HMS Lark was a 32-gun Richmond-class frigate fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1762[1] and destroyed in Narragansett Bay in 1778, during the American Revolutionary War.[2]
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| History | |
|---|---|
 Great Britain | |
| Name | HMS Lark |
| Ordered | 24 March 1761 |
| Builder | Elias Bird, Rotherhithe |
| Laid down | 5 May 1761 |
| Launched | 10 May 1762 |
| Completed | 9 July 1762 at Deptford Dockyard |
| Commissioned | May 1762 |
| Fate | Burnt to avoid capture at Newport, Rhode Island, 5 August 1778 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Richmond-class fifth-rate frigate |
| Tons burthen | 680 61⁄94 bm |
| Length |
|
| Beam | 34 ft 5 in (10.49 m) |
| Depth of hold | 12 ft 0+1⁄2 in (3.670 m) |
| Sail plan | Full-rigged ship |
| Complement | 210 officers and men |
| Armament | |
Active service
editOn 23 September 1762 Lark and her sister ship HMS Venus were off Rame Head in Cornwall when they encountered an unidentified vessel which raised sail and fled. After a twelve-hour chase the vessel was overtaken and struck its colours in surrender to Venus. A boarding party from Venus determined the captured vessel to be a Galgo, a 14-gun Spanish privateer with a crew of 136 men.[3]
On 11 January 1778, under command of Captain Richard Smith, she chased ashore a vessel, probably schooner Sally, near the Providence River and burned it.[4] Between 29 May and 18 July, the British captured a number of vessels: the sloops Sally and Fancy, snow Baron D'Ozell, Olive Branch, sloop Betsey, and schooner Sally. Lark shared the prize money with Kingfisher, Hope, Sphinx, and the Pigot galley.[5]
French Admiral d'Estaing's squadron arrived in Narragansett Bay on 29 July 1778 to support the American army under General George Washington during the battle of Rhode Island. On 30 July, four French ships of the line entered Narrangansett Bay and positioned themselves north of Conanicut Island to support the American and French forces in the battle of Rhode Island.[6] The arrival of the French vessels trapped several British vessels, Lark among them. On 5 August 1778, as Lark lay off Newport, Captain Richard Smith had her set on fire and her cables cut. She then drifted on to shore.[7] The Royal Navy ended up having to destroy ten of their own vessels in all.[7]
The remains of Lark are now part of a site listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the "Wreck Sites of HMS Cerberus and HMS Lark."
Citations
edit- ^ "Archaeological Sites Under Investigation at AUVfest 2008". Archived from the original on 31 May 2008. Retrieved 2 April 2008.
- ^ Marx, Robert F. (1987). Shipwrecks in the Americas. Dover Publications. p. 152. ISBN 0-486-25514-X.
- ^ "No. 10250". The London Gazette. 5 October 1762. p. 5.
- ^ "Naval Documents of The American Revolution Volume 11 AMERICAN THEATRE: Jan. 1, 1778–Mar. 31, 1778 EUROPEAN THEATRE: Jan. 1, 1778–Mar. 31, 1778" (PDF). U.S. Government printing office via Imbiblio. Retrieved 14 September 2023.
- ^ "No. 12460". The London Gazette. 22 July 1783. p. 4.
- ^ "No. 11921". The London Gazette. 24 October 1778. p. 1.
- ^ a b Hepper (1994), p. 52.
References
edit- Gardiner, Robert (1992). The First Frigates. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0851776019.
- Hepper, David J. (1994). British Warship Losses in the Age of Sail, 1650–1859. Rotherfield: Jean Boudriot. ISBN 0-948864-30-3.
- Lyon, David (1993). The Sailing Navy List. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0851776175.
- Winfield, Rif (2007). British Warships of the Age of Sail 1714–1792: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. Barnsley, United Kingdom: Seaforth. ISBN 9781844157006.
41°31′12″N 71°19′49″W / 41.5201°N 71.3303°W
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