HMS Sir Sydney Smith (1812)
| Career (Great Britain) |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | Governor Simcoe |
| Builder: | Richard Cartwright |
| Launched: | Kingston, 29 October 1793 |
| Maiden voyage: | Kingston to Niagara, 28 April 1797 |
| Fate: | Sold to Provincial Marine, March 1813 |
| Notes: | merchantman schooner |
| Career (Great Britain) |  |
| Acquired: | March 1813 |
| Renamed: | Sir Sydney Smith |
| Fate: | Sold to Royal Navy, 1814 |
| Notes: | schooner 2 x 12-pounder long guns + 10 x 32-pounder carronades |
| Career (Great Britain) | |
| Acquired: | 1814 |
| Renamed: | HMS Magnet 11 January 1814 |
| Honours and awards: | War of 1812. |
| Fate: | blown up 5 August 1814 to prevent her being captured by the Americans. |
| Notes: | brig, 1 x 9-pounder long guns + 10 x 24-pounder carronades |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | schooner later as a brig |
| Tons burthen: | 187 (bm) |
| Length: | 74' (deck) |
| Beam: | 18'6" |
| Complement: | 75-80 + 29 marines |
| Armament: | 2 x 12-pounder long guns + 10 x 32-pounder carronades |
HMS Sir Sydney Smith was a 12-gun schooner[1] of the Provincial Marine and saw service on Lake Ontario during the War of 1812. She was named after the British naval officer Sir Sidney Smith.
She was previously named Governor Simcoe after John Graves Simcoe, the first lieutenant governor of Upper Canada. She was built at Kingston and launched 29 October 1793[2] as a trade vessel by a group of merchants with ties to the North West Company, principally Richard Cartwright. After a suffering damage in a chase by a United States Navy squadron, 11 November 1812, she sank at her berth in Kingston harbour.[3]
She was raised and repaired and early in 1813, despite being the oldest vessel on the lakes at the time, the British acquired her (whether by purchase or hire). After a survey and extensive refitting in March, 1813, she was initially armed with ten 32-pounder carronades and a pair of 12-pounder long guns and renamed the HMS Sir Sydney Smith. She set sail on 27 May 1813 with the rest of Commodore Yeo’s British Provincial Marine Lake Ontario Squadron. As the Smith she took part in attacks on Sackets Harbor and Oswego as well as engagements against the USN on 10–11 August 1813[4] and she was briefly involved in a chase near Burlington, Ontario by USS Julia.
Sir Sydney Smith was not a commissioned warship of the Royal Navy and so was not entitled to the prefix 'HMS' however, she was acquired by the Royal Navy in 1814, and was renamed HMS Magnet on 11 January 1814 and refitted as a brig. Magnet was re-equipped with 10 x 24-pounder carronades and 1 x 9-pounder long gun. She was blown up by her captain on 5 August 1814 to prevent her being captured by the Americans.
See also
References
- ↑ Malcomson, Robert (2001). Lords of the Lake (Paperback edition ed.). Robin Brass Sudio. p. 333. ISBN 1-896941-24-9.
- ↑ Malcomson, Robert (2001). Lords of the Lake (Paperback edition ed.). Robin Brass Sudio. p. 327. ISBN 1-896941-24-9.
- ↑ Malcomson, Robert (2001). Warships of the Great Lakes, 1754-1834 (Paperback edition ed.). Chatham Publishing. p. 68. ISBN 1-55750-910-7.
- ↑ Malcomson, Robert (2001). Warships of the Great Lakes, 1754-1834 (Paperback Edition ed.). Chatham Publishing. pp. 71, 78. ISBN 1-55750-910-7.
- Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8. OCLC 67375475.
- Julia DANFS entry on USS Julia
- Ken R. Macpherson, "List of Vessels Employed on British Naval Service on the Great Lakes, 1755-1875," Ontario History,vol. LV (1963): 173-79
- David Lyon & Rif Winfield (2004). The Sail & Steam Navy List: All the Ships of the Royal Navy 1815-1889. London. ISBN 1-86176-032-9.
- Rif Winfield (2005). British Warships in the Age of Sail 1793-1817: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. London. ISBN 1-86176-246-1.
- David Lyon (1997). The Sailing Navy List: All the Ships of the Royal Navy, Built, Purchased and Captured, 1688-1860. London. ISBN 0-85177-864-X.
- Robert Malcomson (2001). Warships of the Great Lakes: 1754-1834. Annapolis. ISBN 1-55750-910-7.
- Robert Malcomson (1998). Lords of the Lake. Annapolis. ISBN 1-55750-532-2.