HMS Calpe (1800)
Encyclopedia
HMS Calpe was the former 14-gun polacca
San José of the Spanish Navy, originally built in 1796 in Greece. The British captured her in 1800 and commissioned her as a sloop-of-war
. She served at the Battle of Algeciras Bay
before the Navy sold her in 1802.
On 25 October 1800 the frigate Phaeton chased a Spanish polacca to an anchorage under a battery of five heavy guns at Fuengirola
, where she joined a French privateer brig. The following night the brig escaped while the polacca tried twice, unsuccessfully, to escape to Malaga
. On the night of the 27 October, Francis Beaufort
, inventor of the Beaufort Wind-Scale
, led Phaeton's boats on a cutting out expedition. Unfortunately the launch, with a carronade
, was unable to keep up and was still out of range when a French privateer schooner, which had come into the anchorage unseen, fired on the other boats. The barge and two cutters immediately made straight for the polacca. The boarding party suffered one man killed and three wounded, including Beaufort who received, but survived, 19 wounds. The boarding party succeeded in securing the polacca by 5 am. The captured ship was the San José, alias Aglies, of 14 guns. She had been employed as a packet, carrying provisions between Malaga and Velilla
. She had a crew of 34 seamen and there were also 22 soldiers on board. The Spanish sustained at least 13 wounded. The British immediately commissioned San José as a British sloop-of-war
under the name of Calpe, the ancient name of Gibraltar. Although it would have been usual to promote Beaufort, the successful and heroic leader of the expedition, to command Calpe, Lord Keith chose Commander George Dundas
instead, who not only was not present at the battle, but was junior to Beaufort.
When she was first commissioned in the Royal Navy
there were insufficient Royal Marines
available for her. As a stop-gap, she received a mixed detachment of 22 Army troops from the Gibraltar Garrison, the Royal Artillery, 5th and 63rd Foot, Cambrian Rangers, and the Argyll, Banffshire and Prince of Wales' Own Fencibles, all under the command of an officer from the 5th Foot. Even after the marines arrived, the troops stayed aboard for some more months.
Calpe shared with a number of warships in the capture of Eurydice on 9 February 1801.
in a boat, and informed Sir James of the appearance of the French squadron off the Rock
.
On 6 July Saumarez sailed from Gibraltar with Caesar, Pompee, Spencer
, Venerable
, Hannibal and Audacious
with the intention of attacking Admiral Linois's
squadron of three French line-of-battle ships and a frigate, which were lying a considerable distance from the batteries at Algeciras. As Venerable, the leading ship, approached the wind dropped and she was forced to anchor. Pompee managed to get into action but Hannibal grounded and was forced to strike. Dundas, deceived by a signal from Hannibal, sent his boats to save Hannibals crew. The French detained the boats and their crews, including Calpes lieutenant, Thomas Sykes; after firing several broadsides at the enemy's shipping and batteries, Calpe returned to Gibraltar. In the battle the British drove two of the French ships ashore and badly damaged the rest. The total loss in the British squadron was 121 killed, 240 wounded, and 14 missing. The Franco-Spanish force lost 317 men killed and some 3-500 wounded.
On 8 July a squadron of five Spanish ships-of-the-line, a French 74, three frigates and a large number of gunboats reinforced the French ships. Hard work repaired all the British ships at Gibraltar, except Pompee in time for them to follow the Franco-Spanish fleet when it sailed on 12 July. In the subsequent second phase of the Battle of Algeciras Bay
, the two first rates Real Carlos and Hermenegildo fired upon each other during the night, caught fire and exploded, with tremendous loss of life. The British captured the third rate St Antoine, with Superb and Calpe assisting afterwards in securing the prize and removing the prisoners. Calpe later shared in the prize money for the St Antoines hull and provisions, and in the head money for St Antoine,
Real Carlos, and San Hermengildo. Dundas was made Post-captain
on 9 August and took command of the St Antoine, which he sailed back to England.
Saumarez then appointed Lieutenant John Lamburn, first lieutenant
of Caesar, to command the Calpe. However, the Admiralty did not confirm Saumarez's promotions, except that of Dundas. Among other decisions, it returned Lamburn to Caesar, and replaced him as captain of Calpe with Commander Phillip Dumaresque. (Dumaresque had been a lieutenant aboard Caesar and received his promotion in July when he arrived in London with Saumarez's dispatches.) In subsequent months Calpe assisted the 38-gun frigate Thames
, under Captain Askew Paffard Hollis, which had also participated in the battle, in destroying a number of the enemy's coasters in the bay of Estepona
.
Polacca
A polacca is a type of seventeenth-century sailing vessel, similar to the xebec. The name is the feminine of "Polish" in the Italian language. The polacca was frequently seen in the Mediterranean...
San José of the Spanish Navy, originally built in 1796 in Greece. The British captured her in 1800 and commissioned her as a sloop-of-war
Sloop-of-war
In the 18th and most of the 19th centuries, a sloop-of-war was a warship with a single gun deck that carried up to eighteen guns. As the rating system covered all vessels with 20 guns and above, this meant that the term sloop-of-war actually encompassed all the unrated combat vessels including the...
. She served at the Battle of Algeciras Bay
Battle of Algeciras Bay
The Battle of Algeciras Bay refers to two separate battles in July 1801 between an allied French-Spanish fleet and the British near Gibraltar. In the first battle, the French drove off an attack by the larger British fleet and captured one ship of the line...
before the Navy sold her in 1802.
Capture
Fuengirola
Fuengirola, in ancient times known as Suel and then Suhayl, is a large town and municipality on the Costa del Sol in the province of Málaga, autonomous community of Andalusia in southern Spain. It is a major tourist resort, with more than 8 km of beaches, and home to a mediæval Moorish fortress...
, where she joined a French privateer brig. The following night the brig escaped while the polacca tried twice, unsuccessfully, to escape to Malaga
Málaga
Málaga is a city and a municipality in the Autonomous Community of Andalusia, Spain. With a population of 568,507 in 2010, it is the second most populous city of Andalusia and the sixth largest in Spain. This is the southernmost large city in Europe...
. On the night of the 27 October, Francis Beaufort
Francis Beaufort
Rear-Admiral Sir Francis Beaufort, FRS, FRGS was an Irish hydrographer and officer in Britain's Royal Navy...
, inventor of the Beaufort Wind-Scale
Beaufort scale
The Beaufort Scale is an empirical measure that relates wind speed to observed conditions at sea or on land. Its full name is the Beaufort Wind Force Scale.-History:...
, led Phaeton's boats on a cutting out expedition. Unfortunately the launch, with a carronade
Carronade
The carronade was a short smoothbore, cast iron cannon, developed for the Royal Navy by the Carron Company, an ironworks in Falkirk, Scotland, UK. It was used from the 1770s to the 1850s. Its main function was to serve as a powerful, short-range anti-ship and anti-crew weapon...
, was unable to keep up and was still out of range when a French privateer schooner, which had come into the anchorage unseen, fired on the other boats. The barge and two cutters immediately made straight for the polacca. The boarding party suffered one man killed and three wounded, including Beaufort who received, but survived, 19 wounds. The boarding party succeeded in securing the polacca by 5 am. The captured ship was the San José, alias Aglies, of 14 guns. She had been employed as a packet, carrying provisions between Malaga and Velilla
Velilla
Velilla is a municipality located in the province of Valladolid, Castile and León, Spain. According to the 2004 census , the municipality has a population of 138 inhabitants....
. She had a crew of 34 seamen and there were also 22 soldiers on board. The Spanish sustained at least 13 wounded. The British immediately commissioned San José as a British sloop-of-war
Sloop-of-war
In the 18th and most of the 19th centuries, a sloop-of-war was a warship with a single gun deck that carried up to eighteen guns. As the rating system covered all vessels with 20 guns and above, this meant that the term sloop-of-war actually encompassed all the unrated combat vessels including the...
under the name of Calpe, the ancient name of Gibraltar. Although it would have been usual to promote Beaufort, the successful and heroic leader of the expedition, to command Calpe, Lord Keith chose Commander George Dundas
George Heneage Dundas
Rear Admiral George Heneage Lawrence Dundas CB was a senior naval officer and First Naval Lord.-Family:He was the fifth son of Thomas Dundas by his wife Charlotte, daughter of the third Earl Fitzwilliam.-HMS Queen Charlotte:In February 1800 George Heneage Dundas was aboard Lord Keith's flagship,...
instead, who not only was not present at the battle, but was junior to Beaufort.
British service
She carried two long 24-pounders in the bow, two long brass 18-pounders for sternchasers, four 12 pounders and four 4-pounders and a crew of 49.When she was first commissioned in 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...
there were insufficient Royal Marines
Royal Marines
The Corps of Her Majesty's Royal Marines, commonly just referred to as the Royal Marines , are the marine corps and amphibious infantry of the United Kingdom and, along with the Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary, form the Naval Service...
available for her. As a stop-gap, she received a mixed detachment of 22 Army troops from the Gibraltar Garrison, the Royal Artillery, 5th and 63rd Foot, Cambrian Rangers, and the Argyll, Banffshire and Prince of Wales' Own Fencibles, all under the command of an officer from the 5th Foot. Even after the marines arrived, the troops stayed aboard for some more months.
Calpe shared with a number of warships in the capture of Eurydice on 9 February 1801.
Battle of Algeciras Bay
By 1 July 1801 she was at Gibraltar. While there she observed the arrival of a French squadron. On 5 July, at 2 a.m., Lieutenant Richard Janvarin, whom Dundas had dispatched from Gibraltar, joined Rear Adm. James Saumarez in CaesarHMS Caesar (1793)
HMS Caesar, also Cæsar, was an 80-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 16 November 1793 at Plymouth. She was designed by Sir Edward Hunt, and was the only ship built to her draught.-Battle of Algeciras Bay:...
in a boat, and informed Sir James of the appearance of the French squadron off the Rock
Rock of Gibraltar
The Rock of Gibraltar is a monolithic limestone promontory located in Gibraltar, off the southwestern tip of Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. It is high...
.
HMS Spencer (1800)
HMS Spencer was a 74-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 10 May 1800 at Bucklers Hard. Her designer was the French émigré shipwright Jean-Louis Barrallier.-Battle of Algeciras Bay:...
, Venerable
HMS Venerable (1784)
HMS Venerable was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 19 April 1784 at Blackwall Yard.In 1797, Venerable served as Admiral Duncan's flagship at the Battle of Camperdown....
, Hannibal and Audacious
HMS Audacious (1785)
HMS Audacious was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 23 July 1785 at Rotherhithe. She was the first ship to bear the name....
with the intention of attacking Admiral Linois's
Charles-Alexandre Léon Durand Linois
Charles-Alexandre Léon Durand, Comte de Linois was a French admiral during the time of Napoleon Bonaparte. He won a victory over the British at the Battle of Algeciras in 1801 and was reasonably successful in a campaign against British trade in the Indian Ocean and South China Sea in...
squadron of three French line-of-battle ships and a frigate, which were lying a considerable distance from the batteries at Algeciras. As Venerable, the leading ship, approached the wind dropped and she was forced to anchor. Pompee managed to get into action but Hannibal grounded and was forced to strike. Dundas, deceived by a signal from Hannibal, sent his boats to save Hannibals crew. The French detained the boats and their crews, including Calpes lieutenant, Thomas Sykes; after firing several broadsides at the enemy's shipping and batteries, Calpe returned to Gibraltar. In the battle the British drove two of the French ships ashore and badly damaged the rest. The total loss in the British squadron was 121 killed, 240 wounded, and 14 missing. The Franco-Spanish force lost 317 men killed and some 3-500 wounded.
On 8 July a squadron of five Spanish ships-of-the-line, a French 74, three frigates and a large number of gunboats reinforced the French ships. Hard work repaired all the British ships at Gibraltar, except Pompee in time for them to follow the Franco-Spanish fleet when it sailed on 12 July. In the subsequent second phase of the Battle of Algeciras Bay
Battle of Algeciras Bay
The Battle of Algeciras Bay refers to two separate battles in July 1801 between an allied French-Spanish fleet and the British near Gibraltar. In the first battle, the French drove off an attack by the larger British fleet and captured one ship of the line...
, the two first rates Real Carlos and Hermenegildo fired upon each other during the night, caught fire and exploded, with tremendous loss of life. The British captured the third rate St Antoine, with Superb and Calpe assisting afterwards in securing the prize and removing the prisoners. Calpe later shared in the prize money for the St Antoines hull and provisions, and in the head money for St Antoine,
Real Carlos, and San Hermengildo. Dundas was made 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 9 August and took command of the St Antoine, which he sailed back to England.
Saumarez then appointed Lieutenant John Lamburn, 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...
of Caesar, to command the Calpe. However, the Admiralty did not confirm Saumarez's promotions, except that of Dundas. Among other decisions, it returned Lamburn to Caesar, and replaced him as captain of Calpe with Commander Phillip Dumaresque. (Dumaresque had been a lieutenant aboard Caesar and received his promotion in July when he arrived in London with Saumarez's dispatches.) In subsequent months Calpe assisted the 38-gun frigate Thames
HMS Thames (1758)
HMS Thames was a 32-gun Richmond-class fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy built by Henry Adams and launched at Bucklers Hard in 1758. She served in several wars, including for some four years in French service after her capture. She was recaptured in 1796 and was broken up in 1803.-British...
, under Captain Askew Paffard Hollis, which had also participated in the battle, in destroying a number of the enemy's coasters in the bay of Estepona
Estepona
Estepona is a town and municipality in the region of the Costa del Sol, southern Spain. It is located in the province of Málaga, part of the autonomous community of Andalusia. Estepona is renowned for its beaches, which stretch along some 21 km of coastline...
.