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AMETHYST
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Built in 1799, Deptford. She was mounting 42 guns.
Wrecked in 1811. |
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- 1799 Capt. John COOKE (1), 05/1799. Channel.
On 29 December 1799 AMETHYST captured the French privateer brig AVENTURE in the Bay of Biscay. She was from L'Orient, mounted 14 guns and was manned by 75 men.
The French armed vessel HUZELLE from Cayenne with passengers was first taken by AMETHYST but was then recaptured by the privateer PROVIDENCE (24) and sent to Bordeaux. She was retaken once more by BEAULIEU and sent into Plymouth on 7 January 1800. The prize was short of provisions and a five year old child on board her died while she was in the Sound. The broker, Mr P. Symons, sent fresh supplies on board as soon as she entered the Cattewater. Among the passengers was M. Burnelle, a naturalist, with curiosities for the French national museum. - On 20 February 1800 "a most beautiful cutter" of 16 guns and 131 men called the VALIANT arrived in Plymouth. She had been captured on the 15th. by AMETHYST and NYMPH and mounted one long 18-pounder, two long 12-pounders and twelve 6-pounders. She was four days out of Bordeaux without making any captures.
AMETHYST returned to Plymouth on 15 March having recaptured a valuable American ship which Capt. COOKE had sent into Falmouth. - She captured the French privateer MARS on the evening 31 March. Mounting twenty 12-pounders and two 36-pounder carronades MARS was returning to Bordeaux after a successful cruise during which she made several captures. It gave Capt. COOKE a peculiar pleasure to make this capture since she was thought to be one of the finest privateers ever fitted out at Bordeaux.
AMETHYST arrived in Plymouth Sound from a cruise on 13 April during a gale. All the men-of-war in Cawsand Bay and the Sound had to strike yards and top masts during the night as anchors started dragging. - On 3 June AMETHYST, AMELIA and the WINCHERLSEA troopship joined a squadron under Sir Edward PELLEW in IMPETUEUX at Quiberon Bay.
The forts at the the south west end of Quiberon were destroyed by troops of the Queen's regiment and several ships were captured or destroyed in the Morbiban on the 4th. and the 5th. - On 13 October AMETHYST went into Barnpool and on the 17th. a sale of prize vessels and goods began in Plymouth.
A French East Indiaman, a prize to AMETHYST and NYMPE, netted 36,000 pounds. - AMETHYST and SIRIUS captured the Spanish letter of marque CHARLOTTA on 28 January 1801 some 20 miles north of Cape Belem. The Spaniard was only 16 hours out of Ferrol bound for Curacao.
- On the evening of 16 March 1801 AMETHYST, following an order from Capt. RICKETTS in NAIAD, fell in with and captured a Spanish privateer schooner NOSTRA SENORA DEL CARMEN with six guns and sixty-five men. Since she was unfit for his Majesty's service, Capt. COOKE destroyed her.
- Off Finisterre on 5 April Capt. COOKE captured a French national corvette GENERAL BRUNE from Guadeloupe to Bordeaux. Commanded by Capt. Martin she carried as passengers Gen. Pelardy the late Governor of the island and his suite. The French ship mounted fourteen 6-pounders and had one hundred and eight men on board. AMETHYST returned to Plymouth on 27 April after a cruise of 16 weeks; the GENERAL BRUNE came in on 8 May.
AMETHYST sailed again on 19 May to join the squadron off the Black Rocks. - With the coming of peace AMETHYST was employed cruising against smugglers. At the beginning of February 1802 while commanded by Capt. Henry GLYNN (act.) she was driven into Torbay by a strong S. W. gale before going in to Plymouth on 6th.
On 30 July she sailed for Guernsey to pick up Dutch troops to return them to Holland. - 1803 Capt. Alexander CAMPBELL, Leith.
In June 1804 Capt. CAMPBELL was dismissed from his ship and placed at the bottom of the list of captains for misconduct in an action with four Dutch vessels off the coast of Norway. - 1805 Capt. SPRANGER, Spithead for foreign service.
- 1807 Capt. Michael SEYMOUR.
AMETHYST and PLOVER were in company with DRYAD, Capt. DRUMMOND, some 60 miles west of the Scillies on 15 May 1807 when a strange sail was sighted in the north-west. AMETHYST was detached to investigate and captured the French privateer schooner JOSEPHINE mounting four 2-pounders and small arms and manned with 45 men. She had sailed from the Isle des Bas on 25 April and had only made one capture, the JANE bound for Greenock from Lisbon, and had sent her in with ten men as a prize crew. - On the evening of 10 October 1808 AMETHYST, cruising between L'Orient and the Ile de Groix, was fired on by a battery at Larmor and shortly after sighted a French frigate coming eastwards before the wind.
Capt. SEYMOUR burnt false fire and showed blue lights to warn the ships in the offing and gave chase. A close action was then maintained for nearly two and a half hours. At one time the enemy ran on board AMETHYST with her jib-boom between that ship's mizzen and main rigging but with the two ships doing nearly 10 knots they soon broke apart. AMETHYST then crossed the bows of her opponent and raked her but shortly after AMETHYST's mizzen-mast fell on the quarter deck. Before the Frenchmen could escape he too lost his mizzen-mast. The enemy frigate then attempted to board but his forecastle was swept clear of men by another British broadside as the fluke of AMETHYST's bower anchor entered his foremost main-deck port and held him fast. The enemy was several times set on fire and eventually boarded and taken possession of. Shortly after TRIUMPH arrived to assist AMETHYST which had made two feet of water and then SHANNON, which took off prisoners.
AMETHYST lost nineteen killed and fifty-one wounded. Among the former was Lieut. Bernard Kindall of the Royal Marines. Mr Richard GIBBINGS, master's mate, was mortally wounded and Lieut. Samuel Payne RM was dangerously wounded. Among the other wounded were Mr L. MILES, midshipman and Mr Leonard TAYLOR, boatswain.
The other officers who took part in the action were Mr Goddard BLENNERHASSET, first lieutenant, Lieuts. HILL and CROUCH and Mr FAIR, the master.
The enemy frigate was the THETIS (44) with a crew of 330 men and 106 soldiers she was taking to Martinique. She was commanded by Capt. Pinsun who did not survive the action. 135 were killed and 102 wounded including all her officers except three.
THETIS was taken into the Royal Navy as BRUNE, Capt. SEMOUR was awarded a gold medal and a silver medal was granted to the survivors in 1849. - In February 1809 AMETHYST was with Rear Ad. Robert STOPFORD's squadron off the French coast.
On the 23rd. the Admiral in CAESAR, with DEFIANCE, DONEGAL, EMERALD and NAIAD, was anchored in the Pertuis d'Antioche, 10 miles N. W. of Chassiron and 4 miles S. W. of the lighthouse at Baleines. AMETHYST was stationed to the N. W. on lookout. In the evening she sighted sails to the eastward and fired rockets to attract the Admiral. Eight sails-of-the-line and three frigates, the French squadron from Brest were entering the Pertuis so the Admiral immediately detached NAIAD to warn Lord GAMBIER. Shortly afterwards NAIAD made the signal for three more sail and Ad. STOPFORD chased after them leaving AMETHYST and EMERALD to watch the enemy. (The three vessels were French frigates standing in for Les Sables-D'Olonne, see CAESAR.)
On the 26th. Capt. SEYMOUR reported that the French squadron had weighed from the Basque Roads and sailed to an anchorage to the southward of the Isle d'Aix. One of the frigates ran aground on the shoals near the Ile Madame and, when efforts to get her off failed, she was unrigged. - During the forenoon of 5 April 1809 in the Bay of Biscay, with EMERALD in signalling distance, AMETHYST sighted a ship in the E. S. E. steering to the westward. When the other vessel hauled to the S. S. E. on making out the British frigate, Capt. SEYMOUR immediately gave chase but lost sight of both her and EMERALD as darkness fell. He continued on his course and soon was able to open fire on the enemy with his bow chasers and for some hours they exchanged shots, the other vessel managing to keep ahead. In the early hours of the 6th. the fighting became more severe when AMETHYST pulled alongside, fired a broadside, then bore across her bows, raking her. After more broadsides the enemy's main and mizzen-masts were brought down and her hammock netting set on fire. NIEMEN ceased firing and AMETHYST discontinued the action and when ARETHUSA appeared the enemy made a signal of surrender. AMETHYST also lost her main and mizzen-masts towards the close of the action and she had eight killed and thirty-seven wounded. The killed were: Seamen John RIDGWAY, Magnus SLATER, John COPES, George LIME, John CALCOMBE and John MEDLYN, marines Edward BURRIDGE and Joseph FOULKES. She had fought the action with two officers and 37 men absent in prizes and with 69 prisoners on board. Among those involved were Mr William HILL, first lieutenant, who was promoted to commander; Mr Robert FAIR, the master; Mr LACY, the Boatswain, and Lieut. Samuel Prytherch and Lieut. Henry Waring of the Royal Marines. The last three were wounded, Lieut. Prytherch severely.
The enemy vessel was the French 44-gun frigate NIEMEN, only three months old, with twenty-eight 18 pounders on the main deck. Under Capt. Dupotet she had sailed two days before from the Verdon Roads at the mouth of the Gironde with naval stores for Mauritius. Out of 319 men on board she lost 47 killed and 73 wounded. When the prize's foremast fell the next day ARETHUSA took her in tow.
Capt. SEYMOUR was created a baronet and appointed to the command of NIEMEN in September 1809 when she was taken into the Royal Navy. - On 28 July an expedition sailed from the Downs to Walcheren. The Naval commander, Rear Ad. Sir Richard STRACHAN, hoisted his flag in AMETHYST and it was his intention to sail in company with VENERABLE, on which ship Lord Chatham had embarked, but finding that communications were difficult he shifted to VENERABLE before leaving. AMETHYST joined VENERABLE and FISGARD and several smaller vessels in the Stone Deeps but on the 4 August an approaching gale forced the squadron to get under way and they all came to in safety off the Veere Gat.
On the 11th. Ad. STRACHAN ordered Capt. Lord William STUART in LAVINIA to take AMETHYST, HEROINE, ROTA, NYMPHEN, AIGLE, EURYALUS, STATIRA, DRYAD and PERLIN to force the passage up the West Scheldt between the batteries of Flushing and Cadsand. They came under fire for nearly two hours and two men were killed and nine wounded in the squadron. On AMETHYST Michael PATTERSON was killed and Joseph MANFREE wounded. - 1811 Capt. Jacob WALTON.
AMETHYST was wrecked in Plymouth Sound in February 1811. The ship was under sailing orders and, on advice from Mr Robert OWEN, the master, was lying at single anchor in an inner berth. At about half past twelve on the 15th. a sudden and violent gust of wind drove the ship ashore before the bower anchor, which was immediately let go, could hold. The masts were cut away and distress signals made but, because of the bad weather, the boats of the fleet could not reach them until morning when they were able to save the greater part of the stores and the hull.
Capt. WALTON and Mr OWEN were sentenced by a court martial on 19 and 20 March to be severely reprimanded. The master was reduced to serve in a ship of no more than 6th. rate. Mr STEWART, the first lieutenant, and the other officers were acquitted.
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