HMS Lively (1793)
Encyclopedia
HMS Lively was a 32-gun fifth-rate
frigate of the British
Royal Navy
launched on 23 October 1794 at Northam, Devon
. She was wrecked in 1798.
off Ushant. Espion was armed with eighteen 6-pounder guns and had a crew of 140 men. She was five days out of Brest
on a cruise. was the French privateer Robert, which the British had captured in 1793 and which the French had recaptured in 1794. The British took Espion back into service but under the name Spy. Captain George Burlton, acting in the absence of Lord Garlies, who was sick on shore, commanded Lively.
Four days later Lively recaptured the ship Favonius.
On 13 March 1795 she captured the French frigate Tourterelle. Lively sighted three vessels and headed for the larger one, which tacked to meet her. After three hours of exchanging fire the French vessel was so disabled that she struck. She turned out to be the 28-gun frigate Tourterelle, under the command of Captain Guillaume S. A. Montalan. She had lost 16 men killed and 25 wounded; Lively had only two men wounded. The British took Tourterelle into service. The Admiralty would recognize the action in 1847 with the award of the Naval General Service Medal with clasp "Lively 13 March 1795".
Lively also captured the other two vessels that Tourterelle had been escorting. They had been prizes to Espion.
Lively was present at the Battle of Cape St. Vincent
under the command of Captain Lord Garlies. She and three other British frigates jointly fired on a Spanish ship-of-the-line that had gotten separated from the rest, but other than that Lively took no significant part in the combat and suffered no losses. Her main function was to repeat signals. She did take possession of the San Ysidro (or San Isidro), one of the Spanish vessels that surrendered. In 1847 the Admiralty authorized the issuance of the Naval General Service Medal with clasp "St. Vincent" to all surviving claimants from the battle.
On 29 May 1797, during the battle for Santa Cruz
, Lieutenant Thomas Hardy led a cutting out
party using boats from Minerve
and Lively to capture the French 16-gun corvette . The cutting out party boarded and captured the vessel; they then sailed her out of the port to the British fleet under heavy fire from shore and naval guns. Hardy was wounded during the action, as were 14 of the other British officers and men in the cutting out party. The British subsequently commissioned Mutine under her existing name with Hardy as commander. In 1847 the Admiralty authorized the issuance to all surviving claimants of the Naval General Service Medal with clasp "29 May Boat Service 1797".
On 5 January 1798, captured the 16-gun privateer Benjamin. , and Lively joined the chase and shared in the capture.
, she was wrecked on Rota Point off Cadiz
. She and were patrolling to intercept any ships trying to enter or leave the port. During the night she grounded and despite all efforts by Seahorse, she could not be pulled off. In the morning of 14 April it became apparent that Spanish gunboats were marshaling, while shore batteries started to fire on the British vessels and the boats transferring the crew to Seahorse; In the process, only one man was lost. Morris then set fire to Lively as he left. The subsequent court martial acquitted Morris and his officers of all blame.
Fifth-rate
In Britain's Royal Navy during the classic age of fighting sail, a fifth rate was the penultimate class of warships in a hierarchal system of six "ratings" based on size and firepower.-Rating:...
frigate of the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
launched on 23 October 1794 at Northam, Devon
Northam, Devon
Northam is a small town in Devon, England, lying north of Bideford and south of Westward Ho!. It is thought to have been the site of an Anglo-Saxon castle, and is said to have been where Hubba the Dane attacked Devon and was repelled . A little over a mile away along the coast is a town called...
. She was wrecked in 1798.
Service
On 4 March 1795 she captured the Espion about 13 leaguesLeague (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...
off Ushant. Espion was armed with eighteen 6-pounder guns and had a crew of 140 men. She was five days out of 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...
on a cruise. was the French privateer Robert, which the British had captured in 1793 and which the French had recaptured in 1794. The British took Espion back into service but under the name Spy. Captain George Burlton, acting in the absence of Lord Garlies, who was sick on shore, commanded Lively.
Four days later Lively recaptured the ship Favonius.
On 13 March 1795 she captured the French frigate Tourterelle. Lively sighted three vessels and headed for the larger one, which tacked to meet her. After three hours of exchanging fire the French vessel was so disabled that she struck. She turned out to be the 28-gun frigate Tourterelle, under the command of Captain Guillaume S. A. Montalan. She had lost 16 men killed and 25 wounded; Lively had only two men wounded. The British took Tourterelle into service. The Admiralty would recognize the action in 1847 with the award of the Naval General Service Medal with clasp "Lively 13 March 1795".
Lively also captured the other two vessels that Tourterelle had been escorting. They had been prizes to Espion.
Lively was present at the Battle of Cape St. Vincent
Battle of Cape St. Vincent (1797)
In the Battle of Cape St Vincent a British fleet under Admiral Sir John Jervis defeated a larger Spanish fleet under Admiral Don José de Córdoba near Cape St. Vincent, Portugal.-Origins:...
under the command of Captain Lord Garlies. She and three other British frigates jointly fired on a Spanish ship-of-the-line that had gotten separated from the rest, but other than that Lively took no significant part in the combat and suffered no losses. Her main function was to repeat signals. She did take possession of the San Ysidro (or San Isidro), one of the Spanish vessels that surrendered. In 1847 the Admiralty authorized the issuance of the Naval General Service Medal with clasp "St. Vincent" to all surviving claimants from the battle.
On 29 May 1797, during the battle for Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Santa Cruz de Tenerife is the capital , second-most populous city of the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands and the 21st largest city in Spain, with a population of 222,417 in 2009...
, Lieutenant Thomas Hardy led a cutting out
Boarding (attack)
Boarding, in its simplest sense, refers to the insertion on to a ship's deck of individuals. However, when it is classified as an attack, in most contexts, it refers to the forcible insertion of personnel that are not members of the crew by another party without the consent of the captain or crew...
party using boats from Minerve
French frigate Minerve (1794)
The Minerve was a 40-gun frigate of the French Navy. She was captured twice by the British and recaptured once by the French. She therefore served under four names:*Minerve, 1794–1795*HMS Minerve, 1795–1803*Canonnière, 1803–1810...
and Lively to capture the French 16-gun corvette . The cutting out party boarded and captured the vessel; they then sailed her out of the port to the British fleet under heavy fire from shore and naval guns. Hardy was wounded during the action, as were 14 of the other British officers and men in the cutting out party. The British subsequently commissioned Mutine under her existing name with Hardy as commander. In 1847 the Admiralty authorized the issuance to all surviving claimants of the Naval General Service Medal with clasp "29 May Boat Service 1797".
On 5 January 1798, captured the 16-gun privateer Benjamin. , and Lively joined the chase and shared in the capture.
Fate
On 12 April 1798, under the command of Captain James Nicoll MorrisJames Nicoll Morris
Vice-Admiral Sir James Nicoll Morris KCB was a Royal Navy officer with a history of distinguished service during the American War of Independence, French Revolutionary War and Napoleonic Wars, especially at the battle of Trafalgar in 1805, where the majority of his ship's crew were killed or...
, she was wrecked on Rota Point off Cadiz
Cádiz
Cadiz is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the homonymous province, one of eight which make up the autonomous community of Andalusia....
. She and were patrolling to intercept any ships trying to enter or leave the port. During the night she grounded and despite all efforts by Seahorse, she could not be pulled off. In the morning of 14 April it became apparent that Spanish gunboats were marshaling, while shore batteries started to fire on the British vessels and the boats transferring the crew to Seahorse; In the process, only one man was lost. Morris then set fire to Lively as he left. The subsequent court martial acquitted Morris and his officers of all blame.