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Action Of 17 July 1761
The action of 17 July 1761 was a naval engagement fought off the Spanish port of Cádiz between a British Royal Navy squadron and a smaller French Navy squadron during the Seven Years' War. British fleets had achieved dominance in European waters over the French following heavy defeats of French fleets in 1759. To maintain this control, British battle squadrons were stationed off French ports and ports in neutral but French-supporting Spain, which sheltered French warships. In 1761, two French ships, the 64-gun ship of the line ''Achille'' and the 32-gun frigate ''Bouffone,'' were blockaded in the principal Spanish naval base of Cádiz, on the Southern Atlantic coast of Spain. ''Achille'' had departed the French Atlantic base of Brest in March, fighting through the blockade of that port, and was then trapped in Cádiz by a British squadron detached from the Mediterranean Fleet based at Gibraltar comprising ships of the line HMS ''Thunderer'' and HMS ''Modeste'', frigate HMS '' ...
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Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prussia, Prussia versus Kingdom of France, France and Habsburg monarchy, Austria, the respective coalitions receiving by countries including Portuguese Empire, Portugal, Spanish Empire, Spain, Electorate of Saxony, Saxony, Age of Liberty, Sweden, and Russian Empire, Russia. Related conflicts include the Third Silesian War, French and Indian War, Carnatic wars, Third Carnatic War, Anglo-Spanish War (1762–1763), Anglo-Spanish War (1762–1763), and Spanish–Portuguese War (1762–1763), Spanish–Portuguese War. Although the War of the Austrian Succession ended with the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748), none of the signatories were happy with the terms, and it was generally viewed as a temporary armistice. It led to a strategic realignment kn ...
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Naval Boarding
Naval boarding is an offensive (military), offensive military tactics, tactic used in naval warfare to come up against (or alongside) an enemy watercraft and attack by inserting combatants aboard that vessel. The goal of boarding is to invade and overrun the enemy personnel on board in order to capture, sabotage, or destroy the enemy vessel. While boarding attacks were originally carried out by ordinary sailors who are proficient in hand-to-hand combat, larger warships often deploy specially trained and equipped regular troops such as marines and special forces as boarders. Boarding and close-quarters combat had been a primary means to conclude a naval battle since ancient history, antiquity, until the early modern period when heavy naval artillery gained tactical primacy at sea. A cutting out boarding is an attack by small boats, preferably at night and against an unsuspecting and anchored, target. It became popular in the later 18th century, and was extensively used during ...
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Gulf Of Cádiz
The Gulf of Cádiz (, ) is the arm of the Atlantic Ocean between Cabo de Santa Maria, the southernmost point of mainland Portugal; and Cape Trafalgar on the Spanish coast at the western end of the Strait of Gibraltar. Two major rivers, the Guadalquivir and the Guadiana, as well as smaller rivers, like the Odiel, the Tinto, and the Guadalete, reach the ocean here. The Gulf of Cádiz is located in the north-eastern Atlantic Ocean between 34°N and 37°15′N and 6°W to 9°45′W. It is enclosed by the southern Iberian and northern Moroccan margins, west of Strait of Gibraltar. Geology The geological history of the Gulf of Cádiz is intimately related to plate tectonic interaction between Southern Eurasia and North Africa and is driven by two major mechanisms: * subduction associated with the westward emplacement of the Gibraltar Arc and formation of the Gulf of Cádiz accretionary wedge. The current activity of the subduction is unclear, with some advocating ongoing activ ...
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Philemon Pownall
Captain Philemon Pownoll ( – 15 June 1780) was a Royal Navy officer who served in the War of the Austrian Succession, Seven Years' War and American War of Independence. Born in Plymouth, Pownoll was the son of a leading shipwright. He joined the British navy in the last year of the War of the Austrian Succession. After several years service he rose through the ranks to his own command in time for the outbreak of the Seven Years' War. Commanding a sloop-of-war, he took part in the capture of one of the most valuable prizes taken in the entire conflict, and became immensely wealthy overnight from his success. He married and settled on his estate, but despite his riches, chose to return to active service on the outbreak of the American War of Independence. During his time as a frigate captain he acted as a mentor to future star captains Edward Pellew and John Borlase Warren. His service in North America was marked with successes in supporting and conveying troops, and engaging in ...
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John Moutray
John Moutray of Roscobie (c.1722 – 22 November 1785) was an officer of the Royal Navy. He reached the rank of post-captain and served as the Royal Commissioner for English Harbour in Antigua. Biography Moutray was born in about 1722. He was married to Mary Moutray, Mary Pemble on 2 September 1771. She was thirty years younger than him. He was promoted to post-captain on 28 December 1758. On 29 July 1780 a convoy of 63 ships were bound for the East Indies and West Indies. It left Great Britain under the care of Captain Moutray, in the 74-gun , and was accompanied by the 36-gun frigates and . On 8 August unusual sails were seen, but Moutray ignored them. Later and belatedly Moutray signalled his ships to alter course and follow him close to the wind. They paid no attention to his orders, and by daylight that day a combined Franco-Spanish fleet had captured the bulk of the convoy. The warships escaped with eight of the convoy; the other 55 cargo ship, merchantmen were captured, ...
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Robert Boyle-Walsingham
Captain Robert Boyle-Walsingham (March 1736 – 5 October 1780) was a Royal Navy officer and politician. He was killed in the Great Hurricane of 1780 while serving as a commodore onboard HMS ''Thunderer''. Early life and family Robert Boyle was born in March 1736, the son of Henry Boyle, 1st Earl of Shannon, by his wife Henrietta, daughter of Charles Boyle, 2nd Earl of Burlington. His great-grandfather Roger Boyle, 1st Earl of Orrery had married Lady Margaret, daughter of Theophilus Howard, 2nd Earl of Suffolk; another daughter Lady Anne married Thomas Walsingham. Robert Boyle eventually succeeded to the estate of the Walsinghams' daughter Elizabeth, Lady Osborne (died 1733), and adopted the name Walsingham. On 17 July 1759 Boyle-Walsingham married Charlotte Hanbury Williams, the daughter of Sir Charles Hanbury Williams. Together the couple had two children; Richard (1762–1831) and Charlotte (1769–1831), who in 1806 successfully claimed the Barony of de Ros. Military ...
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Jibe (sailing)
A jibe (US) or gybe (Britain) is a sailing maneuver whereby a sailing craft reaching downwind turns its stern through the wind, which then exerts its force from the opposite side of the vessel. It stands in contrast with tacking, whereby the sailing craft turns its bow through the wind. In this maneuver, the mainsail will cross the center of the boat while the jib is pulled to the other side of the boat. If a spinnaker is up, its pole will have to be manually moved to the other side, to remain opposite the mainsail. In a dinghy, raising the centerboard can increase the risk of capsizing during what can be a somewhat violent maneuver, although the opposite is true of a dinghy with a flat, planing hull profile: raising the centerboard reduces heeling moment during the maneuver and so reduces the risk of capsize. The other way to change the side of the boat that faces the wind is turning the bow of the boat into, and then through, the direction of the wind. This operatio ...
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Raking Fire
In naval warfare during the Age of Sail, raking fire was Naval artillery in the Age of Sail, cannon fire directed parallel to the long axis of an enemy ship from ahead (in front of the ship) or astern (behind the ship). Although each shot was directed against a smaller profile compared to firing at the target ship's Broadside (naval), broadside and thus more likely to miss the target ship to one side or the other, an individual cannon shot that hit would pass through more of the ship, thereby increasing damage to the Hull (watercraft), hull, sails, Naval artillery, cannon and Ship's company, crew. In addition, the targeted ship would have fewer (if any) guns able to return fire. Historically, a stern rake tended to be more damaging than a Bow (watercraft), bow rake because the shots were less likely to be deflected by the curved and strengthened bow, and because disabling the exposed rudder at the stern would render the target unable to steer and thus manoeuvre. However, achievi ...
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Bay Of Biscay
The Bay of Biscay ( ) is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Point Penmarc'h to the Spanish border, and along the northern coast of Spain, extending westward to Cape Ortegal. The average depth is and the greatest depth is . Etymology The Bay of Biscay is known in Spain as the Gulf of Biscay (; ). In France, it is called the Gulf of Gascony ( ; ; ; ). In Latin, the bay was known as ( Cantabrian Gulf); the name Cantabrian Sea is still used locally for the southern area of the Bay of Biscay that washes over the northern coast of Spain ( Cantabria). The English name comes from Biscay on the northern Spanish coast, probably standing for the western Basque districts (''Biscay'' up to the early 19th century). Geography Parts of the continental shelf extend far into the bay, resulting in fairly shallow waters in many areas and thus the rough seas for which the region is known. Heavy storms ...
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HMS Rippon (1758)
HMS ''Rippon'' was a 60-gun fourth rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, designed by Sir Joseph Allin and built by Israel Pownoll at Woolwich Dockyard to the draught specified by the 1745 Establishment as amended in 1752, and launched on 20 January 1758. Career Under Captain Edward Jekyll, ''Rippon'' took part in the unsuccessful attack on Martinique in January 1759. While patrolling off Brest on 10 March 1761, ''Rippon'' chased and engaged the French ship of the line ''Achille'', suffering heavy losses when a gun exploded during the action. This allowed ''Achille'' to pull away and the French ship subsequently escaped. Early on the morning of 10 August 1778, Sir Edward Vernon's squadron, consisting of ''Rippon'' (Vernon's flagship), , , ''Cormorant'', and the East India Company's ship ''Valentine'', encountered a French squadron under Admiral François l'Ollivier de Tronjoly which consisted of the 64-gun ship of the line ''Brillant'', the frigate ''Pourvoyeuse'' a ...
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Ships Of The Line
A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed during the Age of Sail from the 17th century to the mid-19th century. The ship of the line was designed for the naval tactic known as the line of battle, which involved the two columns of opposing warships manoeuvering to volley fire with the cannons along their broadsides. In conflicts where opposing ships were both able to fire from their broadsides, the faction with more cannons firingand therefore more firepowertypically had an advantage. From the end of the 1840s, the introduction of steam power brought less dependence on the wind in battle and led to the construction of screw-driven wooden-hulled ships of the line; a number of purely sail-powered ships were converted to this propulsion mechanism. However, the rise of the ironclad frigate, starting in 1859, made steam-assisted ships of the line obsolete. The ironclad warship was predecessor to the 20th-century battleship, whose very designation is itself a co ...
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Matthew Buckle
Admiral Matthew Buckle (1716 – 9 July 1784) was a Royal Navy officer who served as Commander-in-Chief, the Downs from 1778 to 1779. Naval career Promoted to captain on 29 May 1745, Buckle was given command of the third-rate HMS ''Russell'' on promotion and took part in the capture of the Spanish ship ''Glorioso'' on 8 October 1747. He went on to take command of the fourth-rate HMS ''Assistance'' in 1749, the sixth-rate HMS ''Unicorn'' in 1753 and the third-rate HMS ''Swiftsure'' in 1756. After that he was given command of the third-rate HMS ''Invincible'' later in 1756, the first-rate HMS ''Royal George'' in 1757 and the second-rate HMS ''Namur'' in 1758. In ''Namur'' he took part in the Battle of Lagos in August 1759, the Battle of Quiberon Bay in November 1759 and the action of 17 July 1761Clowes, p. 305 and the attack on Havana in June 1762. Promoted to rear-admiral on 18 October 1770, Buckle became second-in-command at Spithead in 1770. Promoted to vice-admiral on 3 ...
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