HMS ''Thetis'' was a 32-gun

fifth-rate In the rating system of the Royal Navy used to categorise sailing warships, a fifth rate was the second-smallest class of warships in a hierarchical system of six " ratings" based on size and firepower. Rating The rating system in the Royal N ...

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...

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 Wyatt & Co. at Buckler's Hard shipyard in 1773. From 1777 to 1781 she served with the North American squadron. In January, 1778 she was under the command of Capt. John Gell. ''Thetis'' took part in the

action of 9 August 1780 The action of 9 August 1780 was a naval engagement of the American Revolutionary War, in which a Spanish fleet, led by Admiral Luis de Córdova y Córdova, along with a squadron of French ships, encountered a large British convoy. The Spanish ...

, when a convoy she was escorting fell prey to a Franco-Spanish squadron. 55 merchantmen were captured, but she managed to escape. In 1780, she was wrecked.Michael Phillips' ships of the old Navy
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Michael Phillips' ships of the old Navy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thetis (1773), HMS Frigates of the Royal Navy Ships built in Rotherhithe 1773 ships Frigates of the French Navy Captured ships