On February 25, Admiral Rodney’s fleet captured the 32-gun French frigate Bellisle near Gibraltar. She was charged with dispatches for Cadiz and was brought to London. A French frigate captured Captain Gilbert’s letter of marque Betsey, from Antigua, and a Whig prize she was bringing to England. Another French frigate captured the privateer Prosperous from London and brought her to Nantes. Captain Gigon’s Dunkirk privateer American Union captured two English prizes well-laden and bound to London.307
During the month of March 1780, the French privateers Black Prince and Black Princess captured eight British prizes, the Dunkerquoise three, the Prince de Soubise one, and the Revanche one in ballast.308
Captain Yeoman’s privateer Dart captured Captain Pience’s ship Age d’Or in latitude 35.6 longitude 10.30 W. on Saturday, March 4 and brought her to Dartmouth, England, on Monday, March 20. She was bound from Martinique to Marseilles along with four other ships without convoy, laden with sugar and coffee valued at £15,000. The engagement lasted 1½ hours. The Dart had two men killed and three wounded. The Age d’Or had three men killed and six wounded.309
The British man-of-war Alexander and the Courageux captured the 40-gun French privateer Monsieur about March 5. Upon examining her cargo, several casks were discovered in the hold, each containing several hundred pounds of dollars.310
Admiral Digby, on his passage home from Gibraltar, captured a French 64-gun ship with four East India ships and arrived with them off the Lizard on March 7.311 Admiral Digby also captured Captain La Barleduc’s 20-gun French privateer Saint Laurent and sent her to Plymouth, England, about March 9.312
Commander John Gibson’s privateer New Tartar captured the French sloop the Reine des Anges and six other vessels on the coast of France and sent them to Falmouth on Monday, March 20. Four of the vessels were sunk, being of little value. One of them was stranded but her cargo of sailcloth and other goods was saved.313
The British privateer Swift captured Captain La Armanian’s 300-ton French ship La Morcalquier Thursday afternoon, March 23. She was bound from Martinique to Bordeaux with sugar, indigo, cotton, and other goods.314
Before March 27, 1780, the New York privateer Queen captured a large French ship, while the privateers Union and Sir George Collier captured two French prizes. All the prizes were sent to Bermuda. One of them was from Martinique with sugar and coffee. Another was bound from France to Martinique.315
The privateer Neptune captured Captain Le Courtray’s La Franche Compté and brought her into King Road before April 1, 1780. She was bound from Guadeloupe to Bordeaux with sugars, coffee, and cotton.316
A Guernsey privateer captured a French vessel after a 10-hour chase and brought her into Mount’s Bay on Saturday, April 1. She was a packet bound to the West Indies with dispatches for M. de la Motte Picquet. Just as the privateer was about to board her, the mail was thrown overboard, but, not having sufficient weight, one of the sailors on board the privateer retrieved it.317
Master Luke Ryan’s Dunkirk privateer cutter Fearnot captured two British ships and a vessel of 700 tons on Sunday, April 2. One of these vessels was most likely Captain Robert’s Noble Anne, bound from Newcastle to Greenland. The Fearnot, with 16 4-pounders, 12 6-pounders, and 12 swivels, had been out 10 days and the Noble Anne was her first prize. Her crew of 96 men consisted of 45 Irish and Americans. The others were French, Spaniards, Italians, and Portuguese. The ships and two other prizes were ransomed for more than 33,000 guineas. The Noble Anne was sent to North Bergen.
Three days later, on Saturday, April 8, the Fearnot captured Captain Sinclair’s Friends 22 leagues off Torr, Ireland. The Friends was bound from Clyde, Scotland, to Québec and surrendered after an engagement of 25 minutes. Ryan took out the master and crew, except two passengers, the mate, and cabin boy. He put 21 Frenchmen on board to bring her to France. The Friends was hulled by two shots at the water edge and parted from the Fearnot and Jean at 1 AM on Sunday, in a heavy gale and dark weather, with 6 feet of water in her hold.
The Fearnot also took Captain Brown’s Jean, of Maryport, off Barrhead, on Tuesday, April 11, 1780. She was bound from Liverpool with salt. Ryan offered to ransom the Jean but at a higher rate than Captain Brown would give, so he put her up for sale. Captain Sinclair purchased her and brought her to Glasgow on April 15. The 51 prisoners who were put on board the Jean were released.318
M. du Manuir de Pelly’s St.-Malo privateer Duc de Mortimer captured Master John O’Brian’s brig King George, of Waterford, on Wednesday, April 5. The master and crew of the brig were brought to St.-Malo.319
The privateer Tamer captured the Henriade, a large French ship bound to the Isle of France with anchors, cables, provisions, and 137 soldiers, on Tuesday, April 18. The Henriade was taken to Lisbon. The same day, the Folkestone privateer Unicorn captured the Louisa and sent her to Falmouth. She was bound from Bayonne, France to Brest.320
The Americaine, a corsair from Grandville, captured the 100-ton English brigantine Betsey on Thursday, April 20. The Betsey was bound from London to Halifax with provisions and taken to Morlaix.321
Captain Pigot’s 32-gun HMS Jason was convoying nine transports bound to the River Elbe for troops. She fell in with three French frigate-built privateers, each mounting from 18 to 30 guns, on Thursday, April 20. The Lowestoffe was 10 or 12 leagues away west-southwest at 8 AM. Captain Pigot made a signal for the transports to steer different courses, then to bear down on the French ships. He received their fire and returned it. Two of the French privateers veered off, intending to take the transports. Captain Pigot noticed this and headed after them.
Four of the transports arrived at Yarmouth Road Friday morning, April 28. The Jason arrived that evening with another. The following morning, Captain Pigot saw the French ships with one of the transports. He headed after them and attacked, but, having his fore-topmast shot away, he could not catch up with them and bore away for the roads. The other three transports were thought to be headed to the River Elbe. Captain Pigot had one man killed and three wounded.322
The HM frigates Emerald and Champion captured two Dutch ships on the coast of France on April 20. They contained military stores for the use of the French Navy, about 200 barrels of gunpowder, and a great quantity of copper for sheathing.323
The four-gun, 39-man French privateer Printemps was anchored at Hellevoetsluis, Netherlands, for several days, watching the motions of some colliers which sailed from there. She followed them, intending to board and capture them. Some armed Scottish colliers got below the limits of the port, tacked and engaged the Printemps under the lighthouse on Friday, April 21. They forced her to run ashore on Goree Island, Senegal, where most of the crew escaped. On boarding the privateer, the Scots found several men dead and about four or five others who did not have enough time to run away. They were brought to Sunderland along with the vessel.324
The Maria, from Tinmouth, arrived at Waterford, was captured by the French privateer Dunkerquoise, of Land’s End, and ransomed for 250 guineas before April 23. Captain Marshall’s HM Frigate Emerald captured the Dunkerquoise, of 22 9-pounders and 170 men, about April 24. She was fitted out by the ladies of Dunkirk about June 1779 and brought to St. Helen’s. She was purchased by the British Postmaster General for a West India packet.325
The British privateer cutter Folkestone captured a French privateer snow of 10 guns and 86 men early Monday morning, April 24. The snow had been out of Dunkirk only a few hours and was on her first cruise. She was chasing a coasting vessel when the Folkestone fell in with her and took her to Dover.326
The British privateer Greyhound captured M. la Garonde’s French privateer Mothe, of 6- and 9-pounders, in the Bay of Biscay after an engagement of half an hour before April 29. The French privateer had 10 men killed and eight wounded and was taken to Lisbon. The Greyhound had only four men wounded.327
The privateer Wasp captured Captain Gostenois’s 350-ton ship Nemours and brought her to Jersey before April 29. She was bound from Saint-Domingue to Bordeaux with sugar, indigo, and cotton.328
Captain Nicholas Jesperson’s London privateer cutter Hector engaged two 60-gun French men-of-war at 7 PM on Saturday, April 29. The Hector had two men killed and nine badly wounded in the very severe action. She also had great damage to her mast and rigging. She bore away from the French vessel which, despite her superior force, appeared badly shattered by the repeated broadsides.329
A French privateer of 10 9-pounders ransomed a small collier from Sunderland for 200 guineas. The collier arrived at Yarmouth Saturday evening, April 29. Her captain reported he captured 30 vessels and had chased several into Scarborough and Whitby.330
The French fleet that arrived at Martinique captured an 18-gun British packet on their passage before May 1, 1780. She was bound to the East Indies with dispatches from Lord George Germain but parted with four British ships-of-the-line and two East Indiamen the day before she was captured. Captain Colling’s 24-gun, 210-man French privateer Jean Bart also captured two British ships. They were headed to the Greenland fishery and were taken into the Texel, an island in northern Holland.331
The French privateer Duc de Coigny captured 13 British prizes and brought them to Morlaix before May 4. Other French cruisers took 22 British vessels in the English Channel and brought them to Morlaix since March 24.332
A 44-gun French frigate captured Captain Werry’s King George on Tuesday, May 9. A 64-gun Spanish ship arrived and received Captain Werry and some of his officers and crew as prisoners and took them to La Coruña.333
Captain William Burnaby’s HMS Milford captured the 400-ton Granville privateer ship Duc de Coigny, carrying 28 guns, six swivels, and 191 men, about 30 leagues off Ushant on Wednesday, May 10 and sent her to Plymouth, where she arrived on Sunday morning, May 14. The Milford had four men killed and six wounded in the hour-long engagement. The privateer had 18 killed, including her captain, and 14 wounded, including her first lieutenant. The Duc de Coigny had been cruising between Scilly, England, and the coast of Ireland and had captured one brig.334
The HM Frigate Milford captured a French privateer after a smart engagement before Wednesday, May 17. The captain of the privateer and a great number of his crew were killed. The Milford also had many men killed.335
Captain de Latouche’s French frigate Hermione captured a brig bound from Ireland to New York with 780 firkins of butter, a quantity of soap and candles, and sent her to a neighboring port. The frigate arrived at Newport, Rhode Island, on Thursday May 25. A few days earlier, she had a sharp conflict of an hour with a 44-gun British ship which sheered off. The Hermione had 14 men killed and a few wounded. She took and brought in with her the British ship’s tender.
The Hermione had captured six British privateers and five merchantmen since the beginning of the war. Two of the privateers were taken together, each of more than 20 guns. One of them mounted 22 guns and was fitted out by some ladies in England and named the Ladies Resolution.336
A French rowboat captured the Vigilant off Durlestone Bay, England, in June 1780. She was bound from Milford, England, and arrived at Poole, England, where she was ransomed for £450.337
Eight British warships closely pursued a French fleet of 40 transports which sailed from the Isle of Aix for America on June 9, forcing them into the port of La Coruña. The French man-of-war Guerrier, which convoyed them, prevented any of the transports from being captured, but two of them were driven upon the coast and damaged.338
The Chevalier de Latouche’s French frigate Hermione sighted a brig in the north at 5 AM on June 2. He gave chase and captured her at 4 PM. She was John Nairn’s 100-ton Thomas of Irvine bound from Cork to the West Indies with 1,760 firkins of butter, 150 boxes of candles, and 150 boxes of soap. She left Cork on April 18 with a fleet of 100 vessels escorted by two frigates. Captain de Latouche replaced her crew of eight with a prize crew of four and sent her to Dartmouth, Massachusetts, where she arrived on Monday, June 5.339
The French privateer Black Princess captured Captain Ramsey’s William and John 4 leagues west of Tuscar (Tuskar Rock, Ireland?) on Sunday, June 4. She was from Whitehaven and arrived at Waterford on Wednesday, June 7 where she was ransomed for 500 guineas. The privateer travelled in company with a lugger of four carriage guns and 16 swivels.340
The British privateer Wasp arrived at Livorno on Monday, June 5, with a ship from Bastia, Corsica, under French colors. The captured vessel had seven French officers, including a colonel, on board. She also had 776 French silver crowns which the captain of the privateer generously restored to the commander of the ship. He also returned to the officers everything belonging to them.341
Captain de Latouche’s French frigate Hermione sighted a vessel to the northeast along the coast of Long Island at 4 AM on Tuesday, June 6. The Hermione caught up with her at 8 AM and captured her. She was Captain Georges Eavans’s Recovery, which set sail from Bermuda on May 25 for New York with 500 bushels of salt. She had a crew of five men and two Negroes, all of whom were taken aboard the Hermione. They were replaced with the prize crew of two men under the command of Sieur Noel, ship’s captain, with orders to sail immediately for Providence, Rhode Island.342
The Hermione fell in with a 40-gun British ship, an armed snow, a brig, and a schooner the following day. The HMS Iris chased a privateer brig to the south of Long Island at 4:30 AM but broke off at 6 AM to chase a privateer sloop and a schooner to the northward. Captain Hawker saw a large vessel 5 leagues to the south-southeast of Montauk Point, off the east end of Long Island, on the lee bow, heading westward at 7:30, and chased her. The vessel tacked at 8 AM, hoisted French colors, and headed toward the Iris. She was the 36-gun frigate Hermione. The two vessels crossed each other at 8:40 and exchanged broadsides. The action continued at close range for an hour and 20 minutes before the Iris made all the sail she could and departed. The Hermione’s braces were so badly damaged that she could not catch up with the Iris.
She chased the schooner into 4-fathom water on the back of Long Island, all the time in sight of the Iris. She gave up the pursuit in fear of running ashore. Captain de Latouche and his second-in-command were both slightly wounded in the left arm. Ten privates were killed and 37 wounded, three of them mortally. The British were thought to have suffered considerably more, as the Hermione’s fire was directed mainly at the hull while the British fired more at the rigging, The Hermione retired about 10 AM. The crippled Iris pursued in vain despite having all her running rigging shot away.
Captain Hawker saw another large vessel ahead at 10:40 AM and thought she was the Hermione’s consort. When she fired a signal gun, he thought it prudent to head south, at which time the Iris’s fore-topsail yard broke. The Iris had seven men killed and nine wounded, one mortally.343
Two French frigates and a privateer cruised off Aberdeen before June 10. The crews landed at several places, plundered the inhabitants, and carried off some live cattle. The residents armed two vessels which, with the assistance of two privateers anchored there, retook the vessels containing the cattle and the French privateer and brought them to Aberdeen. The privateers and armed vessels then went in search of the French frigates.344
The Duc de Biron, a new privateer cutter, captured two vessels laden with coal and brought them to Calais on June 12. She also brought in three ransomers whose hulls and cargoes were valued at £1,000, and the ransomers’ bills amounted to £700.345
The 40-gun French frigate Nymphe, coming from Cape François, captured Captain Webber’s Diana, bound from London to Newfoundland, before June 13. The French burned the Diana and brought the captain and his crew to Brest.346
Captain Cameron’s New York cutter Retaliation fell in with a fleet of 25 vessels in the Chesapeake Bay on Thursday, June 15. They were bound from Virginia to France under convoy of a 54-gun French ship. He followed them for four days but to no purpose. The weather was very moderate and they kept close to their convoy.347
Admiral de Ternay learned, on June 14, of the surrender of Charleston, eliminating that port as an option for the arrival of the expédition particulière. A few days later, the French frigate Surveillante captured the brigantine Botetourt sailing from Charleston to the West Indies with some artillery pieces and five British soldiers who were trying to rejoin their regiments.348
Before June 16, two English privateers captured two French prizes in the Bay of Biscay. One was bound from Lorient to North America; the other from Bordeaux to Brest. La Fortune was bound from Cape François to Bordeaux with sugar, coffee, and indigo.349
A French privateer of 30 guns captured the English brigantine Juliana off the coast of Ireland and sent her to Brest. She was bound from London to Galway. On her way there, in latitude 49.56 W, commander Patrick Murray’s privateer ship-of-war retook her and brought her to Folkestone on Saturday, June 17.350
A French frigate sighted a ship at 9 AM on June 18 and chased her with the frigate Surveillante. They captured it an hour later. It was a British cutter with 40 men and three officers bound from Charleston to Antibes. The cutter mistook the French for the British convoy it was awaiting. The command of the cutter was given to a subordinate officer of Surveillante.351
The French frigate Amazon sighted a ship at 10:30 AM on Wednesday, June 21. The frigate Surveillante and a cutter chased her and captured her. She was loaded with masts and had recently been badly treated by a Bermudian privateer.352
A 64-gun French man-of-war captured Captain Murdock’s Catherine and Captain McDonald’s Venus and two brigs off Cape Clear on Friday, June 23. The 20-gun Catherine was bound from Glasgow to Jamaica with a crew of 48. The 12-gun Venus was bound from Glasgow to Georgia with a crew of 25. The New York bound Hurrier was traveling with these brigs but escaped and arrived at Cork on the 27th.353
The Folkestone privateer Tartar captured a vessel bound from Bordeaux to Dunkirk with claret and sent her to Folkestone on June 25.354
Two Guernsey privateers fell in with a French convoy going from Le Havre to Brest, convoyed by a small French frigate. The privateers captured three of the merchantmen in July 1780 and put some hands on board. The rest of the fleet ran to shore during a wind storm to seek shelter under a small fort.355
Commodore Johnson or Johnstone sent Captain Atkins’s Aeolus on a cruise in which he captured the 28-gun French letter of marque Eulalia after a short engagement and brought her to Lisbon on Sunday, July 2. A privateer had engaged her the day before but was beaten off.356
Captain Marden’s or Martin’s Dartmouth, England, privateer Admiral Edwards or Admiral captured a French schooner bound from Bordeaux to America with salt, wine, and bale goods before July 4. Captain Cunningham was on board the privateer.357
French frigates chased a ship at 11 AM on July 4. The Duc de Bourgogne also joined the chase at 1:30 PM and captured the ship at 2 PM after firing her cannons to stop her. She was a small English vessel, loaded with people and foreign wine, bound from New York to Charleston. Two enemy frigates approached very close to the French vessels during the night and fired some cannons at the Duc de Bourgogne, which chased them away toward morning.358
The British frigates Prudent and Unicorn fell in with Mr. de Cherval’s 1,100-ton French ship Capricieuse on Wednesday, July 5. She was a new ship pierced for 44 guns but only mounted 32 and had a crew of 308 men. She was only eight days out of Lorient and was to return on July 12 to have her hull coppered. The two frigates chased the Capricieuse and gained on her fast, but it was 11:30 PM before Captain William Waldegrave’s Prudent came within pistol range. She ran alongside the Capricieuse and engaged her alone until 5 AM, at which time her rigging was cut to pieces and she was obliged to drop a little to the leeward in order to repair the damage. The Unicorn then came up and gave the French frigate a broadside. She struck her colors after she had 5 feet of water in her hold. Her first captain, Mr. de Ransanne, and second captain, Mr. de Fontaine, and 50 men were killed and 30 wounded. The Capricieuse was badly damaged. The Unicorn had three men killed and seven wounded; the Prudent had 17 men killed and 31 wounded, three of them mortally. The British burned the prize, which was a wreck, after taking out the prisoners. The Prudent was also so badly disabled that she might have been considered a wreck.359
Commodore Johnson’s 50-gun Romney captured the 42-gun, 470-man French frigate Artois and sent her to Lisbon before July 6. When the Artois left the Romney, the Romney was firing at a Spanish frigate she was chasing. The Artois, a gift to the French king from a subscription of ladies, had nine men killed and 18 wounded in the engagement. The Romney had only three wounded.360
Seven British ships fell in with two privateers, one of 22 guns under French colors, the other of 18 guns under Continental colors, on Thursday, July 6. They engaged the privateers and beat them off. The Jenny and the Blacket suffered a good deal of damage to their masts and rigging and had three men wounded.361
Two French privateers—one a ship, the other a cutter—chased a brig from Waterford off Comfort Point, England, on Sunday, July 9. The master of the brig immediately headed toward shore and would have run his vessel aground as the French privateers followed him. However, as night approached and the breeze blew strongly, they chose not to come too close to the land. The privateers had two vessels in company, thought to be prizes.362
Captain Robinson’s ship had an engagement with the privateer Black Princess off Belfast for two or three hours before July 10 and beat her off.363
Nine British vessels were in the harbor at Lisbon on Saturday, July 15. They were with their 12 prizes, consisting of French, Spanish, and Congressional vessels. The British men-of-war had seven prizes in the Tagus, two of them king’s frigates, one Spanish and one French.364
Several British frigates were seen a little to the east and north of Block Island almost every day during the week of July 9. About 20 vessels were sighted on Friday, July 21. They were thought to be Admiral Graves’s fleet with eight or nine ships-of-the-line, some frigates, and some New York privateers attempting to intercept the second division of the French fleet. Three of the frigates tried to cut off a small sloop coming around Point Judith from Connecticut.365
The HMS Nonsuch drove a French frigate ashore and burned her near Belle-Île before July 22. She then captured Le François and five other French vessels, three of which escaped. Le François was laden with canvas, sails, cordage, and other naval supplies taken out of a French frigate which the Nonsuch drove ashore and burned.366
Captain John McBride’s 64-gun HMS Bienfaisant returned, on Sunday, July 23, from convoying the fleet to the west. She brought in with her the 18-gun Margarita or Jeune Margaretta, bound from Saint-Domingue to Bordeaux. She was first taken by Admiral Geary’s fleet, then retaken by the French 64-gun ship Duc d’Artois and taken a third time by Captain McBride.367
Admiral Geary’s fleet sailed from New London on June 29, 1780 and arrived at Spithead on August 18. En route, they captured the 350-ton letter of marque ship Le Comte de Hallwel, carrying 24 guns and 80 men. She was bound from Cape François to Bordeaux with sugar, coffee, and indigo. They also took an English brig and her prize bound from Newfoundland to Lisbon and captured the privateer lugger La Sauterelle, carrying 18 guns and 26 men, off Paterall Point (near Ushant) on Thursday, August 17.368
M. de Beaumarchais’s ship Le Fier Rodrigue captured several prizes before August 1. She arrived at the Isle of Rhe (Île de Ré), from New England with 11 Whig ships and four French ships under convoy. Their cargoes consisted of 4,600 hogsheads of tobacco. Le Fier Rodrigue also brought into port two Jamaica prizes. The rest of the convoy of 17 vessels arrived at Bordeaux and La Rochelle.369
Captain Pole’s HM Frigate Hussar sailed from Spithead on July 23 with a convoy. She fell in with three French lugger privateers and took two of them before August 2—Le Jeune Lion and Le Renard. Each mounted 12 carriage guns and eight swivels and carried 44 men. They had been out of Dunkirk only three days.370
Admiral Cordova’s fleet of 22 Spanish and 14 French ships-of-the-line and some frigates were cruising 70 leagues northwest of Cape St. Vincent (Cabo de São Vicente, Portugal) at 3 AM on Wednesday, August 9, when they fell in with a fleet of between 50 and 70 British merchantmen and transports under convoy of the HMS Ramillies and two frigates. They were headed to Madeira and Jamaica with a large quantity of military stores, provisions, and dry goods and 1,000 Highland troops. Most of the British fleet surrendered.371
The Laly, a little French privateer, sailed from Bordeaux to seek her fortune before August 10. She fell in with two 24-gun English privateers off the Cordouan lighthouse (Phare de Cordouan). As the 16-gun Laly was too closely pressed to escape, she tried to defend herself by running between the two English vessels. They were unable to make her surrender before nightfall, and the Laly could not escape during the night as the wind was calm. The battle resumed at daybreak. The two English privateers were about to leave when a British frigate came up. Overwhelmed by the fire of the frigate, the Laly’s master attempted to board the frigate when a large splinter of wood took him by the middle and drove him 20 paces from where he stood to command her. The crew, no longer able to resist, struck the colors. At that moment, the captain, recovering from the fall, threatened to shoot the first man who refused to hoist the colors again. But it was too late. It was impossible to reason with the crew and he gave up, swearing that it was treason.372
Captain William Peere Williams’s 36-gun, 259-man HMS Flora saw a square rigged vessel and a cutter about 4 miles away near Ushant at 4:30 PM on Thursday, August 10. The Flora sailed toward them and got abreast of the ship, Chevalier du Remain’s Nymphe, at 5:10 PM. When the Flora hoisted her colors, the ship fired at her. The Flora returned fire and continued the action for about an hour. When her wheel was shot away, her shrouds, back stays and running rigging cut to pieces, she dropped on board the ship and continued the engagement for another 15 minutes. The ship’s crew deserted their great guns and attempted to board the Flora but were repulsed with loss. The crew boarded the ship, sword in hand. The Nymphe struck her colors, and the Flora’s crew soon took possession of her. Chevalier du Remain died that evening of the wounds he received in the action. The Flora had one midshipman, six seamen, and two marines killed and one master, 13 seamen, and four marines wounded, one seaman and two marines mortally. The Nymphe had her first and second captains and first lieutenant killed and 57 officers, seamen, and marines wounded.
The Nymphe was four years old, copper-bottomed and mounted 32 guns, though pierced for 40, and had a crew of 291 men. She had been out of Brest only four days and was reconnoitering off that port.373
Four French privateers from Dunkirk attacked a fleet of 52 English merchantmen escorted by a frigate in the North Sea before August 11. The privateers captured several of the merchantmen and brought them to ports in Denmark.374
The Cork fleet of 99 vessels set sail on Saturday, August 12, in company with the HMS Bienfaisant, Charon, Licorne, and Hussar. Captain John McBride’s HMS Bienfaisant drove down as far as the Old Head of Kinsale when he observed a large vessel in the southeast chasing some vessels of the Cork fleet at daylight the following day. The Bienfaisant and the HMS Charon pursued the vessel and caught up with her at 7:30 AM. Two other British frigates were out of sight, off Cork. The action on both sides began with musketry. The French vessel, which proved to be the 64-gun ship Duc d’Artois, commanded by the Chevalier Clonard, hoisted British colors and kept firing. Captain McBride did the same until he came within pistol range.
Neither the French ship’s bow guns nor the British ship’s quarter guns could be brought to bear, so both sides continued the action with small arms. The Duc d’Artois hoisted her proper colors and attempted to board the Bienfaisant. It was a daring but unsuccessful attempt. After a smart action of an hour and 10 minutes, the Duc d’Artois, her rigging and sails cut to pieces, struck her colors. She had 21 men killed and 25 wounded from her crew of more than 644 men. Chevalier Clonard, a Lieutenant de Vaisseaux, was slightly wounded in the action. His brothers, one a colonel the other a colonel en second in the Irish Legion, were on board along with Lieutenant Perry of the Monarch and the crew of the prize Margarita or Jeune Margaretta. The Bienfaisant had three men killed and 22 wounded. The Charon had one man slightly wounded. The fleet continued on course in company with the HMS Licorne. The Duc d’Artois sold for £7,530 at Plymouth. She was bought for government service along with her prize the Jeune Margaretta.375
Captain Gilchrist’s Greyhound captured a French transport snow, mounting 16 6- and 9-pounders and a crew of 48 men after a three-hour engagement and brought her to Philadelphia in mid-August. She was part of the French fleet with troops destined for Jamaica.376
Three of Admiral Geary’s squadron saw a French ship-of-the-line departing Brest before August 16 and chased her. They came so close to her in a few hours that she threw all her guns and boats overboard to lighten her and escape. She was the new first rate Magnanime, mounting 110 bronze guns and 50-pounders on her lower deck. She sailed into the port of La Coruña.377
Two British privateers captured the 60-gun, 400-man French ship Comte de St. Florentin on her passage from Cape François to Rochefort. The Comte de St. Florentin lost her masts and had 90 men killed and wounded in the three-hour obstinate engagement.378
Captain Boteler of the British man-of-war Ardent gallantly defended his ship against the 74-gun Soleil, the 64-gun Intrépide, the 74-gun La Magnanime, and the frigates Vainqueur and Invincible, each of 36 guns, before August 28. Most of the French ships received some damage.379
Commodore Johnstone captured many prizes with the French frigate Le Credule and sent them to Lisbon before September 2, 1780.380
The Jersey privateer Stag captured three brigs before September 19 and sent them to Jersey. They were the 70-ton St. Joseph, Captain Hiloury’s 100-ton La Félicité, and the Darcheese. They were all laden with pitch and tar. La Félicité was bound from Bordeaux to Lorient with flour and wine. The Stag, in company with the Liverpool privateer Enterprise, also captured the Valiant, laden with wine and flour, and a French dogger which was sent to Liverpool. The Valiant sank coming into Liverpool and all but one man drowned.381
Captain Montague’s HMS Pearl fell in with the French frigate Esperance, of 28 12-pounders, off Bermuda on Saturday, September 30. The French frigate struck her colors after an action of two hours and arrived at New York on October 15.382
Before October 1780, a French and Spanish outward-bound fleet of 17 ships-of-the-line captured, off Madeira, 40 vessels bound to Jamaica, 15 bound up the Straits, and five headed to the East Indies.383
The French frigate Aigrette engaged three English privateers and captured an Imperial ship bound from Ostend with a cargo for a French port before October 1.384
Two letters of marque belonging to Liverpool sank the French privateer Duc de Bourgogne off Madeira on Sunday, October 1. She was from Bayonne with 18 12-pounders bound to the West Indies. Very few men were saved.385
The French frigate Landremarque (Andromaque) captured the British frigate Unicorn and brought her to Cape François about Monday, October 9.386
Before October 10, the Chevalier de Suzannet’s frigate Aimable and the Viscount de Mortimar’s Diligente captured three English privateers: the 22-gun, 82-man Alert; the 12-gun, 36-men Tartar, and the 12-gun, 43-man Jersey privateer Eagle. The prizes were brought to the Isle d’Aix. They also captured a ship from Hambrough laden with tobacco from Ostend. She was headed to Bordeaux and had been taken by the privateer Tartar.387
A French privateer arrived at the port of Kristiansand with nine British prizes captured in different obstinate engagements before October 10. The captain of the privateer lost both legs in one of the engagements.388
Two English privateers, each mounting more than 20 guns, captured two French letters of marque, one of 18 guns the other of 20, and brought them to Leghorn before October 10. They were captured up the Levant on their homeward-bound journey. The smallest ship had goods on board valued at £25,000. The cargo of the larger ship was near £30,000. They were bound to Marseilles and fought the privateers for more than an hour when they struck to their superior force. Each of the French ships had several men killed and wounded, but the British had only one man killed and four wounded in both ships.389
The French sloop Cutter, mounting 18 6-pounders, captured two brigs from Jamaica, British West Indies, about Thursday, October 12. One mounted 14 guns, the other 16.390
A British man-of-war captured four French ships in the Mediterranean Sea before October 14. They were bound from Marseilles to America without a convoy.391
Before October 16, the 64-gun HMS Bienfaisant captured a French 74-gun ship in the Irish Channel after a severe engagement. The British also captured the 16-gun Dunkirk privateer Toise and brought her to Milford as well as the St. Atalanta bound from Cape François to Bordeaux with sugar, coffee, and indigo and brought her to Penzance. In addition, the privateer Priestly captured the Atmanara bound from Saint-Domingue to Nantes and brought her to Jersey.392
A British fleet of 57 vessels, bound to different ports, fell in with 17 French and Spanish ships-of-the-line off Madeira before October 18. The French and Spanish captured the entire British fleet except for four vessels.393
The French privateer St. Papeul captured Captain McMurray’s Derwentwater and brought her to Le Havre before October 20. She was bound from Oporto and Lisbon to Dundee with wine and fruit.394
The 18-gun Guernsey privateer Mahon captured a large French ship bound to La Rochelle and brought her to Mahon before October 20.395
The Liverpool privateer Shark captured a French privateer of 14 guns, 6- and 9-pounders, after an hour’s engagement, and brought her to Weymouth on Friday morning, October 20. The French privateer was a new vessel belonging to Cherbourg and had not been out of port more than 48 hours.396
A French privateer captured two British ships laden with coals. A British packet boat then retook them and brought them to Hellevoetsluis on October 24.397
Admiral Arbuthnot’s squadron of eight ships-of-the-line, a 40-gun ship, and two frigates captured Commander Silas Talbot’s Providence privateer ship General Washington off Sandy Hook on Monday, October 16. Captain Talbot and about 20 of his crew were sent to New York; the remainder arrived at Newport in a flag of truce on Friday, October 20. The vessel was purchased by a number of Loyalists and sent out on a cruise. A few days later, she fell in with two frigates of Admiral de Ternay’s squadron, was captured and sent to Rhode Island.398
Two frigates belonging to the British grand fleet captured two new French privateers, of 16 guns each, and sent them to Falmouth on Monday, October 30.399
The HM Frigate Stag captured the privateer Sartine before October 31. She was ordered to be purchased immediately and equipped as a sloop-of-war for the king’s service. The Stag’s first lieutenant received command of the vessel.400
Lieutenant Inglis, commanding the HM sloop Zephyr, saw four vessels anchored off Barra Point, near the entrance to the Allt Heacair River, Scotland, at 11 AM on Thursday, November 2, 1780. They were two sloops, a French frigate, and a transport mounting 16 guns and manned with Frenchmen and blacks belonging to Albedra, the banks of Gambia, and allied with the French. The transport and two sloops were set on fire at noon. The other transport was burned the preceding day.
The French frigate weighed anchor at 1 PM. The Zephyr came within pistol range and a warm action ensued which lasted until 4 PM when both vessels ran aground close to each other near low tide. The action renewed with redoubled violence and resembled more two batteries on shore than a sea fight. A letter of marque was anchored three quarters of a mile astern during most of the action. The Zephyr and the French frigate maintained a continual fire until 6 PM, when the French frigate struck her colors. She lost 12 men killed and 28 wounded. The Zephyr had two killed and four wounded. Her bowsprit, main topmast, and main yards were shot away. Her hull, mast, yards, sails, and rigging were badly shattered. Fire rafts, both under her bow and stern, threatened the Zephyr throughout the action but were unsuccessful.
After boarding the French frigate, they found her to be Lieutenant Commandant Allery’s Senegal, carrying 18 6-pounders and 126 men. She was formerly the Racehorse, commanded by Lord Mulgrave.401
The privateer City of Cork captured Captain le Carektan’s 500-ton French ship Carcassone about November 3. She was bound from Cape François to Bordeaux with sugars, coffee, and indigo and was brought to Kinsale. She was part of a fleet of 20 vessels but was separated from them in a gale.402
An English privateer arrived in New York on Monday, November 6, with two French merchant ships and a polacre. The following day, the Dunkirk privateer Comtesse d’Artois, carrying 17 guns and 110 men, took a brig loaded with herrings and sent her to France.403 Captain McBride’s HMS Bienfaisant fell in with and captured the Comtesse d’Artois on Wednesday, November 8. She had been out only seven days from Dunkirk and captured only one brig the day before.404
The Harlequin and another privateer captured M. Le Navarre’s 36-gun French frigate St. Jean Pied de Port off the mouth of the harbor of Brest after an engagement of about half an hour on Thursday, November 9. The prize was sent to Penzance.405
The second day after the Cork fleet sailed, they fell in with a French man-of-war and engaged her. The convoy captured her before November 11 and sent her to Kinsale.406
Captain Watt’s HMS Pegasus and Captain Murray’s HMS Cleopatra fell in with and took the Comtesse de Provence on Saturday, November 11. She was a fast sailing privateer of 10 guns and 110 men. She had been out of Dunkirk almost two months, during which time she captured and ransomed a brig and a sloop.407
Captain Shaw’s Crown privateer Tiger captured the snows Modeste and Alliance on Monday, November 13. They sailed from Saint-Domingue, but parted company with M. Guichen’s French fleet in a gale off Cape Finisterre. The snows were valued at £20,000 each.408
The English privateer Seahorse took the 300-ton French ship Granville and brought her to Guernsey before November 21. She was bound from Marseilles to Bordeaux with bales of silk.409
The French frigates Hermione and Surveillante captured a large British ship off the Rhode Island coast before November 23. She had a cargo of more than 300 butts of wine and a quantity of fruit.410
The Jersey privateer Stag also captured the following prizes before November 30: La Chaste Susanne, Notre Dame de Bon Secours, and St. Jean Baptiste, which were bound from Bordeaux to Brest with wine, and Captain Nolet’s The Espoir en Dieu bound from Brest to Martinique with flour, wine, and other provisions.411
Captain Dacres’s Perseus, in company with the schooner Racehorse and the cutter Expedition, sighted a privateer brig at 7 AM on December 1, 1780 and gave chase. The Perseus fired a gun at the privateer at 11 AM. The privateer responded with two broadsides. The Perseus then discharged a broadside and the privateer struck. Lieutenant Baker, commander of the Racehorse, hoisted out his boat and went on board the privateer where he remained while his boat went to acquaint Captain Dacres of the situation.
The privateer sank at 11:15. The Expedition hoisted out her boat to save as many people as possible. They were swimming on oars and anything that floated. They retrieved three Frenchmen alive and Lieutenant Baker, who was found drowned with two Frenchmen, floating on the water in the heavy swells. The privateer’s name was the Comte du Bois, commanded by Pierre Sivettel and carrying 12 6-pounders and 90 men. She was a new vessel pierced for 18 guns and had been out of Bordeaux only two days.412
The HMS Romney captured the 32-gun French privateer Orphée and sent her to Lisbon before December 2. She was a new ship owned by a banking house at Paris and cost more than £20,000. She was fitted out for a six-month cruise.413
Captain Charles Holmes Everitt’s HMS Solebay fell in with two French privateers south of the western part of the Isle of Wight about 6 PM on Friday, December 9. The privateers immediately engaged the Solebay but broke off and tried to escape when Captain Lloyd’s HMS Portland headed toward them. The Portland fired several broadsides into the forward privateer while the Solebay pursued the other. They maintained a running fight for three hours when the privateer struck. She was La Comtesse Besançois (Comtesse de Buzançois), of 20 12-pounders and 143 men. She lost 12 men killed and 15 wounded and her sails and rigging were much disabled. The Solebay had only one man badly wounded and two others slightly wounded and her masts and rigging suffered some damage.
The Portland pursued the chase during the night and captured François Cotton’s privateer La Marquise de Seignelay, of 20 9-pounders and 150 men. She had two men killed and two wounded. The Portland had two men killed and seven wounded. She rejoined the company again the following morning.414
A French privateer captured Captain Elliott’s Two Friends from Bristol, but the vessel was retaken by the Guernsey privateer Hero and sent to Plymouth on Sunday, December 10.415
The sloop Lively and the Termagant went in search of a French privateer which took a custom house lugger off the coast of Plymouth. The Lively returned to Plymouth on Sunday night, December 10. The Termagant returned on Tuesday night, December 12, with the privateer.416
Captain Charles Holmes Everitt’s HMS Solebay chased the two cutters Griffin and Rambler and the brig Eagle, which they recaptured on Tuesday, December 12. The Solebay and the Portland brought La Comtesse Bessançois, La Marquise de Seignelay, the Griffin, Rambler, and Eagle to Spithead on December 13.417
Captain Delatre le Graud’s 16-gun, 50-man French privateer Le Furet, from Dunkirk, captured Master John Adam’s sloop Jane, from Greenock, near the entrance to Waterford harbor on Wednesday, December 13. She was laden with tobacco and ransomed for 1,600 guineas.418
A British privateer captured two prizes in the latitude of Cadiz and sent them to Faro on December 16. One of them was bound from Hispaniola to Cadiz with sugar, coffee, cotton, and some gold and silver. The other was a Whig ship from Boston with a cargo of sundries, pitch, tar, hemp, cordage, masts, yards, bowsprits, and many other articles. She was also bound to Cadiz. The privateer captured 10 other vessels, some French, some Spanish, some valuable, some worth very little.419
The private ship-of-war Arc-en-Ciel was captured and sent to Penzance before December 29. She was bound from Rhode Island to Brest with dispatches which were thrown overboard.420
The man-of-war Canada took the French privateer Duc de Valois, of eight guns and 76 men, and sent her to Plymouth, where she arrived on Sunday, December 31.421
The British captured Claude Berard’s Activité and Joseph Chabon’s Alert in 1781. The Activité was tried and condemned in the High Court of Admiralty, where she is described as a French merchant vessel with a letter of marque. The Alert was sent to New York, where she was described as a French privateer, tried, and condemned.422
Lord Mulgrave’s 74-gun Courageux, in company with the Valiant, captured Chevalier de Grimouard’s 32-gun, 316-man French frigate Minerve about 14 leagues west of Ushant about 3 PM on Thursday, January 4. She sailed from Brest on January 3 with the Fine, the Aigre, and the Diligence to cruise off Scilly for two weeks. The Chevalier de Grimouard did not strike until the Minerve had been under fire from the Courageux’s broadsides within pistol range for about an hour. The Courageux had 10 men killed and seven wounded. Her foremasts, mizzenmasts, and bowsprit were damaged. The French lost a lieutenant and 49 men killed and 23 wounded. Chevalier de Grimouard and his nephew were seriously wounded. The Minerve’s masts were rendered unserviceable and her hull was badly damaged, requiring her to be towed to port. The Valiant parted from the Courageux to chase one of the other frigates.423
Before January 10, the Crown cutters Griffin and Rambler captured the French privateer Le General Ville Patoux, carrying 12 guns and 56 men, and Lieutenant Furnival’s cutter Nimble captured the French 14-gun and 41-man privateer the Subtile.424
The HMS Alexander captured the French privateer le Dagesseau on Saturday, January 13. She was a new ship of 30 guns and 205 men and was out from St.-Malo only three days. She was sent to Portsmouth.425
Captain Bennett’s 16-gun French privateer cutter Civilité created great havoc among the convoys along the British coast during the week of January 14. She captured about 35 prizes. She also captured a British transport with troops on board and brought them to France before Thursday, January 25.426
Captain Edward Moore’s 22-gun, 110-man Dublin privateer Fame fell in with five French merchantmen between Cape de Pallas and Cape de Gatt before January 17. The heavily laden merchantmen were bound from Marseilles to Cape François. The Fame captured four of them after a smart engagement of about an hour and brought them to Algiers. They were Captain Coucowrell’s 300-ton Deux Frères, mounting 14 6-pounders and 55 men; Captain Compte’s 300-ton l’Univers, of 12 4-pounders and 41 men; Captain Brican’s Zophir, carrying 10 3-pounders and 32 men, and Captain Barard’s Nancy, carrying four 6-pounders and 18 men.427
The French landed at Jersey at 2 AM on January 18. By 9 AM, they were all either killed, taken prisoner or put to flight.428
Before January 31, the privateer Swiftsure captured Captain L’Armancon’s French privateer St. Florentine after a half-hour. She was brought to Guernsey. The Bristol privateers Caesar and Greyhound also captured l’Amazone, carrying 14 6-pounders and 47 men. She was bound from Rhode Island to Brest and was sent to Plymouth. The Caesar had two men killed and three wounded.429
A squadron of French ships which made an excursion to Virginia captured the 50-gun Romney and nine privateers, four of which were burned in February 1781. Five of the vessels were sent to Yorktown, Virginia and the Romney to Rhode Island.430
Two French privateers captured several vessels and two British cutters in the English Channel prior to February 3. Captain Hall’s French privateer Sans Peur captured a number of English colliers and coasters north of the Yarmouth, England coast on Thursday, February 1. The prizes include Captain Pearson’s John, of Shields, ransommed for 700 guineas; Captain Coxon’s Smelt, also from Shields, ransomed for 400 guineas; Captain Porter’s Fanny, from Yarmouth, ransomed for 300 guineas; and a snow from Shields, ransomed for 400 guineas. The snow engaged Captain Fall for almost three hours. Her mate was killed and the captain and two men wounded in the action.431
The Sans Peur fell in with the 16-gun, 160-man privateer Eagle on February 3. The Sans Peur sank the Eagle after an obstinate engagement of 3½ hours. She arrived at Hellevoetsluis with 100 British prisoners and 14 hostages whose ransom bills amounted to £5,400.432
The HMS Ramilies, Albion, and Southampton returned to London on Thursday, February 8, with the French ship Franklin, the Bordeaux snow the Emeraude, and a Whig sloop loaded with lumber. The two French ships left Bordeaux on November 4, 1780 with a large fleet bound to different parts of the world. They sailed with a convoy of 20 ships-of-the-line and several frigates commanded by the Comte d’Estaing and M. de Latouche Tréville. A strong gale dispersed the fleet about November 22.433
On February 9, Captain Waldegrave’s frigate the Prudente captured the French privateer the Américaine, mounting 24 9-pounders on the main deck and eight 3-pounders on the quarterdeck, and brought her to Plymouth. About the same time, the Glasgow privateer Stag captured a Dunkirk privateer of 14 guns and 120 men and sent her to Falmouth.434
Captain Hall’s French privateer Sans Peur took Captain Magnus Brightwell’s privateer Ranger, of 12 guns and 45 men, off Goree Island, Senegal, and brought them to Hellevoetsluis before February 12.435
M. de Gardeur de Tilly’s 64-gun French ship the Eveille, Captain de Villeneuve Cillard’s frigate the Gentille, Captain de la Villebrune’s frigate the Surveillante, and a Newport cutter sailed from Newport to the Chesapeake Bay on the evening of February 9. They arrived on the 13th and drove Benedict Arnold’s fleet up the Elizabeth River. That fleet consisted of the 44-gun Charon, the 36-gun Thames, the 26-gun Amphitrite, the 18-gun Hope, the 16-gun Loyalist, the 16-gun Bonette, the 16-gun General Monk, the fireship Vulcan, and the galleys Comet and Hussar, carrying two 18-pounders each.
The French fleet also took a sloop with 100 barrels of flour, the 16-gun and 50-man privateer Earl Cornwallis, and the privateer Revenge, of 12 guns and 20 men. They also captured three of their prizes and another privateer of eight guns and 25 men.
Ten days later, the French fleet chased two vessels in the Chesapeake Bay on Monday, February 19. They proved to be Captain Gayton’s HMS Romulus, of 44 guns and 260 men, and a large brig with 159 Virginia Loyalists and their effects on board. They were bound from Charleston to Virginia to reestablish themselves at their former homes. These two vessels struck after only one gun was fired. The Romulus had £10,000 on board to pay Benedict Arnold’s troops and a quantity of clothing. The French also captured 600 prisoners and a number of officers. The brig had four men killed. The others were taken out and the vessel burned. The French destroyed six large privateers and left four large transports with 100 prisoners in the hands of the Whigs in the South.