HMS Calypso (1805)

HMS ''Calypso'' was a Royal Navy ''Cruizer''-class brig-sloop. She was built at Deptford Wharf between 1804 and 1805, and launched in 1805. She served in the North Sea and the Baltic, most notably at the Battle of Lyngør, which effectively ended the Gunboat War. ''Calypso'' was broken up in March 1821.

Service

Commander Matthew Foster commissioned ''Calypso'' and in February she was in the Downs. On 14 June 1805 ''Calypso'' and a large number of other British warships were in company when the gun-brig captured the American ship ''Enoch''. Between 18 and 23 July 1805, she participated in attacks on French convoys off Calais, Wimereux, and Ambleteuse.

On 18 July, ''Calypso'', (Captain Thomas White), and the 20-gun sixth-rate post ship (Captain Keith Maxwell) and two or three gun-brigs drove on shore six French gun-vessels. However, the bank off Cape Grinez, and the shot and shells from the right face of its powerful battery, soon compelled the British to haul off from the shore. ''Arab'' suffered seven wounded and a great deal of damage. ''Fleche'' was the closest inshore owing to her light draft of water; she had five men severely wounded and damage to her rigging. Forster received a severe shoulder wound and had to give up command of ''Calypso''.

On 8 June 1809, ''Calypso'' sailed from Yarmouth as escort to vessels sailing for Hudson Bay.

Commander Matthew Martin Bradby replaced Forster. He commanded her off Dieppe and in the Downs until he received promotion to post-captain in June 1810.

Commander Henry Weir was promoted out of the 10-gun to take command of ''Calypso'' on 28 June 1810. In December ''Calypso'' detained and sent into Yarmouth ''Endracht'', Vandervalk, master. ''Endracht'' had a cargo of tar.

She was in sight on 12 April 1811 when the hired armed cutter ''Princess of Wales'' captured ''Dragen'', S.N. Svarer, Master, ''Emanuel'', H.M. Hansen, Master, and ''Haabet'', N.S. Lauristen, Master.

On 2 May ''Calypso'' captured ''Edell Catharina''. On 14 June Weir captured the Danish privateer ''Nayahada'' off the coast of Jutland and destroyed another. Both were armed with ten guns.

Early in September ''Primus'', carrying tar and hemp, ''Worksam'', in ballast, ''Experiment'', carrying iron, ''Columbus'', carrying linseed, ''Neptunus'', carrying timber, and ''Hector'', carrying sundry goods, came into Yarmouth. They were prizes to , , ''Calypso'', , , . and .

That autumn ''Calypso'' was caught in a storm in October or November in which she lost her top masts and suffered extensive damage. To survive, she had to throw her guns overboard.

On 26 October ''Calypso'' captured ''Den Norske Bonde''. On 28 March ''Calypso'' captured ''Tallette''. 12 April 1812 ''Calypso'' captured the Danish galliot ''Phoenix''. Then on 14 April ''Calypso'' captured ''Mette Catharina''.

Gunboat War

On 6 July 1812, during the Gunboat War, ''Calypso'', still under Weir, was off the island of Merdø on the coast of Norway. She was together with the 64-gun third rate ''Dictator'' (Captain James Patteson Stewart), 14-gun brig-sloop ''Podargus'' (Captain William Robilliard) and gun-brig ''Flamer'' (Lieutenant Thomas England), when the squadron sighted and chased a Danish squadron.

During the ensuing Battle of Lyngør ''Flamer'' stayed with ''Podargus'' to protect her after ''Podargus'' grounded. ''Dictator'' and ''Calypso'' succeeded in destroying the new, 40-gun frigate ''Najaden'' and badly damaging the 18-gun brigs ''Laaland'', ''Samsoe'', and ''Kiel'', as well as a number of gunboats. The British tried to take out ''Laaland'' and ''Kiel'' but abandoned them when they grounded. The British did not set fire to either as the Norwegian vessels still had their crews and wounded aboard.

The action cost ''Dictator'' five killed and 24 wounded, ''Calypso'' three killed, one wounded, and two missing, ''Podargus'', nine wounded, and ''Flamer'' one killed and one wounded. ''Najaden'' lost 133 dead and 82 wounded and the Danes acknowledged losing some 300 men killed and wounded overall.

Commander Weir received immediate promotion to post-captain; Commander Robilliard received his promotion the next December; ''Dictator''s first lieutenant, William Buchanan, received promotion to commander. In 1847 the surviving British participants were authorized to apply for the clasp "Off Mardoe 6 July 1812" to the Naval General Service Medal.

Several days later the British sent the cutter to reconnoiter the situation. ''Nimble'' reported seeing four vessels at Christiansand, two of 18 guns and two of 16 guns. ''Nimble'' also saw numerous gunboats about. The Battle of Lyngør effectively ended the Gunboat War.

Baltic and Azores

Commander Thomas Groube replaced Weir in July 1812. On 7 March 1813, ''Calypso'' captured the ''Christine''. Ten days later, ''Calypso'' and ''Bruizer'' captured ''Speculation''.

On 9 August ''Calypso'' captured ''Marianne'', while , and were in company.

Groube conveyed Lord George Walpole to St. Petersburg where Walpole served as Secretary at the Embassy and minister ''ad interim'' (i.e. "for the meantime"). ''Calypso'' participated at the siege of Danzig in 1813, which led to his promotion to post-captain on 7 June 1814.

Some accounts put Groube in ''Calypso'' at Faial in the Azores in late September. She took back to England some of the wounded from the debacle in which the American privateer ''General Armstrong'', under Samuel Chester Reid, inflicted a defeat and heavy losses on cutting-out parties from the third rate ''Plantagenet'', the frigate ''Rota'', and ''Carnation'', a sister ship to ''Calypso''.

Groube's successor in June 1814 was Commander Charles Reid. On 21 February 1815 Reid recaptured ''Maid of the Mill''. Then on 15 March ''Calypso'' and ''Meander'' were in company with ''Aquilon'' when ''Acquilon'' recaptured ''Thomas''.

In 1816 Lieutenant John Sisson was acting commander.

Mediterranean

In April 1816, Lord Exmouth concluded treaties with the Regency of Algiers on the exchange of captives and slaves. ''Calypso'' carried to Genoa 40 Sardinians who had been slaves and brought back to Algiers eight Algerine captives, together with the ransom for the freed Sardinians.Playfair (1884), p.254.

Fate

''Calypso'' was in ordinary at Chatham from 1817 to 1820. She was broken up in 1821.

Notable passengers

A future governor of New South Wales, Lachlan Macquarie, who would replace William Bligh after the Rum Rebellion, sailed on board ''Calypso'' from Kronstadt, (Russia) to Yarmouth, England in September/October 1807. He briefly visited Copenhagen whilst in transit.

Notes

Citations

References

*
* Playfair, R. Lambert (1884) ''The scourge of Christendom : annals of British...'' (London: Smith, Elder & Co.).
*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Calypso (1805)
Cruizer-class brig-sloops
1805 ships
Ships built in Deptford