The origins of HMS ''Carlotta'' are obscure. In January 1812, Admiral

Edward Pellew Admiral Edward Pellew, 1st Viscount Exmouth, GCB (19 April 1757 – 23 January 1833) was a British naval officer. He fought during the American War of Independence, the French Revolutionary Wars, and the Napoleonic Wars. His younger brother ...

appointed Lieutenant Richard Howell Fleming to command ''Pyllades'', later renamed ''Carlotta''. Some sources treat this ''Carlotta'' as the salvaged ''Carlotta''. However, the database of the National Maritime Museum (NMM) treats them as two vessels. Currently available online resources do not yield information on ''Pylades'', or her capture or other origin. There were apparently no French naval vessels of that name, suggesting that she was a merchant vessel. Furthermore, the NMM database allocates the capture of the brig ''Carlotta'' to HMS ''Carlotta'' captured in 1810, and ''Pylades'' to the second HMS ''Carlotta''. If the Royal Navy captured or otherwise acquired ''Pylades'' shortly before the first ''Carlotta'' was wrecked, it would be consistent with Navy practice to name ''Pylades'' ''Carlotta'' as there was already an on active duty. Under Fleming's command ''Carlotta'' captured several small vessels, including a French privateer, and partook of various services on the coasts of Tuscany and Genoa.O'Byrne (1849), Vol. 1, p.366. ''Carlotta'' shared in the proceeds from the capture on 24 May 1813 of the privateer ''Columbo'', which may be the privateer alluded to. The actual captors appear to have been and . On 13 October 1812 ''Carlotta'' detained the settee ''St Vittoria'' and put a prize crew consisting of Midshipman Hugh Stewart Morris and two sailors, Francis Baynson and François Richie, on board with instructions that they were to sail her in company with ''Carlotta'' to Malta. However, on 19 October, ''St Vittoria'' went her own way, stopping first at Port St Vito and then to sailing on to Palermo. There Morris sold part of her cargo. After spending almost three weeks at Palermo, Stewart sailed to Cephalu where he disposed of the rest of the cargo. Then he scuttled ''St Vittoria'', but sold the wreck for 373 ounces of gold to a man named "Fellipo". Morris, Baynson, and Richie split the proceeds and made their way to Messina. However, Lieutenant-colonel Coffin, the deputy quartermaster general at Messina, arrested them as they were about to take a boat to Calabria, and sent them to Malta. A court martial convened at

Port Mahon A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...

aboard on 8 and 9 April 1813 sentenced all three miscreants to be mulcted of all outstanding pay and prize money. It also sentenced Morris to two years of solitary confinement, after which he could never serve as a petty officer or officer in the Navy. Baynson was sentenced to 200 lashes. Richie was an impressed Frenchman and the court martial ruled that he was to be treated as a prisoner of war. ''Carlotta'' was paid off in February 1815 and broken up in May at Pater (

Pembroke Dock Pembroke Dock ( cy, Doc Penfro) is a town and a community in Pembrokeshire, South West Wales, northwest of Pembroke on the banks of the River Cleddau. Originally Paterchurch, a small fishing village, Pembroke Dock town expanded rapidly following ...

).Winfield (2008), p.349.

Notes, citations, and references

Notes Citations References *O’Byrne, William R. (1849) ''A naval biographical dictionary: comprising the life and services of every living officer in Her Majesty's navy, from the rank of admiral of the fleet to that of lieutenant, inclusive''. (London: J. Murray), vol. 1. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Carlotta (1812) Brigs of the Royal Navy