HMS Canceaux (1764)
| History | |
|---|---|
 Great Britain
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| Name: | HMS Canceaux |
| Operator: | Royal Navy |
| Acquired: | February 1764 |
| Commissioned: | 1764 under Lt. Henry Mowatt |
| Recommissioned: | 1776 under Lt John Shank |
| Out of service: | 1782 |
| Refit: | February-May 1771 |
| Fate: | Sold out of service, Quebec, 1783 |
| General characteristics | |
| Tons burthen: | 183 77⁄94 (bm) |
| Length: |
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| Beam: | 23 ft 1 in (7.0 m) |
| Depth of hold: | 10 ft 9 in (3.3 m) |
| Propulsion: | Sail |
| Complement: | 55 |
| Armament: |
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HMS Canceaux was a sloop active in both the hydrographic exploration of the Atlantic Canada and New England coastline and in the American Revolutionary War. She played an integral role in the battle for control of Maine, in particular at the Burning of Falmouth. She began her life as a merchant vessel and would eventually be transformed to a military vessel for the Royal Navy, equipped to command the razing of major settlements. After leaving the Saint Lawrence River estuary in 1771,Canceaux actively shaped the maritime history of the American Revolution.
In December 1774 HMS Canceaux attempted to restore order to Fort William and Mary following the seizure of supplies by colonial forces led by Paul Revere. The fort, located on New Castle Island near Portsmouth, New Hampshire, was seen as essential to reasserting control over the insurrection mounting amongst the populace. The concern caused by the colonial seizure of sixteen cannon and about one hundred barrels of gunpowder prompted the Canceaux to quickly depart Boston for Portsmouth. She arrived four days after the colonial forces had taken said resources from the fort. She was then grounded by the local maritime pilot and thus remained within an estuary of the Piscataqua River, stranded for many days.
In early spring of 1775 HMS Canceaux was actively patrolling the coastline of New England in an attempt to prevent smuggling and enforce British law. She anchored in Casco Bay in March to prevent colonists from enforcing the First Continental Congress boycott of all goods from Britain. The militia of Brunswick, Maine controlled by Samuel Thompson, endeavored to drive the ship and her crew from the region in order to regain their authority within the city. After a militia boarding party in small boats had been deterred by grapeshot from Canceaux cannon, the local militia changed tack. Rather than targeting the entire ship and her crew they narrowed their sights upon the ship’s commander Lieutenant Henry Mowat. While the Lieutenant endeavored to arrange church services for his crew he was kidnapped and held by Thompson’s militia. This obvious affront to the authority of the British Navy and this crew in particular engendered ire amongst the crew and loyalist population alike. The highest ranking officer remaining aboard Canceaux, the first lieutenant, threatened the local populace to release Mowat or else they would begin to shell the city. The crew initially discharged the cannon loaded only with gunpowder, but no shot, in a veiled threat to the surrounding people. This threat was met by Thompson with the claim that for each shell fired at Falmouth, Mowat would lose a finger. By now the cannon fire had attracted local minutemen to Falmouth where they proceeded to loot the homes and valuables of loyalists residing in the city. The confrontation was eventually resolved as the local populace convinced Thompson to release the British commander. Mowat returned to Canceaux but was unable to take any locals into custody for his abduction, a reality that infuriated the commander. She eventually departed from Casco Bay to return to Boston to resume her typical activities of patrolling to preventing smuggling and enforcing British maritime law.
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Wikipedia