Naval/Maritime History 27th of August - Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History

Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
1 March 1942 - Second Battle of the Java Sea


The Second Battle of the Java Sea was the last naval action of the Netherlands East Indies campaign, of 1941–42. It occurred on 1 March 1942, two days after the first Battle of the Java Sea. It saw the end of the last Allied warships operating in the waters around Java, allowing Japanese forces to complete their conquest of the Netherlands East Indies unhindered.

Background

HMS Exeter in 1942.


USS Pope in February 1942.


HMS Encounter in July 1938.

The American-British-Dutch-Australian Command fleet were defeated at the first Battle of the Java Sea, on 27 February 1942, and its ships had been dispersed or sunk by the Japanese.

The light cruiser HMAS Perth and the heavy cruiser USS Houston had retreated to Tanjong Priok, the port of the capital, Batavia, in the west of the island. They planned to withdraw via the Sunda Strait to Tjilatjap on the south of the island and departed on the evening of 28 February; but encountering the Japanese Western Invasion Force later that night in Bantam Bay, they were both sunk in the battle of Sunda Strait.

The heavy cruiser HMS Exeter—severely damaged in the first Battle of the Java Sea—had withdrawn to Surabaya in the east, escorted by the Dutch destroyer HNLMS Witte de With. There she was joined by HMS Encounter, which arrived with the survivors from the destroyer HNLMS Kortenaer. Also at Surabaya were the four U.S. destroyers of Destroyer Squadron 58 (DesRon 58), which had also withdrawn there from the battle, and USS Pope, which had been undergoing repairs.

On 28 February, after nightfall, USS John D. Edwards, John D. Ford, Alden, and Paul Jones of DesRon 58 departed for Australia via the Bali Strait; after a brief encounter with a Japanese destroyer they arrived safely at Fremantle on 4 March.

After emergency repairs, Exeter also left for further repairs in Ceylon, leaving at dusk on 28 February, and escorted by Encounterand Pope. Witte de With was unable to leave, due to mechanical trouble, and was later bombed and sunk at Surabaya on 2 March.

As Exeter had too much draft for the Bali Strait, it was decided to go via Sunda Strait, which was thought still open; the morning of 1 March found the three Allied ships west-northwest of Bawean island, heading westwards. The ships were making 23 kn (26 mph; 43 km/h), as much as Exeter could manage.

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The Royal Navy heavy cruiser HMS Exeter sinking after the Battle of the Java Sea, 1 March 1942.

The battle
At 04:00 on 1 March, ships were sighted to the west; being in no condition for a battle, Exeter and her consorts reversed course, turning northwest to avoid contact.

More ships were sighted at 07:50, bearing southwest; again, the Allied ships had to alter course to avoid them.

At 09:35, two heavy cruisers were sighted approaching from the south; these were Nachi and Haguro of the Eastern Invasion Force with two destroyers, under Admiral Takeo Takagi, whom they had met two days previously at the battle of the Java Sea.

Exeter and the destroyers turned northeast and increased speed, but soon sighted more ships approaching from the northwest; this was Admiral Ibo Takahashi, with the heavy cruisers Ashigara and Myōkō and two destroyers.

Closing in on either side of the fleeing Allied ships, the cruisers opened fire at 10:20 as they came in range.

Encounter and Pope responded by making smoke, and later attempted a torpedo attack, while Exeter returned fire, but at 11:20 Exetersustained a major hit in her boiler room, resulting in a loss of power and slowing her to 4 kn (4.6 mph; 7.4 km/h). As the four Japanese cruisers closed in on Exeter, Encounter and Pope were ordered to make all speed for a nearby rain squall, in an attempt to shake off pursuit; wracked by gunfire, Exeter was brought to a standstill, and the destroyer Inazuma closed in for a torpedo attack, hitting Exeter with two torpedoes on her starboard side. Exeter sank at 11:40, approximately 90 mi (78 nmi; 140 km) north-west of Bawean Island, 60 miles from her captain's (Oliver Gordon) estimated sinking position.

The cruisers switched their attention to the fleeing destroyers; Encounter was quickly hit by 8 in (200 mm) shell fire and sunk, but Pope was able to reach the rain squall and was lost to sight.

The respite was short-lived, however; shortly after noon she was spotted by planes from the aircraft carrier Ryūjō, which was covering the Western Invasion Force; she was dive-bombed and sunk around 13:50.

There were just over 800 survivors altogether; these were picked up and imprisoned by the Japanese, 190 of them subsequently dying in captivity.

The Wrecks
The wrecks of HMS Exeter and HMS Encounter were discovered by a small group of dedicated explorers - who had been looking for the wreck for five years - in February 2007 several miles apart 90 miles north-west of Bawean Island, 60 miles from Exeter's captain's (Oliver Gordon) estimated sinking position, at a depth of approximately 60 m (200 ft). The remains of the wreck of USS Pope was discovered in late 2008, but was found to have already been heavily salvaged.

In November 2016, a diving expedition discovered that the wrecks of HMS Exeter and HMS Encounter were missing from the ocean floor. The Guardian newspaper subsequently reported that the wrecks of HMS Exeter, HMS Encounter, and part of HMS Electra, as well as the submarine USS Perch were missing and presumed illegally scavenged. Commenting on their removal, one of the men involved in their original discovery is stunned at the magnitude of the salvaging that appears to have taken place.





https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Battle_of_the_Java_Sea
 
Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
Other Events on 1 March


1734 – Launch of Spanish Nueva España 70 (launched 1 March 1734 at Quatzalcoalcos) - Sold 1752


1800 – Launch of Skelton Castle, an East Indiaman launched in 1800

Skelton Castle was an East Indiaman launched in 1800. She made three complete voyages to India for the British East India Company (EIC). She disappeared without a trace in December 1806 while on the outward-bound leg of her fourth voyage.



1804 HMS Weazle (16), Lt. William Layman (acting), driven ashore during a gale near Cabritta Point in Gibraltar Bay and wrecked.

HMS Weazel (1799) was a 16-gun brig-sloop launched in 1799 and purchased that year. She was wrecked on 1 March 1804 off Cabritta Point near Gibraltar with the loss of one man of her crew of 70


1805 – Launch of HMS Wolverine (or Wolverene) was a Royal Navy 18-gun Cruizer-class brig-sloop,

HMS Wolverine
(or Wolverene) was a Royal Navy 18-gun Cruizer-class brig-sloop, launched in 1805 at Topsham, near Exeter.[2]Early in her career she was involved in two fratricidal incidents, one involving a British frigate and then a newsworthy case in which she helped capture a British slave ship. She later captured a small naval vessel and several privateers, and took part in the invasion of Martinique, and during the War of 1812, in the attack on Baltimore. Wolverine was decommissioned in August or September 1815 and was sold on 15 February 1816.



1805 - HMS Redbridge (10), Act. Lt. Francis Blower Gibbs, foundered near Jamaica



1807 HMS Hirondelle (16), Lt Skinner, and boats of HMS Glatton (56), Cptn. Thomas Seccombe, cut out a Turkish corvette (10) from the port of Sigri.

HMS Hirondelle
was the French privateer Hirondelle that Bittern captured in 1804. The Royal Navy took her into service under her existing name. She captured a number of vessels in the Mediterranean and participated in one notable action against a Turkish vessel. She was wrecked in 1808 with the loss of almost her entire crew.



1810 – Launch of Fanny was a merchant ship built on the River Thames,

Fanny was a merchant ship built on the River Thames, England in 1810. She was a West Indiaman but made one voyage transporting convicts from England to Australia. On her return she reverted to trading with the West Indies. She was last listed in 1822.



1825 Kent – in the Bay of Biscay, the Honourable East India Company ship caught fire, exploded, and sank. Of those aboard 547 were rescued; 81 were lost.

The Kent was an East Indiaman, a vessel sailing for the British East India Company, and launched in 1820. She completed two voyages to Bombay and China for the Company and was on her third voyage, to Bengal and China, when a fire in the Bay of Biscay destroyed her. Her captain for all three voyages was Henry Cobb.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kent_(1820_EIC_ship)


1862 – Launch of French Armorique, 22, launched 1 March 1862 at Lorient, Sail frigates converted to steam on the stocks while building

Psyché class
(40-gun type, 1842 design by Mathurin-François Boucher, with 22 x 30-pounder guns, 14 x 30-pounder carronades and 4 x 30-pounder shell guns):
Psyché, (launched 28 September 1844 at Brest) – deleted 15 July 1867.
Clorinde, (launched 19 August 1845 at Cherbourg) – fitted as steam frigate 1857; deleted 26 January 1888.
Isis, (launched 29 July 1851 at Brest) – deleted 12 November 1886.
Armorique, (launched 1 March 1862 at Lorient as a steam frigate) – deleted 8 November 1884.

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1870 – Launch of HMS Iron Duke was the last of four Audacious-class central battery ironclads

HMS Iron Duke
was the last of four Audacious-class central battery ironclads built for the Royal Navy in the late 1860s. Completed in 1871, the ship was briefly assigned to the Reserve Fleet as a guardship in Ireland, before she was sent out to the China Stationas its flagship. Iron Duke returned four years later and resumed her duties as a guardship. She accidentally rammed and sank her sister ship, Vanguard, in a heavy fog in mid-1875 and returned to the Far East in 1878. The ship ran aground twice during this deployment and returned home in 1883. After a lengthy refit, Iron Duke was assigned to the Channel Fleet in 1885 and remained there until she again became a guardship in 1890. The ship was converted into a coal hulk a decade later and continued in that role until 1906 when she was sold for scrap and broken up.

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Iron_Duke_(1870)


1900 - Launch of HMS Mutine was a Condor-class sloop of the Royal Navy.

HMS Mutine
was a Condor-class sloop of the Royal Navy. Mutine was launched on 1 March 1900. While being delivered from Birkenhead to Portsmouth an accident in Mutine's boiler rooms caused some loss of life and gave her a name as an unlucky ship before her career even began. She served on the China Station, then the Australia Station between December 1903 and February 1905 and later became a survey ship, surviving until 1932 as a Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve drill ship, the last of her class to be sold.

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1942 - Naval Reserve pilot Ensign William Tepuni, flying a Lockheed Hudson reconnaissance, light bombing and transport aircraft (PBO) from VP-82 Squadron based at Naval Air Station Argentia, Newfoundland, Canada, attacks and sinks German submarine U 656 southwest of Newfoundland. It is the first U-boat sunk by U.S. forces in World War II.



1942 Rooseboom – On 1 March 1942, while transporting evacuees from the Fall of Malaya and Singapore, the Dutch troopship was torpedoed and sunk by the Japanese submarine I-159 west of Sumatra while steaming from Padang in the Dutch East Indies to Colombo in Ceylon.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malayan_Campaign


1944 - Sakito Maru (崎戸丸) was a 7,126-ton Japanese troop transport during World War II, which sank on 1 March 1944 with great loss of life.

Sakito Maru (崎戸丸) was a 7,126-ton Japanese troop transport during World War II, which sank on 1 March 1944 with great loss of life.

Sakito Maru was built in 1939 by the Mitsubishi Zosen Kaisha in Nagasaki for the Nippon Yusen shipping company.

On 29 February 1944, Sakito Maru was carrying the Japanese 18th Infantry Regiment. as part of convoy MATSU-01 which transported the 29th Infantry Division of the Kwantung Army from Manchuria to Guam. Matsu No. 1 consisted of four large transports escorted by three Yūgumo-class destroyers of Destroyer Division 31: Asashimo, Kishinami, and Okinami.

The convoy was attacked by the American submarine USS Trout about 625 miles east of Taiwan. The submarine badly damaged the large passenger-cargo Aki Maru and sank Sakito Maru. Sakito Maru was hit around 17:56 by two torpedoes and caught fire. She sank at 04:00 killing 2,358 soldiers, 65 ship's gunners and 52 crewmen of the 3,500 men on board. Also lost were several light tanks and most of the regiment's equipment.

Asashimo detected the submarine USS Trout and dropped 19 depth charges. Oil and debris came to the surface and the destroyer dropped a final depth charge on that spot, sinking the American submarine at the position 22°40′N 131°45′E



1958 Üsküdar – A small passenger ferry sank due to heavy lodos weather in the Gulf of İzmit on 1 March 1958. 272 passengers including seven crew died; 39 people survived.

SS Üsküdar was a small passenger ferry built in Germany for the Turkish company Şirket-i Hayriye and launched in 1927. She sank in lodos weather on March 1, 1958 in the Gulf of Izmit. The accident killed 272 people on board including seven crew, 39 survived the incident.

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Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
2 March 1740 - Birth of Nicholas Pocock, british naval painter


Nicholas Pocock
(2 March 1740 – 9 March 1821) was a British artist known for his many detailed paintings of naval battles during the age of sail.
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Birth and early career at sea
Pocock was born in Bristol in 1740, the son of a seaman. He followed his father's profession and was master of a merchant ship by the age of 26. During his time at sea, he became a skilled artist by making ink and wash sketches of ships and coastal scenes for his log books.

To Captain Sir H.B. Neale Bart, of His Majesty's Ship St Fiorenzo the Honble Captain Herbert of the Amelia... This Print representing their Engagement with Three French Frigates & a Gun Vessel aided by a Battery on the Shore, close in with Belleisle April 9th 1799... inscribed by Nicholas Pocock (Print) (PAH7963)

Painting career
In 1778, Pocock's employer, Richard Champion, became financially insolvent due to the effects of the American Revolutionary War on transatlantic trade. As a result, Pocock gave up the sea and devoted himself to painting. The first of his works were exhibited by the Royal Academy in 1782.

Later that year, Pocock was commissioned to produce a series of paintings illustrating George Rodney's victory at the Battle of the Saintes. In 1789, he moved to London, where his reputation and contacts continued to grow. He was a favourite of Samuel Hood and was appointed Marine Painter to King George.

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Pocock's bird's-eye-view painting of the Battle of Copenhagen (1801)

Pocock's naval paintings incorporated extensive research, including interviewing eyewitnesses about weather and wind conditions as well as the positions, condition, and appearance of their ships; and drawing detailed plans of the battle and preliminary sketches of individual ships. He was also present himself at the Glorious First of June in 1794, on board the frigate HMS Pegasus.

In addition to his large-scale oil paintings depicting naval battles, Pocock also produced many watercolours of coastal and ship scenes.

Family
Pocock married Ann Evans of Bristol in 1780; together they had eight children. Two of his grandsons, Alfred Downing Fripp and George Arthur Fripp, were also artists.

Death

His wall memorial in Holy Trinity Church, Cookham (left), beside those of his daughter in law Frances Ashwell (top right) and his son George (bottom right).

He died on 9 March 1821 at the home of his oldest son, Isaac, in Raymead in the parish of Cookham, near Maidenhead, and is buried in the parish church there.

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A composite picture showing five of the ships in which Nelson served as a captain and flag officer from the start of the French Wars in 1793 to his death in 1805. The artist has depicted them drying sails in a calm at Spithead, Portsmouth, and despite the traditional title, two of them were not strictly flagships. The ship on the left in bow view is the 'Agamemnon', 64 guns. It was Nelson's favourite ship, which he commanded as a captain from 1793. Broadside on is the 'Vanguard', 74 guns, his flagship at the Battle of the Nile in 1798 flying a white ensign and his blue flag as Rear-Admiral of the Blue at the mizzen. Stern on is the 'Elephant', 74 guns, his temporary flagship at the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801. She is flying the blue ensign from the stern and Nelson's flag as Vice-Admiral of the Blue at her foremast. In the centre distance is the 'Captain', 74 guns, in which Nelson flew a commodore's broad pendant at the Battle of St Vincent, 1797. Dominating the right foreground is the 'Victory', 100 guns, shown in her original state, with open stern galleries, and not as she was at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. She is shown at anchor flying the flag of Vice-Admiral of the White, Nelson's Trafalgar rank, and firing a salute to starboard as an admiral's barge is rowed alongside, amidst other small craft. The painting is one of a series of six paintings created for a two-volume 'Life of Nelson', begun shortly after Nelson's death in 1805 by Clarke and McArthur and published in 1809. They were engraved by James Fittler and reproduced in the biography with lengthy explanatory texts. The artist placed considerable importance on accuracy, referring to his annotated drawings and sketch plans in the production of his oil paintings. Pocock was born and brought up in Bristol, went to sea at the age of 17 and rose to command several merchant ships. Although he only took up painting as a profession in his early forties, he became extremely successful, receiving commissions from naval commanders anxious to have accurate portrayals of actions and ships. By the age of 80, Pocock had recorded nearly 40 years of maritime history, demonstrating a meticulous understanding of shipping and rigging with close attention to detail.

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To Captain Sir H.B. Neale Bart, of His Majesty's Ship St Fiorenzo the Honble Captain Herbert of the Amelia... This Print representing their Engagement with Three French Frigates & a Gun Vessel aided by a Battery on the Shore, close in with Belleisle April 9th 1799... inscribed by Nicholas Pocock (Print) (PAH7963)

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This is either a rough study by Nicholas Pocock for PAF5876 or a copy from it. The style suggests that the latter is more likely and that the artist is probably Pocock's son and pupil, William Innes Pocock (1783 -1836). He joined the Navy from 1795 and became a lieutenant in 1811, but was also a good marine artist who both exhibited and had some work published. Exhibited: NMM Pocock exhib. (1975) no. 49. [PvdM 10/08]


 
Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
2 March 1760 - HMS Tartar's Prize (28), Cptn. Thomas Baillie, wrecked in the Mediterranean.


HMS Tartar's Prize
was a 24-gun sixth-rate of the Royal Navy, which saw active service between 1756 and 1760, during the Seven Years' War.

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Originally the French privateer La Marie Victoire, she was captured by HMS Tartar in 1757 and refitted as a privateer hunter. In this role she secured a single victory at sea with the capture of the French vessel La Marquise de Chateaunois. A flimsily built vessel, Tartar's Prize sprang a leak and foundered off the coast of Sardinia in 1760.

Construction
The French privateer La Marie Victoire was constructed at the port of Le Havre in 1756. As built, the vessel was 117 ft 3 in (35.7 m) long with a 99 ft 5.5 in (30.3 m) keel, a beam of 28 ft 4 in (8.6 m) and a hold depth of 13 ft 3 in (4.0 m). Her armament as a privateer was 26 guns; when fitted out in 1757 as Tartar's Prize she carried 20 six-pounder cannons along her upper deck, and four nine-pounder guns on the quarterdeck. Her designated Royal Navy complement was 160 officers and ratings.

Active service

Thomas Baillie, captain of Tartar's Prize during her three years in the Royal Navy.

La Marie Victoire was put to sea in 1756, in the early stages of the Seven Years' War, to hunt British merchant ships returning home through the English Channel. She had no recorded victories; on 27 March 1756 she encountered the 28-gun sixth-rate frigate HMS Tartar and was quickly overwhelmed. A British prize crew sailed her to Portsmouth where she was purchased by the Admiralty on 29 April for a sum of £4,258 (equivalent to £622,098 in 2018). This purchase price caused dissent among Tartar's crew as Portsmouth's merchants had made a counter-offer of more than £5,000, the acceptance of which would have increased the prize money. Perhaps with an eye to their future careers, Tartar's officers accepted the Admiralty's lower offer but requested indemnification against any legal action brought by the crew for loss of earnings.

The newly purchased vessel was immediately commissioned for Royal Navy service as a sixth-rate under the name Tartar's Prize. Commander Thomas Baillie of Tartar was promoted to post-captain and transferred to take command. A survey of the vessel quickly revealed difficulties with her armament. One of the six-pounder cannons had burst during the March engagement with Tartar, and an examination of the others revealed that most were very poorly made. They were also too large; the gun barrels were 8 feet 2 inches (2.5 m) long in a gundeck measuring only 9 feet 0 inches (2.7 m) on each side, leaving insufficient room for the crew to reload when the guns had recoiled after firing. Baillie wrote to the Board of Ordnance protesting the uselessness of these oversized cannon, and was eventually rewarded with replacement six-pounders of a more standard length. He was less successful with a further problem aboard the vessel; the gun ports had no lids, leaving the gundeck constantly awash in heavy swell. Despite requests these were not installed, leaving the crew to rig canvas awnings over the open ports in order to reduce the flow of seawater into the hull.

Provisioned and manned by July, the vessel was returned to the English Channel to assist in safe convoy for a fleet of West Indiamen, and then in company with Tartar to hunt privateers. She had her first and only victory within weeks of leaving port, capturing the French vessel La Marquise de Chateaunois on 17 July. Despite this victory Tartar's Prizewas experiencing considerable difficulty with her long, sleek design, which increased her speed but made her unwieldy and liable to roll in heavy weather. In August Baillie was forced to make port in Spanish Corunna so that he could restow the cargo and take on ballast to stabilise the ship. He returned Tartar's Prize to sea in September, where she promptly sprang a leak and started taking on 18 inches of water each hour. Forced back into port for repairs, Baillie wrote to Admiralty requesting stronger decking and timbers so that the hull would not keep opening up at the seams.

A different issue had arisen in the galley, which had been built to provision the small crew of a French privateer and could not cater for the Royal Navy's larger complement of 160 men. The ship's cook, Bartholomew Barry, complained that the galley's two fireplaces were in constant operation but they had no external vents, leading to a "smokiness which in truth is so great that no man living can stand it." There were no stoves, and all cooking had to be done in kettles suspended from cables over the fires. Barry reported that these kettles regularly burned through their supports and fell onto the deck, scalding the crew. There is no record of Admiralty's responses to these concerns. In October Baillie received orders assigning Tartar's Prize to the Navy's Mediterranean squadron, with which she was present at the Battle of Lagos in 1759.

On 2 March 1760 one of the vessel's hull timbers entirely gave way and she foundered off the Sardinian coast. Baillie and his crew successfully abandoned ship, were rescued by a passing Dutch merchantman and returned to England. The Admiralty apportioned no blame to any person for the loss of the vessel, but Captain Baillie was not assigned another seagoing command. Through personal connections he was awarded a shore-based position at London's Greenwich Hospital and later at the Board of Ordnance; never promoted beyond post-captain, he died in 1802.

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HMS Tartar frigate; model; Hamburg Maritime Museum



 
Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
2 March 1800 - HMS Nereide (38), Cptn. Frederick Watkins, captured privateer Vengeance (16)


Néréide was a Sybille class 32-gun, copper-hulled, frigate of the French Navy. On 22 December 1797 Phoebe captured her and she was taken into British service as HMS Nereide. The French recaptured her at the Battle of Grand Port, only to lose her again when the British took Isle de France (now Mauritius), in 1810. After the Battle of Grand Port she was in such a poor condition that she was laid up and sold for breaking up in 1816.

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Capture of Néréide by HMS Phoebe, on 20 December 1797, Thomas Whitcombe, 1816, in the National Maritime Museum

French service
On 6 June 1780, along with Zodiaque (74 guns), she captured a British privateer, the 10-gun cutter Prince of Wales off Madeira. She was part of the fleet of Lamotte-Picquet that sailed from Brest and on 2 May 1781 captured 18 ships in a convoy from Sint Eustatius. In 1782 she served in the Caribbean under Vaudreuil.

From 1788, she served off Africa. She then underwent a refit in Rochefort in October 1794.

On 20 December 1797 she was sailing off the Isles of Scilly under the command of Lieutenant de Vaisseau Chassériau when she encountered Phoebe. After exchanging broadsides with Phoebe for about an hour and a half, Néréide struck. She had suffered 20 killed and 55 wounded; Phoebe had suffered three men killed and 10 wounded. Although the French vessel had a larger crew, she had a substantially lighter broadside (12-pdrs versus 18-pdrs) and this proved decisive. She entered into British service as HMS Nereide.

British service
In the morning of 1 March 1800, Nereide saw five sail and made towards them. They were five well-armed French privateers, but they scattered as she approached. Nereide lost sight of them until the next morning when she re-encountered one. After a pursuit of 12 hours and 123 miles, Nereide captured the French privateer Vengeance, pierced for 18 guns but carrying sixteen 12-pounders and 174 men. Vengeance had left Bordeaux on 26 February and then had joined Bellona (twenty-four 12-pounder guns, six 36-pounder carronades, and 420 men), Favorite (sixteen 8-pounder guns and 120 men), Huron (sixteen 6-pounder guns and 187 men), and the schooner Terrailluse (fourteen 6-pounder guns and 80 men).

The next day (3 March), Nereide recaptured the American ship Perseverance, of Baltimore, which was carrying a cargo valued at £30,000. Then on 17 March Nereide recaptured Lord Nelson.

Nereide, Phoebe, and Kangaroo shared in the proceeds of the capture, on 5 June of the Eagle.

On 11 September Watkins sailed to Curaçao to forestall the French from taking it. Then on 13 September he took possession and signed the terms of capitulation on behalf of the British.

On 25 November 1806 Nereide was under the command of Captain Robert Corbett when she captured Brilliante, a Spanish privateer lugger of four guns with a crew of 50. She was two days out of Vigo and provisioned for a cruise of four months. Corbett was particularly pleased at the capture as she had not yet captured anything, but there were several sail in sight when Nereidecommenced her pursuit.

On 15 July 1808 Nereide, Otter, and Charwell shared in the capture of the French brig Lucie, and her cargo of slaves. In December Nereide captured the French brig Gobe Mouche after a chase on the morning of the 18th. She was pierced for 12 guns but had thrown most overboard during the chase. She was under the command of Enseigne de vaisseau provisoir Sugor, and was sailing from the Seychelles to Port Louis with dispatches. She threw them overboard, but Nereide's boat crew was able to retrieve a considerable part of them. Gobe Mouche had a complement of 80 men, but had only 30 on board when captured as she had had to man a number of prizes on her previous cruise.

In 1809, Nereide served as convoy escort. In September, still under the command of Corbett, she played a critical part in the Raid on Saint Paul at Île Bourbon (now Réunion). There Nereide and the landing party captured the frigate Caroline, and recovered the East Indiamen Streatham and Europa, and the 14-gun Bombay Marine brig Grappler. The British also captured some merchant vessels and destroyed several forts and batteries.

In 1810 Nereide came under the command of Captain William Gordon, and then Captain Nesbit Josiah Willoughby.

In March 1810, Nereide joined Iphigenia, Leopard and Magicienne off Isle de France. On 1 May Nereide sent in her boats, under Willoughby's personal command, into the bay at Jacotet (or Jacotel). They captured the 4-gun packet schooner Estafette, spiked the guns of two forts, and two field pieces, captured several prisoners, and destroyed some buildings. On board Estafette the British also found 600 pieces of mail that provided an insight into the state of the French colony. Nereide had one man killed and seven wounded. In 1847 the Admiralty issued the Naval General Service Medal with clasp "1 May Boat Service 1810" to all surviving claimants from the action.

Then on 2 June, Nereide intercepted and captured near the Cape the 1-gun schooner-aviso Mouche No. 23, which had come out from France. On 30 August, Astrée recaptured Mouche No.23.

Next, Willoughby and Nereide were at the invasion of Île Bonaparte, which took place between 7 and 9 July. Willoughby led the amphibious assault in Estafette to secure the beach and organise the landing forces. However, as Estafette approached the beach the wind strengthened and built up a powerful surf, which smashed the schooner ashore with enough force to break her and the accompanying boats apart: four of the 150-strong landing party were drowned.

Recapture

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HMS Nereide at the Battle of Grand Port

Nereide was under the command of Captain Willoughby when she took part in the Battle of Grand Port on 28 August 1810. There she was severely battered and eventually captured.

The French took Nereide into service but it is not clear that she had any officers or crew. The British captured her in December 1810 after their successful invasion of Isle de France on 4 December 1810. All her former British officers and crew were in prison ships at Grand Port and qualified for the prize money that followed the capture of the island.

Fate
Nereide was in such a bad shape that she was laid up. She was sold at Port Louis on 1 March 1816 for breaking up.

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Episodes Maritimes. Combat du Grand Port (Ile de France). Les Fregates la Bellonne La Minerve et le Vaisseau de la Compagnie le Ceylan... combattent une Division Anglaise composee... le Syrius la Nereide L'Iphigenie et la Magicienne 23-25 Aout 1810 (Print) (PAH8086)



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_frigate_Néréide_(1779)
 
Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
2 March 1801 - HMS Cobourg / His Majesty's hired armed vessel Marechal de Cobourg (16), Lt. Wright, captured French privateer lugger Bienvenue (14) and retook two of her prizes.


His Majesty's hired armed vessel Marechal de Cobourg served the British Royal Navy under contract during the French Revolutionary Wars. Contemporary records also referred to her as Marshall de Cobourg, Marshall Cobourg, Marshall Cobourg, Marquis Cobourg, Marquis de Cobourg, Cobourg, Coborg, and Saxe Cobourg. Further adding to the difficulty in tracking her through the records, is that although she was originally a cutter, later the Navy converted her to a brig.

Her contract ran from 16 October 1794 to 2 November 1801. As a cutter she had a burthen of 20268⁄94 tons (bm), and carried twelve 4-pounder guns. As a brig she had a burthen of 210 tons, was armed with 16 guns, and had a crew of 60 men.

similar vessel of same time
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Painting of Commander John Crispo (1773-1841) in the uniform of a Commander of the Royal Navy, pointing to his vessel, His Majesty's hired armed cutter Telemachus

Service
In March—April 1795, Saxe Coburg was part of a squadron under the command of Commodore John Willett Payne, who had hoisted his pennant in Jupiter, Captain William Lechmerecommanding.[Note 1] The squadron's task was to escort George, Prince of Wales's official wife, Caroline of Brunswick to Britain. Princess Caroline left from Cuxhaven on 28 March 1795 in Jupiter and, delayed by poor weather, landed at Greenwich on 5 April.

Marshall de Cobourg was under the command of Lieutenant Charles Webb on 12 December 1796 when she captured the French privateer lugger Espoir off Dungeness. Espoir was armed with two guns and had a crew of 18 men.[Note 2]

Marechall de Cobourg recaptured Anson, of Wells, on 21 September.

At some point before October 1797, Marshall de Cobourg recaptured the ship Watts, of Mary Port, and the brig Blackest and Ridley, of North Shields.[8] Webb and Marechal de Cobourg also recaptured the ship William, of Whitby, and the brig Eliza, of Sunderland.


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ancre - monographie - lugger Coureur

At 7.a.m. on 25 February 1798 Cobourg, still under Webb's command, encountered a French privateer lugger at about 16 leagues from Cromer. A nine-hour chase ensued, including two hours of close combat. The lugger twice attempted to board but Coburg repulsed her, before a broadside brought down the lugger's main and mizzen masts, and took away her fore yard; at that point the lugger struck. She turned out to be Revanche, of 16 guns and 62 men, and she had lost seven men killed and eight wounded; Coburg had only two men lightly wounded. Webb just succeeded in evacuating all the prisoners and getting his own boarding party back, when Revanche sank, having taken more than 40 shots between wind and water. She was an entirely new vessel, the largest to have sailed out of Calais, and was six days into a one-month cruise, but had taken nothing.[Note 3][Note 4]

Lord Spencer appointed Lieutenant Terence O'Neill commander of Marechal de Cobourg on 30 April 1798. At that time she was a brig.

Between 2 and 6 May 1798, Coburg (still described in prize money notices as a cutter), captured Werf Lust, Eendragt, Verwagting, Hoop, Jonge Paulus, and Jonge Adriana, which were Dutch fishing vessels.

On 14 September Marshall de Cobourg captured Mentor. Also in September Ranger and Cobourg captured Neptunus.

On 18 January 1799 Admiral Lord Viscount Duncan sent O'Neill and Marshall de Cobourg to cruise off the Texel. On 1 February, north of the Texel, Marshall de Cobourg sighted a cutter sailing towards them. The cutter's movements and signals suggested an enemy vessel, so O'Neill executed several deceptions to decoy her closer. When she came close enough Marshall de Cobourg fired a few shots and the cutter struck. The British took possession of the cutter and found that she was the Dutch privateer Flushinger, armed with four 2-pounder guns, and having a crew of 28 men under the command of Mynheer Van C. G. Hamendel. She was three days out of Helvoet, and had not captured anything. Marshall de Cobourg then returned to Yarmouth, but had to sail on to the Nore to replenish her ordnance stores.

O'Neill frequently carried messages from Duncan to the Dutch authorities at the Texel and earned their. On one occasion, when supplies on Cobourg were running low, the Dutch commodore, Commodore Capelle, sent O'Neill an abundant supply of provisions with a warm note.

The British and Dutch came to an agreement in autumn 1799 that they would, within certain limits, permit each other's fishermen to fish without interference. Therefore, on 25 March 1800 Admiral Lord Viscount Duncan wrote a letter to Admiral de Winter concerning a British fisherman's complaint that a Dutch privateer had chased him, and dispatched O'Neill and Cobourg to deliver the letter. de Winter replied that the privateer had been French, and so beyond his control.

On 25 April 1800 O'Neill received an appointment to Tromp as master and commander. (O'Neill sailed Tromp to the West Indies but on arrival had to give up command due to there being an officer there who had also been appointed to command her.)

There is evidence that Lieutenant James Watson commanded the cutter Saxe Cobourg in the North Sea from some point in 1800 until he received promotion to Commander in January 1801. Earlier, he had commanded the gun-brig Mastiff.

A few days after O'Neill's promotion, on 4 and 5 May, Coburg was among the vessels that captured 12 outward-bound Greenland ships. The other vessels included the hired armed cutter Fox, Jalouse, and Cruizer, though most were much larger and included Monmouth, Glatton, Ganges, Director, and America, among others.

The hired cutters Rose and Cobourg shared the proceeds of the capture on 11 July of Kleine Charlotte.

On 2 March 1801, observers on shore in Southwold Bay observed a French vessel of 12 to 14 guns and 50 to 60 men working her way towards some coasters, and capturing a sloop. The Sea Fencibles were alerted, as was a detachment of dragoons, and a local shore battery fired a number of shots. The shots both drove off the privateer, and alerted other vessels in the area. Among the vessel the shots alerted were Cobourg and the hired lugger Speculator.

At nine o'clock in the evening the "Hired Brig Cobourg" was a few miles off the land and under the command of Lieutenant Mayson Wright when she captured the French privateer lugger Bienvenu (or Bien Venu), of Calais. She was armed with 14 carriage guns and was two days out of Calais. She had a crew of 80 men.

At the time of her capture two of her prizes were in sight and Wright hoped to recapture them. As it happened, Speculator succeeded in recapturing the sloop Adventure, which Bienvenu had captured.

Jalouse and Marshal de Cobourg captured several Dutch vessels on 22 and 23 July:

Negotie and Zeeward (22 July)Hoop (same)Jusfrouw Dirkje (23 July)
Coborg, Kite, and Espeigle shared in the proceeds of the capture on 3 October of Juffrow Catharine.

Three days later Cobourg captured the fishing vessel Jonge Jan. Kite shared by agreement with Cobourg in the proceeds.

Notes
  1. ^ The database of the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, confirms that Saxe Coburg was actually Marshal de Cobourg, and part of the squadron.
  2. ^ Espoir was a 40-ton ("of load") lugger commissioned in Boulogne in May 1793 under Pierre-Louis-Nicolas Hardouin with 8 swivel guns and 6 smaller pieces (swivel-mounted, large caliber blunderbusses), and a crew of 37 men. She was under Jean-Pierre-Antoine Duchenne from October to November 1795, and under Pierre-Antoine-Joseph Sauvage, with 20 men and 2 guns, when Coburg captured her.
  3. ^ Lloyd's List reported that the privateer was reported to have captured a vessel sailing from Liverpool to Bremen.
  4. ^ Revanche was commissioned in January 1798. She was laid down in November 1797 and planned to be launched in December. She was 62 feet long and 57 feet at the keel (French feet), and was pierced for 12 guns. At the time of her commissioning under Jean Hedde she reportedly carried six 6-pounders and had a crew of 55 men. The discrepancy between the number of guns per French records and the number per her captors is an open issue. It may represent simply a discrepancy in the enumeration of swivel guns.


A typical lugger, smaller than the captured one, is shown in detail in the monographie of Jean Boudriot and Hubert Berti, published by ancre

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Attachments

Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
2 March 1805 – Launch of HMS Otter, a Royal Navy 16-gun Merlin-class ship sloop


HMS Otter
was a Royal Navy 16-gun Merlin-class ship sloop, launched in 1805 at Hull. She participated in two notable actions in the Indian Ocean and was sold in 1828.

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Armament
When built, Otter mounted sixteen 32-pounder carronades and two 6-pounder long guns. Under the rating system of the time, she was officially rated at "16 guns". From 1815 she was re-rated to "18 guns", but continued to carry the same armament.

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Scale: 1:48. Plan showing the body plans, sheer lines with alterations to the forecastle, and longitudinal half-breadth for Wolf (1804), Martin (1805), Brisk (1805), Star (1805), Kangaroo (1805), Cygnet (1804), Ariel (1806), Helena (1804), Albacore (1804), Fly (1804), Kingfisher (1804), Otter (1805), Rose (1805), and Halifax (1806), all 16-gun Ship Sloops with quarterdeck and forecastles. These ships were to be built similar to the Merlin (1796) and the Pheasant (1798).

Service
Otter entered service in 1805 under Commander John Davies and was attached to the Channel Fleet. On 31 January 1807 Otterrecaptured Enterprize. Twenty days later, Otter was in company with Kangaroo and Clyde and so shared in the salvage money for the recapture of Farely.

Otter sailed for the Cape of Good Hope on 18 August 1807. From there she sailed to Montevideo to support the British attack on the Spanish colony. When he arrived Davies discovered that the British army had been defeated and surrendered. Davies then sailed to the Cape of Good Hope, where Commander Nesbit Willoughby took command of Otter.

On 24 February 1808 Otter sent into the Cape of Good Hope Harregaard, a Danish vessel coming from Bengal.

On 15 July 1808 Nereide, Otter, and Charwell shared in the capture of the French brig Lucie, and her cargo of slaves. Some months later, on 7 November, Leopard and Otter captured some slaves, for which they received bounty-money from the Honourable East India Company.

Otter was then attached to the squadron under Commodore Josias Rowley that was ordered to blockade the French colonies of Île Bonaparte and Île de France in the Indian Ocean. Otter raided anchorages on the islands. For instance, on 14 August 1809 her boats were in action at Riviere Noire, Île de France. Between 20 and 24 September she took part in the Raid on Saint Paul. Willoughby led the naval landing party that captured the harbour, for which he was promoted. Otter suffered one man killed and one man wounded.

After Willoughby's promotion, command initially passed to Lieutenant Edward Benge (acting). Command then passed to Commander James Tompkinson who remained in command throughout the campaign.

On 10 January 1810, Otter and Raisonable captured Charles. Then on 30 March Otter captured two vessels, Amazon and Gagne Petit. On 22 August Otter, Boadicea and Staunch shared in the capture of Garronne. On 4 September the same three vessels shared in the capture of the Ranger.

More importantly, Otter operated in a supporting role in the Action of 13 September 1810 and the Action of 18 September 1810, providing towlines to the battered British frigates Africaine and Ceylon. Tompkinson was promoted into Ceylon and command passed to Lieutenant Bertie Cator. He then moved to command the transport Anna during the Invasion of Île de France in December 1810.

Lieutenant Thomas Lamb Polden Laugharne (acting), immediately replaced Cator and then sailed Otter back to Britain with despatches of the campaign.

Nearly four decades later her service in the battle was among the actions recognised by the clasp "Otter 18 Sept. 1810" to the Naval General Service Medal, awarded upon application to all British participants still living in 1847.

Fate
Otter was fitted for ordinary at Plymouth in April 1811. She remained in ordinary at Plymouth through 1812 to 1813 and was then was fitted for quarantine service as a lazaretto for Pembroke between February and April 1814. The "Principal Officers and Commissioners of His Majesty's Navy" offered the "Otter sloop, of 365 tons", lying at Pembroke, for sale on 28 March 1828. She was sold to J. Holmes for £610.



The Merlin class was a class of twenty-one sloops of wooden construction built for the Royal Navy between 1743 and 1746. They were all built by contract with commercial builders to a common design prepared by Jacob Acworth, the Surveyor of the Navy; however, there was a difference, with a platform deck being constructed in the hold in Swallow (i), Merlin, Raven and Swallow (ii), whereas the other seventeen had no platform and thus their depth in hold was nearly twice as much.

Although initially armed with ten 6-pounder guns, this class was built with seven pairs of gunports on the upper deck, enabling them to be re-armed with fourteen 6-pounders later in their careers.

The first two – Swallow and Merlin – were ordered on 7 July 1743 to be built to replace two ex-Spanish vessels (the Galgo and Peregrine's Prize, both captured in 1742, and put into service by the British). Two more vessels to the same design were ordered on 30 March 1744; another two were ordered five days later, four more followed on 23 May and three others were ordered later that year.

On 5 April 1745 five more were ordered – including a second Falcon (named to replace the first, captured in the same year) and a second Swallow (similarly to replace the first, wrecked in 1744) – and a single extra vessel was ordered on 11 April. A final pair were ordered on 9 January 1746.



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Otter_(1805)
 
Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
2 March 1808 - HMS Sappho (18), George Langford, captures Danish privateer brig Admiral Yawl (28)


The Action of 2 March 1808 was a minor naval battle between the Royal Navy's 18-gun Cruizer-class brig-sloop HMS Sappho, and the 28-gun, Danish two-decker brig Admiral Yawl, during the Gunboat War. Sappho, under the command of Captain George Langford, discovered and chased Admiral Yawl, which was steering a course in order to cut off several merchant vessels to leeward. After a short engagement Sappho captured the Admiral Yawl, commanded by Jørgen Jørgensen.

Admiral Yawl appears in references under a variety of names including Admiral Yorol and Admiral Juul.

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HMS Sappho capturing the Danish brig Admiral Jawl, Oil on Canvas, 19th century.

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Action
On 2 March, Sappho was cruising off Scarborough when she discovered an armed brig that was steering a course as if intending to cut off several merchant vessels to leeward. Sappho gave chase and at about 1330 hours fired a shot over the brig, which was showing British colours. Substituting Danish for British colours, which she had previously hoisted to deceive Sappho, the Danish vessel responded by firing her broadside. Langford immediately bore down and brought what turned out to be the Admiral Yawl to close action. The engagement lasted about half an hour before Admiral Yawl struck her colours.

In the engagement, Sappho had one man wounded and one man injured. Admiral Yawl had two dead: her second officer and a seaman. As a result of the action, Langford received promotion to post-captain, and in 1847 the Admiralty issued the Naval general Service Medal with the clasp "Sappho 2 March 1808" to all surviving claimants from the action.

Sappho carried sixteen 32-pounder carronades and two 6-pounder guns, manned by a crew of 120 men and boys. Admiral Yawlwas a brig, but unusual in that she had her armament on two decks; on her first or lower deck, she had twelve 18-pounder carronades and on her second, or principal deck, she carried sixteen 6-pounder guns. Her crew consisted of 83 men and boys. The weight of the broadsides favored Sappho at 262 pounds versus 156 pounds for the Admiral Yawl, as did the relative size of the crews.

The Danish captain was the colourful and erratic adventurer Jørgen Jørgensen, who in 1801 had been a member of the crew, and perhaps second in command, of Lady Nelson. On Lady Nelson, he participated in at least one voyage of exploration along the coast of Australia. In his autobiography, he states that his father joined seven other merchants from Copenhagen jointly to purchase the Admiral Yawl and present it to the Crown in a spirit of reprisal against the British after the Battle of Copenhagen (1807). The Government commissioned, manned, and armed Admiral Yawl. Jorgenson reported that by cutting through the ice a month before it was expected that any vessel could get out, he was able to come unawares among the English traders and capture eight or nine ships before Sappho interrupted his cruise.


HMS Sappho was a Cruizer class brig-sloop built by Jabez Bailey at Ipswich and launched in 1806. She defeated the Danish brig Admiral Yawl in a single-ship action during the Gunboat War, and then had a notably successful two months of prize-taking in the first year of the War of 1812. She was wrecked in 1825 off the Canadian coast and then broken up in 1830.

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Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
2 March 1808 - HMS Cerberus (32), Cptn. W. Selby, HMS Circe (32), Cptn. Hugh Pigot, and HMS Camilla (20), Cptn. John Bowen, capture the Island of Marie Galante.


In early 1808 Captain Selby on HMS Cerberus was the commander of the blockading squadron covering Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe. He realized that the French privateers were using the batteries on Marie-Galante to shelter themselves and their prizes and decided to remedy the situation. He sent Pigot with 200 seamen and marines from Cerberus, Circe, and Camilla to capture the island. Pigot landed his force early on 2 March some two miles from Grand Bourg and the garrison duly capitulated. The British also captured a number of cannons and some small arms. In 1825 Ulysses shared in the prize money with the other three vessels.


HMS Cerberus was a 32-gun fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. Cerberus was launched in September 1794 by Henry Adams, of Bucklers Hard. She served in the French Revolutionary and the Napoleonic Wars in the Channel, the Mediterranean, the Adriatic, and even briefly in the Baltic against the Russians. She participated in one boat action that won for her crew a clasp to the Naval General Service Medal (NGSM). She also captured many privateers and merchant vessels. Her biggest battle was the Battle of Lissa, which won for her crew another clasp to the NGSM. She was sold in 1814.

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Lines (ZAZ2926)

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Scale 1:48. Plan showing the inboard profile for Pallas (1793), Stag (1793), Unicorn (1734),all 32-gun, Fifth Rate Frigates. The plan was later used in 1793 for Cerberus (1794) and in 1795 for Galatea (1794), Lively (1794), Alcemene (1794), Maidstone (1795), and Shannon (1796). The alterations in red relate to Maidstone and Shannon only.

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Scale 1:48. Plan showing the framing profile (disposition) for Pallas (1793), a 32-gun, Fifth Rate Frigate, building at Woolwich Dockyard and later copies sent to Chatham Dockyard for Stag (1793), Unicorn (1734), and later for Galatea (1794), Lively (1794), Alcemene (1794), and Cerberus (1794), all 32-gun, Fifth Rate Frigates.

Cerberus (or Alcmene) class 32-gun fifth rates 1794, designed by John Henslow.


HMS Camilla was a Royal Navy 20-gun Sphinx-class post ship. Camilla was built in Chatham Dockyard to a design by John Williams and was launched in 1776. She served in the American Revolution, the French Revolutionary Wars, and the Napoleonic Wars, before being sold in 1831.

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Scale: 1:48. Plan showing the body plan, sheer lines, and longitudinal half-breadth proposed for Galatea (1776), Daphne (1776) and Camilla (1776), all 20-gun Ship Sloops. The mast and yard dimensions are the same as for Sphinx (1775) [see ZAZ3917]. Signed by John Williams [Surveyor of the Navy, 1765-1784].

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Scale: 1:48. Plan showing the body plan with stern board decoration, sheer lines with inboard detail and figurehead, and longitudinal half-breadth for Camilla (1776), a 20-gun Sixth Rate Sloop as built at Chatham Dockyard.


The Sphinx-class sailing sixth rates were a series of ten post ships built to a 1773 design by John Williams. Although smaller than true frigates, post ships were often referred to incorrectly as frigates by sea officers, but not by the Admiralty or Navy Board.

The first vessel in the class was launched in 1775, six more in 1776, two in 1777 and the last in 1781. The vessels of the class served in the Royal Navy during the American Revolutionary War. Three of them - Sphinx and Ariel in September 1779, and Unicorn in September 1780 - were captured by the French Navy, but Sphinx was recovered in December 1779 and Unicorn in April 1781. Some survived to see service in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.

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Recruiting poster from 1778 for Camilla


HMS Circe was a Royal Navy 32-gun fifth-rate Thames-class frigate, built by Master Shipwright Joseph Tucker at Plymouth Dockyard, and launched in 1804.[2] She served in the Caribbean during the Napoleonic Wars, and participated in an action and a campaign for which in 1847 in the Admiralty authorised the issuance of the Naval General Service Medal with clasps. The action, off the Pearl Rock, near Saint-Pierre, Martinique, was a debacle that cost Circe dearly. However, she also had some success in capturing privateers and a French brig. She was sold in 1814.

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Circe (or Thames) class 32-gun fifth rates 1804-06; design modified from William Bately's Richmond class of 1757.



 
Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
2 March 1810 - Boats of HMS Cornwallis (54), Cptn. William Augustus Montagur, carried Margaritta Louisa (8) off the island of Amblaw


On 1 March HMS Cornwallis chased a Dutch man-of-war brig all day until she took refuge in a small bay on the north side of the island of Amblaw. The wind being light and variable, and night approaching, Montagu sent in Cornwallis's boats, under the command of Lieutenant Henry John Peachy. After rowing all night, they captured the Dutch brig Margaritta Louisa, under Captain De Ruyter on 2 March. Margaritta Louisa was pierced for 14 guns but carried only eight, and a crew of 40 men. Margaritta Louisa had left Surabaya nine days earlier with 20 to 30,000 dollars for Ambonya, and supplies for Ternate. In the boarding, the British had one man seriously wounded and four men lightly wounded; the Dutch lost one man killed and 20 wounded.


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"Ædes Hartwellianæ, or notices of the Mansion of Hartwell. (Addenda, etc.) [With plates.]" Author: SMYTH, William Henry - Rear Admiral Shelfmark: "British Library HMNTS 10348.k.22.", "British Library HMNTS 1261.c.6,7." Volume: 02 Page: 52 Place of Publishing: London Date of Publishing: 1851 Publisher: Privately printed Issuance: monographic Identifier: 003427531


HMS Cornwallis was a Royal Navy 54-gun fourth rate. Jemsatjee Bomanjee built the Marquis Cornwallis of teak for the Honourable East India Company (EIC) between 1800 and 1801. In March 1805 Admiral Sir Edward Pellew purchased her from the Company shortly after she returned from a voyage to Britain. She served in the Far East, sailing to Australia and the Pacific Coast of South America before returning to India. In February 1811 the Admiralty renamed her HMS Akbar. She captured forts and vessels in the Celebes and Amboyna, and participated in the invasion of Isle de France, and the 1811 invasion of Java. She also served in the West Indies before being laid up at Portsmouth in December 1816. She then stayed in Britain in a number of stationary medical and training capacities until the Admiralty sold her in the 1860s.

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Scale: 1:48. Plan showing the body plan, sheer lines with inboard detail and longitudinal half-breadth for Cornwallis (purchased 1805), a 50-gun Fifth Rate 'spar-decked' Frigate, as refitted from a storeship at Woolwich Dockyard. The plan records the ship under her later name of Akbar [Acbar], having been renamed in February 1811. Signed by Edward Sison [Master Shipwright, Woolwich Dockyard, 1801-1816].


 
Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
2 March 1811 – Argentine War of Independence:
A royalist fleet defeats a small flotilla of revolutionary ships in the Battle of San Nicolás on the River Plate.



The Battle of San Nicolás was a naval engagement on 2 March 1811 on the Paraná River between the Spanish royalists from Montevideo, and the first flotilla created by the revolutionary government of Buenos Aires. It was the first engagement between the two fleets in the River Plate region since the revolution, and a royalist victory.

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Background
On May 25, 1810 the River Plate colonies revolted against the Spanish Viceroy at the May Revolution in Buenos Aires, claiming the necessity of assuming local government due to the difficult situation in Spain, which was occupied by Napoleonic troops. The royalist authorities in Montevideo opposed the measure and declared a naval blockade of Buenos Aires. In the city of Montevideo, there was a navy base serving as port for the royal Spanish fleet in the South American Atlantic coast. The local Junta Grande(Buenos Aires' revolutionary government) decided to establish a fleet to contest the Spanish dominion of the local waters.

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Creation of the rebel fleet
The Junta Grande which took control of the government in Buenos Aires named Francisco de Gurruchaga, as secretary of the Navy. He immediately set to work to create a small naval fleet. With effort, Gurruchaga bought five vessels of different types from local owners, and equipped three of them with artillery, which had been taken for the most part out of service as obsolete. He obtained a schooner, a brigantine and a sloop, christened respectively "Invencible", "25 de Mayo" and "América".

Recruiting of the crew was another difficult endeavor, as the inhabitants of the pampas were not used to a sailor's life. The solution was to hire foreigners, who for the most part did not speak Spanish. The rank and file was filled with locals.

Command of the flotilla was given to a Maltese privateer, Lieutenant Colonel Juan Bautista Azopardo. This sailor had arrived in the River Plate at the beginning of the 19th century, and had participated in the British invasions of the Río de la Plata of 1806 and 1807. Azopardo commanded the "Invencible", seconded by Hipólito Bouchard on "25 de Mayo", and Ángel Hubac, on "América".

The first mission
At the beginning of 1811 the Junta Grande was immersed in armed conflicts in various fronts against counter-revolutionary (royalist) forces. A small army under the command of Manuel Belgrano had been sent to Paraguay to help the locals join the revolution, but after an initial victory at the Battle of Campichuelo, he was defeated at the Battle of Paraguaríand was forced to retreat. The Junta decided to respond to the reinforcement request from Belgrano, and tasked Azopardo with the transport by river of the reinforcement troops and artillery to Paraguay. The Maltese raised his flag in the "Invencible", while the Frenchman naturalized Argentine Hipólito Bouchard was put in charge of the brigantine "25 de Mayo". Lastly, the sloop "América" was put under the command of the Frenchman Abel Hubac.

The royalist authorities in Montevideo learned of these plans and detached a flotilla to intercept the rebels. The mission was given to Jacinto Romarate, an able officer, who could deploy seven small warships of superior quality, and firepower than his enemy's.

The Battle of San Nicolás

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Drawing of the battle of San Nicolás, after a sketch by Azopardo.

Azopardo's flotilla left Buenos Aires, going upriver on the Paraná. Arriving near San Nicolás they saw the royalists and Azopardo decided to do battle. The rebel commander order a battery of cannons were removed from the ships and installed on the coast, and that a regiment of sailors and militias made ready to fight from the river coast.

On March 2 they fought, when the royalist ships closed in the rebels. In the first encounter, two royalist brigantines ("Belén" and "Cisne") became groudned near the coast and were made targets for the coastal cannons and the rebel infantry. Nonetheless, Azopardo could not get to board them and the ships finally freed themselves and retreated.

After several hours the royalists tried a new attack, and shot at the "Invencible". The "América" was hit several times, with a gash opening on her prow, beginning to take on water, and had to be abandoned by the crew. The royalists then concentrated on the "25 de Mayo", which they tried to board; the poorly trained crew became panicked and abandoned ship jumping overboard, against the attempts of Bouchard to stop them.

The royalist vessels closed in on the "Invencible", which was by now fighting on her own, and boarded her. The crew fought valiantly for almost two hours until the situation became unsustainable. Azopardo tried to blow up the munitions depot, but the wounded begged him not to do it, so he was forced to surrender.

Consequences
The defeat caused the destruction of the rebel fleet and the taking control over the Rio de la Plata, Paraná and Uruguay rivers by the royalist fleet from Montevideo; which would last until 1813 with the creation of a new naval squadron and the victories of William Brown. In the short term, the reinforcements requested by general Belgrano did not arrive; few days after the battle at San Nicolás, Belgrano's army was attacked and defeated at the Battle of Tacuarí (March 9, 1811).

Juan Bautista Azopardo became a prisoner of the royalists and was taken to Ceuta, Spain. The revolutionary government in Buenos Aires, still started a judicial process in absentia to determine his involvement in the defeat. The report obtained recognized Azopardo's courage, but concluded he had demonstrated lack of experience in command and that he had allowed lack of discipline on his crew. The sentence given was the indefinite inhabilitation of command in the armed forces, establishing that he could only serve as a subordinateofficer.

Azopardo confronted while imprisoned in Spain charges of adhering to the revolutionary cause; and was condemned to death to later have his sentenced commuted. Finally in 1820, the liberal movement in Spain headed by general Rafael de Riego freed all political prisoners including Azopardo allowing him to return to South America. The following year, Buenos Aires rescinded his inabilitation order and allowed him to return to military life in the Argentine Navy.

The governing Junta communicated to the people the news of the defeat in a public proclamation on 4 March 1811.


 
Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
2 March 1825 – Roberto Cofresí, one of the last successful Caribbean pirates, is defeated in combat and captured by authorities with the Capture of the sloop Anne


The Capture of the sloop Anne was the result of a naval campaign carried out by an alliance between the Spanish Empire forces in Puerto Rico, the Danish government in Saint Thomas and the United States Navy. The powers pursued Roberto Cofresí's pirateflotilla in March 1825 because of the economic losses suffered by the parties to the pirates, as well as diplomatic concerns caused by their use of the flags of Spain and Gran Colombia which menaced the fragile peace between the naval powers. Several of those involved had been attacked by the freebooters. Among the diplomatic concerns caused by Cofresí was a robbery carried out by several of his subordinates, the catalyst of an incident that threatened war between Spain and the United States known as "The Foxardo Affair", eventually leading to the resignation of his rival, pirate hunter David Porter.

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Una Goleta de Guerra Persigue un Barco Pirata, the artwork used to depict the event in Paul G. Miller's Historia de Puerto Rico (1922).

Sailing under the authorization of the Danish West Indies, the coalition employed two local ships, including a former victim of the pirates named San José y las Animas and USS Grampus of the West Indies Squadron. A ship from Gran Colombia, named La Invencible, also provided support during the initial stages. The final naval engagement took place on March 2, 1825 and began with a trap set at Boca del Infierno, a passage off Jobos Bay, Puerto Rico. The flagship of Cofresí's flotilla, the sloop Anne(otherwise known as Ana), was baited by the set up. Surprised and outnumbered, the pirates abandoned the ship and escaped to shore, where they were captured by Puerto Rican authorities and placed on military trial. With the execution of Cofresí, the West Indies Anti-Piracy Operations were considered a success and he came to be known as "the last of the West India pirates".


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Roberto Cofresí y Ramírez de Arellano (June 17, 1791 – March 29, 1825), better known as El Pirata Cofresí, was a pirate from Puerto Rico. Despite his birth into a noble family, the political and economic difficulties faced by the island as a colony of the Spanish Empire during the late 18th and early 19th centuries meant that his household was poor. Cofresí worked at sea from an early age; although this familiarized him with the region's geography, it provided only a modest salary. He eventually decided to abandon a sailor's life, becoming a pirate. Despite previous links to land-based criminal activities, the reason for Cofresí's change of vocation is unknown; historians speculate that he may have worked as a privateer aboard El Scipión, a ship owned by one of his cousins.

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Monument of Roberto Cofresí located in Boquerón Bay.

At the height of his career, he evaded capture by vessels from Spain, Gran Colombia, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Denmark, France, and the United States. Cofresí commanded several small-draft vessels, the best known a fast six-gun sloop named Anne, and demonstrated a preference for speed and maneuverability over firepower. He manned them with small, rotating crews, which most contemporary documents and accounts numbered at 10 to 20 in size. Cofresí preferred to outrun his pursuers but his flotilla engaged the West Indies Squadron twice, attacking the schooners USS Grampus and USS Beagle. Although most crew members were recruited locally, men from the other Antilles, Central America and expatriate Europeans occasionally joined the pirates. Despite never confessing to a murder, he reportedly boasted about his crimes; the number of people who died as a result of his pillaging ranged from 300 to 400, mostly foreigners. Cofresí proved too much for local authorities who, unable to contain him themselves, accepted international help to capture the pirate; Spain created an alliance with the West Indies Squadron and the Danish government of Saint Thomas.

On March 5, 1825, the alliance set a trap which forced Anne into a naval battle. After 45 minutes, Cofresí abandoned his ship and escaped overland; he was recognized by a local resident, who ambushed and injured him. Cofresí was captured and imprisoned, making a last unsuccessful attempt to escape by trying to bribe an official with part of a hidden stash. The pirates were sent to San Juan, Puerto Rico, where a brief military tribunal found them guilty and sentenced them to death.
On March 29, 1825, Cofresí and most of his crew were executed by firing squad. The pirate inspired stories and myths after his death, most emphasizing a Robin Hood-like "steal from the rich, give to the poor" philosophy which became associated with him. In poetry and oral tradition this portrayal has evolved into legend, commonly accepted as fact in Puerto Rico and throughout the West Indies. A subset of these claims that Cofresí became part of the Puerto Rican independence movement and other secessionist initiatives, including Simón Bolívar's campaign against Spain. Historic and mythical accounts of his life have inspired songs, poems, plays, books and films. In Puerto Rico caves, beaches and other alleged hideouts or locations of buried treasure have been named after Cofresí, and a resort town near Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic is named for him.

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Map of the area where Cofresí and his men usually operated: Puerto Rico, Mona, Vieques (Crab Island), Culebra, Saona, Hispaniola and Saint Thomas


Although today, Cofresí is often portrayed as a Robin Hood type folk hero in popular Puerto Rican tourist brochures, historical records depict a much more complicated character who sometimes failed to distinguish between true adversaries and innocent passengers on the ships he pillaged. Consequently, he developed a reputation as a particularly brutal and savage pirate who showed no mercy for his victims.

It was a common practice then for the Spanish Crown to look the other way when pirates such as Cofresí attacked ships that did not carry the Spanish flag. Cofresí ignored the ships that came from other nations including those from France, the Netherlands and England with his attacks focused mainly on ships from the United States. His dislike of American sailors originated when he was once caught eating sugar from an American cargo ship without paying and was injured by the ship’s captain.Afterthis event Cofresí declared war on all of those that operated under the flag of the United States. He often displayed cruel behavior against hostages that were on these vessels, including reports that he ordered that his captives were to be nailed alive to El Mosquito’s deck



 
Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
2 March 1859 - Launch of paddle steamer USS Saginaw (4) at Mare Island, first Navy ship built on West Coast of U.S.


The first USS Saginaw was a sidewheel sloop-of-war in the United States Navy during the American Civil War.

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USS Saginaw, probably at Mare Island Navy Yard in 1862

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History
The first vessel built by the Mare Island Navy Yard, Saginaw was laid down on 16 September 1858; launched as Toucey on 3 March 1859; sponsored by Miss Cunningham, daughter of the commandant of the Navy Yard; renamed Saginaw; and commissioned on 5 January 1860, Commander James F. Schenck in command.

The new side-wheel ship sailed from San Francisco Bay on 8 March 1860, headed for the western Pacific, and reached Shanghai, China on 12 May. She then served in the East India Squadron, for the most part cruising along the Chinese coast to protect American citizens and to suppress pirates. She visited Japan in November but soon returned to Chinese waters. On 30 June 1861, she silenced a battery at the entrance to Qui Nhon Bay, Cochin China, which had fired upon her while she was searching for the missing boat and crew of American bark Myrtle.

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USS Saginaw as she appeared after the Civil War, circa 1867. She carries a considerably heavier armament than she did when commissioned and resembles a merchantman more than a man-of-war. Illustration by J. M. Caiella.

On 3 January 1862, Saginaw was decommissioned at Hong Kong and returned to Mare Island on 3 July for repairs.

Relaunched on 3 December 1862 and recommissioned on 23 March 1863, saginaw was attached to the Pacific Squadron and operated along the United States West Coast to prevent Confederate activity. She visited Puget Sound in the spring of 1863 to investigate reports that Confederate privateers were being outfitted in British Columbia, but returned after learning that the scheme had no chance of success.

Her cruises in 1864 took Saginaw to ports in Mexico and Central America to protect the interests of the United States endangered by Confederate activity and by European interference in Mexico. During the closing months of the year, she escorted steamers of the Pacific Mail Steamship Company carrying rich cargoes of bullion from the California gold fields. In the spring of 1865, the ship was assigned to the United States Revenue Cutter Service but was returned to the Navy on 2 June 1865. She spent the remainder of 1865 protecting American citizens at Guaymas and other Mexican ports during the unrest and disorder which beset Mexico during the struggle between Emperor Maximilian I and Benito Juárez.

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A model of the three-masted side-wheeler USS Saginaw is on display at the Vallejo Naval and Historical Museum in Vallejo, Calif.

In March 1866, Saginaw returned to Mare Island. She sailed in August 1866 for Puget Sound to support settlers in the Pacific Northwest. While there, she aided the Western Union Company in laying a cable which brought the first telegraphic service to the region. After returning to Mare Island in December 1866, the ship remained at the navy yard through 1867.

In April 1868, a year after the United States purchased Alaska from Russia, Saginaw got underway for the Alaska Territory and, with the exception of a run home late in the year for replenishment, spent the next year exploring and charting the Alaskan coast. In the February 1869 Kake War the USS Saginaw destroyed three deserted villages and two forts near present-day Kake, Alaska. Prior to the conflict, two white trappers were killed by the Kake in retribution for the death of two Kake departing Sitka village in canoe. Sitka was the site of a standoff between the Army and Tlingit due to the army demanding the surrender of chief Colchika who was involved in an altercation in Fort Sitka. While no Kake, or possibly a single old woman, died in the destruction of the villages, the loss of winter stores, canoes, and shelter led to the death during the winter of some of the Kake.

After steaming back to San Francisco Bay in April 1869, Saginaw departed her home port on 28 July 1869 and operated along the coast of Mexico until arriving back at Mare Island on 11 November 1869.

Fate

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The Captain's depiction of Saginaw's fate

Saginaw's next assignment took her to Midway Atoll to support dredging operations to deepen the entrance to the harbor. She reached Midway on 24 March 1870 and completed her task on 21 October 1870. A week later, she sailed for San Francisco, intending to touch at Kure Atoll (at that time known as Ocean Island) en route home to rescue any shipwrecked sailors who might be stranded there. The next day, 29 October 1870, as she neared this rarely visited atoll, Saginaw struck an outlying reef and grounded. Before the surf battered the ship to pieces, her 93 crew managed to transfer much of her gear and provisions to the atoll.

On 18 November, a party of five men, headed by Lieutenant John G. Talbot, the executive officer, set out for Honolulu in a small boat to get relief for their stranded shipmates. As they neared Kauai, 31 days and some 1,500 mi (2,400 km) later, their boat was upset by breakers. Only Coxswain William Halford survived to obtain help. He landed on Kauai, where Captain Dudoit of the schooner Wainona offered to take him straight to Honolulu leaving his return freight for a later trip. They sailed on Tuesday Dec 20th and arrived at Honolulu on Saturday 24 December and was taken to the United States Consulate there.

The US Consul authorised the despatch of a fast sailing coaster, the Kona Packet, which departed on Sunday 25 December, and the King of Hawaii, Kamehameha V, sent the inter-island steamer, Kilauea under Captain Thomas Long, to rescue the shipwrecked sailors. After loading with coal for 20 days and food and copious fresh water they departed on Monday 26 December.[3] The Kilauea arrived at Kure on 4 January 1871, and the Kona Packet a day later. Due to uncertainty over the coal required for the return journey they steamed to Midway Island loading 40 tons of coal and left on 7 January, arriving back in Honolulu on 14 January, a round trip of 2350 miles. Captain Long was presented with a heavy gold-cased chronometer watch by the U.S. Government as thanks for successfully undertaking the rescue mission.

The Saginaw's gig survived being capsized in the breakers, and was sold at auction in January 1871. The purchaser presented it to the rescued crew of the Saginaw, whereupon it was transported back to San Francisco on the A.P. Jordan. It survives as part of the Curator Collection at the Castle Museum of Saginaw County History in Saginaw, Michigan.

The crew of the Saginaw may have been aware of the loss of the whaler Gledstanes on the same reef on 9 July 1837, as they faced the same predicament and constructed a schooner Deliverance from the wreckage over many months. Captain Brown with 8 men sailed for Hawaii on 15th Dec to secure a rescue ship which took the remaining men off the atoll in February. The wreck of Saginaw was discovered in 2003 and remains under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command.

The book A Civil War Gunboat in Pacific Waters: Life on Board USS Saginaw (by Hans Van Tilburg, University Press of Florida, 2010) covers the ship's construction, her ten years of service in the Pacific, and her loss at Kure Atoll. Van Tilburg led the team which discovered the wreck site in 2003.


 
Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
2 March 1878 – Launch of His Highness' Ship Glasgow, a royal yacht belonging to the Sultan of Zanzibar.


His Highness' Ship Glasgow
was a royal yacht belonging to the Sultan of Zanzibar. She was built in the style of the British frigateHMS Glasgow which had visited the Sultan in 1873. Glasgow cost the Sultan £32,735 and contained several luxury features but failed to impress the Sultan and she lay at anchor in harbour at Zanzibar Town for much of her career. The vessel was brought out of semi-retirement on 25 August 1896 when she participated in the Anglo-Zanzibar War and was soon sunk by a flotilla of British warships. Glasgow's wreck remained in the harbour, her three masts and funnel projecting from the water, until 1912 when she was broken up for scrap.

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HHS Glasgow at Zanzibar in 1890

Construction

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HMS Glasgow was the inspiration for her Zanzibari namesake

Glasgow was built in 1878 as a replacement for Sultan Bargash's fleet which had been lost in a hurricane in 1872. Glasgow was based upon the British Royal Navy screw frigate HMS Glasgow which had impressed the Sultan during a visit to Zanzibar in 1873. Bargash consulted with Sir William Mackinnon, the founder of the British-India Steam Navigation Company, who recommended the firm of William Denny and Brothers as shipbuilders. On 17 April 1877 Denny wrote to the Bargash's agents promising to build "a vessel in every way a handsome and substantial piece of work" and on 14 May 1877 the ship was laid down. The vessel was constructed with an iron frame covered with teak planks and a keel made from rock elm, the hull was sheathed with Muntz metal below the waterline. Glasgow was equipped with three masts and a steam propulsion system with a lifting propeller. The vessel was launched on 2 March 1878.

Glasgow was well fitted out for its role as a royal yacht and contained two state rooms, a dining saloon, a bathroom and a water closet for use by the Sultan. In all, the vessel cost £32,735 and was fitted out with seven-rifled, muzzle-loading nine-pounder cannon and a nine-barrelled Gatling gun, courtesy of Queen Victoria. It set sail for Zanzibar from Portsmouth on 17 April 1878 under the command of Captain Hand of the Royal Navy. Upon arrival in Zanzibar Town, the Sultan inspected his new purchase and was rumoured to be unimpressed, Glasgow being rather less imposing than its namesake, the British frigate. The ship lay at anchor in harbour through the rest of the Sultan's reign and that of his three successors until 1896.

Anglo-Zanzibar War
Main article: Anglo-Zanzibar War
On 25 August 1896 a new Sultan, Khalid, ascended to the sultancy without first consulting the British authorities, as required by treaty. This sparked the Anglo-Zanzibar War. On 27 August the now obsolete Glasgow, the sole vessel of the Zanzibar Navy, fired upon a flotilla of five British ships, led by the cruiser HMS St George with its 9.2-inch (230 mm) guns. In return Glasgow was holed below her waterline and began sinking. Her crew hoisted the British flag as a token of surrender and all were rescued by British sailors in launches. The ship eventually sank at 10:45 am that day, settling on the harbour bed with just its masts and funnel projecting from the water.

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The tips of the masts and funnel of the sunken Glasgow can be seen in this panorama of Zanzibar Town harbour taken in 1902

Glasgow remained there until an unstable mast prompted the harbour master and the Zanzibar government to consider raising her. Eventually, in 1912, a salvage company was awarded a £2,500 contract and she was broken up with explosive charges over a period of six months. The debris was disposed of at sea, her boiler, propeller and several cannon being sold for scrap. Several sections of iron frames remain intact on the harbour bed together with teak planks, sheets of Muntz metal, iron ballast blocks and the remains of the steam engine and propeller shaft. The site is occasionally visited by sports divers.

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HHS_Glasgow
 
Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
2 March 1880 – Launch of HMS Doterel, a Doterel-class sloop launched by the Royal Navy in 1880.


HMS Doterel
was a Doterel-class sloop launched by the Royal Navy in 1880. She sank at anchor off Punta Arenas after an explosion on 26 April 1881. Her loss caused the deaths of 143 crew members, and there were 12 survivors. She was en route to join the Pacific Station. Her loss was initially the source of much speculation. Causes considered included an attack by the Fenians, a lost torpedo, and a coal gas explosion. An enquiry in September 1881 concluded coal gas was the cause.

In November 1881, an explosion in HMS Triumph killed three men and wounded seven; it was determined to have been caused by "xerotine siccative", one of a compound commonly called "patent driers." A survivor of the Doterel explosion recalled smelling that compound shortly before the explosion. In 1883 the government determined xerotine siccative caused the first explosion on Doterel, which set off the more damaging explosion of the forward magazine. The Admiralty ordered the compound withdrawn from use in the Royal Navy and better ventilation below decks.

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An illustration of HMS Doterel from 14 May 1881

Design and construction
The Doterel class was designed by Nathaniel Barnaby as a development of William Henry White's 1874 Osprey-class sloop. The graceful clipper bow of the Ospreys was replaced by a vertical stem and the engines were more powerful. The hull was of composite construction, with wooden planks over an iron frame. Power was provided by three cylindrical boilers, which supplied steam at 60 pounds per square inch (410 kPa) to a two-cylinder horizontal compound-expansion steam engine driving a single 13-foot-1-inch (3.99 m) screw. This arrangement produced 900 indicated horsepower (670 kW) and a top speed of 11 knots (20 km/h).

Ships of the class were armed with two 7-inch (90 cwt) muzzle-loading rifled guns on pivoting mounts, and four 64-pounder muzzle-loading rifled guns (two on pivoting mounts, and two broadside). Four machine guns and one light gun completed the weaponry. All the ships of the class were provided with a barque rig, that is, square-rigged foremast and mainmast, and fore-and-aft sails only on the mizzen mast.

Crew
Doterel would have had a normal complement of 140–150 men, although on the day of the explosion and sinking she had 155 men on board, despite five having deserted since leaving Sheerness. Some of the supernumeraries may have been bound for ships already on station in the Pacific; one of the survivors, Engineer Walker, was due to join HMS Garnet.

Construction
Doterel was ordered from Chatham Dockyard and laid down on 13 May 1878. She was launched on 2 March 1880 from Number 3 slip, and was named by Miss Hunt-Grubbe, daughter of the captain of Steam Reserves at Chatham. She was commissioned on 7 December 1880.

Service
Sloops such as Doterel were used in the far-flung parts of Britain's maritime empire for constabulary duties. Barnaby, Doterel's designer, was an enthusiast of heavily armed but un-armoured frigates, sloops and corvettes, arguing that the Navy's tasks were best accomplished by a number of small, cheap ships.[9] The system of colonial cruisers provided an inexpensive peace-keeping force for the protection of British interests, and gave imperial representatives a supply of sailors, marines and guns to deal with petty tyrants, minor insurrections and banditry. Doterel was assigned to the Pacific Station, which included the western coasts of North and South America as well as China and Japan. Under Commander Richard Evans she sailed from Sheerness, Kent on 17 January 1881. Having called at Madeira, St Vincent and Montevideo, she anchored at Punta Arenas, Chile on 26 April 1881 at 09:00.

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The explosion on HMS Doterel(detail on the Greenwich memorial)

Sinking
At about 10:15 on 26 April while the ship was at anchor off Punta Arenas, an explosion occurred in the forward magazine. Eyewitnesses described how objects of every type were thrown high into the air, and a huge column of smoke was seen to rise from the ship. The ship sank instantly.

Boats of every kind put off from shore to seek survivors, as well as from the missionary schooner Allen Gardiner, the Chilean schooner San Jose, and the pontoon Kate Kellogg. 143 of the 155 crew members were killed. The captain was one of the twelve survivors, rescued by a boat from San Jose. He was found stripped naked by the blast and bleeding from several wounds.

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Funeral service performed over the remains of those who perished by the explosionThe Graphic, London 1881

That afternoon, crews recovered bodies from the water; only three were recovered whole. The various body parts were put into boxes and buried at sea the same afternoon. Reverend Thomas Bridges, an Anglican missionary at Ushuaia, presided over the mass funeral in the harbour for the many sailors killed in the explosion.

Commander Evans, the captain of Doterel telegrammed the Admiralty from Montevideo on 3 May 1881:

'Doterel' totally destroyed and sunk by explosion of fore magazine at Sandy Point, 10 a.m., April 26. Cause unknown, supposed boiler burst and exploded magazine. Twelve survivors, all well, proceeding in Britannia for Liverpool. Stokes (lieutenant) remains Sandy Point, awaiting orders. Have telegraphed Pacific, and Jones. Survivors. Commander Evans, Lieutenant Stokes, Paymaster Colborne, Engineer Walker (of Garnet), Carpenter Baird, Gunner's Mate Pengelly, Quartermaster Trout, Caulker's Mate Ford, Shipwright Walkers, Ordinary Seaman James Smith, Stoker Turner, Marine Summers. Discharged. Inlis (clerk), Miggeridge (sick bay man), Hayes (private), Motton (A.B.). John Ellery (A.B.) deserted. Dead.—Eight officers, 135 men.
— Commander Richard Evans, 3 May 1881
The ship's guns, screw and other valuable fittings were salvaged by Garnet and Turquoise. The contemporary rules governing pensions allowed the widow or dependent children of the dead men a gratuity equal to a year's pay,[16] although the loss of their property was not compensated.

Cause of the explosion

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Recovery of Doterel's wreckage

Initial reports blamed an explosion in the boilers, which detonated the magazine. This was definitively proven to be false when the crew of Garnet found the boilers in perfect condition. Conjecture also suggested the Fenians could have blown up the ship with a coal torpedo, the explosion could have been caused by a Whitehead torpedo lost by Shah in 1878, or coal gas from the bunkers might have caused the explosion. An enquiry was held at Portsmouth, which referred the evidence to a scientific committee. In September 1881, they determined that the explosion was caused by the detonation of coal gas in the bunkers, and that no crew members were at fault.

On 21 November 1881, an explosion occurred in Triumph, caused by a drying compound called "xerotine siccative", also called a patent drier. Three men were killed and seven were wounded.

It was not until 1883 that the cause of the Doterel explosion was settled. A surviving crew member of that ship, upon later smelling xerotine siccative while on board Indus, stated that he had smelled it before the 1881 explosion. He explained to authorities that a jar of liquid had cracked while being moved below deck.[26] Subsequent investigation revealed that just before the explosion in Doterel, two men were ordered to throw the jar overboard. While cleaning the leaking explosive liquid from beneath the forward magazine, the men may have broken the rule of not having an open flame below decks. The xerotine siccative exploded first, setting off the huge explosion in the forward magazine, which contained 4 tons and 7 cwt (4,456 kg) of explosives

The Admiralty ordered xerotine siccative to be discontinued from use in the fleet, and a system of ventilation was recommended for all ships of the Royal Navy.


The Doterel class was a Royal Navy class of screw-driven sloops. They were of composite construction, with wooden hulls over an iron frame. They were a revised version of an 1874 design by the Royal Navy's Chief Constructor, William Henry White, the Osprey-class sloop. Two of the class were lost, one to an explosion off Chile and one wrecked off Canada. Gannet is preserved at Chatham Historic Dockyard.

Ships
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A rifled muzzle loader in the forecastle of Gannet



 
Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
2 March 1900 – Launch of Askold (Russian: Аскольд), a protected cruiser built for the Imperial Russian Navy.


Askold (Russian: Аскольд) was a protected cruiser built for the Imperial Russian Navy. She was named after the legendary Varangian Askold. Her thin, narrow hull and maximum speed of 23.8 knots (44.1 km/h) were considered impressive for the time.

Askold had five thin funnels which gave it a unique silhouette for any vessel in the Imperial Russian Navy. This led British sailors to nickname her Packet of Woodbines after the thin cigarettes popular at the time. However, the five funnels also had a symbolic importance, as it was popularly considered that the number of funnels was indicative of performance, and some navies were known to add extra fake funnels to impress dignitaries in less advanced countries.

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Russian cruiser Askold on trials after construction at Kiel.

Background
After the completion of the Pallada class, the Imperial Russian Navy issued requirements for three large protected cruisers to three separate companies: Varyag was ordered from William Cramp & Sons in Philadelphia, United States, Askold was ordered from Krupp-Germaniawerft in Kiel, Germany, and Bogatyr from Vulcan Stettin, also in Germany. Although Askold was the fastest cruiser in the Russian fleet at the time of its commissioning, Bogatyr was selected for further development into a new class of ships, and Askold remained as a unique design.

Operational history
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Askold in East Indies (1902)

Askold was laid down at the Germaniawerft shipyards in Kiel, Germany on 8 June 1899, launched on 2 March 1900 and commissioned on 25 January 1902. She initially entered service with the Russian Baltic Fleet, but only after one year was assigned to the Russian Pacific Fleet based at Port Arthur, Manchuria, instead.

Askold detoured to the Persian Gulf on her way to the Far East, and hosted the Emir of Kuwait Mubarak Al-Sabah on 1 December 1902. She arrived in Port Arthur on 13 February 1903 and shortly afterwards made port calls to Nagasaki, Kobe and Yokohamain Japan, the Taku Forts in China, the Royal Navy base at Weihaiwei and Imperial German Navy base at Tsingtao. On 3 May she accompanied Novik on an official visit to Japan with Russian Minister of War, Aleksey Kuropatkin. She again visited Japan in August, calling on Hakodate with Rear Admiral Baron Olaf von Stackelberg on Rossia. She remained in Hakodate until October 1903 and was the last Russian ship to visit Japan before the outbreak of war.

During the Russo-Japanese War

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Askold at Port Arthur (1904).

From the start of the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, Askold was one of the most active vessels in the Russian fleet. She was moored within the protected confines of Port Arthur during the initial pre-emptive strike launched by the Imperial Japanese Navyduring the Battle of Port Arthur, and took only minor damage.

During the Battle of the Yellow Sea, she was flagship for Rear Admiral Nikolai Reitsenstein’s cruiser squadron during the failed attempt to escape the Japanese blockade and to link up with forces in Vladivostok. Together with Novik, Askold took heavy damage, but escaped from the pursuing Japanese fleet to Shanghai, where she was interned until the end of the war.

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With the Siberian Flotilla
On 11 October 1905, Askold was allowed to return to service with the Russian Navy, returning to Vladivostok on 1 November. In 1906, she spent most of the year in dry-dock for repairs. By 1 February 1907, she was able to make a training cruise from Vladivostok to Shanghai, where she ran aground in March. The damage was minor, and she was able to call on Hong Kong, Amoy, Shanghai and Qingtao on her way back to Vladivostok. In 1908, with the gradual withdrawal of larger vessels to the Baltic Sea, she became the flagship of the Russian Siberian Flotilla. However, mechanical problems persisted, and she remained largely out of operational service from 1908 through 1911. After replacement of her boilers in September 1912, she was only able to achieve 17.46 knots (32.34 km/h), with problems partly attributable to low-quality Chinese coal. After further repairs to her hull by the end of 1912, she was able to achieve 20.11 knots (37.24 km/h). At the end of 1913, she made a long-distance voyage to Hong Kong, Saigon, Padang, Batavia, Surabaya and Manila back to Vladivostok. She suffered more damage by hitting a naval mine in 1914, and it was felt that only a major overhaul at a European shipyard could restore her to operational status. However, before this could occur, Askold was involved in a new war.

World War I service
At the start of World War I, Askold was part of the Allied (British-French-Japanese) joint task force pursuing the German East Asia Squadron under Admiral Maximilian von Spee. In August 1914 she patrolled the area to the east of the Philippines, resupplying out of Hong Kong and Singapore. In September and October, she was assigned to escort duty in the Indian Ocean.

Askold was then assigned to the Mediterranean Sea for operations off the coasts of Syria and Palestine for coastal bombardment and commerce raiding operations based from Beirutand Haifa. In 1915, she was involved in operations against the Ottoman Navy and the Austrian Navy in Greece and Bulgaria, including support for troop landings in the Gallipoli Campaign.

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Askold during World War I.

She underwent an extensive refit in Toulon, France beginning in March 1916, which involved the replacement of her guns. The repairs were delayed by lack of materials and manpower. Crew tensions flared as the crewmen were forced to live on board, whereas the officers went to Paris. On 19 August there was an explosion in her powder magazine attributed to sabotage, and four crewmen were later convicted and sentenced to death. Repairs were completed only in December. Askold was then transferred to the Barents Sea theatre of operations, but suffered from storm damage after departing from Gibraltar in late December, which required further repairs in Plymouth. In February, with the fall of the Russian Empire in the February Revolution, Askold pledged allegiance to the Russian Provisional Government. She departed Scotland on 4 June 1917 and was then based at Murmansk. After the armistice with Germany in December 1917, Askold was demobilized and plans were made to place her in storage at Arkhangelsk.

In Royal Navy service
Askold was seized in Kola Bay in 1918 by the Royal Navy after the Russian Revolution and commissioned as HMS Glory IV. She was based at Gareloch, Scotland but was used primarily as a depot ship.

On the conclusion of the Russian Civil War, she was offered to the new Soviet Navy in return for costs incurred. Soviet inspectors found that she was in bad shape and sold her for scrap. In 1922, she was towed to Hamburg, where she was scrapped. Alexey Krylov sailed on her first voyage and was part of the commission that decided her fate. He writes about both events in his memoir.

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Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
2 March 1940 - British cargo liner Domala was bombed by German aircraft setting Domala afire.
The order to abandon ship was given but the bomber machine-gunned people attempting to escape by lifeboat. 108 of the 291 people aboard were killed.



Domala was an 8,441 ton cargo liner which was built in 1920 and launched as Magnava. Following damage sustained in an air attack in 1940, she was rebuilt as a cargo ship and renamed Empire Attendant. In 1942 she was torpedoed and sunk with the loss of all crew.

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History
Domala

Domala was the first ship in the British India Steam Navigation Company's fleet powered by diesel engines. She was built by Barclay, Curle and Company, Whiteinch, Glasgow and launched on 23 December 1920 as Magnava and completed as Domala[2]on 14 December 1921. Her engines were built by the North British Diesel Engine Works, Whiteinch. Domala made her maiden voyage on 30 December 1921, arriving at Bombay, India on 27 January. A speed of 13.5 knots (25.0 km/h) was reported, consuming 17 tons of fuel oil per day. From Bombay, Domala sailed to Karachi, India before returning to London. Domala had accommodation for 158 saloon-class passengers and 11,000 tons of cargo.

She was used on the service to and from Calcutta. On 6 October 1927, she collided with the British cargo ship Sagama River in the River Humber, severely damaging her. On 12 August 1934, Domala ran into the stern of Thames Barge Shannon at Erith, Kent. In 1940, Domala was sent to Antwerp to collect a number of Indian seamen who had been repatriated by Germany. On 2 March 1940, she was attacked by a Heinkel He 111H bomber of KG26 which dropped two sticks of bombs, setting Domala on fire. The order to abandon ship was given but the bomber machine-gunned survivors attempting to escape by lifeboat. A total of 108 of the 291 people on board the ship were killed. The Dutch ship Jong Willem rescued 48 survivors, despite being attacked herself. HMS Viscount assisted in the rescue. Surgeon Lieutenant MacDonald was Mentioned in Despatches for his zeal and devotion to duty, and skill in attending to the wounded survivors. Chief Officer Brawn and Cadet Duval, both crew on Domalawere awarded Commendations for their actions. Avro Anson aircraft of 48 Squadron assisted in the rescue. On fire, Domalawas towed to the Solent where she was beached. On 19 March, she was towed to Southampton where the decision was made to convert her to a cargo ship. Domala was requisitioned by the Ministry of War Transport and renamed Empire Attendant.

Cadet Bernard John Duval, Merchant Navy was awarded the King’s Commendation for Brave Conduct for services aboard the M.V. Domala for "services when the ship was bombed and damaged" and Lloyd’s War Medal for Bravery at Sea

The citation reads: "The ship was attacked during darkness by an enemy aircraft, which dropped a bomb, putting the main engines out of action and setting her on fire. She also carried a number of lascars captured from various vessels by an enemy raider, who were being taken home. Many were hurt and some killed. At great risk to himself, Cadet Duval, a lad of seventeen, gave a fine example of bravery, doing all he could to save his second officer’s life".

For their brave actions both Chief Officer W. Brawn and Cadet B. J. Duval were awarded the King’s Commendation for Brave Conduct. In addition only Duval was awarded the Lloyd’s Medal for Bravery.

As a result of the attack, questions were asked in Parliament by Manny Shinwell about the lack of use of the guns carried on Domala in her defence. Winston Churchill replied that the aircraft that attacked Domala had been initially misidentified as a friendly one, which was why the guns were not manned. A British destroyer also misidentified the aircraft. It was also asked why the gunners were not always manning the guns. In India, there was public anger towards Germany as a result of the attack. Eighty-one of those killed were Indian citizens.

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Empire Attendant
Empire Attendant was entirely reconstructed. She was placed under the management of Andrew Weir & Co (Bank Line). Empire Attendant took part in a number of convoys during the war.

HX 97
Empire Attendant was due to have been a member of Convoy HX 97, but did not sail with the convoy.

HX 120
Convoy HX 120 sailed from Halifax, Nova Scotia on 10 April 1941 and arrived at Liverpool on 29 April. Empire Attendant was carrying a cargo of 350 tons of steel and also explosives.

OS 33
Convoy OS 33 sailed from Liverpool on 1 July 1942. On 10 July 1942 Pelican reported that Empire Attendant had broken down for the seventh time and was straggling, being at least 20 miles (32 km) behind the convoy. At 03:30 hrs CET on 15 July, she was torpedoed and sunk by U-582 off the west coast of Africa at 23°48′N 21°51′WCoordinates:
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23°48′N 21°51′W with the loss of all 59 crew. The crew are commemorated on panel 38 of the Tower Hill Memorial.




 
Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
2 March 1942 - USS Pillsbury – In a night surface action Pillsbury was overtaken by two Japanese cruisers of Cruiser Division 4.
The Japanese cruisers Takao and Atago engaged and sank her with all hands.



The first USS Pillsbury (DD-227) was a Clemson-class destroyer in the United States Navy during World War II. She was named for John E. Pillsbury.

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USS Pillsbury (DD-227) circa in 1930.

History
Pillsbury was laid down by William Cramp & Sons of Philadelphia on 23 October 1919; launched on 3 August 1920, sponsored by Miss Helen Langdon Richardson; and commissioned on 15 December 1920, Lieutenant H. W. Barnes in command.

Pillsbury served for many years with the Asiatic Fleet. During that service she was involved in the 1927 Nanking Incident as part of a U.S. Navy flotilla helping protect American lives and property. On 27 November 1941, by order of the Commander Asiatic Fleet, Admiral Thomas C. Hart, Pillsbury departed from Manila under the command of Lt. Commander Harold C. Pound, together with other units of the fleet. When the Japanese struck at Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941, she was operating in the vicinity of Borneo, and had done so for some time.

After the war commenced, Pillsbury, together with United States, Dutch and Australian naval vessels, operated out of Balikpapanon reconnaissance sorties and on anti-submarine patrols. Later she moved to Surabaya, Java, and from there made night patrols with cruisers Houston (CA-30) and Marblehead (CL-12) and destroyers of Division 58, including the Battle of Badoeng Strait on 4 February 1942.

On 18 February the Japanese began moving ashore on Bali and the American-British-Dutch-Australian Command (ABDA) surface forces including Pillsbury set out to disrupt further landings from a Japanese convoy reported in the area.

While steaming through Badoeng Strait on the night of 19/20 February during the Battle of Badoeng Strait, Pillsbury fired three torpedoes at a Japanese ship without result. A searchlight was trained on Pillsbury, and several shots were fired at her. She turned to starboard and made smoke to escape the light. The relatively small Allied forces at this time were forced to lightning strikes and rapid evasive retirement in the face of superior Japanese forces in the dim hope of disrupting the enemy advance.

At 02:10 Pillsbury sighted a ship dead ahead and opened up with her main battery and .50 caliber guns. The amidships gun crew of the Japanese ship was put out of action by the first burst of the .50 caliber machine guns. The target ship then received a direct hit with a shell from either Pillsbury or from the destroyer in the opposite column. This caused the Japanese destroyer to swing to starboard. The spotter then observed three sure hits from Pillsbury: one on the bridge, one amidships and one on the fantail. As soon as the last shot hit, the Japanese ship erupted in flames, and her firing ceased.

At this time Pillsbury and Parrott (DD-218) were detached from the striking force and sent to Tjilatjap. After the action around Bali the ships had few torpedoes and were badly in need of overhaul.

Fate
A few days later Pillsbury met her end. There are no US logs or battle reports giving the details of the action in which Pillsbury, Asheville (PG-21) and Edsall (DD-219) were sunk, and their fates were mysterious until after the war when Japanese logs could be examined. A powerful force of Japanese ships was operating to the south of Java to prevent the escape of Allied ships from that area. The Japanese force consisted of four battleships, five cruisers of Cruiser Division 4, the aircraft carriers Akagi, Kaga, Sōryū and Hiryū and the destroyers of Destroyer Squadron 4.

Edsall was sunk in the area of the Second Battle of the Java Sea on 1 March 1942 [the Second Battle of the Java Sea was fought north of the island of Java, USS Edsall was lost south of Java]. At 18:24 she received a direct hit from the battleship Hiei and at 18:35 another from the cruiser Tone. Edsall was also attacked by nine Aichi D3A dive bombers from Sōryū and eight from Akagi, which hit her with several bombs, leaving her dead in the water by 18:50. She was destroyed by the cruiser Chikuma and sank at 19:00 with 5-8 survivors. The remains of 5 executed sailors from the Edsall were recovered in Indonesia in 1952.

In a night surface action on 2 March 1942 Pillsbury was overtaken by two Japanese cruisers of Cruiser Division 4. She was engaged by Takao and Atago, and at 21:02 sank with the loss of all hands.

Asheville, slowed by engine troubles, was caught at 09:06 on 3 March by the destroyers Arashi and Nowaki and sunk after a 30-minute battle. One crew member was rescued from the water, but died later in a prisoner of war camp.

All three sinkings took place approximately 200 miles east of Christmas Island. After sinking the three U.S. ships, the Japanese forces retired from the scene.

Pillsbury received two battle stars for World War II service.



 
Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
2 March 1943 – World War II: Battle of the Bismarck Sea
United States and Australian forces sink Japanese convoy ships.

aircraft sink 12 ships from a Japanese troop convoy to New Guinea


The Battle of the Bismarck Sea (2–4 March 1943) took place in the South West Pacific Area (SWPA) during World War II when aircraft of the U.S. Fifth Air Force and the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) attacked a Japanese convoy carrying troops to Lae, New Guinea. Most of the Japanese task force was destroyed, and Japanese troop losses were heavy.

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Japanese transport under aerial attack in the Bismarck Sea, 3 March 1943

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The Japanese convoy was a result of a Japanese Imperial General Headquarters decision in December 1942 to reinforce their position in the South West Pacific. A plan was devised to move some 6,900 troops from Rabaul directly to Lae. The plan was understood to be risky, because Allied air power in the area was strong, but it was decided to proceed because otherwise the troops would have to be landed a considerable distance away and march through inhospitable swamp, mountain and jungle terrain without roads before reaching their destination. On 28 February 1943, the convoy – comprising eight destroyers and eight troop transports with an escort of approximately 100 fighter aircraft – set out from Simpson Harbour in Rabaul.

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Japanese ship movements (black) and Allied air attacks (red) during the battle

The Allies had detected preparations for the convoy, and naval codebreakers in Melbourne (FRUMEL) and Washington, D.C., had decrypted and translated messages indicating the convoy’s intended destination and date of arrival. The Allied Air Forces had developed new techniques they hoped would improve the chances of successful air attack on ships. They detected and shadowed the convoy, which came under sustained air attack on 2–3 March 1943. Follow-up attacks by PT boats and aircraft were made on 4 March. All eight transports and four of the escorting destroyers were sunk. Of 6,900 troops who were badly needed in New Guinea, only about 1,200 made it to Lae. Another 2,700 were rescued by destroyers and submarines and returned to Rabaul. The Japanese made no further attempts to reinforce Lae by ship, greatly hindering their ultimately unsuccessful efforts to stop Allied offensives in New Guinea.

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Fifth Air Force bombs bracket the transport Taimei Maru



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Bismarck_Sea
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Bismarck_Sea_order_of_battle
 
Today in Naval History - Naval / Maritime Events in History
Other Events on 2 March


1709 HMS Assurance (70), Cptn. Anthony Tollet, HMS Assistance (50), Cptn. Abraham Tudor (Killed in Action), HMS Anglesea (44) and consort escorting a convoy engaged 4 French ships under commodore Duguay-Trouin off the Lizard.

HMS Assistance
was a 40-gun fourth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy, originally built for the navy of the Commonwealth of Englandat Deptford, and launched in 1650. By 1677 her armament had been increased to 48 guns.
In 1687 Assistance was rebuilt at Deptford as a 48-gun fourth-rate ship of the line. Life aboard her when cruising in the Mediterranean in 1675-6 is described in the diary of Henry Teonge. She was rebuilt for a second time at Deptford in 1699, relaunching as a fourth rate of between 46 and 54 guns. In 1702 she was attached to the squadron of Commodore John Leakefor service to Newfoundland at the outbreak of the War of the Spanish Succession. Leake sent her to destroy the fortifications of the isle of Saint Pierre.
Her third rebuild was carried out at Limehouse, from where she was relaunched on 16 February 1713 as a 50-gun fourth rate to the 1706 Establishment. Assistance was part of the naval task force sent to Scotland to help subdue the Jacobite rising of 1719.
On 21 March 1720 she was ordered to be taken to pieces at Woolwich for what was to be her final rebuild. She relaunched as a 50-gun fourth rate to the 1719 Establishment on 25 November 1725 and sunk as a breakwater in 1745.

HMS Anglesea (refereed to as HMS Anglesey on occasion) was a 50-gun fourth rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched at Plymouth Dockyard in 1694.
Anglesea was reduced to a fifth rate in 1719, and underwent a rebuild in 1725.

HMS Assurance (1702) was a 66-gun third-rate ship of the line, formerly the French Assuré built in 1697, captured in 1702 and broken up in 1712.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Assistance_(1650)


1741 HMS Wolf (14), Cptn. Dandridge, wrecked on the coast of Florida

HMS Wolf
(1731) was a 14-gun sloop launched in 1731 and wrecked in 1741.


1778 – Launch of HMS Hyaena (HMS Hyæna) was a 24-gun Porcupine-class post-ship of the Royal Navy

HMS Hyaena
(HMS Hyæna) was a 24-gun Porcupine-class post-ship of the Royal Navy launched in 1778. The French captured her in 1793, took her into service as Hyène, and then sold her. She became a privateer that the British captured in 1797. The Royal Navy took her back into service as Hyaena and she continued to serve until the Navy sold her in 1802. The shipowner Daniel Bennett purchased her and renamed her Recovery. She made seven voyages as a whaler in the Southern Whale Fishery and was broken up 1813.



1783 HMS Resistance (44) took French Coquette (28)

HMS Resistance (1782) was a 44-gun fifth rate launched in 1782 and blown up in 1798.


1807 HMS Pigmy (14), Lt. George M. Higginson, wrecked near Rochefort

HMS Pigmy (1806), a 16-gun gun-brig wrecked on 5 March 1807


1811 Buonaparte levied 3,000 seamen in the three departments of the Mouths of the Elbe, the Wezer, and the Upper Ems, in discharge of their maritime conscription.


1867 - The Civil Engineer Corps is established by Congress.


1945 - USS Bowfin (SS 287) sinks Japanese transport Chokai Maru, and patrol bombers PB4Y-2 (VPB 119) sink transport Nichirin Maru in East China Sea.


 
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