''Violet'' was a ship used to deport

Acadians The Acadians (; , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French colonial empire, French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Today, most descendants of Acadians live in either the Northern Americ ...

from Île Saint-Jean (

Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island is an island Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. While it is the smallest province by land area and population, it is the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...

) to France, as part of the Île Saint-Jean Campaign during the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...

. The ship sank in the North Atlantic on 12 December 1758, with the loss of 280–400 lives. ''Violet'' was a ship of 315 tons and 8 cannons, under command of Captain Benjamin Suggit. Together with '' Duke William'', ''John'', ''Samuel'', ''Neptune'', , ''Yarmouth'', and another unknown ship, ''Violet'' was part of a fleet that left on 25 November from Port-la-Joye, Île Saint-Jean (

) for France. On board ''Violet'' were some 360 Acadian civilians. A few days later, the fleet encountered a storm that dispersed the ships. Stormy weather continued for several weeks. On 10 December '' Duke William'' caught sight of ''Violet'', and discovered that she was in difficulties, taking in water fast. Captain Suggit, upon re-establishing contact with ''Duke William'', notified ''Captain Nichols'' that ''Violet’s'' pumps were clogged, and that they might sink before morning. ''Duke William'' set their three pumps aside as a precaution, but were unable to assist as they themselves sprung a leak at 4 the next morning. ''Violet'' sank two days later, following a violent squall that lasted ten minutes, with all hands lost. According to historian Earle Lockerby, 90 passengers had already died before from the appalling conditions on board. In the following days, '' Duke William'' and ''

Ruby Ruby is a pinkish-red-to-blood-red-colored gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum ( aluminium oxide). Ruby is one of the most popular traditional jewelry gems and is very durable. Other varieties of gem-quality corundum are called sapph ...

'' also foundered with great loss of life.

References

{{Reflist Maritime incidents in 1758 Acadia Acadian history Maritime history of Canada