Lizard (28)
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Origin and History
The frigate was built by Elias Bird at Rotherhithe and launched on April 7 1757.
During the Seven Years' War, the frigate was under the command of:
- in 1758: captain Hartwell
- in 1759: captain James Drake
The frigate was transferred to harbour service in 1793 and sold out of the navy on September 22 1828.
Service during the War
In July 1758, the frigate was part of lord Anson's squadron cruising off Brest to observe the movements of the French fleet. On September 12, she sighted a convoy escorted by 2 frigates. She captured or destroyed many vessels.
In February 1759, the frigate sailed from Spithead in Great Britain as part of the fleet destined for the expedition against Québec. The voyage was long and tedious. On April 21, when the fleet finally reached Louisbourg, it was to find the harbour blocked with ice, so that the fleet made for Halifax instead. The fleet finally sailed for Louisbourg in May. Between June 1 and 6, the fleet gradually left the harbour of Louisbourg and sailed for Québec. On June 23, Saunders' fleet made a junction with Durell's squadron at Isles-aux-Coudres. On June 26, the whole British fleet of vice-admiral Saunders was anchored safely off the southern shore of Isle-d'Orléans, a few km below Québec without loosing a single ship. Québec town finally surrendered on September 18 1759. At the end of October, vice-admiral Saunders fired his farewell salute and dropped down the Saint-Laurent river with his fleet on his way to Great Britain. However, he also left captain lord Colville in command of a small squadron, including several frigates (maybe this one), in North America.
To do: more details on the campaign from 1760 to 1762
Characteristics
N.B.: the following technical specifications are thos of the HMS Coventry launched in 1757 and belonging to the same class as the Lizard.
| Guns | 28
| ||||||
| Crew | approx. 200 men | ||||||
| Length at gundeck | 118 ft 5 in (36.09 m.) | ||||||
| Width | 34 ft 1 in (10.39 m.) | ||||||
| Depth | 10 ft 6 in (3.20 m.) | ||||||
| Displacement | 599 long tons |
References
Blasco, Manuel, British 6th Rates, 3 Decks Wiki
Phillips, M., Michael Phillip's Ships of the Old Navy
N.B.: the section Service during the War is derived from our articles depicting the various campaigns, battles and sieges.
