Kingfisher (14)
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Origin and History
The sloop was built at Gosport and launched in 1745.
During the Seven Years' War, the ship was under the command of:
- in 1756: Commander Richard Toby
- in January 1759: Commander Sabine Deacon
The sloop was sold in 1763.
Service during the War
In 1755, the sloop was part of rear-admiral Watson's squadron which arrived at Bombay (actual Mumbai) in November. On December 31, she was sent, with the Bridgewater (24) and some of the East India Company's armed vessels, to cruise off the port of Geriah, the strong hold of the pirate Tulaji Angre (also known as Tollagee Angria).
In mid February 1756, she took part to the bombardment of Geriah which soon surrendered. In Mid July, when vice-admiral Charles Watson was summoned to Madras after the fall of Calcutta, she was part of his squadron. In Mid October, she was part of the escort of the British expedition against Calcutta. By December 15, she was at Fulta with Watson's squadron. On December 30, the fleet advanced up to Alighur where Clive's force was disembarked. On January 2 1757, while Clive advanced on Calcutta, she was part of admiral Watson's squadron which engaged the enemy at Fort William. The troop of the nawab soon deserted the fort.
In 1758, the sloop was converted into an 8 guns bomb vessel.
At the beginning of January 1759, the bomb vessel was among the fleet assembled at Carlisle Bay in Barbados under commodore John Moore for the planned expedition against the Martinique and Guadeloupe islands. On January 13, the whole British force sailed for Martinique Island. On January 15, the fleet lay off the bay of Fort Royal (actual Fort de France). On January 18, after an unsuccessful attempt by the land troops to capture Fort Royal, the British fleet proceeded to Saint-Pierre, the second town in Martinique. On January 19, after failing to silence the batteries around Saint-Pierre, commodore Moore decided to redirect his efforts against the island of Guadeloupe. On January 22, the British fleet reached Basse-Terre. On January 23, the fleet bombarded the citadel and town of Basse-Terre which was almost entirely destroyed. On January 24, British troops landed and occupied the town. Until March 11, most of the fleet remained idle in front of Basse-Terre. Moore then transported most of the land forces to Fort Louis before falling back to Prince Rupert's Bay in the Island of Dominica, in order to cover Basse-Terre and the British Leeward Islands from the threat of the newly arrived French squadron. The island of Guadeloupe finally capitulated on May 1.
To do: campaigns from 1760 to 1763
Characteristics
| Guns | 14
| ||
| Crew | ??? | ||
| Length | ??? | ||
| Width | ??? | ||
| Depth | ??? | ||
| Displacement | ??? |
References
Anonymous, A Complete History of the Present War, from its Commencement in 1756, to the End of the Campaign, 1760, London, 1761
Clowes, Wm. Laird, The Royal Navy – A History from the Earliest Time to the Present, Vol. III, Sampson Low, Marston and Company, London: 1898, pp. 143-144, 161-163
Phillip, Michael, Ships of the Old Navy
Wikipedia, HMS Kingfisher
N.B.: the section Service during the War is mostly derived from our articles depicting the various campaigns, battles and sieges.
