HMS Buckingham (1751)

Last updated

HMSBuckingham.jpg
Buckingham on the stocks at Deptford
History
Naval Ensign of Great Britain (1707-1800).svg Great Britain
NameHMS Buckingham
Ordered15 November 1745
BuilderJohn Hollond, Deptford Dockyard
Laid down26 January 1746
Launched30 April 1751
CommissionedMay 1755
RenamedHMS Grampus, 1777
FateSank, Atlantic Ocean, 11 November 1779
General characteristics
Class and type 1745 Establishment 70-gun third-rate ship of the line
Tons burthen1435 6294 (bm)
Length
  • 160 ft 0 in (48.8 m) (gundeck)
  • 131 ft 4 in (40.0 m) (gundeck)
Beam45 ft 4 in (13.8 m)
Depth of hold19 ft 4 in (5.9 m)
Sail plan Full-rigged ship
Complement520
Armament
  • 70 guns:
  • Gundeck: 26 × 32 pdrs
  • Upper deck: 28 × 18 pdrs
  • Quarterdeck: 12 × 9 pdrs
  • Forecastle: 4 × 9 pdrs

HMS Buckingham (later renamed HMS Grampus) was a 70-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built at Deptford Dockyard by John Holland to the draught specified by the 1745 Establishment, and in active service during the Seven Years' War with France. [1] With a crew of 520 she was one of the largest ships in the Navy at that time.

Contents

Service

Attack of an English ship, the Buckingham, on three French ships near St. Eustatius, 1758 Aanval van een Engels schip op drie Franse schepen bij Sint Eustatius, 1758, RP-P-OB-84.508.jpg
Attack of an English ship, the Buckingham, on three French ships near St. Eustatius, 1758

She was launched at Deptford in May 1751 at a cost of £29,000 then taken to Chatham Dockyard for fitting out to Royal Navy specification (including addition of guns) at a cost of around £8000. She was commissioned and formally brought into service in 1755 and put under command of Captain Michael Everitt who sailed her to the Mediterranean with Admiral John Byng's fleet. On 20 May 1756 she took place in the Battle of Minorca. Immediately after the battle command passed to Captain Edward Pratten who took her to the Leeward Islands immmedialy after repairs at Chatham. In May 1757 command passed to Richard Tyrell.

In 1756/57 Temple West served as her Flag Officer.

On 3 November 1758, Buckingham under the command of Richard Tyrell joined with HMS Weazel to engage three French warships off the coast of Montserrat, the 74-gun Florissant and two frigates (Egrette and Atalante), [2] carrying 38 and 28 guns. The battle lasted for four hours with both Buckingham and Florissant taking considerable damage. Florissant was able to disentangle from Buckingham and sail off before the British could board her. [3]

In January 1759 she went to Martinique where on 16th she took part in the Battle of Martinique and capture of Guadeloupe on 20th. A few days after command passed to Captain Lachlan Leslie and then passed to Peter Parker in May.

In 1771 Buckingham was converted to a storeship at Chatham Dockyard, and in 1777 was renamed HMS Grampus, under Captain Ambrose Reddall. Her armament was reduced to 30 guns and her crew reduced to 230 men.

American Revolution: On 15 April 1778 she sailed from Newport, Rhode Island taking General John Burgoyne and some of his Officers back to England, arriving in early May. Early on in the voyage they recaptured a prize on the Grand Banks that had been taken by USS Revenge. [4]

Command passed in October 1778 to George Anson Byron, she sailed for Jamaica on 26 December 1778 to resupply the Royal Navy garrison. In April 1779 her command was transferred to Commander Thomas Stanhope Bennett, who sailed her to Newfoundland to collect supplies of timber. She was leaking badly on her return voyage to England, and foundered on 11 November 1779 while crossing the North Atlantic Ocean. [1] Commander Bennett and the crew perished.

Related Research Articles

HMS <i>Africa</i> (1781) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Africa was a 64-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched by William Barnard at Barnard's Thames Yard in Deptford on 11 April 1781.

<i>Dublin</i>-class ship of the line

The Dublin-class ships of the line were a class of seven 74-gun third rates, designed for the Royal Navy by Sir Thomas Slade.

HMS <i>Tremendous</i> Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Tremendous was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, designed by Edward Hunt, built to the lines of HMS Ganges by William Barnard's yard at Deptford Green, and launched on 30 October 1784.

HMS <i>Foudroyant</i> (1758) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

The Foudroyant was an 80-gun ship of the line of the French Navy. She was later captured and served in the Royal Navy as the Third Rate HMS Foudroyant.

HMS <i>Neptune</i> (1683) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Neptune was a 90-gun second-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy. She was built under the 1677 "Thirty Great Ships" Programme and launched in 1683 at Deptford Dockyard.

HMS <i>Lenox</i> (1678) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Lenox was a 70-gun third rate built at Deptford Dockyard in 1677/78. She was in active commission for the War of English Succession fighting in the Battles of Beachy Head and Barfleur. She was rebuilt in 1699. Again in active commission for the War of Spanish Succession fighting in the Capture of Gibraltar and the Battle of Velez Malaga. She followed this with the Battle off Passero. She was rebuilt again in 1721. She was active in the War with Spain, capturing the Princesa then serving in Home Waters, the Mediterranean and finally the West Indies. She was in action off Havana in 1745. She returned home and was placed in Ordinary. She was finally sunk as a breakwater at Sheerness in 1756.

HMS Burford was a 70-gun third rate ship of the line built at Woolwich Dockyard in 1677/79 as part of the Thirty Ships Programme of 1677. She fought in the War of the English Succession, including the Battle of Barfleur, before being rebuilt at Deptford in 1699, remaining as a 70-gun third rate. During the War of Spanish Succession she was mostly in the Mediterranean fleet and fought at the capture of Gibraltar and the Battle of Málaga in 1704 before being extensively repaired between 1710 and 1712 at Portsmouth Dockyard. Burford served in the Baltic in 1715 and 1717 before returning to the Mediterranean to fight the Spanish at the Battle of Cape Passaro in 1718. She was wrecked on the Italian coast in a storm on 14 February 1719.

HMS <i>Expedition</i> (1679) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Expedition was a 70-gun third-rate ship of the line built at Portsmouth Dockyard in 1677/79. She was in active commission during the War of the English Succession participating in the battles of Beachy Head and Barfleur. She was rebuilt in 1699. Again, for the War of Spanish Succession she was in commission for the operation at Cadiz then returned to England where she sat for two years. She was in the Mediterranean for the Battle of Marbella in 1705. She then went to the West Indies and fought in Wager's action off Cartagena in 1708. She was rebuilt in 1709-14 to the 1706 Establishment. She spent her time split between the Baltic and as guard ship at Portsmouth before being broken at Portsmouth in 1736. She was rebuilt in 1736/40 at Deptford Dockyard.

HMS <i>Swiftsure</i> (1750) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Swiftsure was a 70-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched in 1755 and in active service during the Seven Years' War. After a distinguished career at sea she was decommissioned in 1763 and sold into private hands ten years later.

HMS <i>Burford</i> (1722) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Burford was a 70-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built at Deptford Dockyard to the 1719 Establishment, and launched on 19 July 1722. Burford was notably the early posting of both John Forbes and John Byng, both of whom rose to become Admirals.

HMS Burford was a 70-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built at Chatham Dockyard to the draught specified by the 1745 Establishment as amended in 1754, and launched in 1757.

HMS <i>Hind</i> (1785) Coventry-class Royal Navy frigate

HMS Hind was a 28-gun sixth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy.

HMS <i>Cleopatra</i> (1779) Frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Cleopatra was a 32-gun Amazon-class fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. She had a long career, seeing service during the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War, and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. During the latter wars she fought two notable engagements with larger French opponents. In the first engagement she was forced to surrender, but succeeded in damaging the French ship so badly that she was captured several days later, while Cleopatra was retaken. In the second she forced the surrender of a 40-gun frigate. After serving under several notable commanders she was broken up towards the end of the Napoleonic Wars.

HMS Aeolus was a 32-gun Amphion-class fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1801 and served in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, and the War of 1812.

HMS <i>Lizard</i> (1757) Coventry-class Royal Navy frigate

HMS Lizard was a 28-gun Coventry-class sixth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy, in service from 1757 to 1828. Named after the Lizard, a peninsula in southern Cornwall, she was a broad-beamed and sturdy vessel designed for lengthy periods at sea. Her crewing complement was 200 and, when fully equipped, she was armed with 24 nine-pounder cannons, supported by four three-pounders and twelve 12-pounder swivel guns. Despite her sturdy build, she was plagued with maintenance problems and had to be repeatedly removed from service for repair.

HMS Triton was a modified Mermaid-class sixth-rate 28-gun frigate of the Royal Navy.

HMS <i>Active</i> (1758) Coventry-class Royal Navy frigate

HMS Active was a 28-gun Coventry-class sixth-rate sailing frigate of the Royal Navy, launched in 1758. She was one of the captors of the Spanish ship Hermione. After Hermione surrendered, her captors found that she carried a large cargo of gold and silver that would lead to the greatest single amount of prize money awarded to the crew of a British warship.

HMS <i>Aquilon</i> (1758) Coventry-class Royal Navy frigate

HMS Aquilon was a 28-gun Coventry-class sixth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. Launched in 1758, she saw active service against the French during the Seven Years' War, capturing seven enemy vessels in the first eight months of 1761. She was declared surplus to Navy requirements and sold into private hands in 1776.

HMS Pochahontas was the Virginia letter of marque Pocahontas, launched in 1777. The British Royal Navy captured her in 1780. She participated in the battle of Fort Royal, Martinique, in April 1781. In May she was renamed Pachahunta. The Navy sold her at Jamaica in 1782.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HMS Hussar (1807)</span> Lively-class frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Hussar was a 38-gun Lively-class frigate serving the Royal Navy launched in 1807 from Buckler's Hard. She was later upgraded to 46 guns.

References

  1. 1 2 Winfield 2007, pp.54–55
  2. Paton, Richard. "Gaudeloupe, 1758". The Royal Collection Trust. Retrieved 12 July 2021. To Captain Tyrrell Commander of His Majesty's Ship BUCKINGHAM 66 Guns. 472 MEN. / This Representation of his Attacking and defeating the Florisant the L'Egrette and L'Atalante, Three French Ships of War, convoying Dutch... 1760
  3. "The Particulars of the Engagement...". St. Christopher's Gazette. 10 November 1758.
  4. "NAVAL DOCUMENTS OF The American Revolution" (PDF). history.navy.mil. Retrieved 19 November 2021.

Bibliography