HMS Polyphemus, a 64-gun third-rate

Third-rate

In the British Royal Navy, a third rate was a ship of the line which from the 1720s mounted between 64 and 80 guns, typically built with two gun decks . Years of experience proved that the third rate ships embodied the best compromise between sailing ability , firepower, and cost...

 ship 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...

 of the 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 27 April 1782 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....

. She was the first ship of the 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...

 named for Polyphemus

Polyphemus

Polyphemus is the gigantic one-eyed son of Poseidon and Thoosa in Greek mythology, one of the Cyclopes. His name means "much spoken of" or "famous". Polyphemus plays a pivotal role in Homer's Odyssey.-In Homer's Odyssey:...

 the Cyclops

Cyclops

A cyclops , in Greek mythology and later Roman mythology, was a member of a primordial race of giants, each with a single eye in the middle of his forehead...

.

Baltic service

She was laid down at Sheerness in 1782 and was commissioned in 1799 under the command of Captain G. Lumsdaine. She sailed from Yarmouth

Great Yarmouth

Great Yarmouth, often known to locals as Yarmouth, is a coastal town in Norfolk, England. It is at the mouth of the River Yare, east of Norwich.It has been a seaside resort since 1760, and is the gateway from the Norfolk Broads to the sea...

 on 9 August 1800, with a squadron under Vice-Admiral Archibald Dickson in Monarch

HMS Monarch

Five ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Monarch. was a 74-gun third-rate ship of the line, originally the French Monarque, captured in 1747 at the second battle of Cape Finisterre, and sold in 1760. Admiral John Byng was executed on board in 1757., launched in 1765, was another 74-gun...

 bound for Denmark

Denmark

Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...

. Because of lack of wind the faster sailing vessels had to tow the slower ones and it was 15 August before they reached the Skaw

Skaw

Skaw is a tiny settlement on the Shetland island of Unst. It is located north of Haroldswick on a peninsula in the northeast corner of the island, and is the most northerly settlement in the United Kingdom...

. The next day the whole squadron advanced as far as the mouth of the Sound where the Danes had anchored three 74-gun ships, later increased to four, between Cronberg Castle and the Swedish shore. Because of gales the Admiral sheltered his squadron in Elsinor Roads then went in Romney

HMS Romney (1762)

HMS Romney was a 50-gun fourth rate of the Royal Navy. She served during the American War of Independence, and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars in a career that spanned forty years....

 as far as Sophienburg to talk with Lord Whitworth

Charles Whitworth, 1st Earl Whitworth

Charles Whitworth, 1st Earl Whitworth GCB, PC , known as The Lord Whitworth between 1800 and 1813 and as The Viscount Whitworth between 1813 and 1815, was a British diplomat and politician.-Early years:...

 who was negotiating with the Danish ministers. When matters were resolved the squadron returned to Yarmouth in September.

In 1801, under the command of Captain John Lawford

John Lawford

Sir John Lawford KCB was an officer of the Royal Navy who served during the American War of Independence and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars....

, Polyphemus was with the fleet that bombarded Copenhagen on 2 April. Polyphemus lost midshipman James Bell, four seamen and one marine. The boatswain (Edward Burr), twenty seamen, and four marines were wounded. The division of the North Sea fleet commanded by Admiral Thomas Graves in Polyphemus returned to Yarmouth from the Baltic Sea

Baltic Sea

The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...

 on 13 July and then sailed to join Admiral Dickson's squadron blockading the Dutch fleet in the Texel.

Trafalgar

In 1805, Captain Robert Redmill

Robert Redmill

Captain Robert Redmill, CB was a British naval officer during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars who commanded the HMS Polyphemus during the battle of Trafalgar...

 took command of Polyphemus 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....

. Later that year, she took part in the Battle of Trafalgar

Battle of Trafalgar

The Battle of Trafalgar was a sea battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French Navy and Spanish Navy, during the War of the Third Coalition of the Napoleonic Wars ....

, where she fought in the lee column, with six killed and wounded. She engaged the French ships Neptune and Achille

French ship Achille (1803)

The Achille was a 74-gun French ship of the line built at Rochefort in 1803 after plans by Jacques-Noël Sané.Under the command of Captain Louis Gabriel Deniéport, she sailed at the vanguard of the French Fleet on 20 October 1805, just before the Battle of Trafalgar, and she was the first...

 and after the battle captured the Spanish ship Argonauta. She towed , carrying Nelson's

Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson

Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronté, KB was a flag officer famous for his service in the Royal Navy, particularly during the Napoleonic Wars. He was noted for his inspirational leadership and superb grasp of strategy and unconventional tactics, which resulted in a number of...

 body, back to Gibraltar

Gibraltar

Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...

.

French coast

In July 1806, she was with Lord St. Vincent's squadron off Ushant

Ushant

Ushant is an island at the south-western end of the English Channel which marks the north-westernmost point of metropolitan France. It belongs to Brittany and is in the traditional region of Bro-Leon. Administratively, Ushant is a commune in the Finistère department...

 and on 14 July her boats, together with others of the squadron, were taken by the Iris to Sir Samuel Hood in Indefatigable

HMS Indefatigable (1784)

HMS Indefatigable was one of the Ardent class 64-gun third-rate ships-of-the-line designed by Sir Thomas Slade in 1761 for the Royal Navy. She had a long career under several distinguished commanders, serving throughout the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars...

 off 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 attack two French corvettes and a convoy at the entrance to the Garonne

Garonne

The Garonne is a river in southwest France and northern Spain, with a length of .-Source:The Garonne's headwaters are to be found in the Aran Valley in the Pyrenees, though three different locations have been proposed as the true source: the Uelh deth Garona at Plan de Beret , the Ratera-Saboredo...

. The weather on 15 July appeared suitable for the attempt but after the boats left a strong wind blew up and although they managed to capture the 18-gun 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...

 Caesar they could not prevent the convoy escaping up river. The greater part of the boats were either shot through or so badly stove in that they were swamped, and had to be cut adrift from the brig as she was brought out under fire from the batteries and ex-British Teaser brig. The casualties from Polyphemus were William Anderson, Quarter Master's Mate, who was cut across the hand, and W. Fleming, Coxswain, who was cut across the eyebrow.

Americas

In 1807 Polyphemus, under the command of Captain Peter Heywood

Peter Heywood

Captain Peter Heywood was a British naval officer who was aboard HMS Bounty during the mutiny of 28 April 1789. He was later captured, tried and condemned to death as a mutineer, but subsequently pardoned...

, became the flagship of Rear-Admiral Sir George Murray

George Murray (Royal Navy officer)

Vice-Admiral Sir George Murray KCB was an officer in the Royal Navy who saw service in a wide range of theatres and campaigns. His active naval career spanned the American War of Independence and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars...

, off South America.

In 1808, under the command of Captain William Pryce Cumby

William Pryce Cumby

Captain William Pryce Cumby CB RN was an officer in the Royal Navy whose excellent service during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars was highlighted when he was thrust into the limelight following his service at the battle of Trafalgar...

, who had been lieutenant and then acting commander of at Trafalgar, she became the flagship of Vice-Admiral B.S. Rowley. In July she sailed for Jamaica

Jamaica

Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...

, convoying a large fleet of merchantmen, for the Vice-Admiral to take up his appointment. Since he resided on shore with his flag in Shark, Polyphemus was able to undertake cruises against the enemy. On the morning of 14 November he detached his boats under Lieutenant Joseph Daly in the barge to chase a schooner attempting to enter the harbour at San Domingo. An hour later she was boarded and carried under a hail of grape and musketry in which marine Samuel Crompton was killed and proved to be the French national schooner Colibry of three carriage guns commanded by Lieutenant Deyrisse with 63 men.

In June 1809 Captain Cumby was appointed to command a squadron consisting of Polyphemus, Aurora

HMS Aurora (1777)

HMS Aurora was a 28-gun Enterprise-class sixth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. The Aurora was first commissioned in July 1777 under the command of Captain James Cumming...

, Tweed, Sparrow, Thrush, Griffon, Lark

HMS Lark (1794)

HMS Lark was a 16-gun ship sloop of the Cormorant class, built in 1794 at Northfleet. She served primarily in the Caribbean, where she took a number of prizes, some after quite intensive action...

, Moselle, Fleur-de-Mer and Pike.

They sailed from Port Royal

Port Royal

Port Royal was a city located at the end of the Palisadoes at the mouth of the Kingston Harbour, in southeastern Jamaica. Founded in 1518, it was the centre of shipping commerce in the Caribbean Sea during the latter half of the 17th century...

 on 7 June with troops under Major-General Carmichael to assist the Spanish forces besieging the French in the city of San Domingo. On 1 July Polyphemus anchored at Caleta and loaded eight of her lower deck guns into the Sparrow sloop to be landed at Palenqui for the use of the batteries to the westward of the town. Two of the guns were then transported by Captain Burt of Sparrow from Andre Bay to the east battery, nearly 30 miles across almost impassable country. The French garrison surrendered on 6 July.

Captain Cumby was appointed to Hyperion in March 1811 and was succeeded by Captain T. Graves then Captain Douglas. Polyphemus paid off at Chatham in November 1812. In 1813 she was converted to serve as a powder hulk, and she was eventually broken up in 1827.