HMS ''Nymph'' was a 14-gun ''Swan''-class

sloop A sloop is a sailboat with a single mast typically having only one headsail in front of the mast and one mainsail aft of (behind) the mast. Such an arrangement is called a fore-and-aft rig, and can be rigged as a Bermuda rig with triangular sa ...

of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

, built by Israel Pownoll and launched at

Chatham Dockyard Chatham Dockyard was a Royal Navy Dockyard located on the River Medway in Kent. Established in Chatham in the mid-16th century, the dockyard subsequently expanded into neighbouring Gillingham (at its most extensive, in the early 20th century, ...

on 27 May 1778. She was accidentally burnt and sank in the

British Virgin Islands ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = Territorial song , song = "Oh, Beautiful Virgin Islands" , image_map = File:British Virgin Islands on the globe (Americas centered).svg , map_caption = , mapsize = 290px , image_map2 = Brit ...

in 1783.

Construction and commissioning

''Nymph'' was ordered from Chatham Dockyard on 8 January 1777 and laid down there in April that year under master shipwright Israel Pownoll. She was launched on 27 May 1778 and completed by 27 July 1778. She cost a total of £8,640.13.4d to build, including money spent on fitting and

coppering Copper sheathing is the practice of protecting the under-water hull of a ship or boat from the corrosive effects of salt water and biofouling through the use of copper plates affixed to the outside of the hull. It was pioneered and developed by ...

her. She was later fitted to carry 16 6 pounder guns by

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong *Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral *Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings * Admiralty, Traf ...

orders of 1779 and 1780.

Career

''Nymph'' was commissioned in May 1778 under Commander William Denne, and served in the

English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...

. She came under Commander

John Blankett Rear-Admiral John Blankett, (c. 1740 – 14 July 1801) was a Royal Navy officer of the late eighteenth century who served in three major wars, but was best known for his service in the Red Sea during the late stages French Revolutionary Wars ...

in January 1779 and sailed for the East Indies on 8 March that year to join Vice-Admiral Sir Edward Hughes' East India fleet. Her role was to protect English interests and island inhabitants from French and American

privateer A privateer is a private person or ship that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or deleg ...

s and her duties included protecting interests in

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

and

Madras Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

and serving as an escort to East India merchant convoys. In January 1780 she came under Commander William Stevens, who went on to capture the American letter of marque ''Racoon'' on 9 October 1781, and, while sailing in company with , took the American

s ''Royal Louis'' on 9 October and ''Rambler'' on 30 October 1781. She remained in the East Indies into 1782, during which time Commander John Sutton took over. ''Nymph'' returned to Britain later in the year and was refitted and re-coppered at

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth ...

between August and October 1782. Commander Richard Hill then took command, and ''Nymph'' sailed for the

Leeward Islands french: Îles-Sous-le-Vent , image_name = , image_caption = ''Political'' Leeward Islands. Clockwise: Antigua and Barbuda, Guadeloupe, Saint kitts and Nevis. , image_alt = , locator_map = , location = Caribbean SeaNorth Atlantic Ocean , coor ...

on 5 December to join Admiral Hugh Pigot and Rear-Admiral Sir Richard Hughes, of the Lesser Antilles squadron. While at

Tortola Tortola () is the largest and most populated island of the British Virgin Islands, a group of islands that form part of the archipelago of the Virgin Islands. It has a surface area of with a total population of 23,908, with 9,400 residents in ...

, in the

Virgin Islands The Virgin Islands ( es, Islas Vírgenes) are an archipelago in the Caribbean Sea. They are geologically and biogeographically the easternmost part of the Greater Antilles, the northern islands belonging to the Puerto Rico Trench and St. Croix ...

, a fire broke out on 28 June 1783. The crew abandoned ship and she burnt out and sank in

Road Town Road Town, located on Tortola, is the capital of the British Virgin Islands. It is situated on the horseshoe-shaped Road Harbour in the centre of the island's south coast. The population was about 15,000 in 2018. The name is derived from the na ...

's harbour, with the loss of three men.

Later discovery and loss

In February 1969, dredging in Road Town harbour revealed the remains of the ''Nymph''. Artefacts were removed, but no archaeological survey or site excavation was conducted. The location of the wreck was subsequently lost for many years, and remains a mystery. Since 2005, the Department of Archaeology and Anthropology at the

University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...

have been surveying Road Harbour in an effort to locate and survey the remains of HMS ''Nymph''.

References

* *

External links

Virgin Islands daily news

University of Bristol website

BBC news

Famous shipwrecks in the BVI
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nymph Shipwrecks in the Atlantic Ocean Shipwrecks of the British Virgin Islands Sloops of the Royal Navy Maritime incidents in 1783 Ships built in Chatham 1778 ships