HMS Fox (1773)

HMS ''Fox'' was a 28-gun sixth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. ''Fox'' was first commissioned in October 1775 under the command of Captain Patrick Fotheringham. The Americans captured her in June 1777, only to have the British recapture her about a month later. The French then captured her a little less than a year after that, only to lose her to grounding in 1779, some six months later.

Career

Capture

On 7 June 1777 ''Fox'' was cruising off the Grand Banks of Newfoundland when she sighted a strange vessel. ''Fox'' sailed towards the stranger until she sighted yet another strange vessel. Suspecting that these were both American frigates, ''Fox'' attempted to escape. However, , the first of the two, caught up with ''Fox'' and an engagement started that lasted for about a half-hour before was able to join the combat. ''Fox'' again attempted to sail away, but ''Hancock'' caught up and opened fire. After ''Boston'' came up too and was able to shoot away ''Fox''s mainmast and wheel, Fotheringham struck. ''Fox'' had lost four men killed and eight wounded.

Recapture

One month later, on 7–8 July, ''Hancock'', ''Boston'', and ''Fox'' were in company when they encountered , under the command of Captain Sir George Collier, and . ''Rainbow'' had left Halifax in the morning of 6 July and in the afternoon sighted three sail. She gave chase, during which HMS ''Flora'' came up independently and proceeded to engage one of the unknown vessels. The next day ''Rainbow'' and ''Flora'' exchanged quarry, with ''Rainbow'' pursuing the largest enemy vessel, accepting that one of the three American vessels would necessarily escape. The brig ''Victor'' was a poor sailer and essentially played no role in the engagement. Ultimately, ''Rainbow'' captured ''Hancock'' after a 39-hour chase, but ''Boston'' escaped to the Sheepscot River on the Maine coast. (Captain McNeill, of ''Boston'', was court-martialed in June 1779 for his failure to support ''Hancock'' and was dismissed from the U.S. Navy.)

Collier's after-action letter made no mention of any casualties on either side, even though the vessels had exchanged some fire. ''Hancock'' normally had a complement of 290 men, but only 229 on board when ''Rainbow'' captured her; the remainder were a prize crew on ''Fox''. Fotheringham and 40 of his men were prisoners on ''Hancock''. The other officers and some of the men were aboard ''Boston'', and Captain John Manley of ''Hancock'' had put most into a fishing vessel and sent them to Newfoundland. Because of the number of American prisoners involved, ''Rainbow'' took ''Hancock'' into Halifax. When Collier arrived at Halifax he was delighted to see that ''Flora'' had captured ''Fox'' and that they had arrived there before him.

Fotheringham then sailed ''Fox'' back to England. There he was tried for the loss of his ship, and acquitted.

And capture again

The French frigate captured ''Fox'' on 11 September 1778. ''Fox'', now under the command of Captain the Honourable Thomas Windsor, was off Brest when she sighted a ship and sloop. ''Fox'' gave chase, but the weather made visibility poor and obscured ''Junon''s approach. When ''Fox'' finally sighted ''Junon'', ''Fox'' prepared to engage. The two vessels maneuvered against each other until finally they gave up and simply exchanged broadsides. ''Junon'', unusually for a French vessel, fired at ''Fox''s hull rather than her rigging, with the result that ''Junon''s heavier guns were able to inflict heavy casualties on ''Fox'', and shoot away her three masts. Windsor was forced to strike, having lost 14 men killed and 32 wounded.

Fate

''Fox'' ran aground in March 1779 on Pointe St Jacques on the Rhuys Peninsula and could not be refloated.

Citations

References

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Fox (1773)
1773 ships
Sixth-rate frigates of the Royal Navy
Ships built in Southampton
Captured ships
Maritime incidents in 1779