HMS ''Mercury'' was a 28-gun
sixth-rate
In the rating system of the Royal Navy used to categorise sailing warships, a sixth-rate was the designation for small warships mounting between 20 and 28 carriage-mounted guns on a single deck, sometimes with smaller guns on the upper works an ...
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
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...
. She was built during the
American War of Independence
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...
and serving during the later years of that conflict. She continued to serve during the years of peace and had an active career during the
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars () were a series of sweeping military conflicts resulting from the French Revolution that lasted from 1792 until 1802. They pitted French First Republic, France against Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain, Habsb ...
and most of the
Napoleonic Wars
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Napoleonic Wars
, partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars
, image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg
, caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...
, until being broken up in 1814.
Construction and commissioning
''Mercury'' was ordered from Peter Mestaer, at the
King and Queen Shipyard,
Rotherhithe
Rotherhithe ( ) is a district of South London, England, and part of the London Borough of Southwark. It is on a peninsula on the south bank of the Thames, facing Wapping, Shadwell and Limehouse on the north bank, with the Isle of Dogs to the ea ...
on the
River Thames
The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, s ...
on 22 January 1778 and was laid down there on 25 March. She was launched on 9 December 1779 and was completed by 24 February 1780 after being fitted out 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 ...
. £6,805 7
s 0
d was paid to her builder for her construction, with the total including fitting and
coppering
Copper sheathing is a method for protecting the hull of a wooden vessel from attack by shipworm, barnacles and other marine growth through the use of copper plates affixed to the surface of the hull, below the waterline. It was pioneered and de ...
subsequently rising to £13,603 8s 0d. ''Mercury'' entered service in 1780, having been commissioned in October 1779 under Captain Isaac Prescott.
American War of Independence and the interwar years
Prescott sailed ''Mercury'' to
Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...
in April 1780. On 23 July she returned from a cruise, having, on the 19th, retaken the ship ''Elizabeth'', which the 32-gun American privateer ''Dean'' had taken a few days earlier.
''Elizabeth'' was of 240 tons
burthen, armed with 14 guns but with only 10 crewmen. When first taken she had been sailing from London to Newfoundland with a cargo of salt.
[
''Mercury'' joined George Johnstone's squadron the following year. Captain William Carlyon took command in May 1781 and sailed ''Mercury'' to ]Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay, sometimes called Hudson's Bay (usually historically), is a large body of Saline water, saltwater in northeastern Canada with a surface area of . It is located north of Ontario, west of Quebec, northeast of Manitoba, and southeast o ...
. There, on 17 May, he recaptured the cutter
Cutter may refer to:
Tools
* Bolt cutter
* Box cutter
* Cigar cutter
* Cookie cutter
* Cutter (hydraulic rescue tool)
* Glass cutter
* Meat cutter
* Milling cutter
* Paper cutter
* Pizza cutter
* Side cutter
People
* Cutter (surname)
* Cutt ...
. On 30 September, ''Mercury'', , and captured the French ship ''Philippine''.
In March 1782, ''Mercury'' and ''Jupiter'' captured the French privateer ''Bologne''. Captain Henry Edwyn Stanhope
Admiral Sir Henry Edwyn Stanhope, 1st Baronet (1754 – 20 December 1814) was a Royal Navy officer who became Commander-in-Chief, The Nore.
Early life
After initial education at a school in East Hill, Wandsworth, Henry Edwyn Stanhope was sent to ...
succeeded Carlyon in September 1782, and paid ''Mercury'' off later that year. She was recommissioned under Stanhope in April the following year, and went out to Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...
in June. Commodore Herbert Sawyer
Admiral (Royal Navy), Admiral Sir Herbert Sawyer Order of the Bath, KCB (Floruit, fl. 1783–1833) was an officer of the Royal Navy who saw service during the American Revolution, the French Revolutionary War, the War of 1812 and the Napoleonic ...
took command of the North American Station
The North America and West Indies Station was a formation or command of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy stationed in North American waters from 1745 to 1956, with main bases at the Imperial fortresses of Bermuda and Halifax, Nova Scotia. The ...
's base at Halifax in June 1785, and authorized ''Mercury'' to escort a merchant vessel to the American port of Boston
Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
to collect a shipment of cattle. This marked the first free visit of a British warship to the port since March 1776.
''Mercury'' was again paid off in July 1786 and spent the period between August 1787 and January 1788 undergoing a small repair at Woolwich
Woolwich () is a town in South London, southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich.
The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was mainta ...
. After being fitted out there she was recommissioned in May 1788 under Captain Augustus Montgomery, and sailed to the Mediterranean. She returned to Britain and was paid off in 1790.
French Revolutionary Wars
''Mercury'' was not immediately returned to service following the outbreak of war with Revolutionary France, but after being fitted at Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...
, re-entered service in early 1796, under the command of Captain George Byng. After time spent at Newfoundland command passed to Captain Thomas Rogers in April 1797. Rogers captured three privateer
A privateer is a private person or vessel which engages in commerce raiding under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign o ...
s while serving on the Lisbon
Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...
station, ''Benjamin'' on 5 January 1798, the 16-gun ''Trois Sœurs'' on 15 January 1798, and the 12-gun ''Constance'' on 25 January 1798.
''Benjamin'' was off the Rock of Lisbon when ''Mercury'' finally captured her after a chase of 36 hours.[ ''Benjamin'' was pierced for 20 guns, but carried sixteen 4 and 6-pounders, ten of which she threw overboard during the chase. She had a crew of 132 men. , and joined the chase and shared in the capture.][ ''Benjamin'' was a new vessel on her first cruise, during which she had captured the English brig ''Governor Bruce'', on her way to Faro, and a Portuguese schooner. However, a British ]letter of marque
A letter of marque and reprisal () was a Sovereign state, government license in the Age of Sail that authorized a private person, known as a privateer or French corsairs, corsair, to attack and capture vessels of a foreign state at war with t ...
had driven ''Benjamin'' off.
Next, Rogers was some off Cape Finisterre when he spotted two armed vessels and gave chase. As ''Mercury'' got close they separated and he was only able to capture one of them and that after a chase of eight hours. The quarry fired a few shots and then struck Struck is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
*Adolf Struck
Adolf Hermann Struck (1877–1911) was a German sightseer and writer. He is known for his Travel literature, travelogue ''Makedonische Fahrten'' and for surveying the ...
. She was the French privateer brig ''Trois Sœurs''. She was pierced for 18 guns but carried sixteen 6-pounders. She was five days out of port on her first cruise.
off the Burlings. ''Mercury'' captured her after a chase of five hours. ''Constance'' was pierced for 18 guns but carried only twelve 6 and 9-pounders, and had a crew of 96 men. She was ten days out off Nantes on a cruise of the Western Islands.
Rodgers then took ''Mercury'' to Newfoundland in June 1798. After returning to Portsmouth for a refit in early 1799, she went back there in 1799. On 6 October she captured ''San Joce''. On 16 December 1799 she captured ''Hosprung''.
On 24 January 1800, ''Mercury'' was off Scilly when she recaptured the ship ''Aimwell''. ''Aimwell'', of Whitby, had been sailing from Quebec to London when the French privateer ''Arriege'', of Bordeaux, had captured her on 9 January.[ On 29 March, ''Mercury'' was among the ships that shared in the capture of . The other captors were , , , ''Haerlem'', , and ''Salamine''.
''Mercury'' captured the French privateer ]brig
A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, 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 l ...
on 5 February 1800 off the Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight (Help:IPA/English, /waɪt/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''WYTE'') is an island off the south coast of England which, together with its surrounding uninhabited islets and Skerry, skerries, is also a ceremonial county. T ...
.[ ''Egyptienne'' mounted 15 brass guns and had a crew of 66 men. She had sailed from Cherbourg the evening before and had not yet taken any prizes. As she was striking her colours her crew suddenly discharged a volley of small arms fire that slightly wounded one man on ''Mercury''.] Apparently was in company or perhaps in sight at the time.
After spending a period in the English Channel
The English Channel, also known as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busi ...
, ''Mercury'' then sailed for the Mediterranean in May 1800. She was briefly part of Sir John Borlase Warren's squadron off Cadiz, after which she went on to Alexandria
Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...
, arriving there on 31 July 1800.
On 5 January 1801, ''Mercury'' captured a French tartan
Tartan or plaid ( ) is a patterned cloth consisting of crossing horizontal and vertical bands in multiple colours, forming repeating symmetrical patterns known as ''setts''. Originating in woven wool, tartan is most strongly associated wi ...
, of unknown name, sailing from Marseilles to Cette in ballast. Then the next day, ''Mercury'' had greater luck when with her boats she captured 15 vessels of a convoy of 20 vessels. The captures included two ships, four brigs, three bombards, two settees, and four tartans. The convoy was sailing from Cette to Marseilles when ''Mercury'' captured three-quarters of it off Minorca. The gunboats escorting the convoy fled as ''Mercury'' approached, so she suffered no casualties.
The vessels included the:
* Genoese ship ''Rhone'', with a cargo of salt, brandy, wine, and fruit;
* Genoese ship ''St. John'', with a cargo of wine;
* French brig ''Maria Josephine'', with a cargo of brandy, wheat, and sugar;
* French brig ''Solide'', with a cargo of brandy and wheat;
* French brig ''Cheri'', with a cargo of salt;
* Genoese brig ''St Carola'', with a cargo of wine and brandy;
* Genoese bombard ''Compte de Grasse'', with a cargo of wheat and stock fish;
* French bomb ''Paste'', with a cargo of wine and brandy;
* Genoese bombard ''St Andre'', with a cargo of wheat and sugar;
* French settee ''Bone'', with a cargo of wine;
* French settee ''Republican'', with a cargo of wine;
* French tartan ''Croisette'', with a cargo of wheat;
* French tartan ''St Ivado Pierre'', with a cargo of wheat and staves;
* French tartan ''Rosaria'', with a cargo of wine and bread; and
* French tartan '' Madona'', with a cargo of wheat.
On 20 January 1801, the day after Rogers had safely delivered his prizes to Port Mahon, he was some off Sardinia when ''Mercury'' captured the French corvette after a chase of nine hours. She was a French navy corvette under the command of Citoyen Gabriel Renault, Lieutenant de Vaisseau. She carried 18 long brass 9-pounders and two howitzers. The reason she did not resist was that she had a crew of only 15 men. She had sailed from Toulon the day before and was carrying a cargo of shot, arms, medicines, and all manner of other supplies for the French army at Alexandria, Egypt. The Admiralty took ''Sans Pareille'' into service as HMS ''Delight''.
On 17 February 1801, ''Mercury'' detained the Swedish brig ''Hoppet'', which was sailing in ballast from Tunis to Marseilles, in violation of the British blockaded of France.[ The next day, ''Mercury'', in company with , captured the ship ''Esperance'', which had sailed from Tunis with a cargo of silk, cotton, and other merchandise.][ Then on 15 May, ''Mercury'' and captured the French ship ''Francois''.
''Mercury'' then made an attempt to recapture the 18-gun ]bomb vessel
A bomb vessel, bomb ship, bomb ketch, or simply bomb was a type of wooden sailing naval ship. Its primary armament was not cannons (Naval long gun, long guns or carronades) – although bomb vessels carried a few cannons for self-defence – but ...
at Ancona
Ancona (, also ; ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region of central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona, homonymous province and of the region. The city is located northeast of Ro ...
on 25 May 1801.[ The cutting out party was able to get ''Bulldog'' out of the harbour, but then the winds died down just as enemy boats started to arrive. The cutting out party were too few in numbers both to guard the captured prisoners and resist the approaching enemy, and were tired from the row in to board ''Bulldog''. ''Mercury'' had drifted too far away to come to the rescue either. The cutting out party therefore abandoned ''Bulldog''. ''Mercury'' lost two men killed and four wounded in the attempt; Rogers estimated that the enemy had lost some 20 men killed, wounded and drowned.]
On 23 June 1801 boats from ''Mercury'' and destroyed the pirate tartane
A tartane (also tartan, tartana) was a small ship used both as a fishing ship and for coastal trading in the Mediterranean. They were in use for over 300 years until the late 19th century. A tartane had a single mast on which was rigged a large ...
''Tigre'', of eight 6 and 12-pounder guns and a crew of 60 French and Italians, in the Tremiti Islands
The Tremiti Islands (, ), also literarily known as Isole Diomedee (" Diomedean Islands", from Greek ), are an archipelago in the Adriatic Sea, some offshore to the north of the Gargano Peninsula. They constitute a of Italy's Province of Foggi ...
.[ The ]Royal Marines
The Royal Marines provide the United Kingdom's amphibious warfare, amphibious special operations capable commando force, one of the :Fighting Arms of the Royal Navy, five fighting arms of the Royal Navy, a Company (military unit), company str ...
landed and captured some of the pirates, who had mounted a 4-pounder gun on a hill. Meanwhile, the cutting out party brought out ''Tigre'', together with bales of cotton and other goods that she had taken from vessels she had robbed.
Though the first attempt to recapture ''Bulldog'' had failed, a second effort on 16 September 1801, carried out in company with and , succeeded.[ Rogers had received intelligence that ''Bulldog'' had left Ancona and was escorting four ]trabaccolo
The trabàccolo, trabaccalo, trabacalo (in Italian) or trabakul (in Croatian), is a type of Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northe ...
s and a tartane
A tartane (also tartan, tartana) was a small ship used both as a fishing ship and for coastal trading in the Mediterranean. They were in use for over 300 years until the late 19th century. A tartane had a single mast on which was rigged a large ...
that were carrying cannons, ammunition, and supplies to Egypt. ''Mercury'' set out with ''Champion'' and they discovered ''Santa Dorothea'' already in chase. The convoy took refuge under the guns of batteries at Gallipoli, Apulia
Gallipoli (; ; ) is a Southern Italy, southern Italy, Italian town and ''comune'' in the province of Lecce, in Apulia. In 2014, it had a population of 31,862 and is one of the towns where the Greek dialect Griko is spoken.
Geography
The town ...
. Even so, ''Champion'' was able to get close to ''Bulldog'', which struck after receiving several broadsides. ''Champion'' was then able to extricate ''Bulldog'' from under the batteries. In the meantime, ''Mercury'' captured one of the trabaccolos, which was carrying brass mortars, field pieces, and the like. In the engagement, ''Champion'' suffered one man killed.
Napoleonic Wars
''Mercury'' was fitted out as a floating battery
A floating battery is a kind of armed watercraft, often improvised or experimental, which carries heavy armament but has few other qualities as a warship.
History
During the Capture of Mahdia (1550), capture of Mahdia in 1550, Spanish c ...
at 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 ...
in May 1803, under the command of Captain Duncombe Pleydell-Bouverie
Admiral Duncombe Pleydell-Bouverie (28 June 1780 – 5 November 1850), was a British Royal Navy officer and Whig politician.
Biography
Pleydell-Bouverie was the second son of Jacob Pleydell-Bouverie, 2nd Earl of Radnor, and the Honourable Anne ...
. She went on to operate against Spanish shipping in the Eastern Atlantic and captured the ''Fuerte de Gibraltar'' on 4 February 1805. ''Fuerte de Gibraltar'' was a Spanish lateen
A lateen (from French ''latine'', meaning "Latin") or latin-rig is a triangular sail set on a long Yard (sailing) , yard mounted at an angle on the mast (sailing) , mast, and running in a fore-and-aft direction. The Settee (sail), settee can be ...
-rigged gun-vessel armed with two long 12-pounders, two 16-pound carronade
A carronade is a short, smoothbore, cast-iron cannon which was used by the Royal Navy. It was first produced by the Carron Company, an ironworks in Falkirk, Scotland, and was used from the last quarter of the 18th century to the mid-19th cen ...
s, several swivel gun
A swivel gun (or simply swivel) is a small cannon mounted on a swiveling stand or fork which allows a very wide arc of movement. Another type of firearm referred to as a swivel gun was an early flintlock combination gun with two barrels that rot ...
s, and a large quantity of small arms and cutlasses. She and her crew of 59 men were under the command of ''Lieutenant de fregate'' Signor Don Ramon Eutate, and had sailed the morning before from Cadiz bound for Algeciras.
Captain Charles Pelly succeeded Bouverie in August 1805 and ''Mercury'' returned to Newfoundland in May 1806. On 3 January 1806 recaptured the ships ''Argo'' and ''Adventure'', and shared in the recapture of the ''Good Intent''. ''Starr'' was off Villa de Conde, Portugal, when she intercepted the vessels, which had been taken from a convoy that ''Mercury'' had been escorting from Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...
to Portugal, and both of which had been carrying cargoes of fish. ''Starr'' sighted ''Good Intent'' and signaled ''Mercury'', which recaptured her too.[ On 5 February, captured ''Baltidore'', which was the privateer that had captured ''Good Intent''.]
In June 1807 James Alexander Gordon
James Alexander Gordon (10 February 1936 – 18 August 2014) was a Scottish radio broadcaster, best known for reading out association football, football results on BBC radio.
Born in Edinburgh in 1936, as a baby he was paralysed with polio a ...
took command and sailed ''Mercury'' into the Mediterranean to operate off the Southern Spanish coast. In the action of 4 April 1808
The action of 4 April 1808 was a naval engagement off the coast off Rota near Cadiz, Spain where Royal Naval frigates ''Mercury'', ''Alceste'' and ''Grasshopper'' intercepted a large Spanish convoy protected by twenty gunboats and a train of ...
, ''Mercury'', in company with and , attacked a Spanish convoy off Rota, destroying two of the escorts and driving many of the merchant vessels ashore. They captured seven more vessels subsequently, which the marines and sailors of the British ships sailed back out to sea.
In November 1808, command passed to Henry Duncan, who took her into the Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Se ...
to participate in the Adriatic campaign of 1804–1814. On 30 December, ''Mercury'' and ''Alceste'' captured the ''Hereux'' and the ''Spirito Santo''.
''Mercury'' was in action with and at Pesaro
Pesaro (; ) is a (municipality) in the Italy, Italian region of Marche, capital of the province of Pesaro and Urbino, on the Adriatic Sea. According to the 2011 census, its population was 95,011, making it the second most populous city in the ...
on 23 April and at Cesenatico
Cesenatico () is a port town with about 26,000 inhabitants on the Adriatic coast of Italy. It is located in the province of Forlì-Cesena in the region of Emilia-Romagna, about south of Ravenna. Cesenatico's port canal was surveyed and drawn by Le ...
on 2 May. In the attack on Pesaro, which the British bombarded after the commandant refused to surrender, the British captured 13 small coasting vessels. Due to the lack of resistance the British suffered no casualties. One civilian died by accident. ''Mercury'' grounded during the attack on Cesenatico but in a position where she could bring her guns to bear on the town. She was floated off without injury. In the attack the British captured and spiked the two 24-pounder guns of a battery that had fired on them and captured 12 vessels, all without suffering any casualties.
In June ''Mercury'' sent in her boats to destroy a number of trabaccolo
The trabàccolo, trabaccalo, trabacalo (in Italian) or trabakul (in Croatian), is a type of Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northe ...
s and other vessels on the beach at Rotti, near Manfredonia.
On 7 September ''Mercury'' cut out the French schooner
A schooner ( ) is a type of sailing ship, sailing vessel defined by its Rig (sailing), rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more Mast (sailing), masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than t ...
-of-war ''Pugliese'' from Barletta
Barletta (; Salentino: ''Varrétte'' or ''Barlétte'') is a city and ''comune'' in Apulia, in southeastern Italy. Barletta is the '' capoluogo'', together with Andria and Trani, of the Province of Barletta-Andria-Trani. It has a population of a ...
. ''Pugliese'' was armed with seven guns and had a crew of 37 men. The boats, under the command of Lieutenant Pall, accomplished this despite the schooner being under the protection not only of her own armament but also two armed felucca
A felucca is a traditional wooden sailing boat with a single sail used in the Mediterranean, including around Malta and Tunisia. However, in Egypt, Iraq and Sudan (particularly along the Nile and in the Sudanese protected areas of the Red Sea), ...
s, a castle, and small arms fire; the British suffered no casualties. This was ''Mercury''s last action before she was paid off in early 1810.
''Mercury'' was fitted out as a troopship
A troopship (also troop ship or troop transport or trooper) is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime. Troopships were often drafted from commercial shipping fleets, and were unable to land troops directly on shore, typic ...
at Woolwich in mid-1810 and commissioned in May that year as a 16-gun troopship under Lieutenant William Webb. Commander John Tancock succeeded Webb in mid-1810 and ''Mercury'' spent most of 1811 on the Lisbon station. Commander Clement Milward took over in November 1811 and went out 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 ...
. ''Mercury''s last commanding officer was Commander Sir John Charles Richardson, who took over while she was still in the Leewards.
On 29 July 1813, ''Mercury'' was among the British vessels that shared in the capture of the American ship ''Fame''. ( was another.) ''Fame'', under the command of Captain Job Coffin, had been out since August 1811 and was on her return from whaling
Whaling is the hunting of whales for their products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that was important in the Industrial Revolution. Whaling was practiced as an organized industry as early as 875 AD. By the 16t ...
in the Pacific when captured. She had a cargo of 1200 barrels of sperm oil.
Fate
''Mercury'' was finally broken up at Woolwich in January 1814.
Notes
Citations
References
*
*
*
*
*
External links
Phillips, Michael – ''Ships of the Old Navy''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mercury (1779)
Ships built in Rotherhithe
1779 ships
Sixth-rate frigates of the Royal Navy
Floating batteries of the Royal Navy