Cutting out of the Hermione
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The Cutting out of the ''Hermione'', or Capture of ''Hermione'', was a naval action that took place at
Puerto Cabello Puerto Cabello () is a city on the north coast of Venezuela. It is located in Carabobo State, about 210 km west of Caracas. As of 2011, the city had a population of around 182,400. The city is home to the largest and busiest port in the coun ...
,
Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
on 25 October 1799. The formerly British frigate , which had been handed over to the Spanish by its crew following a vicious
mutiny Mutiny is a revolt among a group of people (typically of a military, of a crew or of a crew of pirates) to oppose, change, or overthrow an organization to which they were previously loyal. The term is commonly used for a rebellion among member ...
, lay in the heavily guarded sea port of Puerto Cabello, now under the command of Don Ramón de Chalas. A British frigate, , was sent under Edward Hamilton to recapture ''Hermione''. In naval terms this was called a ''cutting out operation''—a boarding attack by small boats, preferably at night and against an unsuspecting and anchored target. This had become a popular tactic during the later 18th century.


Background

HMS ''Hermione'' was a
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 ...
, commanded by Captain Hugh Pigot. In September 1797 a number of the crew had risen up against the tyrannical Pigot and had murdered him and nine other officers, throwing their bodies overboard. Fearing retribution for their actions, the mutineers had sailed ''Hermione'' to the Spanish port of
La Guaira La Guaira () is the capital city of the Venezuelan state of the same name (formerly named Vargas) and the country's main port. It was founded in 1577 as an outlet for Caracas, to the southeast. The town and the port were badly damaged during ...
, and handed her over to the Spanish. The mutineers claimed they had set the officers adrift in a small boat, as had happened in the mutiny on ''Bounty'' some eight years earlier. The Spaniards took ''Hermione'' into service under the name ''Santa Cecilia'', where she remained for two years at La Guaira. Her crew, which included 25 of her former crew, remained under Spanish guard. Meanwhile, news of the fate of ''Hermione'' reached Admiral Sir Hyde Parker when captured a Spanish
schooner A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...
. Parker wrote to the governor of La Guaira, demanding the return of the ship and the surrender of the mutineers but the governor only moved the ship to
Puerto Cabello Puerto Cabello () is a city on the north coast of Venezuela. It is located in Carabobo State, about 210 km west of Caracas. As of 2011, the city had a population of around 182,400. The city is home to the largest and busiest port in the coun ...
. Meanwhile Parker dispatched under Captain Henry Ricketts to commence negotiations. Parker also set up a system of informers and posted rewards that eventually led to the capture of 33 of the mutineers. News eventually reached Parker that ''Santa Cecilia'' had been sighted in Puerto Cabello, and ordered to intercept her, should she attempt to put to sea. Captain Edward Hamilton of ''Surprise'' decided that the honour of the Royal Navy depended on the recovery of the ship, and was determined to retake her. Anchoring near the port, he devised a plan to cut her out of the harbour, and asked for a boat and an extra twenty men from Parker. Parker declared the scheme too risky, and refused to send the men, but Hamilton went ahead anyway.


Battle

''Santa Cecilia'' was heavily manned, with around 400 Spanish under the command of Captain Don Ramón de Chalas. She lay under the guns of two
shore batteries In military organizations, an artillery battery is a unit or multiple systems of artillery, mortar systems, rocket artillery, multiple rocket launchers, surface-to-surface missiles, ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, etc., so grouped to faci ...
, together mounting some 200 guns. Hamilton meticulously planned the capture. He had a force of some 100 seamen and marines in his boats, all of whom were clothed in dark only, with no white or light colours. Each of the boats was placed in a formation of two divisions, and were towed in threes. One division would attack the
starboard Port and starboard are nautical terms for watercraft and aircraft, referring respectively to the left and right sides of the vessel, when aboard and facing the bow (front). Vessels with bilateral symmetry have left and right halves which are ...
side while the other was to board the
larboard Port and starboard are nautical terms for watercraft and aircraft, referring respectively to the left and right sides of the vessel, when aboard and facing the bow (front). Vessels with bilateral symmetry have left and right halves which are ...
side. Each boat was given as a specific task a part of the ship which they were responsible for securing. Stealth was a key part of the attack plan, but Hamilton did not achieve this because, as he led his boats for the attack, he was spotted by two Spanish gun-vessels. In addition, some of the boats were caught in a
boom Boom may refer to: Objects * Boom (containment), a temporary floating barrier used to contain an oil spill * Boom (navigational barrier), an obstacle used to control or block marine navigation * Boom (sailing), a sailboat part * Boom (windsurfi ...
, a floating barrier. They soon got free, but this alerted the Spanish shore batteries, which opened fire. With the alarm given, the crew of ''Santa Cecilia'' were ready for the British as the boats got alongside her. As the British approached, the Spanish kept up a brisk fire of
musket A musket is a muzzle-loaded long gun that appeared as a smoothbore weapon in the early 16th century, at first as a heavier variant of the arquebus, capable of penetrating plate armour. By the mid-16th century, this type of musket gradually d ...
ry but fired on their own gun boats as well as the attacking British, which caused confusion to both sides. Nevertheless, ''Santa Cecilia'' was boarded. Initially, the first party to board was pushed back, and Hamilton was alone on the
quarter deck The quarterdeck is a raised deck behind the main mast of a sailing ship. Traditionally it was where the captain commanded his vessel and where the ship's colours were kept. This led to its use as the main ceremonial and reception area on bo ...
fighting four Spaniards. A musket butt soon knocked him down. At this moment the other division had swung around, and they too boarded the ship. This included the Marines, who, with a single volley, rushed the main deck saving Hamilton. They then charged with the
bayonet A bayonet (from French ) is a knife, dagger, sword, or spike-shaped weapon designed to fit on the end of the muzzle of a rifle, musket or similar firearm, allowing it to be used as a spear-like weapon.Brayley, Martin, ''Bayonets: An Illustr ...
s, driving the Spaniards from the top decks. The Spaniards were then caught in a crossfire, which drove them below deck. The fight continued in the heart of the ship. As the fight below deck continued, Hamilton's sailors were cutting the cables holding ''Santa Cecilia'' at bay, and the sails were loosed to catch the breeze. Captain de Challas was wounded, captured, and taken below, despite some resistance by a few who tried to take back the ship. The rest of the Spanish surrendered soon after de Challas was captured. The batteries surrounding Puerto Cabello opened fire when they saw the ship sailing away, and scored a number of hits on the ship, but no major damage was done. Hamilton ordered no shots to be fired, and no light to be shown; a tactic which worked, as ''Santa Cecilia'' sailed out of danger. By 2:00 a.m. the battle was over and fire from the shore batteries had died down. The boats with ''Santa Cecilia'' met up with HMS ''Surprise'' by 3:00 a.m.


Aftermath

The Spanish had lost 120 killed, while 231 were taken prisoner, 97 of whom were wounded. All but three, including Don Challas and two other officers, were subsequently returned to the port the next day. Another fifteen Spanish escaped by jumping overboard and swimming ashore, while 20 more escaped in a launch that had been guarding the ship. By contrast the British had not lost a single man, and had just twelve wounded, four of them seriously. One of them was Hamilton himself, who had suffered a blow to the head from a musket, and wounds from a sabre,
pike Pike, Pikes or The Pike may refer to: Fish * Blue pike or blue walleye, an extinct color morph of the yellow walleye ''Sander vitreus'' * Ctenoluciidae, the "pike characins", some species of which are commonly known as pikes * ''Esox'', genus of ...
and
grapeshot Grapeshot is a type of artillery round invented by a British Officer during the Napoleonic Wars. It was used mainly as an anti infantry round, but had other uses in naval combat. In artillery, a grapeshot is a type of ammunition that consists of ...
. Parker had the recaptured ''Hermione'' renamed HMS ''Retaliation'', after which the
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 ...
ordered her to be renamed HMS ''Retribution'' on 31 January 1800. The prize money was distributed, making Hamilton a rich man, so much so that he declined a pension. For his daring exploit, Hamilton was made a
knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...
by letters patent, a
Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...
(2 January 1815), and eventually became a
baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...
(20 October 1818). The Jamaica
House of Assembly House of Assembly is a name given to the legislature or lower house of a bicameral parliament. In some countries this may be at a subnational level. Historically, in British Crown colonies as the colony gained more internal responsible governme ...
awarded him a sword worth 300
guineas The guinea (; commonly abbreviated gn., or gns. in plural) was a coin, minted in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Great Britain between 1663 and 1814, that contained approximately one-quarter of an ounce of gold. The name came from t ...
, and the City of London awarded him the
Freedom of the City The Freedom of the City (or Borough in some parts of the UK) is an honour bestowed by a municipality upon a valued member of the community, or upon a visiting celebrity or dignitary. Arising from the medieval practice of granting respected ...
in a public dinner on 25 October 1800. In 1847, the Admiralty awarded Hamilton a gold medal for the recapture of ''Hermione'', and the Naval General Service Medal with the clasp, "Surprise with Hermione", to the seven surviving claimants from the action.


Citations


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Herminone Naval battles of the French Revolutionary Wars Conflicts in 1799 Naval battles involving Spain Naval battles involving the United Kingdom Naval battles involving Venezuela