HMS Lyra was a Cherokee-classbrig-sloop launched at Deptford in 1808 for the Royal Navy. In 1809 she was one of the vessels that participated in the Battle of Basque Roads. Thereafter, she captured numerous small prizes. Between 1812 and 1814 she served off the Spanish coast. In 1816 Lyra sailed to China as escort to a diplomatic mission. The Navy sold her in 1818. She then became a whaler. Between 1819 and 1833 she made five voyages in the southern whale fishery. She was last listed in 1833.
Commander William Bevians commissioned Lyra in September 1808 for the Channel. Under his command she participated in the battle on 11 April 1809 at the Battle of Basque Roads.[1]Lyra was attached to the fleet under Lord Gambier. On the day after the battle, two luggers captured one of her boats which was engaged in burning the enemy’s ships.[3] The lieutenant commanding the boat and his men remained prisoners of war until the end of the war.
In January 1810, Commander Robert Bloye took command of Lyra.[1]Lyra and Amethyst shared in the prize money for the capture on 7 August 1810 of Marie Ange and Marie Louise.[4] They also shared in the prize money for the capture on 4 September of Dolphina.[5]Lyra shared with Pioneer and Constant in the proceeds from the capture on 14 October of Delphina.[6]
On 28 January 1811 HMSDryad captured the American ship Matilda, in sight of Indefatigable and Lyra.[7]Lyra and Cadmus shared in the prize money for Adolphus, captured 17 February 1811.[8] On 27 May 1811 Lyra captured Fox.[9]
In 1812 and 1813 Lyra operated on Spain's northern coast.[1] From May 1812 Lyra was part of a squadron under the command of Captain George Collier in Surveillante, employed off the coast of northern Spain assisting the operations of Spanish partisans. On 17 June HMSMedusa joined Hotspur, Rover, Venerable, Rhin and Lyra off Santoña, and made contact with the guerilla chief Don Gaspar, who arranged an attack on the town and the fort of Lequietio, 12 miles (19km) to the east. Marines were landed to reinforce the guerillas, and Captain Bouverie supervised the landing of a gun, which made a breach in the fort's wall allowing it to be captured.
In July 1812 Lyra was part of a squadron assisting Spanish guerillas under Colonel Longa. On the 11th, Captain Bloye landed with a party of marines, and knocked the trunions off the guns in the Bagona battery, and destroyed one mounted on a height.[10]
Lyra captured the American schoonerEnterprise, of 126 tons and eight men on 12 March 1813. Enterprise was sailing from Boston to Bayoririe with a cargo of fish.[11] Then on 20 March, Lyra captured the American schooner Gold Coiner, of 200 tons and 15 men. Gold Coiner was sailing from New York to Bordeaux with a cargo of cotton, potash, and fish.[11][lower-alpha 1] On 28 March 1813 HMSMedusa captured Ferox and her cargo. Lyra was in company.[13]
On 27 April 1813 HMS Surveillante was involved in an action against the American 6-gun letter of marqueTom. Collier wrote, on 27 April, that he had captured Tom "after a smart chase; she was from Charlestown, bound to Nantz; she is a remarkably fine vessel for her class, and, from her superior sailing, had already escaped eighteen of His Majesty's cruizers." Surveillante was accompanied by Lyra.[14] On 29 May, Lyra captured Hannah Eliza.[15] Commander Bloye was promoted to post captain on 23 September 1813.[16] Commander Dowell O'Reilly replaced him.[1] On 5 December Lyra and Iris captured the schooner Mariner, of 83 tons (bm) and six men. Mariner was on her way from Boston to Bayonne with a cargo of salt fish.[17]
By 20 February 1814, General Wellington, advancing from Spain, had reached the Adour some 10 miles north of Biaritz. O'Reilly commanded a squadron consisting of Lyra, Woodlark, and Matial, was given the task of attempting to cross the bar. On the 23rd, O'Reilly took a Spanish, flat-bottomed boat, which overset. He and his men safely reached shore. The next day a pilot was landed to guide vessels through the bar. A number of boats made it through the bar, though Lyra's master's mate and five seamen drowned in the attempt. Eventually the boats and small vessels necessary to support the army succeeded in crossing the bar and sailing into the river.[18]
Commander Basil Hall was appointed to Lyra in October 1815. She underwent fitting in November–December for foreign service. Then on 9 February 1816 she accompanied Lord Amherst's expedition to China. Lyra arrived back in England in October 1817.[1]
Disposal: The "Principal Commissioners and Officers of His Majesty's Navy" offered the "Lyra brig, of 240 tons", lying at Portsmouth, for sale on 11 June 1818.[19]Lyra was sold to Thomas Pitman at Portsmouth for £920 on 11 July 1818.[1]
Post script
In January 1819, the London Gazette reported that Parliament had voted a grant to all those who had served under the command of Lord Viscount Keith in 1812, between 1812 and 1814, and in the Gironde. Lyra was listed among the vessels that had served under Keith in 1812, and 1813 and 1814.[lower-alpha 2] In 1847 the surviving members of the crews of all the British vessels at the Battle of Basque Roads qualified for the Naval General Service Medal with the clasp "Basque Roads 1809".[21]
1st whaling voyage (1819–1821): Captain Joseph Winslow (or Winston) sailed from England on 15 January 1819. On 24 January Lyra was at Deal. A gale came up and she parted her cables, as did John, Popplewell, master, and both vessels drove athwart of each other. Both sustained damage.[22]Lyra was reported to be at Kema Roads, on Sulawesi, and at Morotai. She returned to England on 19 September 1821 with 550 casks of whale oil.[23]
2nd whaling voyage (1822–1824): Captain John Smith sailed from London on 6 June 1822. Lyra was reported off Japan and at Morotai. She returned to England on 8 September 1824 with 550 casks of whale oil.[23]
Circa 1824 Enderby sold Lyra to Daniel Bennett & Son.[24]
3rd whaling voyage (1824–1827): Captain J. Renwick (or James Rennick), sailed from London on 2 November 1824. She was reported at Mauritius on her way from the South Seas. She arrived back at London on 27 March 1827 with 500 casks, plus one jaw, and whale teeth.[23]
4th whaling voyage (1827–1829): Captain McLean sailed from London on 12 May 1827. Lyra was reported to be whaling off the Seychelles in September 1828. She returned to London on 20 October 1829.[23]
5th whaling voyage (1830–1833): Captain J. Sullivan sailed from London on 6 April 1830. Lyra was reported whaling in the Japan grounds and in the Moluccas. She returned to London 14 June 1833.[23]
Fate
Lyra was last listed in the registers in 1833.
Notes
↑ Gold Coiner, of 15462⁄95 tons (bm), with a length of 79ft 6in (24.2m), had been launched in 1809 on the Connecticut River.[12]
↑ The money was paid in three tranches. For someone participating in the first through third tranches, a first-class share was worth £256 5s 9d; a sixth-class share was worth £4 6s 10d. For someone participating only in the second and third tranches a first-class share was worth £202 6s 8d; a sixth-class share was worth £5 0s 5d.[20]
HMS Eclipse was a Royal Navy Cruizer-class brig-sloop built by John King at Dover and launched in 1807. She served off Portugal and then in the Indian Ocean at the capture of the Île de France. Shortly thereafter she captured Tamatave. She was sold for mercantile service in 1815. She traded with India until 1823. Then between 1823 and 1845 she made seven voyages as a whaler.
Surveillante entered service as a 40-gun Virginie-class frigate of the French Navy. She was surrendered to the British in 1803, after which she served in the Royal Navy, classed under the British system as a 38-gun vessel, until 1814 when she was decommissioned. HMS Surveillante had a long and active career under two successful and distinguished commanders, from the Baltic to the northwestern coasts of France, Spain and Portugal, and was present at the Battle of Copenhagen (1807) and throughout the Peninsula War. Her record as a taker of prizes is notable for its success, particularly towards the end of her career.
HMS Lynx was a 16-gun ship-rigged sloop of the Cormorant class in the Royal Navy, launched in 1794 at Gravesend. In 1795 she was the cause of an international incident when she fired on USRC Eagle. She was at the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801, and during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars took numerous prizes, mostly merchant vessels but also including some privateers. She was also at the second Battle of Copenhagen in 1807. She was sold in April 1813. She then became the whaler Recovery. She made 12 whaling voyages in the southern whale fishery, the last one ending in 1843, at which time her owner had her broken up.
HMS Charybdis was a Royal Navy Cruizer-class brig-sloop built by Mark Richards and John Davidson at Hythe, and launched in 1809. She captured two American prizes during the War of 1812 before she was laid up in 1815 and sold in 1819. She apparently then became the whaler Greenwich, which made three voyages for Samuel Enderby & Sons and one for Daniel Bennett & Son. She was wrecked in the Seychelles in 1833 on her fourth whaling voyage.
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.
Indispensable was a sailing ship built in France and launched in 1791. She was captured in 1793 at the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars and thus came into British hands, keeping her name. She performed two voyages for the British East India Company (EIC) between 1793 and 1797. During this period and later she made two voyages transporting convicts to New South Wales. Amongst her notable events were the discovery of Indispensable Strait (1794), the capture of a Spanish vessel (1798), and the rescue of some castaways (1814). She later went on serve as a whaler in the South Seas until autumn 1827. She ceased trading after this last voyage and was broken up by April 1830.
HMS Rover was a Royal Navy Cruizer-class brig-sloop laid down in 1804 but not launched until 1808. She served in the North Sea, off the north coast of Spain, in the Channel, and on the North American station. She captured two letters-of-marque and numerous merchant vessels before being laid-up in 1815. She then sat unused until she was sold in 1828. She became a whaler that made four voyages to the British southern whale fishery between 1830 and 1848. She was last listed in 1848.
Ronco was a French Illyrien or Friedland-class brig built at Venice and launched in April 1808. HMS Unite captured her less than two months later. The Royal Navy took her into service as HMS Tuscan. She served in the Mediterranean and participated in one action that earned her crew a Naval General Service Medal. She was first offered for sale in 1816 and sold in 1818. At that time mercantile interests purchased her and she became a whaler, making six voyages before being condemned as no longer seaworthy in March 1840 and sold in April during her seventh voyage.
HMS Kangaroo was an 18-gun sloop of the Royal Navy launched in 1805. The Navy sold her in 1815 and she became the whaler Countess of Morley. After three whaling voyages she became a merchantman. She may have been condemned c.1827; she was last listed in 1833.
HMS Foxhound was the French Navy's brig Basque, launched in 1809, that the British Royal Navy captured in 1809 and took into service as a 16-gun sloop. She had a relatively brief naval career in which she captured a number of merchant vessels. After the Navy sold her in 1816, she made some 10 or 11 whaling voyages between 1817 and 1848.
HMS Coquette was launched in 1807 and spent her naval career patrolling in the Channel and escorting convoys. In 1813 she engaged an American privateer in a notable but inconclusive single-ship action. The Navy put Coquette in ordinary in 1814 and sold her in 1817. She became a whaler and made five whaling voyages to the British southern whale fishery before she was lost in 1835 on her sixth.
Royal George was launched in 1803 as a brig for the Revenue Service. The Royal Navy purchased her in 1806 and renamed her HMS Bustard. She served on active duty between 1808 and 1815, distinguishing herself in operations in the Mediterranean. She then sailed to the West Indies. The Royal Navy sold her in 1815 and she became the whaler Royal George. She made three whaling voyages and was lost in 1825 on her fourth.
Sir Andrew Hammond was launched at Bermuda in 1800. She spent almost a dozen years as a West Indiaman. From 1812 on she was a whaler. On her first whaling voyage she sailed to the Pacific where the United States Navy captured her. She then served briefly in the United States Navy before the British Royal Navy recaptured her. She returned to whaling and made a further eight whaling voyages. She was lost in 1841 on her tenth whaling voyage.
Policy was launched at Dartmouth in 1801. She was a whaler that made seven whaling voyages between 1803 and 1823. On her second whaling voyage, in 1804, she was able to capture two Dutch vessels. On her fourth voyage the United States Navy captured her, but the British Royal Navy recaptured her. She was lost at Tahiti in 1824 on her eighth whaling voyage.
Thames was a Spanish vessel launched in 1804, almost certainly under a different name, and captured circa 1805. She became a whaler, making eight whaling voyages between 1805 and 1826. Although the registers carried Thames for some years after her return from her eighth voyage, there is no evidence that she ever sailed again.
HMS Woodlark was launched in 1808 and commissioned in 1809. The Royal Navy sold her in 1818. She then became a merchantman with her new owners retaining her name. From 1820/1821 she became a whaler, sailing out of Port Jackson. She was still sailing as late as the late 1850s.
Zephyr was a vessel built in the United States that the Royal Navy captured in late 1813. Between 1814 and 1840, when she was lost, she made eight voyages as a whaler in the southern whale fishery.
HMS Inspector was launched at Wivenhoe in 1782 as the only vessel built to her design. She participated in one campaign and also captured a handful of small merchant vessels before the Navy sold her in 1802. Most notably, her crew participated in the mutiny at the Nore. After her sale, she became the whaler Inspector. She made six complete voyages to the British southern whale fishery. A Chilean privateer captured her in May 1819. Eventually she was condemned as unseaworthy at Santander in 1821.
Grand Sachem was launched at Newburyport, Massachusetts in 1801. She was registered at Bideford in 1803, but until 1815 sailed from Milford Haven. Between approximately 1803 and 1822, she made eight voyages as a whaler in the British southern whale fishery. She was last listed in 1822 and was broken up in 1826.
Stanbury, Myra; Henderson, Kandy-Jane; Derrien, Bernard; Bigourdan, Nicolas; Le Touze, Evelyne (2015). "Chapter 18: Epilogue". In Stanbury, Myra (ed.). The Mermaid Atoll Shipwreck: A Mysterious Early 19th-century Loss. Fremantle, WA: Australian National Centre of Excellence for Maritime Archaeology and the Australasian Institute for Maritime Archaeology. pp.235–290. ISBN9781876465094.
Winfield, Rif (2008). British Warships in the Age of Sail 1793–1817: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. Seaforth Publishing. ISBN978-1-86176-246-7.
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