The second Hancock was one of the first 13 frigate

Frigate

A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...

s of the Continental Navy

Continental Navy

The Continental Navy was the navy of the United States during the American Revolutionary War, and was formed in 1775. Through the efforts of the Continental Navy's patron, John Adams and vigorous Congressional support in the face of stiff opposition, the fleet cumulatively became relatively...

. A resolution of the Continental Congress

Continental Congress

The Continental Congress was a convention of delegates called together from the Thirteen Colonies that became the governing body of the United States during the American Revolution....

 of British North America

British North America

British North America is a historical term. It consisted of the colonies and territories of the British Empire in continental North America after the end of the American Revolutionary War and the recognition of American independence in 1783.At the start of the Revolutionary War in 1775 the British...

 13 December 1775 authorized her construction; she was named for John Hancock

John Hancock

John Hancock was a merchant, statesman, and prominent Patriot of the American Revolution. He served as president of the Second Continental Congress and was the first and third Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts...

. In her career she served under the American, British and French flags.

As Hancock

Hancock was built at Newburyport, Massachusetts

Newburyport, Massachusetts

Newburyport is a small coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, 35 miles northeast of Boston. The population was 21,189 at the 2000 census. A historic seaport with a vibrant tourism industry, Newburyport includes part of Plum Island...

, and placed under command of Captain John Manley

John Manley (naval officer)

John Manley was an officer in the Continental Navy and the United States Navy.-Early life:Tradition holds that John Manley was born in 1733 near Torquay, Devonshire, in south west England. As a young man, he settled in Marblehead, Massachusetts, eventually becoming the captain of a merchant...

 17 April 1776. After a long delay in fitting out and manning, she departed Boston, Massachusetts in company with Continental frigate , 21 May 1777. On 29 May they captured a small brig

Brig

A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...

 loaded with cordage and duck. The next day they encountered a convoy

Convoy

A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support, though it may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas.-Age of Sail:Naval...

 of transports escorted by British 64-gun ship which set sail to close Hancock. Manley was saved by clever and well-timed action of Boston who forced Somerset to give up the chase by taking on the transports.

After escaping from Somerset, the two frigates sailed to the northeast until 7 June when they engaged the Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

's 28-gun frigate who tried to outsail her American enemies. Hancock gave chase and soon overhauled Fox who lost her mainmast and suffered other severe damage in the ensuing duel. About an hour later, Boston joined the battle and compelled Fox to strike her colors

Striking the colors

Striking the colors is the universally recognized indication of surrender, particularly for ships at sea. Surrender is dated from the time the ensign is struck.-In international law:# "Colors. A national flag . The colors . ....

.

Hancock spent the next few days repairing the prize and then resumed cruising along the coast of New England

New England

New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...

. East of Cape Sable she took an enemy coal sloop which she towed until the next morning when the approach of a British squadron prompted Manley to set the coal sloop ablaze and leave her adrift. The British brig Flora recaptured Fox after a hot action. Boston became separated from Hancock who tried to outsail her pursuers. Early in the morning 8 July 1777 the British were within striking distance. began to score with her bowchaser and followed with a series of broadsides which finally forced Hancock to strike her colors after a chase of some 39 hours.

As HMS Iris

Hancock, renamed Iris, served the British Navy so effectively that her new owners boasted of her as "the finest and fastest frigate in the world." The most famous of the many prizes which made her officers wealthy men was the capture on 28 August 1781 of the American 28-gun ship .

In the aftermath of the Battle of the Chesapeake

Battle of the Chesapeake

The Battle of the Chesapeake, also known as the Battle of the Virginia Capes or simply the Battle of the Capes, was a crucial naval battle in the American War of Independence that took place near the mouth of Chesapeake Bay on 5 September 1781, between a British fleet led by Rear Admiral Sir Thomas...

, admirals Graves

Thomas Graves, 1st Baron Graves

|-|-...

 and Hood

Samuel Hood, 1st Viscount Hood

Samuel Hood, 1st Viscount Hood was a British Admiral known particularly for his service in the American War of Independence and French Revolutionary Wars...

 left the Chesapeake waters; the French set a solid screen of fast frigates to intercept enemy shipping. Prior to retreating, Hood dispatched two frigates, Iris and Richmond, to general Cornwallis

Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis

Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis KG , styled Viscount Brome between 1753 and 1762 and known as The Earl Cornwallis between 1762 and 1792, was a British Army officer and colonial administrator...

 in New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

. September 9, 1781, they were intercepted by four French frigates; Richmond fell back and surrendered first, then French frigate Heron, under captain Traversay

Jean Baptiste, marquis de Traversay

Jean Baptiste Prevost de Sansac, marquis de Traversay was a French creole seaman who distinguished himself in the ranks of Royal French Navy during American Revolutionary War. In 1791, fleeing from hostilities of the French Revolution, Traversay joined Imperial Russian Navy, rising to...

, captured Iris. Traversay boarded Iris, assumed command and held it till the end of war.

As Royal French Iris

On November 4, 1781, Iris, with the main French fleet, sailed from Annapolis to the Antilles

Antilles

The Antilles islands form the greater part of the West Indies in the Caribbean Sea. The Antilles are divided into two major groups: the "Greater Antilles" to the north and west, including the larger islands of Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola , and Puerto Rico; and the smaller "Lesser Antilles" on the...

. In January 1782 Iris took part in the Battle of St. Kitts

Battle of St. Kitts

The Battle of Saint Kitts, also known as the Battle of Frigate Bay, was a naval battle that took place on 25 and 26 January 1782 during the American Revolutionary War between a British fleet under Rear-Admiral Sir Samuel Hood and a larger French fleet under the Comte de Grasse.-Background:When Hood...

. Iris captured a small British sloop

Sloop

A sloop is a sail boat with a fore-and-aft rig and a single mast farther forward than the mast of a cutter....

. On the eve of Battle of the Saintes

Battle of the Saintes

The Battle of the Saintes took place over 4 days, 9 April 1782 – 12 April 1782, during the American War of Independence, and was a victory of a British fleet under Admiral Sir George Rodney over a French fleet under the Comte de Grasse forcing the French and Spanish to abandon a planned...

 admiral de Grasse

François Joseph Paul de Grasse

Lieutenant Général des Armées Navales François-Joseph Paul, marquis de Grasse Tilly, comte de Grasse was a French admiral. He is best known for his command of the French fleet at the Battle of the Chesapeake, which led directly to the British surrender at Yorktown...

 detached Iris to convoy unarmed troop transports; Iris completed her mission while the main French force suffered a humiliating defeat. In the late stages of war Iris continued reconnaissance, bounty hunting, and finally performed a diplomatic mission, bringing an offer of ceasefire

Ceasefire

A ceasefire is a temporary stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions. Ceasefires may be declared as part of a formal treaty, but they have also been called as part of an informal understanding between opposing forces...

 to British-occupied New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

.

As Republican French Iris

When the Royalist French surrendered Toulon to Lord Hood

Samuel Hood, 1st Viscount Hood

Samuel Hood, 1st Viscount Hood was a British Admiral known particularly for his service in the American War of Independence and French Revolutionary Wars...

 in 1793 Iris was found dismantled and being used as a powder hulk. As the republicans advanced on the town, the Anglo-Spanish forces evacuated, destroying the arsenal and as many ships as they could that could not be sailed out of the port. Captain Sidney Smith took charge of a party of other British officers, and armed with a small squadron of three English and three Spanish gunboats, went into the inner harbour to scuttle the ships. Against orders, instead of sinking one of the frigates, the Spanish crew of one gunboat set her alight. The vessel, possibly the Iris, was being used to store one thousand barrels of gunpowder. The resulting explosion nearly blew up the entire party of the british gun boat Terrible, commanded by Lieutenant Patey; the boat was blown to pieces, but the men picked up alive. Another British gunboat, the Union, which was nearest to the Iris, suffered considerably, his captain Mr Young being killed, with three men, and the vessel shaken to pieces. At least one other powder hulk, French frigate Montréal

HMS Montreal (1761)

HMS Montreal was a 32-gun Niger-class fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1761 and served in the Seven Years' War and the American War of Independence. The French captured her in 1779 and she then served with them under the name Montréal...

, was also destroyed in the evacuation, and Iris was recorded as being one of those burnt in the retreat.