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TAGUS (38) Built in 1813, Fishbourne.
Broken up in 1822.

  • 1813 Capt. Philip PIPON, Falmouth for Brazil.
    NIGER and TAGUS made St. Antonio in the Cape Verde Is.
    on the morning of 5 January 1814 for the purpose of correcting longitude before the ships of their convoy bound for Maranham parted company.
    They both gave chase when a strange sail was seen and, at daylight the following morning found that they were not more than a mile and a half from a frigate. She hoisted French colours when TAGUS showed hers and after exchanging a few broadsides with TAGUS the enemy's fore top-mast was shot away, making escape impossible.
    When NIGER came up the French struck their colours. She was the frigate CERES, of 44 guns and 324 men, commanded by the Baron de Bourgainville, out one month from Brest on her first cruise.
    Lieut. John MANTON of NIGER was put in charge of the prize.
  • In March 1814 TAGUS was at Valparaiso with PHOEBE and her prize, the American frigate ESSEX.
    Here they were joined by Sir Thomas STAINES in BRITON.
    BRITON and TAGUS escorted PHOEBE and her prize as far as Juan Ferdanez and then set course for Callao, Paita and other places along the Peruvian coast; thence to the Galapagos and the Maquesas, where Sir Thomas took formal possession of the islands.
    (They had been claimed for the USA.
    by Capt. Porter of ESSEX.) While returning to Valparaiso the two ships were surprised by the appearance of Pitcairn Island on 17 September when, according to the charts, it should have been 3 deg to the westward.
  • Both captains were on board BRITON when four canoes came out from the island and hailed them in English.
    For more details of Pitcairn and the descendants of the mutineers see BRITON.
  • 1815 Capt. James DUNDAS (formally DEANS), 08/1815.
    After her time in the Pacific TAGUS was re-fitted and re-rigged for service in the Mediterranean.
    With the captain's wife, Janet, (Capt. DUNDAS took his wife's surname, DUNDAS, when they married in 1808.) and Rear Ad. Charles FLEMING as passengers, the TAGUS sailed for Lisbon at 1 p.m.
    on 7 December 1815.
  • At Lisbon they picked up a Spanish lady, who later became Mrs Fleming, and several children.
    The ship ran into a gale as soon as she left the river Tagus and the new rigging began to stretch, forcing a return to Lisbon on 24 December.
    They sailed again on the 27th. and reached Gibraltar four days later.
  • Here Capt. DUNDAS tried to make a little extra money for himself by reporting to Dockyard Commissioner Wolley that TAGUS's rudder did not steer the ship properly and requesting timber, bolts and copper to extend it.
    Unfortunately the Commissioner had heard that one before and said that the rudder would have to be un-hung, surveyed and then altered in the dockyard.
    In the end a single piece of timber was bolted on the after part and no more was heard of the matter.
  • From Gibraltar she sailed for Livorno to meet Lord EXMOUTH who was preparing an expedition against the Barbary pirates which TAGUS was to join.
  • During the work to get the ship ready for active service the Gunner was found to be drunk one night while lighting the magazine ready for filling the flannel cartridges for the great guns with powder.
    The Captain allowed him to be invalided out instead of facing a court martial.
  • TAGUS was not a happy ship.
    At Livorno the first lieutenant, Mr COLE, abused a seaman who had been reported for being dirty and kicked him in the teeth.
    When the man expressed his resentment he was sentenced to be flogged but stabbed himself in the stomach as he was taken to the grating.
    he lingered for many days before dying.
    No action was taken against Lieut. COLE.
  • In the end TAGUS did not take part in the attack on Algiers.
  • In the autumn of 1818, when the time came for TAGUS to return home, she was on a 'pleasure cruise' off the French and Italian coasts.
    RACEHORSE was sent to look for her and eventually found her struck down for the winter at Villafranca.
    Capt. DUNDAS reported that his ship was unfit to sail for home but that he would winter at Malta.
    Here she was boarded by surveyors who were soon sent packing by the captain, but he had not counted on Commissioner Wolley.
    The two had a very public row on the quay which resulted in TAGUS being stripped to her keel and examined. She was found to be perfectly sound and quite capable of a winter passage in the Atlantic.


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© 1995, 2007 Michael Phillips