Not To Get the British Prince Regent Ships Confused

From Wikipedia.

There were two ships in the British service by the name of Prince Regent.  The one I mentioned in the last post was the Provincial Marine's Prince Regent which i will write about in the next post.

There was also another HMS Prince Regent.  This one was a Royal Navy ship and was launched in 18 46-60 guns.  It was built at Kingston, Upper Canada and took part in the raid on Fort Oswego.

It was later renamed HMS Kingston in 1814 and was sold in 1832.

--Brock-Perry

First Battle of Sackets Harbor-- Part 2: The British Provincial Marine Demands Surrender

On Sunday, July 19, 1812, Captain Melancthon Taylor Woolsey of the USS Oneida discovered five British warships off Sackets Harbor.  They belonged to the Provincial Marine and were the Royal George (24 guns), Prince Regent (22 guns),  Earl of Moira (22 guns), Governor Simcoe (10 guns) and Seneca (2 guns).

The British captured a merchant ship and sent its crew ashore with demands for the surrender of the USS Oneida and the Lord Nelson, a merchant ship captured before war was declared.  The Americans were told that if a shot was fired at the British, they would burn Sackets Harbor.

The Oneida attempted to escape, but was turned back to Navy Point by British guns.

--Brock-Perry

HMS St. Lawrence-- Part 4: A Short-Lived Career

The arrival of the HMS St. Lawrence on Lake Ontario gave the British unchallenged domination of Lake Ontario.

But, it was short-lived as the war soon ended and the ship no longer needed.

After the war, the St. Lawrence was decommissioned.  In 1832, the hull was sold to Robert Drummond for 25 pounds.  Between May and August, the hull was towed out to Navy Bay.  It later formed part of the pier attached to Morton's Brewery in Kingston and was  used as storage for cordwood and other materials.

It later sank in 30 feet of water where its remains have since rotted away but the keel and ribs remain and are a favorite dive site.

The wreck of the St. Lawrence, along with those of the Princess Charlotte and Prince Regent were designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 2015.

--Brock-Perry

Prince Regent, Canadian Provincial Marine

From Wikipedia.

This was another ship with the same name as the HMS Prince Regent, but served with the Canadian Provincial Marine.

16-gun ship launched 1812 for the Canadian Provincial Marine.  Re-rigged as a schooner and renamed Beresford (or General Beresford) in 1813.

Re-rigged as a brig and renamed HMS Netley in 1814 when the Royal Navy took over the Provincial Marine.  It was the Admiralty's policy not to name a vessel after living people.

In 1848, it was renamed the HMS Niagara while serving as a base ship. Later broken up.

--Brock-Perry

HMS Prince Regent-- Part 3: More Action, Then Peace

Yeo again used his superiority in naval strength to sail to Niagara with his fleet.  On the way, the Prince Regent was hit by lightning.  With the approach of the British fleet, the U.S. fleet withdrew to Sackets Harbor.

November 1, the Prince Regent escorted a convoy with reinforcements for Fort George.

It was renamed the Kingston after the war.  In 1817, its crew was paid off and the ship put in ordinary as per the Rush-Bagot Treaty.  It was ordered sold in 1832, but no buyers were found and the ship was sunk in Deadman's Bay in the 1830s.

In 2015, the HMS Prince Regent, HMS St. Lawrence and HMS Princess Charlotte were designated as a National Historic Site of Canada.

--Brock-Perry

HMS Prince Regent-- Part 2: Flagship of British Lake Erie Fleet

It became the flagship of Commodore Sir James Lucas Yeo and gave him the edge in the naval race so he immediately used it.  The British squadron departed Kingston 4 May 1814 to attack Fort Oswego, New York, which involved a landing operation.  The fort and town of Oswego were captured May 6.

On May 19, they set up a blockade of the US Navy at Sackets Harbor, New York.  After the defeat at Sandy Creek, they abandoned the blockade June 5 and returned to Kingston.

With the launch of the first rate ship-of-the-line HMS St. Lawrence, Yeo transferred his flag to that ship and once again he had naval superiority

--Brock-Perry

HMS Prince Regent-- Part 1: First Great Lakes Frigate

From Wikipedia.

56-gun, fourth rate frigate   155 feet long with a 43.1-foot bean, crew of 280.

In 1814, the lower deck had twenty-eight 24-pdrs.  Upper deck had four 68-pdr carronades and twenty-four 32-pdr. carronades.

It was the first frigate built on inland waters (Great Lakes).  This gave the British a temporary superiority over the Americans during the Naval Race of 1814.

Its construction was approved in September 1813 by the British commander-in-chief in North America, Sir George Provost.  Launched 14 April 1814.

--Brock-Perry

Shipwrecks To Be Marked With Plaques in Kingston, Ontario-- Part 1

From the October 19, 2017, Kingston, Ontario Whig by Ian MacAlpine.

Three Kingston underwater treasures will be marked in a ceremony to be held Wednesday at Fort Henry Discovery Centre.  Officials from Parks Canada and Historic Board of Canada announced that three War of 1812 shipwrecks at the bottom of Lake Ontario will be marked with plaques.

The HMS Prince Regent and HMS Princess Charlotte were decommissioned after the war and purposely sunk in Deadman's Bay just north of Fort Henry.  (They were sunk for preservation.)  The HMS St. Lawrence, the largest and most heavily armed warship in freshwater is off the Tell Centre.  After the war it served as a dock for the Mortroub Brewery and Distillery into the late 1800s.

--Brock-Perry

Shipwrecks Designated Historical Site in Kingston

From the August 4, 2015, Kingston (Can) Whig by Julia McKay.

Kingston has historical significance both above and below Lake Ontario.

The War of 1812 had Great Britain and her North American colonies fighting against the United States and led to the expansion of the "Provincial Marine" naval base established at Kingston in 1789.  Many ships were constructed there, especially during the great naval ships race if 1814,.

With the end of the war, many of these ships became unusable.  In 1834, the decision was made to close the shipyard.  The vessels there needed to be disposed.  Some were auctioned off and sold for scrap.

Others were deliberately sunk in Deadman Bay, but clear of the shipping channel.

Three of these are known:  HMS Prince Regent, HMS Princess Charlotte and the HMS St. Lawrence.

The site of these wrecks now has a commemorative designation.

--Brock-Perry

Battle of Fort Oswego, NY (Battle of Oswego)-- Part 1: Naval Arms Race on Lake Ontario

From Wikipedia.

I have been referring to this as the battle of Oswego.

The article considered the British attack on the American fort and village as "partially successful."  The battle led directly from the naval arms race on Lake Ontario.  Both the Americans and British were building two frigates apiece as 1814 opened.  The two British frigates (HMS Prince Regent and HMS Princess Charlotte) were finished at Kingston, Upper Canada, in April.

British commander James Yeo knew that the American frigates were stronger and quickly nearing completion, so he decided to strike while he had the edge.  His first thought was the main American naval base at Sackets Harbor, NY, but he did not have enough troops and Canada's Governor General, Lt. Gen. George Prevost refused to give him any more soldiers.

So, he and Drummond decided to attack the weaker Fort Oswego and village of Oswego farther down the Lake Ontario shore.    It was a major American staging point and still had importance.

--Brock-Perry

HMS Prince Regent

From Wikipedia.

Was a 155-foot long, 56-gun 4th rate frigate built with crew of 280 at Kingston Royal Navy Dockyard at Kingston, Upper Canada. Launched April 14, 1814. Renamed HMS Kingston 9 December 1814. It was still a warship in 1830 and sold in 1832.

A 120-gun ship-of-the-line HMS Prince Regent was launched in Britain in 1823.

I was unable to find out more information on it.

--Brock-Perry

The 1814 Naval Race on the Lakes: HMS Prince Regent and Princess Charlotte

The timeline for April 1814 clearly shows that a big naval arms race was on along the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain during the early part of 1814.

Needing more heavily armed vessels to challenge American Commodore Chauncey for control of Lake Ontario, Sir James Lucas Yeo's British squadron was reinforcedby the HMS Prince Regent (56 guns) and HMS Princess Charlotte (42 guns) on April 14, 1814. This gave Yeo the advantage.

On May 6, 1814, these two and other vessels conveyed part of a 550 soldier force in an amphibious attack on Oswego, New York. Then they covered the landing and bombarded the fort.

Other ships added to the forces in the first part of April 1814: British: HMS Linnert. American: USS Jefferson, Saratoga and Jones.

 --Brock-Perry

War of 1812 Timeline: April 1814: Ships Launched on Both Sides

Warship Race


APRIL 13TH, 1814: Americans launch the brig USS Jones at Sackets Harbor, New York, adding to Commodore Isaac Chauncey's Lake Ontario squadron.

APRIL 14TH, 1814: HMS Prince Regent and HMS Charlotte are launched at Kingston, Upper Canada. These two frigates help Commodore Sir James Lucas Yeo gain control of Lake Ontario for a period during the 1814 navigation center.

--Brock-Perry

Royal Navy Shipyard, York (Upper Canada)

From Wikipedia.

This would be referring to the Royal Navy Dockyard there. York, Upper Canada, is now Toronto, Canada.

The yard operated from 1793 to 1813. It actually was in operation before the town of York was even there.
It built only a few ships before being moved to Kingston because it was too easy for the Americans to attack..

SHIPS BUILT:

TORONTO, schooner, wrecked 1817

HMS PRINCE REGENT-- schooner launched 1812. Renamed HMS BEREFORD in 1813

HMS NETLEY in 1814 and finally became the NIAGARA, base ship before being broken up in 1843. //// 

HMS ISAAC BROCK-- incomplete frigate burned on the stocks.

--Brock-Perry

List of Ships Built at Kingston Royal Naval Dockyard-- Part 1

From Wikipedia.

Buffalo- gunboat, 1792
Catherine--gunboat, 1792
Sophia-- gunboat, 1792

Swift-- gunboat, 1792
HMS Speedy, 1798
HMS Royal George, 1809

HMS St. Lawrence, 1814
HMS Prince Regent, 1814
HMS Princess Charlotte

HMS Duke of Gloucester
HMS Earl of Moira-- brig, 1805
HMS Sir Sidney Smith-- schooner 1806.

More to Come. --Brock-Perry

Kingston's Royal Navy Dockyard-- Part 3: Ships Built There

HMS ST. LAWRENCE: Ship of the Line. I wrote about this ship earlier this week.

HMS PRINCE REGENT: Built 1814. A 56-gun frigate renamed Kingston in 1814.

HMS PRINESS CHARLOTTE: Built 1814. A 42-gun frigate renamed Burlington in 1814.

HMS PSYCHE: Built 1814. A 56-gun frigate. Her frame was sent from Britain and assembled at Kingston.

For Some Reason These Ships Were Renamed. --Brock-Perry