HMS Glasgow (1757)
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| History | |
|---|---|
.svg){kind=small} Great Britain | |
| Name | Glasgow |
| Ordered | 13 April 1756 |
| Builder | John Reed, Hull[citation needed] |
| Laid down | 5 June 1756 |
| Launched | 31 August 1757 |
| Commissioned | March 1757 |
| Out of service | 1779 |
| Fate | Accidentally burned down off of Jamaica in 1779[1] |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | 20-gun Sixth rate |
| Tons burthen | 451 bm |
| Length |
|
| Beam | 30 ft 6 in (9.3 m) |
| Depth of hold | 9 ft 7+1⁄2 in (2.9 m) |
| Complement | 160 officers and men |
| Armament | 20 × 9-pounder guns |
HMS Glasgow was a 20-gun sixth-rate post ship of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1757[citation needed] and took part in the American Revolutionary War. She is most famous for her encounter with the maiden voyage of the Continental Navy at the Battle of Block Island on 6 April 1776.
Battle of Block Island
While under the command of Capt. William Maltby, the Glasgow ran aground on rocks at Cohasset, Massachusetts on 10 December 1774.[2]: 47 She was then refloated and arrived in Boston on 15 December for repairs. Capt. Maltby was then relieved of command at a court martial. In mid-January 1775, Vice Admiral Samuel Graves replaced Maltby with Tyringham Howe, who had been the captain of the HMS Cruizer up until then.[2]: 62
On 6 April 1776, on the waters off of Block Island, the Glasgow, under Captain Howe, encountered a squadron of eight converted Continental Navy warships[3]: 136–137 led by the Navy's commander-in-chief, Esek Hopkins.[3]: 134–135 After a two-hour engagement, she managed to escape. Glasgow was damaged but intact, with one dead and three wounded.[3]: 142 [4]
Fate
She later chased two large Continental frigates in the Caribbean before she was accidentally burned in Montego Bay, Jamaica in 1779.[1]