HMS ''Ruby'' was a 40-gun

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...

of the

Commonwealth of England The Commonwealth of England was the political structure during the period from 1649 to 1660 when Kingdom of England, England and Wales, later along with Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland and Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland, were governed as a republi ...

, built by

Peter Pett Peter Pett may refer to: * Peter Pett (shipwright, died 1672) (1610–1672), English master-shipwright at Chatham Dockyard * Peter Pett (shipwright, died 1589) (?–1589), English master-shipwright at Deptford Dockyard * Sir Peter Pett (lawyer) ...

Deptford Deptford is an area on the south bank of the River Thames in southeast London, in the Royal Borough of Greenwich and London Borough of Lewisham. It is named after a Ford (crossing), ford of the River Ravensbourne. From the mid 16th century ...

. She took part in actions during all three of the Anglo-Dutch Wars of 1652–1654, 1665–1667 and 1672–1674. She later served in the

West Indies The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...

, and in 1683 was sent to the

Leeward Islands The Leeward Islands () are a group of islands situated where the northeastern Caribbean Sea meets the western Atlantic Ocean. Starting with the Virgin Islands east of Puerto Rico, they extend southeast to Guadeloupe and its dependencies. In Engl ...

to protect British settlements against Caribbean pirate raids. In 1687, the English pirate

Joseph Bannister Joseph Bannister (died 1687, first name occasionally given as George) was an English pirate who operated in the Caribbean during the Golden Age of Piracy. He is best known for surviving an attack from two Royal Navy warships. History Bannister w ...

was captured by the crew of ''Ruby'' and brought to

Port Royal Port Royal () was a town located at the end of the Palisadoes, at the mouth of Kingston Harbour, in southeastern Jamaica. Founded in 1494 by the Spanish, it was once the largest and most prosperous city in the Caribbean, functioning as the cen ...

for trial. She was rebuilt in 1687. She was captured by the French in October 1707.

Construction and specifications

The English ''Ruby'' was ordered by the

Rump Parliament The Rump Parliament describes the members of the Long Parliament who remained in session after Colonel Thomas Pride, on 6 December 1648, commanded his soldiers to Pride's Purge, purge the House of Commons of those Members of Parliament, members ...

in May 1651, to be built at

Deptford Dockyard Deptford Dockyard was an important Royal Navy Dockyard, naval dockyard and base at Deptford on the River Thames, operated by the Royal Navy from the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries. It built and maintained warships for 350 years, and man ...

under the guidance of

. Her dimensions were gundeck with keel for tonnage with a breadth of and a depth of hold of . Her builder's measure tonnage was calculated as tons.Winfield 7Lavery, 1984, vol.1, p160. ''Ruby''s gun armament was 42/40 guns during the period from 1652 to 1660. Under the 1666 Establishment, her armament was nominally set at 46 guns, consisting of twenty-two culverins,The culverin was a gun of 4,500 pounds with a 5.5-inch bore firing a 17.5-pound shot with a twelve-pound powder charge twenty demi-culverins,The demi-culverin was a gun of 3,400 pounds with a four-inch bore firing a 9.5-pound shot with an eight-pound powder charge four sakers.The sacar or saker was a gun of 1,400 pounds with a 3.5-inch bore firing a 5.5-pound shot with a 5.5-pound powder charge In 1666 she actually carried 48 guns by shipping an extra pair of demi-culverins. The 1677 establishment set her guns at 48 guns with six sakers (ignoring the extra pair of demi-culverins). By 1685 her guns were still at 48 guns with the sakers reduced to four. The 1696 Survey listed her armament as twenty-two 12-pounder guns on the lower deck (instead of culverins), and only nineteen demi-culverins and no sakers. Her manning was 150 men in March 1652, rising to 180 at the end of 1653. She had 170 men in 1666. by 1685 establishment her manning was 230/200/150 personnel based on the amount of weaponry carried.Winfield 18 ''Ruby'' was completed with an initial cost of £4,175.12.6dThe cost accounting for inflation of approximately £ in reference to today or at the contract price of tons @ £7.10.0dThe cost accounting for inflation of approximately £ in reference to today. per ton.

Commissioned service

Service with the Commonwealth Navy

''Ruby'' was commissioned in 1652 under the command of Captain John Lambert. Anthony Houlding took over later that year. ''Ruby'' was part of

Robert Blake Robert Blake (or variants) may refer to: Sports * Bob Blake (American football) (1885–1962), American football player * Robbie Blake (born 1976), English footballer * Bob Blake (ice hockey) (1914–2008), American ice hockey player * Rob Blake ...

's squadron in Rye Bay that participated in the

Battle of Dover The Battle of Dover may refer to: * Battle of Sandwich (1217), also known as Battle of Dover, 24 August 1217, a naval engagement between England and France in the First Barons' War * Battle of Dover (1652) The naval Battle of Dover , fought on ...

on 19 May 1652. She followed this with the

Battle of Kentish Knock The Battle of the Kentish Knock (or the Battle of the Zealand Approaches) was a naval battle between the fleets of the Dutch Republic and England, fought on 28 September 1652 (8 October Gregorian calendar), during the First Anglo-Dutch War near ...

on 28 September 1652. On 18 February 1653 she was with Blake's fleet during the

Battle of Portland The naval Battle of Portland, or Three Days' Battle, took place during 18–20 February 1653 (28 February – 2 March 1653 (Gregorian calendar)), during the First Anglo-Dutch War, when the fleet of the Commonwealth of England under General at ...

, when her commander, Captain Houlding, was killed during the fight. Robert Sanders took over command after the battle. ''Ruby'' was a member of White Squadron, Centre Division at the

Battle of the Gabbard The Battle of the Gabbard, was a naval battle fought from 2 to 3 June 1653 during the First Anglo-Dutch War. It took place near the Gabbard shoal off the coast of Suffolk, England, between fleets of the Commonwealth of England and the Dutch Repu ...

on 2–3 June 1653. She was under the command of Captain Edmund Curtis prior to the

Battle of Scheveningen The Battle of Scheveningen was the final naval battle of the First Anglo-Dutch War. It took place on July 31st 1653 between the fleets of the Commonwealth of England and the Dutch Republic. The Dutch fleet suffered heavy losses. Background A ...

off

Texel Texel (; Texels dialect: ) is a municipality and an island with a population of 13,643 in North Holland, Netherlands. It is the largest and most populated island of the West Frisian Islands in the Wadden Sea. The island is situated north of Den ...

on 31 July 1653. She spent the winter of 1653/54 at St Helens. She then joined Blake's fleet and sailed to the Mediterranean in 1654/55. In 1858 she had a new commander in Captain Robert Kirby, remaining in the Mediterranean with Blake. She partook in the Battle of Santa Cruz on 20 April 1657. She returned to England in 1659, carrying out operations in

Plymouth Sound Plymouth Sound, or locally just The Sound, is a deep inlet or sound in the English Channel near Plymouth in England. Description Its southwest and southeast corners are Penlee Point in Cornwall and Wembury Point in Devon, a distance of abo ...

Service after the Restoration of May 1660

On 27 May 1661 she was under the command of Captain Robert Robinson with the Earl of Sandwich's Squadron at Tangier and Lisbon in 1662. She was placed in Ordinary ib December 1662. On 11 October 1664 she was under the command of Captain Sir William Jennings for the start of the Second Anglo-Dutch War. She was at the Battle of Lowestoft as a member of White Squadron, Center Division on 2 June 1665. She saw action at the Battle of the Galloper Sand the Four Days' Battle as a member of Red Squadron, Center Division from 1 to 4 June 1666. She suffered 10 killed and 32 wounded in the battle. On 8 June 1666 she came under the command of Captain Thomas Lamming. She was at the Battle of Orfordness the St James Day Battle still in the Red Squadron, Center Division on 25 July 1667. Captain Lamming died on 30 September 1667. Captain Robinson took command again on 21 May 1668 to sail with Sir Thomas Allin's Squadron to the Mediterranean. Captain Robinson left command on 22 April 1669. Captain Richard Sadlington took command on 24 August 1672 followed three days later on the 27th by Captain Stephen Pyend. She partook in the Battle of Solebay as a member of Blue Squadron on 28 May 1672. She followed this with the First Battle of Schooneveld on 28 May 1673 then the second on 4 June 1673. Her last battle in the Third Anglo-Dutch war was the Battle of Texel on 11 August 1673. Captain Pyend died on 8 June 1674. On 26 March 1678 she was under the command of Captain Thomas Allen for service in the English Channel. On 15 April 1679 she sailed to Bilbao, returning home in May. In June she sailed with a convoy for the Straits of Gibraltar returning in August 1679. In March 1680 she sailed to Lisbon with the Portuguese Ambassador on board. In June she took troop reinforcements for Tangiers. ''Ruby'' was one of the ships that sailed with the warship HMS ''Gloucester'' when was conveying

James Stuart, Duke of York James II and VII (14 October 1633 – 16 September 1701) was King of England and Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII from the death of his elder brother, Charles II, on 6 February 1685, until he was deposed in the 1688 Glori ...

(the future King James II of

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

) to Scotland. On 6 May 1682, ''Gloucester'' struck a sandbank off the

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

coast, and quickly sank. The Duke was saved, but as many as 250 people drowned, including members of the royal party. On 18 November 1682, Richard May became her new captain, who then sailed for Jamaica in 1683 and returned in 1684. In 1683 she protected protect British settlements against Caribbean pirate raids. In October 1683 Captain David Mitchell took command at Jamaica. She was ordered rebuilt at Blackwall in 1687.

Rebuild at Blackwall 1687

She was ordered to be rebuilt by Henry Johnson of Blackwall on the River Thames. She was launched in 1687. Her dimensions were gundeck with keel for tonnage with a breadth of and a depth of hold of . Her builder's measure tonnage was calculated as tons. Winfield 19, Lavery, 1984, vol.1, p167. In the 1688 survey her armament was established at 48 guns. This consisted of twenty-two culverin drakes,Drakes were a type gun of various calibres capable of firing grapeshot twenty-two demi-culverin drakes and four saker cutts.Cutts were a type gun of various calibres whose length had been reduced after manufacture Under the 1696 survey her armament was reduced to 42 guns consisting of twenty-two 12-pounder guns and nineteen demi-culverins.Winfield 19

Service after rebuild 1687

She was commissioned in August 1688 under Captain Frederick Froud to sail with Dartmouth's Fleet in October 1688. She was at the Battle of Bantry Bay on 1 May 1689. In 1691 she came under Captain George Mees for cruising, then sailed with a convoy to the North Coast in April 1692. She was at the Battle of Barfleur from19 to 24 May 1692. Afterwards she was sent to reconnoiter the French Port of St Malo. In 1693 She came under the command of Captain Robert Dean and she sailed with Wheeler's Squadron in the West Indies. In 1694 she was under Captain Robert Fairfax for cruising in the North Sea. She took a Brest 46-gun privateer ''L'Entreprenant'' (renamed ''Ruby Prize'') in April 1694. She also captured ''La Diligente'' of Duguay-Trouin's squadron off the ilses of Scilly on 12 May 1694. In 1696 Captain Robert Holmes became her commander. She sailed with Mee's Squadron to the West indies where Captain Holmes died in July 1697. In 1698 she came under Captain William Hockaday. She paid off in July 1698. She recommissioned in 1701 under Captain Richard Kirby and sailed with Admiral John Benbow's Squadron to the West Indies. In March 1702 she was under Captain George Walton. She took part in the

action of August 1702 Action may refer to: * Action (philosophy), something which is done by a person * Action principles the heart of fundamental physics * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video gam ...

as part of a fleet under

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

John Benbow Vice-Admiral John Benbow (10 March 16534 November 1702) was an English Royal Navy officer. He joined the Navy in 1678, seeing action against Barbary pirates before leaving to join the Merchant Navy in which Benbow served until the 1688 Glorio ...

. She was one of the only ships to support the Admiral in in that engagement. In 1703 she was under command of Captain Henry Hobart. In 1706 she was ordered rebuilt at Deptford.

Rebuild and service (1706)

She was ordered to be rebuilt on 29 February 1704 At Deptford Dockyard under the guidance of Master Shipwright

Joseph Allin Joseph Allin was an 18th-century shipbuilder to the Royal Navy. His works merge with those of his namesake son who was also a Master Shipwright at Portsmouth Dockyard and later Surveyor to the Navy at which point he became Sir Joseph Allin. Jo ...

. She was launched 18 February 1706. Her dimensions were gundeck with keel for tonnage with a breadth of and a depth of hold of . Her builder's measure tonnage was calculated as tons. She was armed in accordance with the 1703 Establishment. This consisted of twenty-two/twenty 12-pounder guns on the lower deck, twenty-two/eighteen 6-pounder guns on the upper deck (UD), eight/six 6-pounder guns on the quarterdeck and two 6-pounder guns on the foc's'le (Fc). Her manning was set at 280 men for wartime and 185 for peacetime. She was commissioned in 1706 under the command of Peregrine Bertie (5th son of Earl of Abingdon) to sail with Whitaker's Squadron. The squadron sailed to the Virgin Islands in 1707.

Loss

She sailed with Edward's Squadron to escort a convoy to Lisbon in October 1707. The convoy was attacked by the combine squadrons of Duguay-Trouin and Forbin. The ''Devonshire'' exploded, ''Cumberland'', ''Chester'' and ''Ruby'' were captured. Only ''Royal Oak'' escaped. ''Ruby'' was captured by the 70-gun ''Mars'' pn 10 October 1707. She was not added to the French Fleet but was condemned at Brest in 1708 and sold for commercial use. Captain Bertie died in captivity in 1709.Winfield 20

Notes

References

Sources

* * * * # Fleet Actions, 1.1 Battle off Dover 19 May 1652 # Fleet Actions, 1.3 Battle of Kentish Knock 28 September 1652 # Fleet Actions, 1.5 Battle off Portland (the 'Three Days Battle') 18–20 February 1653 # Fleet Actions, 1.7 Battle of the Gabbard (North Foreland) 2–3 June 1653 # Fleet Actions, 1.8 Battle of Scheveningen (off Texel) 31 July 1653 # Fleet Actions, 2.2 Battle of Santa Cruz 20 April 1657 # Fleet Actions, 3.1 Battle of Lowestoft 3 June 1665 # Fleet Actions, 3.3 Battle of the Galloper Sand (the Four Days' Battle) 1–4 June 1666 # Fleet Actions, 3.4 Battle of Orfordness (the St James Day Battle) 25–6 July 1666 # Fleet Actions, 5.2 Battle of Solebay (Southwold Bay) 28 May 1672 # Fleet Actions, 5.3 First Battle of Schooneveld 28 May 1673 # Fleet Actions, 5.4 Second Battle of Schooneveld 4 June 1673 # Fleet Actions, 5.5 Battle of Texel 11 August 1673 # Fleet Actions, 6.1 Battle of Bantry Bay 1 May 1689 # Fleet Actions, 6.3 Battle of Barfleur 19–22 May 1692 # Fleet Actions, 7.1 1st Battle off Santa Maria (Columbia) (Benbow's Action) 19–24 August 1702 # Fleet Actions, 7.5 Battle off the Lizard (Edward's Action) 10 October 1707 # Chapter 4 Fourth Rates - 'Small Ships', Vessels acquired from 25 March 1603, Ruby Class, Ruby # Chapter 4 Fourth Rates - 'Small Ships', Vessels acquired from 2 May 1660, Rebuilt Vessels (1681-87), Ruby # Chapter 4 Fourth Rates - 'Small Ships', Vessels acquired from 2 May 1660, Post-1702 Rebuildings (54-gun Type), Ruby * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ruby (1652) Ships of the line of the Royal Navy 1650s ships Captured ships Ships of the English navy