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BERWICK
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(74) |
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Built in 1809, Blackwall.
Broken up in 1821. |
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- 1809 Capt. James MACNAMARA. She was employed in the North Sea and was occasionally senior ship in the squadron blockading Cherbourg.
- BERWICK sailed from St. Helen's on the afternoon of 23 March 1811 and stood over to the French coast under easy sail during the night.
At daylight, some 12 or 13 miles north of the Barfleur light, she gave chase to a frigate running along the shore and forced her to take shelter in a bay about a mile westward of the light. BERWICK was joined by AMELIA, GOSHAWK and HAWK and later by NIOBE and an attack using boats was considered. This had to be abandoned due to the strength of the tides and the ships went in succession and used their great guns. Because of the rocks and shoals they could only fire in the act of wearing so Capt. MACNAMARA stood in the following morning to renew the attack. This proved unnecessary when the enemy set fire to the frigate and she burnt to the waterline. She was the AMAZONE of 40 guns. - 1812 Capt Edward BRACE, 10/1811. He removed to her from the St. ALBAN, and commanded her in the Mediterranean for the rest of the war.
- Mr William RICHARDSON, midshipman of BERWICK, was tried by a court martial on board ROYAL GEORGE at Port Mahon on 28 December 1812. He was charged with defrauding merchants at Port Mahon by means of forged bills to the amount of 55 pounds. Found guilty, he was sentenced to 2 years solitary confinement.
- On 16 May 1813 the boats of BERWICK under her first lieutenant, Henry Johnston SWEEDLAND, with seamen and royal marines, attacked more than 20 enemy trading vessels which had collected in Cavalerie Bay near Toulon. They were protected by several land batteries which were carried twenty minutes after the attackers reached the beach, and the guns turned on the defenders. The xebec FORTUNE, armed with ten long 9-pounders, attempted to escape but she was cut off by Capt. NAPIER in EURYALUS, who pushed in and cut her off. The crew of 95 abandoned her after firing a shot through the bottom and laying a train of powder to the magazine. A division of boats under Lieut. WHITE boarded her in time to stop her sinking or blowing up. There were 22 vessels of various descriptions in the harbour. EURYALUS salvaged the cargoes, mainly oil, corn and lemons, of those which had been scuttled and BERWICK's boats brought out thirteen. John Jones, marine of BERWICK was killed.
- In December Lieut. SWEEDLAND led another attack by BERWICK's boats. This time on a number of merchantmen lying under the protection of Fort Negaye near Frejus. They were surprised by the appearance of two enemy schooners but carried one of them and the fort and forced the French to scuttle the merchantmen. The second schooner put up a determined resistance and Lieut. SWEEDLAND, James WHITSHED, midshipman, and several seamen were killed and others wounded in an attempt to capture her. She scuttled herself after coming under fire from the sailors in the captured fort.
- BERWICK was with Sir Josiah ROWLEY's squadron operating with the army to bring about the surrender of Genoa in April 1814.
On 8 and 10 April her boats, with those of RAINBOW, assisted by two Sicilian gunboats, attacked enemy posts near the Pass of Rona to assist the advance of the British army. The enemy were driven from their positions leaving two 24-pounders and two mortars. Two men were killed and Lieut. George Francis LYON of BERWICK and four men were wounded.
After the surrender of Genoa Capt. BRACE served as naval commissioner ashore whilst the arsenal was cleared of its contents. - He took BERWICK back to Portsmouth for a refit, and was then ordered to return to the Mediterranean.
- In the summer of 1815 BERWICK came under the orders of Capt. FAHIE in MALTA co-operating with the Austrian General, Baron Laner, in the siege of Gaeta during the war with Murat.
Capt. BRACE was second in command of the flotilla. Following a proposal from the General a simultaneous bombardment to last three days by the Austrian batteries and the ships started on 17 July. The ships only stopped firing when they retired to re-ammunition but the batteries were badly knocked up on two occasions. The enemy fire from the sea face of the fortress was silenced. BERWICK had only one casualty, Anthony PENDVILLE, landsman, who had to have his left arm amputated, very high up, after a gunshot wound.
Since the operations against Gaeta were turning into a blockade and the people of BERWICK had been under fire for nearly two months, Capt. FAHIE sent her to Lord EXMOUTH off Marseilles. Gaeta surrendered on 8 August. - BERWICK returned to England to pay off in the summer of 1816.
- 1817 Out of commission at Plymouth.
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