HMS ''Ramillies'' was a 74-gun

third rate In the rating system of the Royal Navy, a third rate was a ship of the line which from the 1720s mounted between 64 and 80 guns, typically built with two gun decks (thus the related term two-decker). Rating When the rating system was f ...

ship 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 tactics in the Age of Sail, naval tactic known as the line of battl ...

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 ...

, launched on 15 April 1763 at

Chatham Dockyard Chatham Dockyard was a Royal Navy Dockyard located on the River Medway in Kent. Established in Chatham, Kent, Chatham in the mid-16th century, the dockyard subsequently expanded into neighbouring Gillingham, Kent, Gillingham; at its most extens ...

Career

''Ramillies'' fought in the Battle of Ushant on Monday 27 July 1778. ''Ramillies'' took part in the

action of 9 August 1780 The action of 9 August 1780 was a naval engagement during the American Revolutionary War and a part of the Anglo-French War (1778–1783) in which a Spanish fleet, led by Admiral Luis de Córdova y Córdova, along with a squadron of French sh ...

, when a convoy she was escorting fell prey to a Spanish squadron. 55 merchantmen were captured, but she managed to escape. In 1782 she was the flagship of a fleet under Admiral Thomas Graves off

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 ...

. ''Ramillies'' was badly damaged in a violent storm of 1782, and was finally abandoned and burned on 21 September 1782. On 16–19 September, she was escorting a convoy from Jamaica when they were hit by the storm. Frantic efforts were made to save her. All anchors, cannon, and masts were shipped over the side. The hull was bound together with rope, officers and men manned the pumps for 24 hours a day for 3 days. However despite all the water continued to rise. The exhausted crew were rescued by nearby merchantmen, and the last man, Captain Sylverius Moriarty, set her on fire as he left. Robert Dodd painted a series of four documenting the tragedy. "The demise of the Ramillies" comprises: "A Storm coming on", "The Storm increas'd", "The Ramillies Water Logg'd with her Admiral & Crew quitting the Wreck", and "The Ramillies Destroyed". In 1795 a set of four coloured

mezzotint Mezzotint is a monochrome printmaking process of the intaglio (printmaking), intaglio family. It was the first printing process that yielded half-tones without using line- or dot-based techniques like hatching, cross-hatching or stipple. Mezzo ...

s were engraved and published by

Jukes Jukes is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Andrew Jukes (theologian) (1815–1901), English theologian * Andrew Jukes (missionary) (1847–1931), Anglican missionary * Betty Jukes (1910–2006), British sculptor * Bill Jukes (c. ...

from his shop at No.10 Howland Street.The Ramillies Destroyed
/ref> File:HMS Ramillies in 1782.jpg, "A Storm Coming On" File:The_storm_increasd_by_DUTTON_%26_JUKES_-_GMII.jpg, "The Storm increas'd. Distressed situation of the Ramillies when Day broke with the Dutton Store Ship foundering" File:600 Loss of HMS Ramillies, September 1782 taking to the boats.jpg, "The Ramillies Water Logg'd with her Admiral & Crew quitting the Wreck", File:700 Loss of HMS Ramillies, September 1782 ship abandoned in abating storm.jpg, "Ship abandoned in abating storm" File:900 Loss of HMS Ramillies, September 1782 blowing up of the wreck.jpg , "Blowing up of the wreck"

Notes

References

* *

External links

Ships of the line of the Royal Navy Ramillies-class ships of the line Shipwrecks in the Atlantic Ocean 1763 ships Maritime incidents in 1782 Ship fires Ships built in Chatham {{UK-line-ship-stub