Bird, Jnr, Rotherhithe 7.5 – 16.6.1757, then at Deptford Dyd (for £2,184.4.7d) to 28.7.1757. Commissioned 5.1757 under Cmdr. Edward Gascoigne (-1759), for Rochefort expedition 9.1757; sailed for Virginia 18.12.1757. Surveyed 13.11.1760, but not repaired; sold at Chatham (for £295) 22.1.1761. Escorte (French privateer Le Scott, built 1756 at St Malo), 14 guns. [French name erroneously recorded as L’Escorte, which corrupt version stuck! Pierced for 9 guns and 5 oars a side.] Dimensions & tons: 84ft 6in, 69ft 37/8in x 24ft 8½in x 9ft 0in. 22511/94 bm. Men: 100 (110 from 7.1.1761). Guns: UD 14 x 6pdrs; also carried 10 x ½pdr swivels. Taken 24.2.1757 by Badger. Purchased 17.5.1757 (for £2,000). Named 24.5.1757, and fitted as ‘frigate’ at Woolwich (for £1,446.15.6d) 18.5 – 26.7.1757. Commissioned 6.1757 under Cmdr. Charles Inglis, for Rochefort expedition 9.1757; sailed for the Mediterranean 25.5.1758. Fitted at Sheerness (for £2,475.9.4d) 9.1760 – 1.1761; recommissioned 11.1760 under Cmdr. Charles Ellys; in Belle Isle operations 6.4 – 8.6.1761; took 14-gun privateer L’Aimable Gabrielle off St Jean de Luz 28.11.1761. In 5.1762 under Cmdr. John Bagster, for cruising; paid off 3.1763. Surveyed 2.6.1763; fitted at Deptford (for £2,322.13.9d) 7 – 10.1763; recommissioned 8.1763 under Cmdr. Thomas Foley; sailed for North America 5.11.1763; paid off 8.1767. Surveyed 13.10.1767 and 21.6.1768; sold at Woolwich (for £130) 6.12.1768. Cormorant (French mercantile Le Machault, built at Nantes), 18 guns. Dimensions & tons: 100ft 8in, 81ft 35/8in x 30ft 7in x 13ft 6in. 40447/94 bm. Men: 120. Guns: UD 18 x 6pdrs; also carried 14 x ½pdr swivels. Taken 4.1757. Purchased (under AO 19.4.1757) 28.4.1757 for £2,100 for hull, masts & spars, + £101.15.4d for furniture & stores. Named 3.5.1757, and fitted as ‘frigate’ by John Randall, Rotherhithe 22.4 – 6.6.1757, then at Deptford Dyd (for £2,210.13.1d) to 22.7.1757. Commissioned 5.1757 under Cmdr. Benjamin Clive, for Rochefort expedition 9.1757. Converted to fireship (with 45 men, 8 x 6pdrs + 8 swivels) at Portsmouth (for £744.10.3d) 4 – 6.1758; recommissioned 5.1758 under Cmdr. Patrick Mouat (-1761); with Anson’s squadron off St Malo 6.1758; sailed for North America 16.2.1759; in attack on Quebec 1759, then home 1760. Sold at Woolwich (for £1,555) 23.12.1762. Postillion (French privateer Le Duc d’Aiguillon, built 1756 at St Malo), 18 guns. Dimensions & tons: 97ft 1½in, 78ft 6¼in x 29ft 6½in x 13ft 0½in. 36447/94 bm. Men: 120. Guns: UD 18 x 6pdrs; also carried 14 x ½pdr swivels. Taken 16.4.1757 by Tartar off Dunnose. Purchased (under AO 19.4.1757) at Deptford 28.4.1757. Named 5.5.1757, and fitted as ‘frigate’ there (for £2,929.5.9d) 5.5 – 28.7.1757. Commissioned 5.1757 under Cmdr. William Cooper; in Rochefort expedition 9.1757. In 1758 under Cmdr. Robert Barber, then 6.1759 Cmdr. Walter Griffith. In 12.1759 under Cmdr. Hugh Dalrymple (1763), collecting men in Ireland; convoys 1761-62. Surveyed 12.4.1763 but not repaired; instead sold at Deptford (for £1,625) 3.5.1763. Gramont (French privateer La Comtesse de Grammont. Built 7.1756-2.1757 at Bayonne), 18 guns. Dimensions & tons: 98ft 1in, 80ft 5in x 27ft 6½in x 8ft 8in. 32441/94 bm. Men: 125. Guns: UD 18 x 6pdrs. Taken 29.10.1757 by Tartar. Purchased 6.1.1758 @ £1,887 for hull, masts & spars, + £316.8.11d for rigging & stores. Named 6.1.1758, and fitted at Portsmouth (for £1,263.14.1d) 19.1 – 1.2.1758.
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