HMS Anson (1781)

HMS "Anson" was a 64-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched at Plymouth on 4 September 1781 by Georgina, Duchess of Devonshire.

She fought at the Battle of Les Saintes on April 9 1782 under the flag of Admiral Sir George Rodney against Admiral de Grasse. In this engagement, Captain William Blair was one of the two Royal Navy post captains killed.

In 1794, she was razéed to a large frigate of 44-guns by removing her forecastle and quarterdeck and altering the former upper deck (now weather or spar-deck) to 42-pounder carronades from the 18-pounder long guns previously mounted.

On October 18 1798 under the command of Captain Philip Charles Durham, in company with "Kangaroo", she captured the French frigate "Loire", this after having earlier lost her mizzen mast, main lower and topsail yards during the pursuit of a French squadron off Ireland.

She sailed from Plymouth on 26 January 1799, and on February 2, in company with "Ethalion", captured the French privateer cutter "Boulonaise", 14, from Dunkirk which had been harassing shipping in the North Sea.

On September 9 1799 Captain Durham hosted a fête for King George III. During the course of the evening, the king was found on the low deck surrounded by the ship’s company talking to an old sailor.

On 10 April 1800, when north-west of the Canary Islands, "Anson" detained the "Catherine & Anna" bound for Hamburg, Holy Roman Empire, from Batavia with a cargo of coffee.

In 1801 Captain W.E. Cacraft assumed command and the ship was placed on the Channel station, cruising from Portsmouth. In 1802 she was in the Mediterranean, and in November she sailed from Malta for Egypt. She went in for repairs in 1805 at Portsmouth.

On the morning of August 23 1806 Captain Charles Lydiard along with "Arethusa" made a successful attack near Moro Castle in Cuba.

On September 15 1806, she encountered the French "Foudroyant", 84, under jury rig some 15 miles off Havana. Assuming that she had been damaged in action Captain Charles Lydiard attacked but then after half an hour found that the French ship had only suffered from bad weather and retained all her fire power. He was forced to haul off after 2 men had been killed, 13 wounded, his sails and rigging had been badly damaged and the ships were drifting fast in shore.

"Anson" was wrecked in Mount's Bay, Cornwall, on December 29 1807. The previous day she had been driven onto a lee shore by a gale while attempting to return to Falmouth. She had anchored, but when the cable parted at about 8 o'clock in the morning, she ran onto the sand and was soon broken up by the waves. 270 of the 330 on board were saved. Captain Lydiard was among the casualties, his body being recovered on January 1 1808 and taken to Falmouth for burial.

References

*Robert Gardiner,"Frigates of the Napoleonic Wars", Chatham Publishing, London 2006. ISBN 1861762925
*Michael Phillips. [http://www.cronab.demon.co.uk/A4.HTM Sailing Ships of the Royal Navy] . Ships of the Old Navy. Retrieved 15 January 2007.
*Lavery, Brian (2003) "The Ship of the Line - Volume 1: The development of the battlefleet 1650-1850." Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-252-8.

External links

* [http://www.lizardiver.co.uk/HistoricWrecks/HMS%20Anson.htm Lizard Diver - Diving Cornwall]