Sutherland (50)
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Origin and History
The ship was built at Rotherhithe and launched in 1741.
During the Seven Years' War, the ship was under the command of:
- 1757: captain Edward Falkingham
- in 1758 and 1759: captain John Rous
The ship was sold in 1770.
Service during the War
The ship arrived in North America early in 1757. She was part of the fleet assembled at New York by Loudon for the expedition against Louisbourg. On June 5, Loudon embarked on board this ship. On June 20, after waiting in vain for Holbourne, Loudon finally put to sea and sailed from Sandy Hook to Halifax where he arrived without meeting any opposition on June 30. By July 10, Loudon had been joined by Holbourne's squadron before Halifax. However on August, when the combined fleet was ready to set sail, Louisbourg had already been reinforced by three French squadron and governor Loudon canceled the whole enterprise.
At the beginning of 1758, the ship was part of the fleet who assembled at Portsmouth under the command of admiral Edward Boscawen for a new expedition against Louisbourg. On February 19, this fleet set sail for Halifax and finally arrived there on May 9. On May 28, the fleet sailed from Halifax and arrived in sight of Louisbourg on June 1. On June 8, the ship supported the successful landing of the right division at La Cormorandière. Throughout the siege of Louisbourg, the fleet actively supported the British army and the fortress finally surrendered on July 26.
In February 1759, the ship 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. From June 1 to 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. On July 1, the ship, along with the frigates Richmond (32) and Trent (28), drove back 6 French gunboats who were trying to stop Monckton's force from erecting batteries at Pointe Lévis. On July 8, the ship, along with the frigate Richmond (32) and a bomb vessel took their stations before the camp of the chevalier de Lévis, who, with his division of Canadian militia, occupied the heights along the Saint-Laurent just above the Montmorency Fall. Here they shelled and cannonaded him all day; though, from his elevated position, with very little effect. On July 18 about 11:00 PM, favoured by the wind and covered by a furious cannonade from Pointe-Lévis, the Sutherland (50), with the frigates Diana (32) and Squirrel (20), 2 armed sloops, and 2 transports sailed safely up the Saint-Laurent and reached the river above the town of Québec. On July 19 at 9:00 AM, these British vessels stationed above Québec attacked and destroyed the last French fireship and some small craft that they found at Anse-des-Mères. By Wednesday September 12, she was the flagship of the British flotilla above Québec. It is from this ship that Wolfe issued his last general orders in preparation for the battle of the Plains of Abraham where he was killed in action. The town finally surrendered on September 18. 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.
To do: campaigns from 1760 to 1763
Characteristics
| Guns | 50
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| Crew | 306 | ||||||
| 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, pp. 202-205, 233-235
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. 167-169, 171-172
Phillip, Michael, Ships of the Old Navy
N.B.: the section Service during the War is mostly derived from our articles depicting the various campaigns, battles and sieges.
