Hired armed cutter Nile

The Royal Navy employed at least two cutters designated as the Hired armed cutter Nile during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.

First hired armed cutter Nile

The first hired armed cutter Nile had a burthen of 136 82⁄94 tons. She was armed with ten 12-pounder carronades and two 6-pounder bow guns. Her contract ran from 29 March 1799 to 21 November 1801.[1] From at least May her commander was Lieutenant George Argles.

Four days after that, on 17 November, Captain Sir Richard Strachan in Captain chased a French convoy in to the Morbihan where it sheltered under the protection of shore batteries and the 20-gun corvette Réolaise. Lieutenant Argles skillful maneuvered Nile, as the first British vessel up, kept the corvette from the north shore.[2] Magicienne was then able to force the corvette onto the shore at Port Navale, though she got off again.[3] The hired armed cutter Suworow then towed in four boats with Lieutenant Hennah of Captain and a cutting-out party of seamen and marines. Nile and Lurcher towed in four more boats from Magicienne. Although the cutting-out party landed under heavy fire of grape and musketry, it was able to set the corvette on fire; shortly thereafter she blew up. Only one British seaman, a crewman from Suworow, was killed; seven men from Captain were wounded.[4] However, Suworow's sails and rigging were so badly cut up that Captain had to tow her.[5] Nile captured a merchant vessel that was then burnt.[2]

Nile and Argeles captured the brig Assistance, A.H. Stark, master, on 12 October 1800.[6] This was the Swedish brig Assistansen, Alex Stark, master, that had been sailing from Bayonne to Stockholm with a cargo of rosin and that Nile brought into Plymouth on 22 October.[7]

About three weeks later, on 13 November, the hired armed cutters Nile and Lurcher captured the French brig Prothee.[8] Five days later they captured a French privateer brig of 14 guns.[9]

On 7 December, Nile discovered a convoy of 15 or 16 small vessels coming round the point of Croisic near the mouth of the river Vilaine in Quiberon Bay.[10] Lurcher joined Nile and together the two cutters captured or destroyed nine vessels at a cost of only one man wounded on Lurcher, despite fire from shore batteries. The four largest were decked and Argles believed that they could be sailed back to England. The others were not.[10] The four largest had been sailing from Boulogne to Brest with cargoes of brandy and wine. They were:

On 8 February 1801 Nile came into Plymouth from Quiberon with the officers of Requin, which had wrecked there, with no loss of life, but with 20 of her men captured when they reached shore. Nile went in with a flag of truce to ascertain their fate. Earlier during this cruise, Lieutenant Argles and Nile drove on shore a cutter of sixteen 12-pounders and a lugger of twelve 9-pounders. She tried to recover them but was driven off by heavy fire from shore batteries. At high tide the French were able to recover the two vessels, though fire from Nile had damaged them badly, and take them into Morbihan.[11]

Nile shared with Confiance, Stork, and the hired armed cutter Flirt in the proceeds of the capture of the San Pedro D'Alcantare.[12] San Pedro D'Alcantare was captured on 27 July 1801. On the same day Nile also captured the Egalité.[13]

Second hired armed cutter Nile

The second hired armed cutter Nile had a burthen of 166 20⁄94 tons. She was armed with ten 12-pounder carronades and two 6-pounder bow guns. Her contract ran from 30 May 1804 to 1 March 1805. In 1804 she was renamed Phyllis. In 1806 she resumed the name Nile and served a second contract, this time from 18 February 1806 to 12 December 1806.[14]

Nile, under the command of Lieutenant John Nugent, recaptured several vessels in 1804: Excellent (21 June), Mary of Newcastle (6 July), and Providence (7 July).[15] On 23 July Nile recaptured the Albion.[16] Then on 3 September Nile captured the Nostra Senora del Bon Voiage.[17]

While in command of Nile, Nugent chased a praam on shore off Fecamp, recaptured five brigs, and drove on shore and destroyed, off St. Valery, the french lugger Etoile.[18]

In 1806 Nile captured the American brig Truxton on 20 April.[19][Note 1] Then she captured the French chasse maree Elizabeth 30 June and the sloop Susannah Margaretta on 14 July.[21][Note 2]

This may be the cutter Nile that the Royal Navy purchased and registered on 3 November 1806. His Majesty's cutter Nile, Lieutenant James Lloyd, captured the American ship Bristol Packet, William Day, master, on 5 February 1807.[23] On 25 December 1807 she captured the Industry.[24]

Footnotes

Notes
  1. ↑ The share of the prize money for a petty officer was £10 7s 9d; the share of an able seaman was £1 18s 7d.[20]
  2. ↑ The share of the prize money for a petty officer was £25 15s 2d; the share of an able seaman was £4 12s 8d.[22]
Citations
  1. ↑ Winfield (2008), p.389.
  2. 1 2 The London Gazette: no. 15315. p. 1349. 29 November 1800.
  3. ↑ James (1837), Vol. 3, p.58.
  4. ↑ The Naval Chronicle, Vol. 4, pp.507-8.
  5. ↑ The Naval Chronicle, Vol. 4, p.529.
  6. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 15573. p. 417. 5 April 1803.
  7. ↑ London Chronicle, Vol. 87, p.400.
  8. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 15381. p. 735. 13 June 1801.
  9. ↑ The Naval chronicle, Vol. 4, p.518.
  10. 1 2 The London Gazette: no. 15328. pp. 67–68. 13 January 1801.
  11. ↑ Naval chronicle, Vol. 5, p. 182.
  12. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 15487. p. 601. 8 June 1802.
  13. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 15495. p. 725. 8 July 1802.
  14. ↑ Winfield (2008), p.393.
  15. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 15722. p. 901. 24 July 1804.
  16. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 15733. p. 1092. 1 September 1804.
  17. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 16081. p. 1441. 31 October 1807.
  18. ↑ Allen (1853), p.95.
  19. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 16348. p. 342. 6 March 1810.
  20. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 16362. p. 584. 17 April 1810.
  21. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 16241. p. 424. 28 March 1809.
  22. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 16257. pp. 696–697. 16 May 1809.
  23. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 16243. p. 458. 4 April 1809.
  24. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 16469. p. 580. 26 March 1811.

References

See also

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