Author Topic: HMS Galatea (1776 - 1783)  (Read 1748 times)

Offline stuartwaters

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HMS Galatea (1776 - 1783)
« Reply #1 on: December 26, 2020, 07:07:19 PM »
HMS Galatea was a 9pdr-armed, Sixth Rate, 20-gun Post Ship of the Sphinx Class, built at the Royal Dockyard, Deptford.


The term "Post Ship" was used to describe a vessel which fell between two stalls. Bigger than a Sloop of War and carrying the 20 or more guns enabling them to be Rated, they carried less than the 28 guns required for them to be officially classed as Frigates. The Sixth Rate Post Ship was the smallest vessel in the Royal Navy which would normally be commanded by an officer with the rank of Captain. They were in effect, really just small Frigates and many sources refer to them as such. Like the smaller Sloops of War, they were often used in lieu of Frigates because of the acute shortages of those vessels the Royal Navy's senior commanders often complained about. Earlier Post-ships such as the Sphinx Class were described as being "Frigate-built"; that is they had a gundeck partially enclosed by a quarterdeck aft and forecastle forward with a grated boat tier between them. The crew were accommodated on a berth deck located below the gun deck. Unlike a true Frigate however, they were not built with an orlop deck between the hold and the berth-deck. Instead, they had platforms at each end of the hold like a Sloop of War. Later Post Ships were flush-decked; that is they carried their main guns out in the open on a Main Deck.


The Sphinx Class was a group of ten Post Ships designed by Sir John Williams, Surveyor or chief designer at the Navy Board. Normally, Surveyors worked in pairs, but Williams' Co-Surveyor, Sir Thomas Slade had died in 1771 and he wasn't replaced by Mr Edward Hunt until 1774. Of the ten ships in the Sphinx Class, four were built in the Kent Royal Dockyards. HMS Ariadne and HMS Camilla were built at the Chatham Royal Dockyard and HMS Daphne was built at the Woolwich Royal Dockyard.


HMS Galatea was ordered from the Deptford Royal Dockyard on the 1st December 1773. Once the shipwrights had expanded the 1/48 scale drawings into full size on the Mould Loft Floor and used those drawings to build the moulds, the moulds were sent to the sawpits where they were used to mark out and cut the timbers to be used in the construction of the ship. The first keel section was laid during October of 1774. Her construction was overseen by Mr Adam Hayes, Master Shipwright in the Deptford Royal Dockyard and under his supervision, the completed hull was launched with all due ceremony into the River Thames on the 21st March 1776. Immediately after her launch, the ship was taken into a dry dock at Deptford and her lower hull was sheathed in copper. Once this was completed, the ship was refloated and was secured to a mooring bouy in the river and was fitted with her guns, masts and rigging. The ship had commissioned under Captain Thomas Jordan on the day before her launch.


Sphinx Class Plans


Hold Platforms:





Berth or Lower Deck:





Gundeck:





Quarterdeck and Forecastle:





Framing Plan:





Inboard Profile and Plan:





Sheer Plan and Lines:





A painting by Joseph Marshall of the Navy Board model of HMS Sphinx. HMS Galatea would have been identical apart from her decorations and figurehead. Starboard Quarter view:





Starboard Bow view:





HMS Galatea was declared complete at Deptford on the 26th May 1776. On completion, she was a ship of 429 tons. She was 108ft long at the gundeck and 89ft 8in long at the keel. She was 30ft wide across the beams and drew 8ft 2in of water at the bows and 12ft 7in at the rudder. She was armed with 20 x 9pdr long guns on her gundeck with a dozen half-pounder swivel guns fitted to her upper deck handrails, bulwarks and in her fighting tops. She was manned by a crew of 140 officers, seamen, boys and Marines.


Born in 1737, Thomas Jordan first went to sea in the merchant service in 1752 where he qualified as a Mate and on entering the Royal Navy, passed his examination for Lieutenant on the 4th October 1758. He gained his first command appointment as Master and Commander in the Bomb Vessel HMS Carcass on the 11th September 1766. He was first Posted, or promoted to Captain, when he was appointed to command the Post Ship HMS Fowey (24) on the orders of Rear-Admiral John Montague, Commander in Chief at The Downs on the 7th July 1772.


Captain Jordan's first task on assuming command of the new ship was to recruit his crew. A Post Ship of 20 guns had two Lieutenants, appointed by the Admiralty and ranked in order of seniority, based on the dates on which they had passed their examinations. The Lieutenants were in effect, commanders in waiting, gaining experience and looking for the patronage they would need in order to be awarded a command of their own. The Warrant Officers were appointed by the Navy Board and these included the Standing Officers, those Warrant Officers who remained with the ship whether or not she was in commission. These were:


The Carpenter - He was a qualified shipwright who answered to the First Lieutenant and was responsible for the repair and maintenance of the ships frames, hull and decks. He was assisted in this when the ship was in commission by a Carpenters Mate and a dedicated crew of four men.


The Boatswain - He was a Warrant Officer who had worked his way up from the ranks of seamen and was responsible to the First Lieutenant for the operation, repair and maintenance of the ships boats as well as the masts and rigging. He was assisted when the ship was in commission by a single Boatswains Mate. Amongst the duties of the Boatswains Mate was the administering of any floggings ordered by the Captain.


The Purser - He answered directly to the Captain and was responsible for the purchase and distribution of the ship's stores and provisions.


The Cook - The lowest ranking of the Standing Officers, the Cook was responsible for the distribution and preparation of the ships provisions. He was also in charge of the ship's complement of servants for the Captain and the commissioned and warrant officers when the ship was in commission.


The Gunner - He answered to the First Lieutenant and was responsible for the operation, repair and maintenance of the ships main guns. He was also responsible for the training of the gun crews and for instructing any Midshipmen-in-Ordinary in the arts of gunnery. In addition to this, the Gunner was responsible for the storage and distribution in action of the ships stocks of gunpowder and shot. He was assisted when the ship was in commission by a single Gunners Mate and five Quarter Gunners, each of whom was a senior Petty Officer responsible for four gun crews.


The rest of the senior Warrant Officers only served in the ship when she was in commission and like the Standing Officers, were appointed by the Navy Board. These were:


The Sailing Master - He answered to the Captain and was responsible for the day to day sailing and navigation of the ship. He was also responsible for the training in the arts of navigation and sailing of any Midshipmen-in-Ordinary, although this would normally be delegated to the two Masters Mates appointed to assist him. The Sailing Master was qualified to command a merchant vessel and was certified as such by Trinity House. The two Masters Mates were also certified by Trinity House and those certificates would also enable them to serve as Mates in the merchant service. The actual steering of the ship was the responsibility of the ships two Quartermasters, each of whom also had their own Mate.


The Surgeon - He answered to the Captain and was responsible for the day to day healthcare of the whole crew, from the Captain downwards. Although not a Doctor as such, the Surgeon had had to complete a seven-year apprenticeship and be certified to practice his trade by the Royal College of Surgeons and the Royal College of Physicians. In a ship of 20 guns, he was assisted by a single Assistant Surgeon, who was himself a part-qualified Surgeon.


The lesser Warrant Officers were:


The Caulker - He was appointed by the Captain after having presented his credentials. He reported to the Carpenter and was responsible for making sure that the hull and decks remained watertight.


The Ropemaker - Appointed by the Captain after having presented his credentials, he answered to the Boatswain and was responsible for repairs and maintenance of the rigging and the storage of the ships stocks of spare cordage. If necessary, he could manufacture new cordage.


The Sailmaker - Appointed by the Captain after having presented his credentials, he answered to the Boatswain and was responsible for the maintenance and repair of the ships sails and stock of flags. He was also responsible for the storage of the ships supplies of spare sails and flags. He had a dedicated man to assist him.


The Clerk - Appointed by the Captain after having presented his credentials, he answered to the Purser and was responsible for keeping all the ship's records and making sure the books were sent to the Admiralty for checking. The most important of these were the ships Muster Books, because these were used to calculate the crew's pay.


The Schoolmaster - Appointed by the Captain after having presented his credentials, he answered to the First Lieutenant and was responsible for teaching the Midshipmen-in-Ordinary in the mathematics behind navigation. He would have had to be certified to perform this role by Trinity House after having sat an examination himself. With the Captain's suppport and encouragement, he would also teach the ship's boys the basic '3Rs'.


The Chaplain - Appointed by the Captain after having presented his credentials, he was an ordained Church of England priest, he answered to the Captain and was responsible for the spiritual wellbeing of the whole crew. In action, the Chaplain would assist the Surgeon's crew with the care of wounded men.


The Master at Arms - Appointed by the Captain after having presented his credentials, he in effect, was the ship's policeman and was responsible for the day to day enforcement of discipline on the ship. He was assisted by a single Ship's Corporal.


The Armourer - Appointed by the Captain after having presented his credentials, he was a qualified blacksmith and was responsible to the Gunner for the repair, maintenance and storage of the ships supply of small-arms and bladed weapons. As a qualified blacksmith, he was also responsible for the repair and maintenance of the ships iron fixtures and fittings and could manufacture new bladed weapons as necessary.


In addition to these men, the ship's crew would comprise of Petty Officers in charge of various parts of the ship and the seamen would be rated according to their seagoing experience.


The ship would have a complement of Midshipmen. These young men were in effect, commanders in training and their job was to assist the Commissioned Officers in their day to day duties. They were appointed into the ship by the Commander in Chief where the ship was commissioning. A 20-gun ship like HMS Galatea had four Midshipmen. There were also Midshipmen in Ordinary. These young men were either relatives of the Captain or were relatives of people the Captain was either doing a favour for or owed a favour to. They wore the uniform and performed the duties of a Midshipman and were also known as "Quarterdeck Boys". They were on the ship's books as Captains Servants and were paid at the same rate as an Able Seaman. The Captain of a ship with a crew of 140 men would be entitled to have up to four servants. The Captain would usually bring his own Steward with him when he joined the ship, so the four vacancies as Captains Servants would be taken up by the Quarterdeck Boys.


The ship also had a complement of Marines. A Sixth Rate ship's complement of Marines was a Lieutenant in command, assisted by a single Sergeant, a single Corporal, a single Drummer and 20 Marine Privates. These men came aboard as a pre-existing unit.


When HMS Galatea commissioned, what had started as protests over the imposition of taxes on the inhabitants of Britain's colonies in North America over which they had no say had escalated into a full-blown armed rebellion. The Royal Navy had been tasked with protecting trade from attacks by rebel privateers, assisting the Army as and where required and imposing a blockade of rebel-held ports. On the 5th July 1776, HMS Galatea and her crew set sail to join the conflict in North America.


On arrival in America, HMS Galatea came under the command of Vice-Admiral Lord Howe. Howe had been appointed Commander in Chief in North America and his younger brother, General Sir William Howe had been appointed as Commander in Chief of the Army. The reason for this was political. The Howe brothers were sympathetic to the American cause and were friends of Benjamin Franklin and the Government in London was hoping that the appointment of these men would help bring the Americans into line. General Howe implemented a strategy of securing the major port cities and with the help of naval forces commanded by his brother, the General captured New York in September 1776 followed shortly afterwards by Philadelphia. Once New York was secure, Vice Admiral Howe could implement a blockade of the remaining rebel-held ports. British plans were thrown into disarray by their defeats in two battles at Saratoga in September and October 1777. The second battle, at Bemis Heights on October 7th was a particular blow because a British Army under General John Burgoyne had found itself surrounded and had had to surrender.


In the meantime, on 23rd August 1776, HMS Galatea captured the American vessel Molly.


December of 1776 proved to be quite a successful month for Captain Jordan and his men in enforcing Lord Howe's blockade. On 12th December, she captured the Neptune under Thomas Munro from Surinam with a cargo of molasses, cocoa and sugar. On the 15th, she captured the Fame under Nathaniel Bernard out of Harbour Island with a cargo of salt. The following day saw a further capture, when a vessel (the name is illegible in The Gazette) with a cargo of molasses under Benjamin Jenkins was taken. The 20th saw yet another capture, again the name of the vessel is illegible in The Gazette, but she was commanded by Edward North, out of South Carolina with a cargo of indigo. Christmas Day saw two captures, firstly the Betsy under James Lampheer out of New London with a cargo of lumber and provisions and the privateer schooner Buckskin of 9 guns commanded by Benjamin Handy from Maryland. Her final capture of that month was the Union, under Eba Waters out of New London with a cargo of lumber.


On the 3rd November 1777, HMS Galatea recaptured the ships Rachael and Hope, both of which had previously been taken by American privateers. Between the 12th and the 19th of that month, HMS Galatea captured the sloops Polly, Heart of Oak, Alston, Dove and Francis, the schooners Two Brothers, Molly, Phoenix, Proteus and Swordfish and the brigs John and Britannia.


In April 1778, Captain Jordan was in command of a small flotilla of vessels raiding down the coast of Georgia. His flotilla comprised, in addition to his own ship, the 4pdr-armed brigantine-rigged Sloop of War HMS Hinchinbrooke of 14 guns and the hired armed sloop Rebecca and the hired armed brig Hatter. The State of Georgia had twice attempted to invade the British colony of East Florida with disastrous results and was making preparations for a third attempt. This attempt was to be commanded by Colonel Samuel Elbert of the Georgia Continental Army who was given command of a force of men and four galleys of the Georgia State Navy. These vessels were the Washington, Lee, Bulloch and Congress and were under the command of Commodore Oliver Bowen of the Georgia State Navy.


On the 15th April, Colonel Elbert received news that Captain Jordan's flotilla had been seen off the Georgia coast and on the 18th, the British entered the Frederica River and anchored at Pikes Bluff, a mile and a half upstream from Fort Frederica. The Colonel took 350 men and marched to the town of Darien, where they were to embark on three of the galleys, Washington, Lee and Bulloch. The galleys themselves were very lightly built, designed to be operated under oars, but were very heavily armed, with 12pdr guns. Early in the morning of the 19th April, Colonel Elbert's men boarded the galleys and rowed down the river and at about 05:30, the assault on the British ships began. Everything was in the American's favour, there was no wind meaning that the British vessels were unable to move. The galleys made sure they kept out of range of the 4pdr guns on HMS Hinchinbrooke, the Rebecca and the Hatter and subjected the British vessels to a heavy bombardment. HMS Galatea was anchored in deeper water further out, so was unaffected by the American fire, but the other three vessels, on cutting their anchor cables in an attempt to escape were swept aground by the strong ebb tide. The crews abandoned their ships and made their way by boat to HMS Galatea which escaped unharmed. The other vessels were boarded and captured by Colonel Elbert and his men.


The attempt by the State of Georgia to invade British held East Florida ended in disaster for the Americans and in any case, the State of Georgia's involvement in the war came to an end when the British invaded and captured Savannah at the end of December 1778.


On the 28th April 1779, HMS Galatea captured the American privateer Revenge of 14 guns. By this stage in the war, France and Spain were openly involved and the nature of the conflict had changed from being a colonial power trying to contain and put down an armed rebellion to one of a full-blown war between the superpowers of the day. By the summer of 1779, the British were on the offensive and had taken control of modern-day Maine. To the Americans, this was a severe blow and they laid plans to drive the British out.


To this end, the Massachusetts Government put together an expeditionary force comprising of 1,000 marines, a 100-man artillery force and an armada of 19 warships and 25 other vessels, which sailed from Boston on the 19th July 1779. The British had landed and had established a series of fortified positions including Fort George, located on the Majabigwaduce Peninsula in the upper Penobscot Bay area of the Maine coast. Their goal was to establish a military presence in the new colony to be called New Ireland and prevent the Americans from occupying the area. From July 25th, the Americans landed and laid seige to Fort George.


On 1st May 1779, Captain Jordan was replaced in command of HMS Galatea by Captain James Reid. Captain Jordan was ill and in fact he must have died either shortly before he left the ship or shortly afterwards, because his Will was probated on the 13th September that year. Captain Reid was in his forties when he was appointed to command HMS Galatea and was an experienced commander. He had passed his Examination for Lieutenant on the 9th January 1754 and was first made Master and Commander in the 10-gun Sloop of War HMS Zephyr on the 25th June 1773. Posted or promoted to Captain on the orders of Vice-Admiral Lord Howe on the 5th July 1776, his first Post appointment was in HMS Galateas's sister-ship HMS Sphinx. The appointment to HMS Galatea was made on the orders of Sir George Collier.


By this time, HMS Galatea was part of a squadron commanded by Captain Sir George Collier, who flew a Commodore's Broad Pennant in the 64-gun, Third Rate ship of the line HMS Raisonnable. In addition to HMS Raisonnable and HMS Galatea, the squadron also comprised the 12pdr-armed, 32-gun Frigates HMS Greyhound, HMS Blonde and HMS Virginia, HMS Galatea's sister-ship HMS Camilla, the ship rigged Sloops of War HMS Nautilus of 18 guns and HMS Albany of 14 guns and the brig-rigged Sloops of War HMS Otter and HMS North (both of 14 guns). The American naval force was a mixture of vessels of the Continental Navy, the Massachusetts State Navy and privateers and was split into two squadrons as follows:


1st Squadron under Commodore Solomon Lowell - Warren (32), Vengeance (24), Sally (22), Black Prince (18), Hunter (18), Active (16), Hazard (14), Tyrannicide (14), Springbird (12) and Rover (10).


2nd Squadron under Commodore Dudley Saltonstall - Monmouth (24), Putnam (20), Hector (20), Hampden (20), Sky Rocket (16), Defence (16), Nancy (16), Diligence (14) and Providence (14).


Sir George Collier heard about the seige of Fort George in early August of 1779 and on the 3rd, the squadron left New York to lend its support. Despite thick fog, the squadron was off the mouth of the Penobscot River by the 13th August and entered the river immediately. The following day, they sighted the enemy; all 41 enemy vessels were arranged in a crescent formation across the river. As soon as they sighted the British squadron sailing up the river, all of the American vessels took flight at which point Commodore Collier ordered a general chase and the British fell upon their much more numerous but much more lightly built and armed American opponents. The American ship Hunter attempted to run around to the west of Long Island but was boarded and captured. Defence was set fire to by her crew and blew up and the Hampden surrendered. The rest of the American ships were either captured and burned by the British or were burned by their own crews to avoid capture. Those surviving American sailors who avoided capture were forced to make their own way overland to Boston. With the destruction of their ships, the Americans lifted the seige of Fort George and also retreated back to their own territory. The Penobscot Expedition was an unmitigated disaster for the Americans and was the worst defeat inflicted on American naval forces until the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour in December of 1941.


The destruction of the American fleet in the Penobscot River, by Dominic Serres:





Nevertheless, despite the victory, it was back to business as usual for Captain Reid and his crew. On the 4th september 1779, HMS Galatea captured the American privateer schooner Hawk of 10 guns and on the 11th September, HMS Galatea captured the American privateer ship Recovery of 16 guns and 120 men. On the 21st March the following year, the American privateer George was taken by Captain Reid and his men and two days later, they took the American privateer sloop Beaver of 12 guns, followed on the following day by another American privateer, the Saratoga. A month later, the American privateer Harrison surrendered to HMS Galatea and a month after that, the French privateer Le Loup Garou was taken.


On the 5th September 1781, a British fleet under Vice-Admiral Thomas Graves was defeated by a French Fleet under the Compte de Grasse in their attempt to relieve the British army under General Lord Cornwallis, beseiged by a Franco-American army in the city of Yorktown at the head of Chesapeake Bay in the battle of the same name. This led to Lord Cornwallis and the bulk of the British army in North America being forced to surrender. This effectively ended the war ashore in North America and on 7th October 1781, HMS Galatea paid off into the Ordinary at Sheerness.


On being paid off, HMS Galatea was stripped of her yards, sails and running rigging and with her gunports and hatches sealed shut, she was left secured to a mooring buoy in the Swale off Sheerness to be manned by a skeleton crew consisting of her Standing Officers, their servants and a crew of 8 men, all rated at Able Seaman.


In March of 1783, HMS Galatea was surveyed at Sheerness and was found to be beyond economical repair. The following month, she was broken up at Sheerness.         
"I did not say the French would not come, I said they will not come by sea" - Admiral Sir John Jervis, 1st Earl St Vincent.