HMS Mermaid (1761)

For other ships with the same name, see HMS Mermaid.

HMS Mermaid was a Mermaid-class sixth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. She was first commissioned in April 1761 under Captain George Watson and built in Blaydes Yard in Kingston-Upon-Hull.^[1]

Drawing depicting the inboard profile plan as proposed and approved for the Mermaid, 1760
History
Great Britain
Name	HMS Mermaid
Ordered	24 April 1760
Builder	Hugh Blaydes, Hull
Laid down	27 May 1760
Launched	6 May 1761
Completed	September 1761
Commissioned	April 1761
Fate	Driven ashore 8 July 1778 to avoid capture
General characteristics
Class and type	Mermaid-class frigate
Tons burthen	613 85⁄94 (bm)
Length	124 ft 0 in (37.80 m) (gundeck) 102 ft 8.25 in (31.2992 m) (keel)
Beam	33 ft 6.375 in (10.22033 m)
Sail plan	Full-rigged ship
Complement	200 officers and men
Armament	28 guns comprising Upper deck: 24 × 9-pounder cannon Quarterdeck 4 × 3-pounder cannon 12 swivels.

Sometime in May, 1777 she captured "Elizabeth". On 5 June, 1777 she recaptured "2 Betsys" off Cape Negro, Nova Scotia.^[2] On 30 July, 1777 she captured "Hero" off Cape Sable.^[3] On 29 August, 1777 she recaptured "Fanny" off the Seal Islands. Sometime in September, 1777 recaptured "Sophia" off Barrington.^[4] On 1 March, 1778 she captured schooner Rebecca off St. Georges Bank.^[5] On 8 July 1778, the 50 gun Sagittaire and the 64-gun Fantasque forced HMS Mermaid to beach herself at Cape Henhlopen.^[6]

References

1. "Hugh Blaydes (1686-?)".
2. "Naval Documents of The American Revolution Volume 11 AMERICAN THEATRE: Jan. 1, 1778–Mar. 31, 1778 EUROPEAN THEATRE: Jan. 1, 1778–Mar. 31, 1778" (PDF). U.S. Government printing office via Imbiblio. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
3. "Naval Documents of The American Revolution Volume 11 AMERICAN THEATRE: Jan. 1, 1778–Mar. 31, 1778 EUROPEAN THEATRE: Jan. 1, 1778–Mar. 31, 1778" (PDF). U.S. Government printing office via Imbiblio. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
4. "Naval Documents of The American Revolution Volume 11 AMERICAN THEATRE: Jan. 1, 1778–Mar. 31, 1778 EUROPEAN THEATRE: Jan. 1, 1778–Mar. 31, 1778" (PDF). U.S. Government printing office via Imbiblio. Retrieved 12 October 2023.
5. "Naval Documents of The American Revolution Volume 11 European THEATRE: Jan. 1, 1778–Mar. 31, 1778 American: Jan. 1, 1778–Mar. 31, 1778" (PDF). U.S. Government printing office via Imbiblio. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
6. Lacour-Gayet (1910), p. 154.

• Robert Gardiner, The First Frigates, Conway Maritime Press, London 1992. ISBN 0-85177-601-9.
• Lacour-Gayet, Georges (1910). La marine militaire de la France sous le règne de Louis XVI. Paris: Honoré Champion.
• David Lyon, The Sailing Navy List, Conway Maritime Press, London 1993. ISBN 0-85177-617-5.
• Rif Winfield, British Warships in the Age of Sail, 1714 to 1792, Seaforth Publishing, London 2007. ISBN 978-1-84415-700-6.

External links

• Media related to HMS Mermaid (1761) at Wikimedia Commons