Hired Armed Cutter Nimrod

During the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars the British Royal Navy made use of hired armed vessels, one of which was His Majesty's hired armed cutter ''Nimrod''. Three such vessels are recorded, but the descriptions of these vessels and the dates of their service are such that they may well represent one vessel under successive contracts. The vessel or vessels cruised, blockaded, carried despatches, and performed reconnaissance.

The first ''Nimrod''

There was a ''Nimrod'' of 70 tons burthen and eight 3-pounder guns that served from 27 September 1794 to 9 April 1802. On 21 April 1798, ''Nimrod'' was among the vessels that shared in the capture of the French ship ''Hercule''.

''Nimrod'' shared with , , and in the capture of the ''Anna Christiana'' on 17 May. In August ''Nimrod'' captured the chasse-marée ''Francine'' with , commanded by Captain Henry Jenkins, and .

On 1 April 1798, ''Nimrod'' and the hired armed cutter ''Lurcher'' recaptured the packet ''Roebuck'', which the French privateer ''Adelaide'' had captured on 20 March. ''Nimrod'' and ''Lurcher'' sent ''Roebuck'' into Plymouth.

Under Lieutenant William Marsh, on 23 March 1799 ''Nimrod'', captured the Spanish ship ''Golondrina''. On 1 August, ''Nimrod'' arrived in Plymouth with dispatches from Vice Admiral Pole, off the Isle of Aix. Then on 25 December she helped rescue the crew of . On 28 December 1799 she re-captured the brig ''Neptune''. ''Neptune'', Morgan, master, arrived at Plymouth on 6 January. In February 1800 salvage money resulting from the re-capture of ''Neptune'' was due to be paid.

''Nimrod'' was part of Admiral Sir John Borlase Warren's squadron and so entitled to share in the proceeds from the recapture of ''Lancaster'' on 28 June 1800. She also shared in the proceeds of ''Vigilant'', ''Menais'', the salvage of ''Industry'', the sale of a wreck, and the proceeds of ''Insolent'' and ''Ann'', all taken by Captain Edward Pellew's squadron. Next ''Nimrod'' shared in the prize money from the squadron's capture of the French privateer ''Guêppe''.

In December ''Nimrod'' recaptured ''Skene'', Crawly, master, which had been sailing from Dublin to London when the French privateer ''Egyptian'' captured ''Skene''. ''Nimrod'' sent ''Skene'' into Falmouth on 30 December.

The second ''Nimrod''

There was a ''Nimrod'' of 69 tons burthen and six 3-pounder guns that served from 25 June 1803 to 10 October 1808. She joined the blockade of Brest on 16 July and Admiral William Cornwallis placed her inshore, after warning her to be careful as she was not strongly armed.

On 17 August captured the French privateer ''Messager'' in sight of ''Nimrod'', commanded by William Marsh. In January 1805 head and prize money from the proceeds of ''Messager'' was due to be paid. The fact that her captain was William Marsh suggests that the first and second ''Nimrod''s were the same vessel, despite the slight discrepancies in their descriptions.

The third ''Nimrod''

There was a ''Nimrod'' of 75 tons burthen and six 3-pounder guns that served from 11 October 1808 to 20 May 1814.

On 1 January 1809 ''Nimrod'' was under the command of Master's Mate Edward Tapley and shared in the proceeds of the recapture of the ship ''Crawford'' by .

In April 1809 ''Nimrod'' served at the Battle of the Basque Roads. William Congreve, who had arrived with a transport, fitted ''Whiting'', ''Nimrod'' and the other hired armed cutter, ''King George'', with rockets. On 11 April the three vessels took up a position near the Boyard Shoal (see Fort Boyard) while fireships made a night attack on the French ships. The next day all three, together with a number of other vessels, opened fire upon ''Océan'', ''Régulus'', and the frigate ''Indienne'', as those ships lay aground. The first two eventually escaped, and the last was one of four eventually destroyed, though by her own crew some days later to avoid capture. In 1847 the surviving members of the crews of all the British vessels at the battle qualified for the Naval General Service Medal with clasp "Basque Roads 1809".

On 9 November 1809 ''Nimrod'' and the hired armed cutter ''Adrian'' were among the vessels that shared in s capture of the French brig ''Modeste''. Around the end of December, ''Nimrod'', under the command of Jno. Tapley, recaptured the ship ''Elshon''.

On 12 September 1810, ''Nimrod'' was under the command of William Peake when she captured ''Sophie''. Then on 28 September ''Nimrod'' was among the vessels sharing in the capture of ''San Nicolas'' and ''Aventura''. Next, on 13 December 1810 ''Nimrod'' was in company with and several other vessels at the capture of ''Goede Trouw''. Lastly, on 18 December, ''Nimrod'', and were in sight when captured the American schooner ''Polly''.

On 7 January 1811 ''Nimrod'' captured ''Maria Francoise'' and sent her into Plymouth as a prize. Prize money was due to be paid in August 1811. ''Nimrod'', , and shared in the capture on 22 August 1812 of the cargo of the French vessel ''Auguste''. The British removed her cargo of wine before destroying her. On 22 November, ''Nimrod'', under the command of Thomas Peake, captured ''Belisario''.

On 23 December ''Nimrod'', Thomas Peake, Master and Commander, was in company with when they recaptured the English brig , A. Brown, master. ''Nimrod'' sent ''Sparkler'' into Portland Roads. ''Sparkler'' had been sailing from Cadiz to London when captured.

In January 1813 ''Nimrod'' was escorting a convoy when the American privateer ''Hunter'', of 16 guns and 80 men, succeeded in capturing a transport and a brig. Shortly thereafter captured ''Hunter'' and sent her into Plymouth.

On 9 March ''Nimrod'' recaptured ''Margaret'', J. Simpson, master. The American privateer ''True Blooded Yankee'' had taken ''Margaret'' and put on board a prize crew that included a British seaman, John Wiltshire. The British tried Wiltshire for piracy and hanged him.

In January 1814, while serving in the blockade of Brest, ''Nimrod'' was present when captured the brig ''Henriette''. This gave rise to a court case in which ''Clarence'' claimed sole prize rights and the other vessels in the blockading squadron claimed shares. The Court ruled that as a matter of principle:
"When a prize is taken coming out of a blockaded port, by one of the blockading squadron stationed off the mouth of the harbour, the other ships of the squadron, although stationed at some distance, are entitled to share."

However, when the case came up for a hearing on the evidence, the court rejected the squadron's claim on the grounds that ''Henriette'' did not come out from Brest but rather was a small coaster traveling between Légué and Croisi that had taken shelter in Cannonet Bay.

On 2 July 1815 the Chasse-marée ''Virgen de Roden'' came into Falmouth. She was a prize to the cutter ''Nimrod''. She had been sailing from Bordeaux to Brest with a cargo of wine, brandy, etc."Dover, July 4." ''Times'', 6 July 1815, p. 3. The Times Digital Archive,. Accessed 14 Aug. 2019.
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Other ''Nimrod''s

There was also a ''Nimrod'' of 69 tons burthen, eight 3-pounder guns, and under the command of Thomas Tapley, that received a letter of marque on 15 September 1795. She may have been the same vessel as the first ''Nimrod'' above, but if so she would not have been operating simultaneously under a contract with the Royal Navy and a letter of marque.

Notes

Citations

References

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*Duncan, Archibald (1836/2004) ''The mariner's chronicle, or, Authentic and complete history of popular shipwrecks : recording of the most remarkable disasters which have happened on the ocean to people of all nations. Particularly the adventures and sufferings of British seamen by wreck, fire, famine and other calamities incident to a life of maritime enterprises''. (Cambridge: Black Apollo).
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Nimrod, Hired armed cutter
Hired armed vessels of the Royal Navy