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HMS Amelia (1796)
Encyclopedia
Proserpine was a 38-gun Hébé-class
frigate
of the French Navy
captured by on 13 June 1796. The Admiralty commissioned Prosperine into the Royal Navy as the fifth rate, HMS Amelia. She spent 20 years in the Royal Navy, participating in numerous actions in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, capturing a number of prizes, and serving on anti-smuggling and anti-slavery patrols. Her most notable action was her intense and bloody, but inconclusive, fight with Aréthuse in 1813. Amelia was broken up in December 1816.
in Brest
and launched in 1785. Jacques-Noël Sané
designed her as well as five sister ships and she was rated for thirty-eight guns.
, notably capturing the 32-gun Dutch frigate Vigilante and several merchantmen of a convoy that she was escorting. On 23 June 1795, under Captain Daugier, Proserpine took part in the Battle of Groix
as the flagship of Admiral Villaret de Joyeuse
. She unsuccessfully attempted to regroup the French fleet, almost colliding with the Droits de l'Homme
in the process. Proserpine then fired a broadside at the approaching British fleet before she escaped.
On 13 June 1796, about 12 leagues
south of Cape Clear, Ireland
, the frigate Dryad, under the command of Captain
Lord Amelius Beauclerk
, captured Proserpine following a relatively brief chase but a bitter action. In the engagement, Proserpine, under the command of Citizen Pevrieu, lost 30 men killed and 45 wounded out of her crew of 348 men. Dryad had two men killed and seven wounded. In 1847 the Admiralty awarded the Naval General Service Medal with clasp "Dryad 13 June 1796" to all surviving claimants from the action.
As the Royal Navy already had a , the Admiralty renamed the captured vessel HMS Amelia. The Royal Navy classified her as a fifth rate of a nominal thirty-eight guns.
the French Brest
Squadron, preventing them sailing for Ireland to support the Irish Rebellion
with troops. During the night of 11 October - 12 October the signal for a general chase was made by the Commodore
, Sir
John Borlase Warren
. Commodore Warren's squadron engaged the French squadron, and captured the Hoche (74 guns) and the frigates Embuscade
, Coquille
and Bellone
. Wolfe Tone
, the leader of the United Irishmen was captured. In 1847 the Admiralty awarded the surviving claimants from the battle the Naval General Service Medal with clasp "12th October 1798".
, broke free from her moorings and struck the Amelia. Fortunately both ships had struck their topmast
s and damage was light. Amelia was able to sail on 4 February.
On 9 April, after reconnoitring two French frigates in L'Orient, and Amelia sailed towards Belle Île
in very hazy weather. Here three French frigates and a large gun vessel hiding against the coast surprised them. At that instant a sudden squall
carried away Amelia's main
-top-mast and fore
and mizzen top-gallant masts
; the fall of the former tearing much of the mainsail
from the yard. Captain Neale of the San Fiorenzo shortened sail and ordered Amelia to bear up with him to maintain the weather gage
and prepare for battle. The enemy showed no inclination for close-quarter action and, although the British ships came under fire from shore batteries, they had to bear down on the French three times to engage them. After nearly two hours the French wore ship
and stood away to take refuge in the Loire. From a captured French ship they learned later that the French frigates were the Vengeance, Sémillante
and Cornélie. Amelia lost 2 killed and 17 wounded.
On 29 August 1800, in Vigo Bay, Admiral Sir Samuel Hood assembled a cutting-out party from the vessels under his command consisting of two boats each from Amelia, , , and Cynthia, four boats from , as well as the boats from , and Impetueux The party went in and after a 15-minute fight captured the French privateer Guêpe, of Bordeaux and towed her out. She was of 300 tons burthen and had a flush deck. Pierced for 20 guns, she carried eighteen 9-pounders, and she and her crew of 161 men were under the command of Citizen Dupan. In the attack she lost 25 men killed, including Dupan, and 40 wounded. British casualties amounted to four killed, 23 wounded and one missing. In 1847 the Admiralty awarded the Naval General Service Medal with clasp "29 Aug. Boat Service 1800" to all surviving claimants from the action.
During a dark and stormy night on 5 February 1801 Amelia captured the French privateer
brig
Juste of St Malo. It was so dark that the two vessels did not see each other until the brig ran into the Amelia, which cost the brig her foremast and bowsprit
. Juste, with 14 guns and 78 men under the command of Jean Pierre Charlet, had been out from Lorient
for 30 days without making a capture. A prize
crew brought Juste into Plymouth
on 10 February, and Amelia returned on 21 February.
On 10 May Amelia had just anchored close to the mouth of the Loire
when she saw a brig
sailing in to the river. As soon as the privateer spotted Amelia she tacked
with all sail. As evening was approaching, Captain Charles Herbert
immediately set off in pursuit, capturing her after a chase of four hours. She was the privateer Heureux of Saint Malo, with 14 guns and 78 men. She had been cruising for 41 days but had made no captures. She was uncoppered
due to the shortage of that material and this possibly resulted in her being slower than she otherwise might have been. Amelia sent Heureux into Plymouth, where she arrived on 17 May.
On 23 June Amelia took bullocks
out to the Channel Fleet
. This was a common occurrence, with the Victualing Office using warships returning to the blockade to deliver meat on the hoof.
Next, on 4 August, a Spanish
packet came into Plymouth. Amelia had captured the packet as she was on her way from Havana
to Ferrol with a cargo of sugar, coffee and hides. The packet was armed with six guns and had a crew of 40 men.
At the end of June, Amelia sailed to Rochefort
to reconnoitre the enemy. Medusa (50 guns), together with an unidentified 44-gun ship and an armed schooner
, came out to oppose her. A smart action ensued in full view of the spectators lining the cliffs. Although the Embuscade (32 guns) sailed out to assist them, the enemy retired under the protection of the shore batteries after an hour. Captain Herbert lay to, but they declined to come out again, so he sailed to join Sir Edward Pellew.
In September Amelia captured a number of coaster
s and brigs in the Bay of Biscay
. One of them, the brig Cheodore, laden with sardines, arrived in Plymouth on 27 September, together with another brig in ballast. Shortly after, a seaman from Amelia died in the Royal Naval Hospital
after being wounded by a loaded musket
which went off as the armourer was cleaning it. At the inquest, on 19 October, Mr Whitford, the coroner for Devon
recorded a verdict of accidental death. Two more men were wounded but recovered and a third man, who was killed on the spot, was buried at sea.
seamen at the Pier Head, Barbican, Plymouth
. A violent scuffle ensued which developed into a battle; during the conflict one of the Portuguese drew a long knife and stabbed one of Amelia's men in the groin. He bled profusely but a surgeon managed to stop the flow. The Portuguese fled but were rounded up the following morning.
In April 1802 Captain Lord Proby
took command. On 6 May Amelia sailed from Plymouth for Cork
, Waterford
and Dublin with 150 discharged seamen, returning on 28 May. Orders came down from London
on 11 June that all the sloops
and frigates in the Sound
were to be sent to sea immediately as the coast from Berry Head
to Mount's Bay
was infested with smugglers. Amelia, , and were immediately victualled for two months. By the end of August 1802, Amelia had sailed for Den Helder
with Dutch troops discharged from the British service. She returned on 4 September.
1803 saw Amelia based mainly at Portsmouth. She arrived there from the Downs
on 27 March and sailed on 1 April with part of the 83rd Regiment of Foot
for Jersey
. She was back on 8 April and sailed again for the Downs on the 15th.
In May she was part of the squadron under Rear Admiral Edward Thornborough in , keeping watch over Hellevoetsluis
, Flushing, Netherlands
and other Dutch ports. Amelia sent a French chasse-marée
in ballast into Plymouth on 23 May, and on 11 August the French privateer lugger
Alerte, of 4 guns and 27 men, into Portsmouth. She chased two others in mid-channel
before returning on 16 August. She sailed again on a cruise two days later. The extent of her success against smugglers is hard to judge. On 14 August she did catch at sea one Henry Sothcott (born 1774), who was sentenced to 5 years pressed into the Navy for smuggling; he jumped ship within seven months.
Station, but her Captain, Lord Proby, died on 6 August 1804 at age 25 at Surinam, from yellow fever
. Captain William Charles Fahie
took command while the ship was in Barbados
. In December she captured the Spanish brig
Isabella and the ship Conception, both laden with wine and brandy, and the ship Commerce, laden with cotton. She returned to Deptford
and in 1807 refitted at Sheerness
.
appointed to her at for service in the English Channel
and coast of Spain
. He sighted three French 44-gun frigates (Calypso, Italienne and Sybille) near Belle Île
on 23 February 1809 and Amelia and the brig chased them all night. The following morning they had approached so close to the rearmost French ship that her companions had to haul up to her support. soon came into sight and the French made for the Sable d'Olonne
. Rear Admiral Stopford and his squadron, who had been watching eight French sail-of-the-line
standing into the Pertuis d'Antioche
, came down to join them and stood in with , , and Amelia. They opened fire, passing as near to the enemy as the depth of water permitted, and forced the frigates to run ashore at the top of high water. Amelia had her bowsprit shot through and she was hulled in several places but had no casualties. The French lost 24 men killed and 51 wounded. The three French frigates survived, but Cybèle was declared irreparable and broken up, while Italienne and Calypso were sold to commerce.
at the blockade of Basque Roads
in April 1809. There she was directed to dislodge the French who were endeavouring to strengthen their position in Aix
Roads. On 1 April she destroyed some batteries there. She was reconnoitering with when Alcmene was wrecked on the Three Stones on the north end of the La Blanche shoal near the mouth of the Loire
on 30 April. Amelia was instrumental in rescuing the crew and a great part of Alcmenes stores.
On 15 May Lord Gambier ordered Captain Irby to investigate the situation at Santander
where an attack was about to be made by Spanish patriots on the French troops in the town. joined him on 8 June but strong winds and current prevented them getting there before 10 June. As they approached they could see firing on shore and several vessels trying to escape from the harbour. The two British ships captured three French vessels: The corvette La Mouche of sixteen brass 8 pounders and 180 men; the brig Rejouie with eight 8-pounders; and a schooner, No. 7 (also called La Mouche), with one 4-pounder gun. They also took two luggers: Legere, which was unseaworthy so her cargo was put on board Rejouie; and Notre Dame, a Spanish vessel the French had seized. The aide-de-camp to General Ballestero reported that the town was in possession of the Spanish and that the French troops had all surrendered. Because of the large number of prisoners, Captain Irby sent Statira into the harbour with the prizes while Amelia remained off the coast in hopes of being able to render more assistance to the Spaniards. The corvette La Mouche, which the sloop and the hired armed
lugger Black Joke
had recently engaged, had been a threat to British trade for some time.
-built privateer Charles of Bordeaux
on 8 November 1810 about 400 miles west of Finisterre
after a chase of 13 hours, sometimes reaching a speed of twelve and a half knots. Under the command of Pierre Alexandre Marrauld, she had sailed from L'Orient on 4 October to make her maiden run to the Ile de France
. About 200 tons, she was pierced for 22 guns but mounted twelve 6-pounder guns and eight 18-pounder carronades, all English measurement. Amelia arrived in Plymouth Sound on 16 November.
lighthouse and forced her to take refuge in a rocky bay about a mile to the west of the lighthouse. He was joined by Amelia, and the sloops Goshawk and Hawk, hoping to launch an attack with boats. When the tides proved too strong for a boat attack, Niobe led in, with Amelia and Berwick following in succession, and they fired on the enemy for two hours. They stood in the following morning to renew the attack but the enemy set fire to the frigate and she burned to the waterline. Amelia had one man killed and one wounded.
with a convoy. On 18 June she left Quebec carrying General Sir James Henry Craig
from Canada to England when he was relieved as Governor-General
.
where Captain Irby became senior officer of the anti-slavery squadron
there. Throughout her time on the station Amelia suffered with damp powder. Although the large portion which had caked in the magazine was sent ashore to be dried, the problem was never properly solved. In June 1812 Irby learned that the natives at Winneba
, half way between Accra
and Cape Coast Castle
, had murdered Mr Meredith, the governor of the fort. When the authorities at Cape Coast Castle asked for Captain Irby's assistance he sailed for Winneba with a detachment of the Africa corps under Mr Smith, Governor of Tantumquerry, and anchored off the port on 2 July. The natives had fled so he landed his marines and the troops, who demolished the fort.
In January 1813 Lieutenant Pascoe had to run his gunbrig on shore and burn her at the island of Tamara, Iles de Los
, after being chased by three French vessels. Two days later he and part of his crew arrived in the river of Sierra Leone
where Amelia was about to leave for England
, with many of her crew debilitated with fever and barely fit for duty after more than 12 months on the station. Before leaving, Captain Irby sent Lieutenant Pascoe off in a small schooner to reconnoitre.
(Captain Pierre Bouvet) and Rubis
(Captain Louis-François Olivier). The third ship was a Portuguese prize, La Serra, which they were unloading before sailing to intercept British merchant vessels, a convoy from England being expected daily. The master and the rest of the crew from Daring arrived in a cartel
, having given their parole, and confirmed Lieutenant Pascoe's report. Standing in towards Tamara on the 6 February, Captain Irby met the government schooner Princess Charlote and learnt that the two frigates were anchored a considerable distance apart. Although he was not aware of it, Rubis, the southernmost one, had struck a rock, which had disabled her. The Aréthuse weighed and stood out to sea followed by Amelia, Captain Irby having hopes of enticing her into action. For nearly four hours they exchanged fire, throughout which Aréthuse used the usual French practice of firing high. Having cut Amelia's sails and running and standing rigging to pieces, the French ship bore up. Twice during the action the enemy had attempted to board but the marines
, under the command of Lieutenant Simpson of the Royal Marines, drove them back.
The British losses were heavy, with 46 killed, including Lieutenants John Bates, John Pope and George Wills, Lieutenant William Pascoe, the commander of Daring, and Second Lieutenant R G Grainger, Royal Marines. Five more men died of their wounds later. 51 were dangerously or seriously wounded, and 44 slightly wounded. Captain Irby appointed Lieutenant Reeve, invalided from and wounded several times in the action, as his first lieutenant, and master's mates Samuel Umfreville and Edward Robinson (who had been severely wounded) as second and third. Mr Williamson, the surgeon, his assistant Mr Burke and Mr Stewart of Daring cared for the wounded as the crippled Amelia made her way north towards Madeira
and then home, arriving at Spithead
on 22 March. The wounded were examined by the Lieutenant Governor of the Royal Hospital at Greenwich who was astonished at their debilitated condition.
Aréthuse mounted twenty-eight 18-pounder long guns on the main deck and sixteen 36-pounder carronades and two long guns on the upper deck. Amelia put more than 30 round shot in her hull on the starboard side below the quarter deck and, according to one report, the French suffered at least 31 killed and 74 wounded. Still, Aréthuse arrived in St Malo on 19 April. The Rubis was burnt on 8 February when it was found impossible to re-float her. A flavour of the intensity of the battle may be gained from William James
writing in his Naval History of Great Britain, 1793 - 1827:
In addition to her ship's company, she brought at least one passenger: Exbury
parish baptism register records the baptism on 6 June 1813 of a boy, "Irby Amelia Frederick, aged 9 or 10, a native of Poppoe near Whidah
, Africa, who was stolen as a slave, but rescued at sea by HMS Amelia" - it is recorded in the Baptism
al Register of 1813 as being "in grateful testimony of the humanity and intrepidity of his gallant deliverer".
. The Honourable Granville Proby
, younger brother of Lord William Proby
, who had died in command in 1804, recommissioned her for a cruise in 1814. She was in Leghorn
in December 1816, and was broken up at Deptford that same month, having given 30 years of continual wartime service to both the French and British navies.
Hébé class frigate
The Hébé class was a class of six 38-gun frigates of the French Navy, designed in 1781 by Jacques-Noël Sané.* HébéThe Hébé class was a class of six 38-gun frigates of the French Navy, designed in 1781 by Jacques-Noël Sané.* Hébé...
frigate
Frigate
A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
of the French Navy
French Navy
The French Navy, officially the Marine nationale and often called La Royale is the maritime arm of the French military. It includes a full range of fighting vessels, from patrol boats to a nuclear powered aircraft carrier and 10 nuclear-powered submarines, four of which are capable of launching...
captured by on 13 June 1796. The Admiralty commissioned Prosperine into the Royal Navy as the fifth rate, HMS Amelia. She spent 20 years in the Royal Navy, participating in numerous actions in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, capturing a number of prizes, and serving on anti-smuggling and anti-slavery patrols. Her most notable action was her intense and bloody, but inconclusive, fight with Aréthuse in 1813. Amelia was broken up in December 1816.
Construction
Proserpine was a Hébé-class frigate built for the French Navy of the Ancien RégimeAncien Régime in France
The Ancien Régime refers primarily to the aristocratic, social and political system established in France from the 15th century to the 18th century under the late Valois and Bourbon dynasties...
in Brest
Brest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
and launched in 1785. Jacques-Noël Sané
Jacques-Noël Sané
Jacques-Noël Sané was a French naval engineer, one of the most successful shipbuilders of the Age of Sail.Sané studied under Duhamel du Monceau...
designed her as well as five sister ships and she was rated for thirty-eight guns.
French naval service (1785-1796)
Proserpine was stationed at Saint Domingue from 1786 until 1788. From 1793, she served as a commerce raider, under Captain Jean-Baptiste PerréeJean-Baptiste Perrée
Jean-Baptiste Perrée was a French contre-amiral. He was born in Saint-Valéry-sur-Somme in Picardy.Perrée was midshipman in 1793, and was promoted to acting lieutenant de vaisseau in May 1793, taking command of Proserpine and raiding commerce, capturing 63 prizes. His rank was confirmed in late 1793...
, notably capturing the 32-gun Dutch frigate Vigilante and several merchantmen of a convoy that she was escorting. On 23 June 1795, under Captain Daugier, Proserpine took part in the Battle of Groix
Battle of Groix
The Second Battle of Groix was a naval engagement that took place on 23 June 1795 during the French Revolutionary War off the west coast of France....
as the flagship of Admiral Villaret de Joyeuse
Louis Thomas Villaret de Joyeuse
Louis Thomas Villaret de Joyeuse was a French admiral.-Early career:Louis Thomas Villaret de Joyeuse was born in Auch, in the heart of Gascony. The Villaret de Joyeuse family figured among the minor nobility from Languedoc...
. She unsuccessfully attempted to regroup the French fleet, almost colliding with the Droits de l'Homme
French ship Droits de l'Homme (1794)
The Droits de l'Homme was a 74-gun ship of the line of the French Navy during the French Revolution.The Droits de l'Homme, was involved in the Action of 6 November 1794, chasing the British 74s Canada and Alexander...
in the process. Proserpine then fired a broadside at the approaching British fleet before she escaped.
On 13 June 1796, about 12 leagues
League (unit)
A league is a unit of length . It was long common in Europe and Latin America, but it is no longer an official unit in any nation. The league originally referred to the distance a person or a horse could walk in an hour...
south of Cape Clear, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, the frigate Dryad, under the command of Captain
Captain (naval)
Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The NATO rank code is OF-5, equivalent to an army full colonel....
Lord Amelius Beauclerk
Lord Amelius Beauclerk
Admiral Lord Amelius Beauclerk, GCB, GCH, FRS was a British Royal Navy officer.-Early life:Beauclerk was born on 23 May 1771, the third son of Aubrey Beauclerk, 5th Duke of St Albans and his wife, the former Lady Catherine Ponsonby , daughter of William Ponsonby, 2nd Earl of Bessborough...
, captured Proserpine following a relatively brief chase but a bitter action. In the engagement, Proserpine, under the command of Citizen Pevrieu, lost 30 men killed and 45 wounded out of her crew of 348 men. Dryad had two men killed and seven wounded. In 1847 the Admiralty awarded the Naval General Service Medal with clasp "Dryad 13 June 1796" to all surviving claimants from the action.
As the Royal Navy already had a , the Admiralty renamed the captured vessel HMS Amelia. The Royal Navy classified her as a fifth rate of a nominal thirty-eight guns.
The Battle of Tory Island (1798)
She joined and on 18 September 1798 blockadingBlockade
A blockade is an effort to cut off food, supplies, war material or communications from a particular area by force, either in part or totally. A blockade should not be confused with an embargo or sanctions, which are legal barriers to trade, and is distinct from a siege in that a blockade is usually...
the French Brest
Brest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
Squadron, preventing them sailing for Ireland to support the Irish Rebellion
Irish Rebellion of 1798
The Irish Rebellion of 1798 , also known as the United Irishmen Rebellion , was an uprising in 1798, lasting several months, against British rule in Ireland...
with troops. During the night of 11 October - 12 October the signal for a general chase was made by the Commodore
Commodore (Royal Navy)
Commodore is a rank of the Royal Navy above Captain and below Rear Admiral. It has a NATO ranking code of OF-6. The rank is equivalent to Brigadier in the British Army and Royal Marines and to Air Commodore in the Royal Air Force.-Insignia:...
, Sir
Sir
Sir is an honorific used as a title , or as a courtesy title to address a man without using his given or family name in many English speaking cultures...
John Borlase Warren
John Borlase Warren
Sir John Borlase Warren, 1st Baronet , was an English admiral, politician and diplomat. Born in Stapleford, Nottinghamshire, he was the son and heir of John Borlase Warren of Stapleford and Little Marlow...
. Commodore Warren's squadron engaged the French squadron, and captured the Hoche (74 guns) and the frigates Embuscade
French frigate Embuscade (1790)
-French service:In 1792, she escorted convoys to and from Martinique, and ferried Edmond-Charles Genêt to the USA. On 31 July 1793, she encountered and fought Boston at the Action of 31 July 1793....
, Coquille
French frigate Coquille (1795)
The Coquille was a 40-gun frigate of the French Navy, lead ship of her class.Built as Patriote, she was renamed Coquille on 30 May 1795....
and Bellone
French frigate Bellone (1779)
The Bellone was an Iphigénie-class 32-gun frigate of the French Navy. She was one of the French ships with a copper-covered hull.In 1782, she fought against HMS Coventry...
. Wolfe Tone
Theobald Wolfe Tone
Theobald Wolfe Tone or Wolfe Tone , was a leading Irish revolutionary figure and one of the founding members of the United Irishmen and is regarded as the father of Irish Republicanism. He was captured by British forces at Lough Swilly in Donegal and taken prisoner...
, the leader of the United Irishmen was captured. In 1847 the Admiralty awarded the surviving claimants from the battle the Naval General Service Medal with clasp "12th October 1798".
The Channel blockade (1798-1802)
On 31 January 1799, while at anchor in the HamoazeHamoaze
The Hamoaze is an estuarine stretch of the tidal River Tamar, between the River Lynher and Plymouth Sound, England.The Hamoaze flows past Devonport Dockyard, which belongs to the Royal Navy...
, broke free from her moorings and struck the Amelia. Fortunately both ships had struck their topmast
Topmast
The masts of traditional sailing ships were not single spars, but were constructed of separate sections or masts, each with its own rigging. The topmast is one of these.The topmast is semi-permanently attached to the upper front of the lower mast, at the top...
s and damage was light. Amelia was able to sail on 4 February.
On 9 April, after reconnoitring two French frigates in L'Orient, and Amelia sailed towards Belle Île
Belle Île
Belle-Île or Belle-Île-en-Mer is a French island off the coast of Brittany in the département of Morbihan, and the largest of Brittany's islands. It is 14 km from the Quiberon peninsula.Administratively, the island forms a canton: the canton of Belle-Île...
in very hazy weather. Here three French frigates and a large gun vessel hiding against the coast surprised them. At that instant a sudden squall
Squall
A squall is a sudden, sharp increase in wind speed which is usually associated with active weather, such as rain showers, thunderstorms, or heavy snow. Squalls refer to an increase in the sustained winds over a short time interval, as there may be higher gusts during a squall event...
carried away Amelia's main
Mast (sailing)
The mast of a sailing vessel is a tall, vertical, or near vertical, spar, or arrangement of spars, which supports the sails. Large ships have several masts, with the size and configuration depending on the style of ship...
-top-mast and fore
Mast (sailing)
The mast of a sailing vessel is a tall, vertical, or near vertical, spar, or arrangement of spars, which supports the sails. Large ships have several masts, with the size and configuration depending on the style of ship...
and mizzen top-gallant masts
Mast (sailing)
The mast of a sailing vessel is a tall, vertical, or near vertical, spar, or arrangement of spars, which supports the sails. Large ships have several masts, with the size and configuration depending on the style of ship...
; the fall of the former tearing much of the mainsail
Mainsail
A mainsail is a sail located behind the main mast of a sailing vessel.On a square rigged vessel, it is the lowest and largest sail on the main mast....
from the yard. Captain Neale of the San Fiorenzo shortened sail and ordered Amelia to bear up with him to maintain the weather gage
Weather gage
The weather gage is a nautical term used to describe the advantageous position of a fighting sailing vessel, relative to another. The term is from the Age of Sail, and is now antiquated. A ship is said to possess the weather gage if it is in any position, at sea, upwind of the other vessel...
and prepare for battle. The enemy showed no inclination for close-quarter action and, although the British ships came under fire from shore batteries, they had to bear down on the French three times to engage them. After nearly two hours the French wore ship
Jibe
A jibe or gybe is a sailing maneuver where a sailing vessel turns its stern through the wind, such that the wind direction changes from one side of the boat to the other...
and stood away to take refuge in the Loire. From a captured French ship they learned later that the French frigates were the Vengeance, Sémillante
French frigate Sémillante (1792)
The Sémillante was a 32-gun frigate of the French Navy, lead ship of her class. She was involved in a number of multi-vessel actions against the Royal Navy, particularly in the Indian Ocean. She captured a number of East Indiamen before the she became so damaged that the French disarmed her and...
and Cornélie. Amelia lost 2 killed and 17 wounded.
On 29 August 1800, in Vigo Bay, Admiral Sir Samuel Hood assembled a cutting-out party from the vessels under his command consisting of two boats each from Amelia, , , and Cynthia, four boats from , as well as the boats from , and Impetueux The party went in and after a 15-minute fight captured the French privateer Guêpe, of Bordeaux and towed her out. She was of 300 tons burthen and had a flush deck. Pierced for 20 guns, she carried eighteen 9-pounders, and she and her crew of 161 men were under the command of Citizen Dupan. In the attack she lost 25 men killed, including Dupan, and 40 wounded. British casualties amounted to four killed, 23 wounded and one missing. In 1847 the Admiralty awarded the Naval General Service Medal with clasp "29 Aug. Boat Service 1800" to all surviving claimants from the action.
During a dark and stormy night on 5 February 1801 Amelia captured the French privateer
Privateer
A privateer is a private person or ship authorized by a government by letters of marque to attack foreign shipping during wartime. Privateering was a way of mobilizing armed ships and sailors without having to spend public money or commit naval officers...
brig
Brig
A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
Juste of St Malo. It was so dark that the two vessels did not see each other until the brig ran into the Amelia, which cost the brig her foremast and bowsprit
Bowsprit
The bowsprit of a sailing vessel is a pole extending forward from the vessel's prow. It provides an anchor point for the forestay, allowing the fore-mast to be stepped farther forward on the hull.-Origin:...
. Juste, with 14 guns and 78 men under the command of Jean Pierre Charlet, had been out from Lorient
Lorient
Lorient, or L'Orient, is a commune and a seaport in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France.-History:At the beginning of the 17th century, merchants who were trading with India had established warehouses in Port-Louis...
for 30 days without making a capture. A prize
Prize (law)
Prize is a term used in admiralty law to refer to equipment, vehicles, vessels, and cargo captured during armed conflict. The most common use of prize in this sense is the capture of an enemy ship and its cargo as a prize of war. In the past, it was common that the capturing force would be allotted...
crew brought Juste into Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
on 10 February, and Amelia returned on 21 February.
On 10 May Amelia had just anchored close to the mouth of the Loire
Loire
Loire is an administrative department in the east-central part of France occupying the River Loire's upper reaches.-History:Loire was created in 1793 when after just 3½ years the young Rhône-et-Loire department was split into two. This was a response to counter-Revolutionary activities in Lyon...
when she saw a brig
Brig
A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
sailing in to the river. As soon as the privateer spotted Amelia she tacked
Tacking (sailing)
Tacking or coming about is a sailing maneuver by which a sailing vessel turns its bow through the wind so that the direction from which the wind blows changes from one side to the other...
with all sail. As evening was approaching, Captain Charles Herbert
Charles Herbert (Royal Navy officer)
The Honourable Charles Herbert was a British Royal Navy officer, and the son of Henry Herbert, 1st Earl of Carnarvon...
immediately set off in pursuit, capturing her after a chase of four hours. She was the privateer Heureux of Saint Malo, with 14 guns and 78 men. She had been cruising for 41 days but had made no captures. She was uncoppered
Copper sheathing
Copper sheathing was the practice of protecting the under-water hull of a ship or boat through the use of copper plates affixed to the outside of the hull. It was pioneered and developed by the Royal Navy during the 18th century.-Development:...
due to the shortage of that material and this possibly resulted in her being slower than she otherwise might have been. Amelia sent Heureux into Plymouth, where she arrived on 17 May.
On 23 June Amelia took bullocks
Cattle
Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
out to the Channel Fleet
Channel Fleet
The Channel Fleet was the Royal Navy formation of warships that defended the waters of the English Channel from 1690 to 1909.-History:The Channel Fleet dates back at least to 1690 when its role was to defend England against the French threat under the leadership of Edward Russell, 1st Earl of...
. This was a common occurrence, with the Victualing Office using warships returning to the blockade to deliver meat on the hoof.
Next, on 4 August, a Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
packet came into Plymouth. Amelia had captured the packet as she was on her way from Havana
Havana
Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...
to Ferrol with a cargo of sugar, coffee and hides. The packet was armed with six guns and had a crew of 40 men.
At the end of June, Amelia sailed to Rochefort
Rochefort, Charente-Maritime
Rochefort is a commune in southwestern France, a port on the Charente estuary. It is a sub-prefecture of the Charente-Maritime department.-History:...
to reconnoitre the enemy. Medusa (50 guns), together with an unidentified 44-gun ship and an armed schooner
Schooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
, came out to oppose her. A smart action ensued in full view of the spectators lining the cliffs. Although the Embuscade (32 guns) sailed out to assist them, the enemy retired under the protection of the shore batteries after an hour. Captain Herbert lay to, but they declined to come out again, so he sailed to join Sir Edward Pellew.
In September Amelia captured a number of coaster
Coastal trading vessel
Coastal trading vessels, also known as coasters, are shallow-hulled ships used for trade between locations on the same island or continent. Their shallow hulls mean that they can get through reefs where deeper-hulled sea-going ships usually cannot....
s and brigs in the Bay of Biscay
Bay of Biscay
The Bay of Biscay is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Brest south to the Spanish border, and the northern coast of Spain west to Cape Ortegal, and is named in English after the province of Biscay, in the Spanish...
. One of them, the brig Cheodore, laden with sardines, arrived in Plymouth on 27 September, together with another brig in ballast. Shortly after, a seaman from Amelia died in the Royal Naval Hospital
Royal Naval Hospital
A Royal Naval Hospital was a hospital operated by the British Royal Navy. No Royal Naval Hospitals survive as such, although some have become civilian hospitals and one remains as a tri-service military hospital.Royal Naval Hospitals included:...
after being wounded by a loaded musket
Musket
A musket is a muzzle-loaded, smooth bore long gun, fired from the shoulder. Muskets were designed for use by infantry. A soldier armed with a musket had the designation musketman or musketeer....
which went off as the armourer was cleaning it. At the inquest, on 19 October, Mr Whitford, the coroner for Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
recorded a verdict of accidental death. Two more men were wounded but recovered and a third man, who was killed on the spot, was buried at sea.
Anti-smuggling service and the Peace of Amiens (1802-1803)
On 6 January 1802 Amelia was ordered to be victualled for 4 months, and 21 days later she sailed on a cruise against smugglers. During the night of 1 March some words passed between the boat's crew of Amelia and some PortuguesePortugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
seamen at the Pier Head, Barbican, Plymouth
Barbican, Plymouth
The Barbican is the name now given to the western and northern sides of the old harbour area of Plymouth, Devon, England. It was one of the few parts of the city to escape most of the destruction of The Blitz during the Second World War...
. A violent scuffle ensued which developed into a battle; during the conflict one of the Portuguese drew a long knife and stabbed one of Amelia's men in the groin. He bled profusely but a surgeon managed to stop the flow. The Portuguese fled but were rounded up the following morning.
In April 1802 Captain Lord Proby
William Proby, Lord Proby
William Allen Proby, Lord Proby was a British Royal Navy officer and Whig politician.-Background and education:...
took command. On 6 May Amelia sailed from Plymouth for Cork
Cork (city)
Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster. Cork has a population of 119,418, while the addition of the suburban...
, Waterford
Waterford
Waterford is a city in the South-East Region of Ireland. It is the oldest city in the country and fifth largest by population. Waterford City Council is the local government authority for the city and its immediate hinterland...
and Dublin with 150 discharged seamen, returning on 28 May. Orders came down from London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
on 11 June that all the sloops
Sloop-of-war
In the 18th and most of the 19th centuries, a sloop-of-war was a warship with a single gun deck that carried up to eighteen guns. As the rating system covered all vessels with 20 guns and above, this meant that the term sloop-of-war actually encompassed all the unrated combat vessels including the...
and frigates in the Sound
Plymouth Sound
Plymouth Sound, or locally just The Sound, is a bay at Plymouth in England.Its southwest and southeast corners are Penlee Point in Cornwall and Wembury Point on Devon, a distance of about 3 nautical miles . Its northern limit is Plymouth Hoe giving a north-south distance of nearly 3 nautical miles...
were to be sent to sea immediately as the coast from Berry Head
Berry Head
Berry Head is a coastal headland at the southern end of Torbay, to the southeast of Brixham, Devon, England.-National Nature Reserve:Berry Head to Sharkham Point is a haven for several nationally rare and threatened species which are dependent upon the thin limestone soils, mild climate and exposed...
to Mount's Bay
Mount's Bay
Mount's Bay is a large, sweeping bay on the English Channel coast of Cornwall in the United Kingdom, stretching from the Lizard Point to Gwennap Head on the eastern side of the Land's End peninsula. Towards the middle of the bay is St Michael's Mount...
was infested with smugglers. Amelia, , and were immediately victualled for two months. By the end of August 1802, Amelia had sailed for Den Helder
Den Helder
Den Helder is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. Den Helder occupies the northernmost point of the North Holland peninsula...
with Dutch troops discharged from the British service. She returned on 4 September.
1803 saw Amelia based mainly at Portsmouth. She arrived there from the Downs
The Downs
The Downs are a roadstead or area of sea in the southern North Sea near the English Channel off the east Kent coast, between the North and the South Foreland in southern England. In 1639 the Battle of the Downs took place here, when the Dutch navy destroyed a Spanish fleet which had sought refuge...
on 27 March and sailed on 1 April with part of the 83rd Regiment of Foot
83rd Regiment of Foot
The 83rd Regiment of Foot was a British infantry regiment that served in the American Revolutionary War...
for Jersey
Jersey
Jersey, officially the Bailiwick of Jersey is a British Crown Dependency off the coast of Normandy, France. As well as the island of Jersey itself, the bailiwick includes two groups of small islands that are no longer permanently inhabited, the Minquiers and Écréhous, and the Pierres de Lecq and...
. She was back on 8 April and sailed again for the Downs on the 15th.
In May she was part of the squadron under Rear Admiral Edward Thornborough in , keeping watch over Hellevoetsluis
Hellevoetsluis
Hellevoetsluis is a small city and municipality on Voorne-Putten Island in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland...
, Flushing, Netherlands
Flushing, Netherlands
Vlissingen is a municipality and a city in the southwestern Netherlands on the former island of Walcheren. With its strategic location between the Scheldt river and the North Sea, Vlissingen has been an important harbour for centuries. It was granted city rights in 1315. In the 17th century...
and other Dutch ports. Amelia sent a French chasse-marée
Chasse-marée
In English, a chasse-marée is a specific, archaic type of decked commercial sailing vessel.In French, un chasse-marée was 'a wholesale fishmonger', originally on the Channel coast of France and later, on the Atlantic coast as well. He bought in the coastal ports and sold in inland markets. However,...
in ballast into Plymouth on 23 May, and on 11 August the French privateer lugger
Lugger
A lugger is a class of boats, widely used as traditional fishing boats, particularly off the coasts of France, Scotland and England. It is a small sailing vessel with lugsails set on two or more masts and perhaps lug topsails.-Defining the rig:...
Alerte, of 4 guns and 27 men, into Portsmouth. She chased two others in mid-channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
before returning on 16 August. She sailed again on a cruise two days later. The extent of her success against smugglers is hard to judge. On 14 August she did catch at sea one Henry Sothcott (born 1774), who was sentenced to 5 years pressed into the Navy for smuggling; he jumped ship within seven months.
The West Indies and the loss of Captain Lord Proby (1804-1807)
Amelia deployed to the Leeward IslandsLeeward Islands
The Leeward Islands are a group of islands in the West Indies. They are the northern islands of the Lesser Antilles chain. As a group they start east of Puerto Rico and reach southward to Dominica. They are situated where the northeastern Caribbean Sea meets the western Atlantic Ocean...
Station, but her Captain, Lord Proby, died on 6 August 1804 at age 25 at Surinam, from yellow fever
Yellow fever
Yellow fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic disease. The virus is a 40 to 50 nm enveloped RNA virus with positive sense of the Flaviviridae family....
. Captain William Charles Fahie
William Charles Fahie
Vice-Admiral Sir William Charles Fahie KCB was a prominent British Royal Navy officer during the American War of Independence, French Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic Wars. Unusually, Fahie's service was almost entirely spent in the West Indies, where he had been born and where he lived during...
took command while the ship was in Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
. In December she captured the Spanish brig
Brig
A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
Isabella and the ship Conception, both laden with wine and brandy, and the ship Commerce, laden with cotton. She returned to Deptford
Deptford
Deptford is a district of south London, England, located on the south bank of the River Thames. It is named after a ford of the River Ravensbourne, and from the mid 16th century to the late 19th was home to Deptford Dockyard, the first of the Royal Navy Dockyards.Deptford and the docks are...
and in 1807 refitted at Sheerness
Sheerness
Sheerness is a town located beside the mouth of the River Medway on the northwest corner of the Isle of Sheppey in north Kent, England. With a population of 12,000 it is the largest town on the island....
.
Battle of Les Sables-d'Olonne
December 1807 saw Captain Frederick Paul IrbyFrederick Paul Irby
Rear Admiral The Hon. Frederick Paul Irby CB was a British Royal Navy officer and Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Norfolk.-Birth:...
appointed to her at for service in the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
and coast of Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. He sighted three French 44-gun frigates (Calypso, Italienne and Sybille) near Belle Île
Belle Île
Belle-Île or Belle-Île-en-Mer is a French island off the coast of Brittany in the département of Morbihan, and the largest of Brittany's islands. It is 14 km from the Quiberon peninsula.Administratively, the island forms a canton: the canton of Belle-Île...
on 23 February 1809 and Amelia and the brig chased them all night. The following morning they had approached so close to the rearmost French ship that her companions had to haul up to her support. soon came into sight and the French made for the Sable d'Olonne
Les Sables-d'Olonne
Les Sables-d'Olonne is a seaside town in western France, by the Atlantic Ocean. It is a commune and a sub-prefecture of the Vendée department.-Events:...
. Rear Admiral Stopford and his squadron, who had been watching eight French sail-of-the-line
Ship of the line
A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed from the 17th through the mid-19th century to take part in the naval tactic known as the line of battle, in which two columns of opposing warships would manoeuvre to bring the greatest weight of broadside guns to bear...
standing into the Pertuis d'Antioche
Pertuis d'Antioche
The Pertuis d'Antioche is a strait on the Atlantic coast of Western France, located between the two islands Île de Ré and Île d'Oléron and the continental coast, between the cities of La Rochelle and the naval arsenal of Rochefort...
, came down to join them and stood in with , , and Amelia. They opened fire, passing as near to the enemy as the depth of water permitted, and forced the frigates to run ashore at the top of high water. Amelia had her bowsprit shot through and she was hulled in several places but had no casualties. The French lost 24 men killed and 51 wounded. The three French frigates survived, but Cybèle was declared irreparable and broken up, while Italienne and Calypso were sold to commerce.
The Battle of the Basque Roads (1809)
She was present with Admiral Lord GambierJames Gambier, 1st Baron Gambier
Admiral of the Fleet James Gambier, 1st Baron Gambier GCB was an admiral of the Royal Navy, who served as Governor of Newfoundland, and as a Lord of the Admiralty, but who gained notoriety for his actions at the Battle of the Basque Roads.-Early career:Gambier was born in New Providence, The...
at the blockade of Basque Roads
Battle of the Basque Roads
The Battle of the Basque Roads, also Battle of Aix Roads was a naval battle during the Napoleonic Wars off the Island of Aix...
in April 1809. There she was directed to dislodge the French who were endeavouring to strengthen their position in Aix
Île-d'Aix
Île-d'Aix is a commune in the Charente-Maritime department off the west coast of France. It occupies the territory of small island of Île d'Aix in the Atlantic. It is a popular place for tourist day-trips during the summer months.-Location:...
Roads. On 1 April she destroyed some batteries there. She was reconnoitering with when Alcmene was wrecked on the Three Stones on the north end of the La Blanche shoal near the mouth of the Loire
Loire (river)
The Loire is the longest river in France. With a length of , it drains an area of , which represents more than a fifth of France's land area. It is the 170th longest river in the world...
on 30 April. Amelia was instrumental in rescuing the crew and a great part of Alcmenes stores.
Action at Santander (1810)
One of Captain Irby's contemporary reports states:On 15 May Lord Gambier ordered Captain Irby to investigate the situation at Santander
Santander, Cantabria
The port city of Santander is the capital of the autonomous community and historical region of Cantabria situated on the north coast of Spain. Located east of Gijón and west of Bilbao, the city has a population of 183,446 .-History:...
where an attack was about to be made by Spanish patriots on the French troops in the town. joined him on 8 June but strong winds and current prevented them getting there before 10 June. As they approached they could see firing on shore and several vessels trying to escape from the harbour. The two British ships captured three French vessels: The corvette La Mouche of sixteen brass 8 pounders and 180 men; the brig Rejouie with eight 8-pounders; and a schooner, No. 7 (also called La Mouche), with one 4-pounder gun. They also took two luggers: Legere, which was unseaworthy so her cargo was put on board Rejouie; and Notre Dame, a Spanish vessel the French had seized. The aide-de-camp to General Ballestero reported that the town was in possession of the Spanish and that the French troops had all surrendered. Because of the large number of prisoners, Captain Irby sent Statira into the harbour with the prizes while Amelia remained off the coast in hopes of being able to render more assistance to the Spaniards. The corvette La Mouche, which the sloop and the hired armed
Hired armed vessels
right|thumb|250px|Armed cutter, etching in the [[National Maritime Museum]], [[Greenwich]]During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries the Royal Navy made use of a considerable number of hired armed vessels...
lugger Black Joke
Hired armed lugger Black Joke
The hired armed lugger Black Joke was a lugger of ten 12-pounder carronades and 108 92/94 tons burthen that entered into the service of the Royal Navy on 22 May 1808....
had recently engaged, had been a threat to British trade for some time.
Capture of the privateer Charles (1810)
Amelia captured the corvetteCorvette
A corvette is a small, maneuverable, lightly armed warship, originally smaller than a frigate and larger than a coastal patrol craft or fast attack craft , although many recent designs resemble frigates in size and role...
-built privateer Charles of Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
on 8 November 1810 about 400 miles west of Finisterre
Finisterre
Finisterre, Finisterra, Fisterra, or Finistère may refer to:Places* Cape Finisterre , headland in Galicia, north-west Spain, the Southern landfall of the Bay of Biscay...
after a chase of 13 hours, sometimes reaching a speed of twelve and a half knots. Under the command of Pierre Alexandre Marrauld, she had sailed from L'Orient on 4 October to make her maiden run to the Ile de France
Mauritius
Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...
. About 200 tons, she was pierced for 22 guns but mounted twelve 6-pounder guns and eight 18-pounder carronades, all English measurement. Amelia arrived in Plymouth Sound on 16 November.
Destruction of Amazone (1811)
On the morning of 24 March 1811 Captain Macnamara in gave chase to the French frigate Amazone about 12 or 13 miles off the BarfleurBarfleur
Barfleur is a commune in the Manche department in the Basse-Normandie region in north-western France.-Middle Ages:In the Middle Ages Barfleur was one of the chief ports of embarkation for England....
lighthouse and forced her to take refuge in a rocky bay about a mile to the west of the lighthouse. He was joined by Amelia, and the sloops Goshawk and Hawk, hoping to launch an attack with boats. When the tides proved too strong for a boat attack, Niobe led in, with Amelia and Berwick following in succession, and they fired on the enemy for two hours. They stood in the following morning to renew the attack but the enemy set fire to the frigate and she burned to the waterline. Amelia had one man killed and one wounded.
Passage to Canada (1811)
Leaving Lymington on 11 April 1811, she sailed for CanadaCanada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
with a convoy. On 18 June she left Quebec carrying General Sir James Henry Craig
James Henry Craig
General Sir James Henry Craig KB was a British military officer and colonial administrator.-Early life and military service:...
from Canada to England when he was relieved as Governor-General
Governor General of Canada
The Governor General of Canada is the federal viceregal representative of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II...
.
The West African Station (1811-1813)
On 15 October 1811 Amelia sailed for the coast of AfricaAfrica
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
where Captain Irby became senior officer of the anti-slavery squadron
West Africa Squadron
The Royal Navy established the West Africa Squadron at substantial expense in 1808 after Parliament passed the Slave Trade Act of 1807. The squadron's task was to suppress the Atlantic slave trade by patrolling the coast of West Africa...
there. Throughout her time on the station Amelia suffered with damp powder. Although the large portion which had caked in the magazine was sent ashore to be dried, the problem was never properly solved. In June 1812 Irby learned that the natives at Winneba
Winneba
Winneba, traditionally known as Simpa, also known as the Land of the Gharteys because its royals and many of its inhabitants bear this name,...
, half way between Accra
Accra
Accra is the capital and largest city of Ghana, with an urban population of 1,658,937 according to the 2000 census. Accra is also the capital of the Greater Accra Region and of the Accra Metropolitan District, with which it is coterminous...
and Cape Coast Castle
Cape Coast Castle
Cape Coast Castle is a fortification in Ghana built by Swedish traders. The first timber construction on the site was erected in 1653 for the Swedish Africa Company and named Carolusborg after King Charles X of Sweden. It was later rebuilt in stone....
, had murdered Mr Meredith, the governor of the fort. When the authorities at Cape Coast Castle asked for Captain Irby's assistance he sailed for Winneba with a detachment of the Africa corps under Mr Smith, Governor of Tantumquerry, and anchored off the port on 2 July. The natives had fled so he landed his marines and the troops, who demolished the fort.
In January 1813 Lieutenant Pascoe had to run his gunbrig on shore and burn her at the island of Tamara, Iles de Los
Iles de Los
Îles de Los are an island group lying off Conakry in Guinea. There are three main islands: Tamara , Kassa and Roume, while Coraille, Blanche and Cabris are smaller islands to the south.The islands have been inhabited for a long time...
, after being chased by three French vessels. Two days later he and part of his crew arrived in the river of Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
where Amelia was about to leave for England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, with many of her crew debilitated with fever and barely fit for duty after more than 12 months on the station. Before leaving, Captain Irby sent Lieutenant Pascoe off in a small schooner to reconnoitre.
Amelia and Aréthuse
Pascoe reported back on 3 February that he had sighted a force consisting of three ships. Two were the French frigates AréthuseFrench frigate Aréthuse (1812)
The French frigate Aréthuse was a 46-gun 18-pounder frigate of the French Navy. She served during the Napoleonic Wars, took part in the conquest of Algeria and ended her days as a coal depot in Brest.-Cruise off West Africa, 1812-1813:...
(Captain Pierre Bouvet) and Rubis
French frigate Rubis (1812)
The Rubis was a 40-gun Pallas-class frigate of the French Navy.- Career :On 25 November 1812, under Commander Ollivier, Rubis sailed from Nantes along with Aréthuse to intercept British trade off West Africa...
(Captain Louis-François Olivier). The third ship was a Portuguese prize, La Serra, which they were unloading before sailing to intercept British merchant vessels, a convoy from England being expected daily. The master and the rest of the crew from Daring arrived in a cartel
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
, having given their parole, and confirmed Lieutenant Pascoe's report. Standing in towards Tamara on the 6 February, Captain Irby met the government schooner Princess Charlote and learnt that the two frigates were anchored a considerable distance apart. Although he was not aware of it, Rubis, the southernmost one, had struck a rock, which had disabled her. The Aréthuse weighed and stood out to sea followed by Amelia, Captain Irby having hopes of enticing her into action. For nearly four hours they exchanged fire, throughout which Aréthuse used the usual French practice of firing high. Having cut Amelia's sails and running and standing rigging to pieces, the French ship bore up. Twice during the action the enemy had attempted to board but the marines
Royal Marines
The Corps of Her Majesty's Royal Marines, commonly just referred to as the Royal Marines , are the marine corps and amphibious infantry of the United Kingdom and, along with the Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary, form the Naval Service...
, under the command of Lieutenant Simpson of the Royal Marines, drove them back.
The British losses were heavy, with 46 killed, including Lieutenants John Bates, John Pope and George Wills, Lieutenant William Pascoe, the commander of Daring, and Second Lieutenant R G Grainger, Royal Marines. Five more men died of their wounds later. 51 were dangerously or seriously wounded, and 44 slightly wounded. Captain Irby appointed Lieutenant Reeve, invalided from and wounded several times in the action, as his first lieutenant, and master's mates Samuel Umfreville and Edward Robinson (who had been severely wounded) as second and third. Mr Williamson, the surgeon, his assistant Mr Burke and Mr Stewart of Daring cared for the wounded as the crippled Amelia made her way north towards Madeira
Madeira
Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago that lies between and , just under 400 km north of Tenerife, Canary Islands, in the north Atlantic Ocean and an outermost region of the European Union...
and then home, arriving at Spithead
Spithead
Spithead is an area of the Solent and a roadstead off Gilkicker Point in Hampshire, England. It is protected from all winds, except those from the southeast...
on 22 March. The wounded were examined by the Lieutenant Governor of the Royal Hospital at Greenwich who was astonished at their debilitated condition.
Aréthuse mounted twenty-eight 18-pounder long guns on the main deck and sixteen 36-pounder carronades and two long guns on the upper deck. Amelia put more than 30 round shot in her hull on the starboard side below the quarter deck and, according to one report, the French suffered at least 31 killed and 74 wounded. Still, Aréthuse arrived in St Malo on 19 April. The Rubis was burnt on 8 February when it was found impossible to re-float her. A flavour of the intensity of the battle may be gained from William James
William James (naval historian)
William M. James was a British lawyer turned naval historian who wrote important naval histories of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, 1793-1815.-Career:...
writing in his Naval History of Great Britain, 1793 - 1827:
In addition to her ship's company, she brought at least one passenger: Exbury
Exbury
Exbury is a village in Hampshire, England. It lies just in the New Forest, near the Beaulieu River and about a mile from the Solent coast. It is best known as the location of Exbury House, built by the Rothschild family, and the famous Exbury Gardens...
parish baptism register records the baptism on 6 June 1813 of a boy, "Irby Amelia Frederick, aged 9 or 10, a native of Poppoe near Whidah
Ouidah
Ouidah , also Whydah or Juda, is a city on the Atlantic coast of Benin.The commune covers an area of 364 square kilometres and as of 2002 had a population of 76,555 people.-History:...
, Africa, who was stolen as a slave, but rescued at sea by HMS Amelia" - it is recorded in the Baptism
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
al Register of 1813 as being "in grateful testimony of the humanity and intrepidity of his gallant deliverer".
Reserve at Portsmouth and Mediterranean service (1813-1816)
Amelia paid off at Portsmouth in May 1813, underwent a small repair, and then was placed in ordinaryReserve fleet
A reserve fleet is a collection of naval vessels of all types that are fully equipped for service but are not currently needed, and thus partially or fully decommissioned. A reserve fleet is informally said to be "in mothballs" or "mothballed"; an equivalent expression in unofficial modern U.S....
. The Honourable Granville Proby
Granville Proby, 3rd Earl of Carysfort
Granville Leveson Proby, 3rd Earl of Carysfort , known as the Honourable Granville Proby until 1855, was a British naval commander and Whig politician....
, younger brother of Lord William Proby
William Proby, Lord Proby
William Allen Proby, Lord Proby was a British Royal Navy officer and Whig politician.-Background and education:...
, who had died in command in 1804, recommissioned her for a cruise in 1814. She was in Leghorn
Livorno
Livorno , traditionally Leghorn , is a port city on the Tyrrhenian Sea on the western edge of Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of approximately 160,000 residents in 2009.- History :...
in December 1816, and was broken up at Deptford that same month, having given 30 years of continual wartime service to both the French and British navies.
Commanding officers
| From | To | |Captain |
|---|---|---|
| September 1797 | 1802 | |Captain the Honourable Charles Herbert Charles Herbert (Royal Navy officer) The Honourable Charles Herbert was a British Royal Navy officer, and the son of Henry Herbert, 1st Earl of Carnarvon... |
| April 1802 | 6 August 1804 | |Captain William Allen Proby, Lord Proby William Proby, Lord Proby William Allen Proby, Lord Proby was a British Royal Navy officer and Whig politician.-Background and education:... (died in command) |
| January 1805 | February 1805 | |Captain John Woolcombe |
| February 1805 | June 1805 | | Lieutenant Charles Eakins (acting) |
| June 1805 | May 1806 | |Captain William Charles Fahie William Charles Fahie Vice-Admiral Sir William Charles Fahie KCB was a prominent British Royal Navy officer during the American War of Independence, French Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic Wars. Unusually, Fahie's service was almost entirely spent in the West Indies, where he had been born and where he lived during... |
| May 1806 | October 1807 | | Captain William Champain |
| October 1807 | 1813 | |Captain Frederick Paul Irby Frederick Paul Irby Rear Admiral The Hon. Frederick Paul Irby CB was a British Royal Navy officer and Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Norfolk.-Birth:... |
| 1814 | 1816 | |Captain the Honourable Granville Proby Granville Proby, 3rd Earl of Carysfort Granville Leveson Proby, 3rd Earl of Carysfort , known as the Honourable Granville Proby until 1855, was a British naval commander and Whig politician.... |