HMS ''Cruizer'' was a launched in 1828 for the British

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by Kingdom of England, English and Kingdom of Scotland, Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were foug ...

. The ship was built as a revival of the retired ''Snake''-class ship-sloops. The Navy converted her to a

brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the latter part ...

in 1831, back to a ship in 1840, and sold her at

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the '' de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the sec ...

in 1849.

Career

On 23 July 1830 boats and men from ''Cruizer'' and pulled off the Parmelia Reef near the Swan River. ''Medina'' had grounded while delivering immigrants. In 1839 ''Cruizer'' participated in the

Aden Expedition The Aden Expedition was a naval operation that the British Royal Navy carried out in January 1839. Following Britain's decision to acquire the port of Aden as a coaling station for the steamers sailing the new Suez-Bombay route, the sultan of ...

along with the frigate and the two British

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Sout ...

(EIC) vessels, the sloop and the schooner .

Service in China

''Cruizer'' saw extensive service during the

First Opium War The First Opium War (), also known as the Opium War or the Anglo-Sino War was a series of military engagements fought between Britain and the Qing dynasty of China between 1839 and 1842. The immediate issue was the Chinese enforcement of the ...

. She participated in the

Battle of Whampoa The Battle of Whampoa was fought between British and Chinese forces at Whampoa Island (modern-day Pazhou Island) on the Pearl River near the city of Canton (Guangzhou), Guangdong, China, on 2March 1841 during the First Opium War.Ouchterlony 184 ...

, the

Second Battle of Chuenpi The Second Battle of Chuenpi () was fought between British and Chinese forces in the Pearl River Delta, Guangdong province, China, on 7January 1841 during the First Opium War. The British launched an amphibious attack at the Humen strait (Bogu ...

, the Battle of Canton, the

Battle of Amoy The Battle of Amoy was fought between British and Qing forces at Amoy (present-day Xiamen) on Xiamen Island, Fujian, in the Qing Empire on 26August 1841 during the First Opium War. The British captured the forts at Xiamen and on nearby Gulangyu ...

, and the

Battle of First Bar The Battle of First Bar was fought between British and Chinese forces at First Bar Island and its surrounding area in the Pearl River, Guangdong province, China, on 27 February 1841 during the First Opium War. Background On 21 February 1841 ...

.''Bulletins of State Intelligence'' (1841), p. 348. During the Battle of Whampoa, Major General Hugh Gough, commander of the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gur ...

during the First Opium War, personally directed the land assault on

Whampoa island Whampoa is a romanisation of / , and may refer to: Mainland China * Huangpu District, Guangzhou * Pazhou, an island known historically as ''Whampoa'' * Whampoa anchorage, the intermediate way station between Macao and Guangzhou * Whampoa Milita ...

from ''Cruizer''s deck. The transport was wrecked on 14 August 1840 about 10 miles north of Napakiang (

Naha is the capital city of Okinawa Prefecture, the southernmost prefecture of Japan. As of 1 June 2019, the city has an estimated population of 317,405 and a population density of 7,939 persons per km2 (20,562 persons per sq. mi.). The total area i ...

) at Great Loochow Island (

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

). The Okinawans built a junk for the crew and passengers from ''Indian Oak'' that was given the name ''Loochoo''. ''Cruizer'' and arrived on 16 September. ''Cruizer'' sailed shortly thereafter. ''Nimrod'' and ''Loochoo'', which was carrying the people from ''Indian Oak'', sailed on 28 September and arrived at Chusan on 5 October."Narrative of facts attending the Wreck of the Transport "Indian Oak" on the Loochoo Islands; communicated from the Political Secratarial Office, Government of India. J. J. R. BOWMAN, Agt." ''Journal of the Asiatic Society'' (Calcutta, India), 1 September 01, 1840; pg. 916; Issue 105/21. In January 1841, ''Cruizer'' recaptured the

whaling Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution. It was practiced as an organized industry ...

. The local inhabitants in the Nicobar Islands had captured ''Pilot'' in December 1840 and murdered most of her crew. ''Pilot'' was taken into

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

Notes, citations and references

Notes Citations References * * *
Bulletins of State Intelligence
'. Westminster: F. Watts. 1841. {{DEFAULTSORT:Cruizer (1828) 1828 ships Sloops of the Royal Navy