HMS Druid (1783)

HMS ''Druid'' was a 32-gun ''Hermione''-class fifth-rate frigate of the British Royal Navy, launched in 1783 at Bristol. She served in the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars, capturing numerous small prizes. One of her commanders, Captain Philip Broke, described ''Druid'' as a "point of honour ship", i.e., a ship too large to run but too small to fight. He and his biographer's view was that it was a disgrace to use a ship like her as a warship. She was broken up in 1813, after a thirty-year career.

Career

''Druid'' entered service in 1783 under the command of Captain John MacBride. He was succeeded the following year by Captain George Byron, who commanded her off Land's End.Winfield (2007), p. 212. Captain Joseph Ellison replaced Byron in 1785, and remained in command for the next ten years. ''Druid'' served as a Royal escort between 1785 and 1788, returning to service in 1791 after a period paid off and under refit.

''Druid'' and the smugglers

On 31 January 1788 a boat belonging to ''Druid'' captured the smuggler's lugger ''Revenge'' in Cawsand Bay. The lugger, under the command of a Henry Carter, belonged to Guernsey and was bringing in alcohol and other prohibited goods. Before ''Druids boat could board the lugger, the smugglers fired on it. In the subsequent action, the smugglers killed one of ''Druid''s crew and wounded seven. By the time the boarding party reached the lugger, the master and ten crewmen had fled. The British Government offered a pardon to any smuggler, other than the master, giving information leading to the arrest of two other smugglers, and also offered a reward of £200 to anyone providing information leading to the arrest of two or more smugglers.

French Revolutionary wars

''Druid'' sailed to Jamaica in April 1792 and, with the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars in 1793, returned to operate in home waters.

At some point in 1793 she was in company with when they captured the French merchant vessels ''Vaudrieul'' and ''Diare''. ''Druid'' herself also captured the ''Dauphin''. In June she captured the French 12-gun privateer ''Esperance'' in the English Channel.

In late 1793 ''Druid'' served in a small squadron under the command of Sir James Saumarez in the frigate , together with the brig and the hired armed cutter ''Lion''. They convoyed some transports with troops for Jersey and Guernsey, and there picked up pilots for Admiral MacBride. On 28 November Saumarez detached ''Lion'' to take the pilots to MacBride. Around 7 December Saumarez took his two frigates and the brig to the Isles of Bréhat. As they were maneuvering to attack some French vessels resting there, which escaped, ''Druid'' hit a rock, damaging herself. Saumerez sent her and ''Liberty'' into Plymouth for repairs.

In early 1794, ''Druid'' was in company with , , , and when ''Flora'' captured the French sloop ''Viper''. ''Viper'' was a new sloop of 18 guns and was captured outside of Havre de Grace.

Also in 1794, ''Druid'' was part of a frigate squadron that escaped from the 50-gun French ''Scévola'' and ''Brutus''.

''Druid'' was at Plymouth on 20 January 1795 and so shared in the proceeds of the detention of the Dutch naval vessels, East Indiamen, and other merchant vessels that were in port on the outbreak of war between Britain and the Netherlands.

In 1795 Captain Robert Carthew Reynolds replaced Ellison, but was himself replaced the same year by Captain Richard King. King convoyed merchant ships to and from Portugal until early 1797, when ''Druid'' participated in the operations against the French Expédition d'Irlande. On 7 January she helped and capture the ''Ville de Lorient''. ''Ville de Lorient'' was a frigate, armed en flute, i.e., she had reduced armament to permit her to serve as a transport. She was carrying 400 hussars to join the rebels in Ireland, together with weapons and supplies.

''Druid'' also shared with and in the capture of the French privateer ''Eclair''. ''Unicorn'' was the actual captor. ''Eclair'' was armed with 18 guns and had a crew of 120 men.

King then moved to another ship, with command of ''Druid'' transferring to Captain (acting) Edward Codrington. ''Druid'' was paid off in March 1797.

On 5 November 1796 ''Druid'' was in company with , and when they captured the Spanish ship ''Adriana''.

''Druid'' was fitted out as a 16-gun troopship between February and April 1798 under the command of Commander Edward Abthrorpe. On 14 May she sailed from Margate to take part in Sir Home Popham's failed attack on Ostend. The British troops landed and destroyed some sluices and locks to block gunboats and transports at Flushing from joining an invasion of Britain. However, high surf prevented the retrieval of the troops, and the landing party suffered 60 men dead and wounded, and 1134 captured. The captives included John MacKellar of the frigate , and his boat crew. The sluices were repaired within weeks.

''Druid'' sailed to the Mediterranean in 1801 to support operations in Egypt. Because ''Druid'' served in the navy's Egyptian campaign between 8 March 1801 and 2 September, her officers and crew qualified for the clasp "Egypt" to the Naval General Service Medal that the Admiralty authorised in 1850 for all surviving claimants.

The next year ''Druid'' sailed to the West Indies. ''Druid'' came under the command of Commander Charles Ross in 1802, returning to Britain later that year to be paid off.

Napoleonic Wars

A period of repair and refit began in 1804 which saw her returning to service as a 32-gun fifth rate in April 1805 under the command of Captain Philip Broke. ''Druid'' operated from Ireland and soon afterwards captured the privateer ''Prince Murat'' on 2 February 1806 after a chase of 90 miles. ''Prince Murat'', under the command of M. Rine Murin, was five days out of Lorient without having made any captures. She was armed with eighteen 6-pounder guns and had a crew of 127 men. ''Druid'' sent ''Prince Murat'' into Plymouth.

On 1 May 1806 ''Druid'' chased the French brig corvette '' Pandour'', bound for France from Senegal, 160 miles into Rear Admiral Charles Stirling's squadron where she was brought to; ''Druid'' had to share the prize money with Stirling's entire squadron and so earned relatively little for the long chase. ''Pandour'' was under the command of M. Malingre and had a crew of 114 men. She had been armed with eighteen 6-pounder guns, but her crew had thrown two of the guns overboard during the chase. Stirling instructed Broke to bring her into Plymouth, where they arrived on 9 May.

About the same time ''Druid'' chased a large frigate into the Passage du Raz, near Brest. She was probably the ''Topaze''. Due to missed communication between ''Druid'' and , ''Topaze'' escaped.

Next, Broke caught up with the Guernsey privateer ''Providence'' with a view to pressing some of her crew. However, when he heard how she had held off a French privateer off Bilbao, he recognized the crew's courage by leaving the men alone. During this cruise ''Druid'' captured a neutral vessel with a Prussian cargo, which made her a legitimate prize. Then Broke chased the Guernsey privateer cutter ''Hope'' for some 76 hours before he was able to catch her and impress some seamen from her. Lastly, he sailed ''Druid'' northwest of Ireland to intercept the returning Greenland whalers. He was able to impress 12-20 seamen from the whalers to add to ''Druid''s crew.

Broke was then appointed to in June 1806 but his replacement, Captain John R. Bennett, came aboard ''Druid'' on 31 August. Therefore, when ''Druid'' captured ''Swanen'' on 2 July, she was still under Broke's command.

Captain Donald H. Mackay then replaced Bennet. On 14 February 1808, ''Druid'' captured the Danish brig ''Catharina''.

Captain Captain Sir William Bolton took command later in 1808.Winfield (2008), p. 199-200. On 19 March 1809 ''Druid'' captured the schooner ''Belle Hortense''. The schooner ''Hortense'', prize to ''Druid'', arrived at Portsmouth from Martinique on 10 April. On 25 June ''Druid'' captured the French private ship of war ''Jenny'' and her cargo.

On 13 November ''Druid'' captured the French navy brig ''Basque'', armed with 16 guns with a crew of 112 men under the command of ''lieutenant de vaisseaux'' Liscourt. She had been sailing from Bayonne to Guadaloupe, with flour and other stores. The Royal Navy took ''Basque'' into service as .

On 23 November ''Druid'' brought a French brig, that may or may not have been ''Basque'', into Cork. ''Druid'' had sighted three strange sails at night. There being no wind, Bolton sent out three boats, admonishing the officers to take care and to attack if any of the vessels should be a French warship. Unfortunately, the officers did not heed the warning and went in seriatim, with their quarry killing or capturing their crews. Bolton was unaware of what had happened. The French vessel then took to her sweeps. Next morning Bolton followed her with his sweeps, but again lost her that night. By chance, on the second morning he encountered her again, and this time there was enough of a breeze that he could catch her after a chase. When he did, the newspaper accounts report that he found that she was a large privateer. He also was able to recover those of his men who had been taken prisoner. Apparently, ''Druid'' had lost 10 men killed and wounded, in addition to the 17 prisoners that he recovered. The two brigs that had been with the French vessel on the first night had long escaped.

In August 1810 Captain Sir John Lewis assumed command, sailing ''Druid'' for the Mediterranean on 28 August. In May 1811 Captain John Searle took command, followed the next month by Captain Abel Ferris. ''Druid'' then sailed for the Mediterranean on 12 June. In May 1812 Captain Francis Stanfell took command in the Mediterranean. Between the end of 1811 and early 1812, ''Druid'' supported the British capture of Tarifa, near Cadiz.

Fate

By 1813 ''Druid'' had returned to home waters and was under Captain William King. She was broken up at Woolwich in November 1813.

Notes

Citations

References

*Brighton, John George, and Sir Philip Bowes Vere Broke (1866) ''Admiral Sir P. B. V. Broke ...:a memoir''. (S. Low, son, and Marston).
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* Ross, Sir John (1838) ''Memoirs and Correspondence of Admiral Lord De Saumarez: From Original Papers in Possession of the Family''. (R. Bentley).
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External links

Ships of the Old Navy

{{DEFAULTSORT:Druid (1783)
Ships built in Bristol
Frigates of the Royal Navy
1783 ships