General Armstrong
 |
|
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States
|
|
| Name: | General Armstrong |
| Namesake: | John Armstrong, Sr. |
| Builder: | Adam and Noah Brown |
| Homeport: | New York, NY |
| Fate: | Scuttled on 27 September 1814 at Fayal. |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Brig |
| Tons burthen: | 246 (bm) |
| Complement: | 90 officers and men |
| Armament: |
|
| Notes: | War of 1812 |
General Armstrong was an American brig built for privateering in the Atlantic Ocean theater of the War of 1812. She was named for Brigadier General John Armstrong, Sr. who fought in the American Revolutionary War.
General Armstrong had a crew of about 90 men, based in New York. 1812 under Captain Tim Barnard, From 1813 to July 1814 under the command of Guy R. Champlin and subsequently under the command of Captain Samuel Chester Reid until its scuttling in Fayal. She was armed with seven guns, including a 42-pounder Long Tom.
December 1812 General Armstrong attacked the English ship Queen, carrying 16 guns and 40 men. Queen was from Liverpool bound for Surinam, with a cargo valued at about ninety thousand pounds. Her crew made a brave resistance, and did not strike her colours until their commander, the first officer, and nine of the crew had been killed. This, perhaps, was one of the most valuable prizes that was made in the war. A prize crew was placed aboard, with instructions to make for the United States, but unfortunately, when nearing the coast, Queen was wrecked off Nantucket.
11 March 1813, under the captaincy of Guy R. Champlin, General Armstrong encountered a vessel that it presumed to be a British privateer in the mouth of the Suriname River. This ship was, in fact, the British frigate HMS Coquette. The ensuing battle caused a lot of damage to the General Armstrong. Champlin was injured and threatened to blow up the ship if his crew surrendered. General Armstrong managed to escape.
In his log-book Champlin wrote: "In this action we had six men killed and sixteen wounded, and all the halyards of the headsails shot away; the fore-mast and bowsprit one quarter cut through, and all the fore and main shrouds but one shot away; both mainstays and running rigging cut to pieces; a great number of shot through our sails, and several between wind and water, which caused our vessel to leak. There were also a number of shot in our hull."
...
Wikipedia