HMS Magpie (1826)

HMS Magpie was launched at Jamaica in 1826 as the name vessel of her class. She was lost two months after her launch.

For other ships with the same name, see HMS Magpie.

History
United Kingdom
NameHMS Magpie
Ordered16 July 1825
BuilderMaclean, Jamaica
LaunchedJune 1826
FateWrecked 27 August 1`826
General characteristics [1]
Class and typeMagpie-class schooner
Tons burthen70 (bm)
Length
  • Overall:53 ft 3 in (16.2 m)
  • Keel:40 ft 8+1⁄4 in (12.4 m)
Beam18 ft 0 in (5.5 m)
Depth of hold7 ft 3 in (2.2 m)
Complement35
Armament2 × 9-pounder guns + 2 × 18-pounder carronades

Origins

Vice Admiral Lawrence Halsted, Commander-in-Chief, West Indies, ordered Magpie and HMS Monkey built on the lines of HMS Assiduous.[2] There was a third vessel, Nimble, that the Navy found defective and refused to accept.[1]

Career

Lieutenant Edward Smith commissioned Magpie in 1826. On 16 August Magpie was in company with HMS Pylades when they chased the slave ship Minerva into Havana. She landed her slaves during the night. The Captain-General refused to take action and Minerva was not seized.[3][lower-alpha 1]

Loss

Magpie was cruising off the Arrecifes do los Colorados of Cuba on 27 August 1826 when a sudden squall in the evening caused her to capsize. A few survivors were able to right an over-turned boat. While some men climbed in to bail her out, the others held on to the sides. Next morning sharks killed two men and bit off Lieutenant Smith's legs, which led quickly to his death. The remaining six survivors drifted for three days without water or food. Four went mad and jumped overboard; a passing brig rescued the last two men.[5][6]

Notes
  1. Minerva, Manuel Fernandez, master, had sailed from Havana on 16 September 1825 and acquired 200 slaves, possibly at São Tomé.[4]

Citations
  1. Winfield (2014), p. 273.
  2. Grindal (2016), 9170.
  3. Grindal (2016), 9174–9178.
  4. Trans Atlantic Slave Trade Database – Minerva voyage #560.
  5. Hepper (1994), p. 159.
  6. Grindal (2016), p. 9142.

References
  • Grindal, Peter (2016). Opposing the Slavers: The Royal Navy’s Campaign against the Atlantic Slave Trade. I.B.Tauris. ASIN B01MYTNUEH.
  • Hepper, David J. (1994). British Warship Losses in the Age of Sail, 1650-1859. Rotherfield: Jean Boudriot. ISBN 0-948864-30-3. OCLC 622348295.
  • Winfield, Rif (2014). British Warships in the Age of Sail 1817–1863: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-169-4.
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