Berwick (70)
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Origin and History
The ship was built at the Deptford dockyards and launched in 1743.
During the Seven Years' War, the ship was under the command of:
- in February 1758: captain Hughes
- in January 1759: captain William Harman
The ship was broken up in 1760.
Service during the War
On April 2 1757, the ship was part of Saunders' squadron which left Gibraltar to intercept the French squadron of M. du Revest. The latter was attempting to gain the Atlantic with reinforcements for Louisbourg. On April 5, the British squadron sighted the French. A minor engagement followed but the Culloden was not involved. The French squadron managed to get away and to successfully passed the strait of Gibraltar.
At the beginning of 1758, a British squadron of 11 ships of the line and 9 frigates operated in the Mediterranean under the command of admiral Henry Osborn. This squadron intercepted a smaller French squadron which had sailed from Toulon for North America, forcing it to take refuge in the harbour of Cartagena. In February, the French sent a relief squadron (only 5 ships of the line and a frigate) under M. Duquesne. On February 28, off Cape de Gata, Osborn sighted 4 of these sail near his fleet and ordered them to be chased while the main part of the British squadron continued off Carthagena to watch the French ships there. The Revenge (64) brought the Orphée (64) to action and, on the Berwick and Preston (50) coming up, the Orphée struck.
At the beginning of January 1759, the ship 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 of the land troops to capture Fort Royal, the British fleet proceeded to Saint-Pierre, the second town in Martinique. On January 19, the attack of the coastal batteries failed and 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 ship was sent against a 7 guns battery while other vessels bombarded the citadel and town of Basse-Terre which were almost entirely destroyed. On January 24, British troops landed and occupied the town. On February 6, the ship was part of captain Harman's squadron which was detached to attack Fort Louis on the Grande-Terre. On February 13, this squadron cannonaded Fort Louis for 6 hours before landing a large detachment of marines and Highlanders who stormed the fort. In mid March, Moore fell back to Prince Rupert's Bay in the Island of Dominica with his fleet, 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.
Characteristics
| Guns | 70
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| Crew | ??? | ||||||
| Length | ??? | ||||||
| Width | ??? | ||||||
| Depth | ??? | ||||||
| Displacement | ??? |
References
Clowes, Wm. Laird, The Royal Navy – A History from the Earliest Time to the Present, Vol. III, Sampson Low, Marston and Company, London: 1898, p. 170
Phillips, M., Michael Phillip's 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.
