HMS Calypso (1805)
Encyclopedia
HMS Calypso was a Royal Navy
Cruizer-class brig-sloop
. She was built at Deptford Wharf between 1804 and 1805, and launched in 1805. She served in the North Sea and the Baltic, most notably at the Battle of Lyngør
, which effectively ended the Gunboat War
. Calypso was eventually broken up in March 1821.Winfield (2008), p.292.
. On 14 June 1805 Calypso and a large number of other British warships were in company when the gun-brig Basilisk
captured the American ship Enoch. Between 18 and 23 July 1805, she participated in attacks on French convoys off Calais
, Wimereux
, and Ambleteuse
.
On 18 July, Calypso, Fleche (Captain Thomas White), and the 20-gun sixth-rate
post ship
Arab
(Captain Kieth Maxwell) and two or three gun-brigs drove on shore six French gun-vessels. However, the bank off Cape Grinez, and the shot and shells from the right face of its powerful battery, soon compelled the British to haul off from the shore. Arab suffered seven wounded and a great deal of damage. Fleche was the closest inshore owing to her light draft of water; she had five men severely wounded and damage to her rigging. Forster received a severe shoulder wound and had to give up command of Calypso.After Forster recovered in 1808 he was appointed to Majestic
. However, he did not receive a pension (of £250/annum), for his wounds until 1814.
Commander Matthew Martin Bradby replaced Forster. He commanded her off Dieppe and in the Downs until he received promotion to post-captain
in June 1810.
Commander Henry Weir was promoted out of the 10-gun Alban
to take command of Calypso on 28 June 1810. She was in sight on 12 April 1811 when the hired armed
cutter Princess of Wales captured the Dragen, S.N. Svarer, Master, Emanuel, H.M. Hansen, Master, and Haabet, N.S. Lauristen, Master.
On 2 May Calypso captured the Edell Catharina. On 14 June Weir captured the Danish privateer Nayahada off the coast of Jutland and destroyed another. Both were armed with ten guns.
That autumn Calypso was caught in a storm in October or November in which she lost her top masts and suffered extensive damage. To survive, she had to throw her guns overboard.
On 26 October Calypso captured the Den Norske Bonde. On 28 March Calypso captured the Tallette.12 April 1812 Calypso captured the Danish galliot Phoenix. Then on 14 April Calypso captured the Mette Catharina.
On 6 July 1812, during the Gunboat War, Calypso, still under Weir, was off the island of Merdø on the coast of Norway. She was together with the 64-gun third rate Dictator
(Captain James Patteson Stewart), 14-gun brig-sloop Podargus (Captain William Robilliard) and gun-brig Flamer (Lieutenant Thomas England), when the squadron sighted and chased a Danish squadron.
During the subsequent Battle of Lyngør Flamer stayed with Podargus to protect her after Podargus grounded. However, Dictator and Calypso succeeded in destroying the new, 40-gun frigate Najaden
and badly damaging the 18-gun brigs Laaland, Samsoe, and Kiel, as well as a number of gunboats. The British tried to take out Laaland and Kiel but abandoned them when they grounded. The British did not set fire to either as the Norwegian vessels still had their crews and wounded aboard.
The action cost Dictator five killed and 24 wounded, Calypso three killed, one wounded and two missing, Podargus nine wounded and Flamer one killed and one wounded. Najaden lost 133 dead and 82 wounded and the Danes acknowledged losing some 300 men killed and wounded overall.
Commander Weir received immediate promotion to post-captain
; Commander Robilliard received his promotion the next December; Dictators first lieutenant
, William Buchanan, received promotion to commander. In 1847 the surviving British participants were authorized to apply for the clasp "Off Mardoe 6 July 1812" to the Naval General Service Medal.
Several days later the British sent the cutter Nimble to reconnoiter the situation. Nimble reported seeing four vessels at Christiansand, two of 18 guns and two of 16 guns. Nimble also saw numerous gunboats about. The Battle of Lyngør effectively ended the Gunboat War.
On 9 August Calypso captured the Marianne, while Orion
, Hamadryad and Reynard were in company.
Groube conveyed Lord George Walpole to St. Petersburg where Walpole served as Secretary at the Embassy and minister ad interim (ie "for the meantime"). Calypso participated at the siege of Danzig in 1813, which led to his promotion to post-captain
on 7 June 1814.
Some accounts put Groube in Calypso at Faial
in the Azores
in late September. She took back to England some of the wounded from the debacle in which the American privateer '"General Armstrong, under Samuel Chester Reid
, inflicted a defeat and heavy losses on cutting-out parties from the third rate Plantagenet, the frigate Rota, and Carnation, a sister ship to Calypso.
Groube's successor in June 1814 was Commander Charles Reid. On 21 February 1815 Reid recaptured the Maid of the Mill. Then on 15 March Calypso and Meander were in company with Aquilon when Acquilon recaptured the Thomas.
Then in 1816 Lieutenant John Sisson was acting commander.
concluded treaties with the Regency
of Algiers
on the exchange of captives and slaves. Calypso carried to Genoa 40 Sardinians who had been slaves and brought back to Algiers eight Algerine captives, together with the ransom for the freed Sardinians.
at Chatham from 1817-1820. She was broken up in 1821.
, Lachlan Macquarie
, who would replace William Bligh
after the Rum Rebellion
, sailed on board Calypso from Kronstadt
, (Russia) to Yarmouth, England in September/October 1807. He briefly visited Copenhagen whilst in transit.
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
Cruizer-class brig-sloop
Cruizer class brig-sloop
The Cruizer class was an 18-gun class of brig-sloops of the Royal Navy. Brig-sloops were the same as ship-sloops except for their rigging...
. She was built at Deptford Wharf between 1804 and 1805, and launched in 1805. She served in the North Sea and the Baltic, most notably at the Battle of Lyngør
Battle of Lyngør
The Battle of Lyngør was a naval battle fought between Denmark-Norway and Britain in 1812 on the southern coast of Norway, effectively concluding the Gunboat War in Britain's favour and putting Denmark-Norway out of the war.-Background:...
, which effectively ended the Gunboat War
Gunboat War
The Gunboat War was the naval conflict between Denmark–Norway and the British Navy during the Napoleonic Wars. The war's name is derived from the Danish tactic of employing small gunboats against the conventional Royal Navy...
. Calypso was eventually broken up in March 1821.Winfield (2008), p.292.
Service
Commander Matthew Foster commissioned Calypso and in February she was in the DownsThe Downs
The Downs are a roadstead or area of sea in the southern North Sea near the English Channel off the east Kent coast, between the North and the South Foreland in southern England. In 1639 the Battle of the Downs took place here, when the Dutch navy destroyed a Spanish fleet which had sought refuge...
. On 14 June 1805 Calypso and a large number of other British warships were in company when the gun-brig Basilisk
HMS Basilisk (1801)
HMS Basilisk was a built by Randall in Rotherhithe and launched in 1801. She served during the Napoleonic Wars protecting convoys from privateers, conducting close-inshore surveillance and taking enemy coastal shipping. She served briefly at the end of the French Revolutionary Wars, with most of...
captured the American ship Enoch. Between 18 and 23 July 1805, she participated in attacks on French convoys off Calais
Calais
Calais is a town in Northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's capital is its third-largest city of Arras....
, Wimereux
Wimereux
Wimereux is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France.-Geography:Wimereux is a coastal town situated some north of Boulogne, at the junction of the D233 and the D940 roads, on the banks of the river Wimereux. The river Slack forms the northern boundary of...
, and Ambleteuse
Ambleteuse
Ambleteuse is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France.-History:Ambleteuse began as a hamlet of a few huts in the middle of the dunes, from which the derisory name of “carcahuttes" was once given to its inhabitants by their neighbors at Audresselles...
.
On 18 July, Calypso, Fleche (Captain Thomas White), and the 20-gun sixth-rate
Sixth-rate
Sixth rate was the designation used by the Royal Navy for small warships mounting between 20 and 24 nine-pounder guns on a single deck, sometimes with guns on the upper works and sometimes without.-Rating:...
post ship
Post ship
Post ship was a designation used in the Royal Navy during the Age of Sail to describe a ship of the sixth-rate that was smaller than a frigate , but by virtue of being a rated ship , had to have as its captain a post captain rather than a lieutenant or commander...
Arab
HMS Arab (1798)
HMS Arab was a 22-gun post ship of the Royal Navy. She was formerly the 18-gun French privateer Brave, which the British captured in 1798. She served during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars until she was sold in 1810....
(Captain Kieth Maxwell) and two or three gun-brigs drove on shore six French gun-vessels. However, the bank off Cape Grinez, and the shot and shells from the right face of its powerful battery, soon compelled the British to haul off from the shore. Arab suffered seven wounded and a great deal of damage. Fleche was the closest inshore owing to her light draft of water; she had five men severely wounded and damage to her rigging. Forster received a severe shoulder wound and had to give up command of Calypso.After Forster recovered in 1808 he was appointed to Majestic
HMS Majestic (1785)
HMS Majestic was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line launched on 11 December 1785 at Deptford. She fought at the Battle of the Nile, where she engaged the French ships Tonnant and Heureux, helping to force their surrenders...
. However, he did not receive a pension (of £250/annum), for his wounds until 1814.
Commander Matthew Martin Bradby replaced Forster. He commanded her off Dieppe and in the Downs until he received promotion to post-captain
Post-Captain
Post-captain is an obsolete alternative form of the rank of captain in the Royal Navy.The term served to distinguish those who were captains by rank from:...
in June 1810.
Commander Henry Weir was promoted out of the 10-gun Alban
HMS Alban (1806)
HMS Alban was one of twelve s of the Royal Navy and was launched in 1805. She served during the Napoleonic Wars. During the Gunboat War she took part in two engagements with Danish gunboats, during the second of which the Danes captured her...
to take command of Calypso on 28 June 1810. She was in sight on 12 April 1811 when the hired armed
Hired armed vessels
right|thumb|250px|Armed cutter, etching in the [[National Maritime Museum]], [[Greenwich]]During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries the Royal Navy made use of a considerable number of hired armed vessels...
cutter Princess of Wales captured the Dragen, S.N. Svarer, Master, Emanuel, H.M. Hansen, Master, and Haabet, N.S. Lauristen, Master.
On 2 May Calypso captured the Edell Catharina. On 14 June Weir captured the Danish privateer Nayahada off the coast of Jutland and destroyed another. Both were armed with ten guns.
That autumn Calypso was caught in a storm in October or November in which she lost her top masts and suffered extensive damage. To survive, she had to throw her guns overboard.
On 26 October Calypso captured the Den Norske Bonde. On 28 March Calypso captured the Tallette.12 April 1812 Calypso captured the Danish galliot Phoenix. Then on 14 April Calypso captured the Mette Catharina.
Gunboat War
HMS Dictator (1783)
HMS Dictator was a 64-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 6 January 1783 at Limehouse. She was converted into a troopship in 1798, and broken up in 1817....
(Captain James Patteson Stewart), 14-gun brig-sloop Podargus (Captain William Robilliard) and gun-brig Flamer (Lieutenant Thomas England), when the squadron sighted and chased a Danish squadron.
During the subsequent Battle of Lyngør Flamer stayed with Podargus to protect her after Podargus grounded. However, Dictator and Calypso succeeded in destroying the new, 40-gun frigate Najaden
HDMS Najaden (1811)
HDMS Najaden was a frigate in the Royal Danish-Norwegian Navy. She was commissioned in 1811 and originally carried 36 guns, later being upgraded to 42. She served briefly during the Gunboat War only seeing action once, when on 6 July 1812 the British ship of the line and the sank her during the...
and badly damaging the 18-gun brigs Laaland, Samsoe, and Kiel, as well as a number of gunboats. The British tried to take out Laaland and Kiel but abandoned them when they grounded. The British did not set fire to either as the Norwegian vessels still had their crews and wounded aboard.
The action cost Dictator five killed and 24 wounded, Calypso three killed, one wounded and two missing, Podargus nine wounded and Flamer one killed and one wounded. Najaden lost 133 dead and 82 wounded and the Danes acknowledged losing some 300 men killed and wounded overall.
Commander Weir received immediate promotion to post-captain
Post-Captain
Post-captain is an obsolete alternative form of the rank of captain in the Royal Navy.The term served to distinguish those who were captains by rank from:...
; Commander Robilliard received his promotion the next December; Dictators first lieutenant
First Lieutenant
First lieutenant is a military rank and, in some forces, an appointment.The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations , but the majority of cases it is common for it to be sub-divided into a senior and junior rank...
, William Buchanan, received promotion to commander. In 1847 the surviving British participants were authorized to apply for the clasp "Off Mardoe 6 July 1812" to the Naval General Service Medal.
Several days later the British sent the cutter Nimble to reconnoiter the situation. Nimble reported seeing four vessels at Christiansand, two of 18 guns and two of 16 guns. Nimble also saw numerous gunboats about. The Battle of Lyngør effectively ended the Gunboat War.
Baltic and Azores
Commander Thomas Groube replaced Weir in July 1812. On 7 March 1813, Calypso captured the Christine. Ten days later, Calypso and Bruizer captured the Speculation.On 9 August Calypso captured the Marianne, while Orion
HMS Orion (1787)
HMS Orion was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched at Deptford on 1 June 1787 to the design of the , by William Bately...
, Hamadryad and Reynard were in company.
Groube conveyed Lord George Walpole to St. Petersburg where Walpole served as Secretary at the Embassy and minister ad interim (ie "for the meantime"). Calypso participated at the siege of Danzig in 1813, which led to his promotion to post-captain
Post-Captain
Post-captain is an obsolete alternative form of the rank of captain in the Royal Navy.The term served to distinguish those who were captains by rank from:...
on 7 June 1814.
Some accounts put Groube in Calypso at Faial
Faial
Faial is a Portuguese word derived from faya, referring to a species of plant/tree, Myrica faya.It may also refer to:=In the archipelago of the Azores*Faial Island, an island in the Central Group of islands...
in the Azores
Azores
The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
in late September. She took back to England some of the wounded from the debacle in which the American privateer '"General Armstrong, under Samuel Chester Reid
Samuel Chester Reid
Samuel Chester Reid was an officer in the United States Navy who commanded a privateer during the War of 1812. He is also noted for having helped design the 1818 version of the flag of the United States, which first established the rule of keeping thirteen stripes and adding one star for each U.S...
, inflicted a defeat and heavy losses on cutting-out parties from the third rate Plantagenet, the frigate Rota, and Carnation, a sister ship to Calypso.
Groube's successor in June 1814 was Commander Charles Reid. On 21 February 1815 Reid recaptured the Maid of the Mill. Then on 15 March Calypso and Meander were in company with Aquilon when Acquilon recaptured the Thomas.
Then in 1816 Lieutenant John Sisson was acting commander.
Mediterranean
In April 1816, Lord ExmouthEdward Pellew, 1st Viscount Exmouth
Admiral Sir Edward Pellew, 1st Viscount Exmouth, GCB was a British naval officer. He fought during the American War of Independence, the French Revolutionary, and the Napoleonic Wars...
concluded treaties with the Regency
Dey
Dey was the title given to the rulers of the Regency of Algiers and Tripoli under the Ottoman Empire from 1671 onwards...
of Algiers
Algiers
' is the capital and largest city of Algeria. According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630. In 2009, the population was about 3,500,000...
on the exchange of captives and slaves. Calypso carried to Genoa 40 Sardinians who had been slaves and brought back to Algiers eight Algerine captives, together with the ransom for the freed Sardinians.
Fate
Calypso was in ordinaryReserve fleet
A reserve fleet is a collection of naval vessels of all types that are fully equipped for service but are not currently needed, and thus partially or fully decommissioned. A reserve fleet is informally said to be "in mothballs" or "mothballed"; an equivalent expression in unofficial modern U.S....
at Chatham from 1817-1820. She was broken up in 1821.
Notable passenger
A future governor of New South WalesNew South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, Lachlan Macquarie
Lachlan Macquarie
Major-General Lachlan Macquarie CB , was a British military officer and colonial administrator. He served as the last autocratic Governor of New South Wales, Australia from 1810 to 1821 and had a leading role in the social, economic and architectural development of the colony...
, who would replace William Bligh
William Bligh
Vice Admiral William Bligh FRS RN was an officer of the British Royal Navy and a colonial administrator. A notorious mutiny occurred during his command of HMAV Bounty in 1789; Bligh and his loyal men made a remarkable voyage to Timor, after being set adrift in the Bounty's launch by the mutineers...
after the Rum Rebellion
Rum Rebellion
The Rum Rebellion of 1808 was the only successful armed takeover of government in Australia's history. The Governor of New South Wales, William Bligh, was deposed by the New South Wales Corps under the command of Major George Johnston, working closely with John Macarthur, on 26 January 1808, 20...
, sailed on board Calypso from Kronstadt
Kronstadt
Kronstadt , also spelled Kronshtadt, Cronstadt |crown]]" and Stadt for "city"); is a municipal town in Kronshtadtsky District of the federal city of St. Petersburg, Russia, located on Kotlin Island, west of Saint Petersburg proper near the head of the Gulf of Finland. Population: It is also...
, (Russia) to Yarmouth, England in September/October 1807. He briefly visited Copenhagen whilst in transit.