HMS Kingfisher (1782)
| History | |
|---|---|
 Great Britain
|
|
| Name: | HMS Kingfisher |
| Builder: | Unknown (Possibly Greaves & Nicholson), Rochester |
| Launched: | 1782 |
| Acquired: | 1782 |
| Fate: | Wrecked on 3 December 1798 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | 18-gun sloop |
| Tons burthen: | 369 57⁄94 (bm) |
| Length: |
|
| Beam: | 30 ft 9 in (9.37 m) |
| Depth of hold: | 7 ft 6.25 in (2.2924 m) |
| Complement: | 120 |
| Armament: | 18 × short 6-pounder guns |
HMS Kingfisher was an 18-gun sloop of the Royal Navy which saw service during the American War of Independence and the French Revolutionary Wars.
Kingfisher was one of a number of small sloops and brigs purchased on the stocks while under construction during the American War of Independence. Though built at Rochester on the River Medway, It is uncertain which yard Kingfisher was purchased from. Greaves & Nicholson is one possibility. Her name is often given as King’s Fisher. Kingfisher was fitted at Chatham Dockyard, and commissioned for service in May 1783 under Commander William Albany Otway.
Commander George Lumsdaine took over in November 1786, and was in turned superseded by Commander Henry Warre in April 1788. Kingfisher went on to serve under a succession of commanders during the last years of peace and the early years of the French Revolutionary War. Commander Charles Jones was captain from May 1791, succeeded by Commander William Brown in June 1792, and Brown in turn by Commander Thomas Graves in November that year. From April 1794 she was under Commander Thomas Gosselyn, though he was replaced by Commander Alexander Wilson in August 1795. Wilson's command was shortlived, in September Kingfisher was under Commander Edward Marsh, who took her out to the West Indies in March 1796, and then to the Lisbon station in January 1797. Marsh was soon superseded by Commander John Bligh, who had distinguished himself at the Battle of Cape St Vincent on 14 February 1797, and been rewarded with a promotion to commander on 8 March 1797 and the command of Kingfisher. While cruising off Oporto he was able to capture the 14-gun French privateer Général on 29 March.
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