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CURACOA
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Built in 1809, Itchenor.
Broken up in 1849. |
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- 24 guns in 1831.
- 1810 Capt. John TOWER.
He commissioned her in February 1809 and was to be her only captain. - On 23 August 1810 a court martial was held at Portsmouth on Mr Christopher SMITH, under-clerk of CURACOA, for enticing Messrs. William BRUTON and Chris.
AUSTEN, midshipmen of the same ship to emigrate to America.
He was sentenced to two years imprisoned in the Marshalsea prison.
Off Land's End on 9 November 1810 Capt. TOWER saw a man-of-war brig in pursuit of a schooner.
Signals from the brig, which he later found to be HELICON, soon told him that she was chasing an enemy.
CURACOA made all sail and, after three hours, captured the French privateer schooner VENUS (14).
The VENUS, commanded by Guillaume Augenard, had had a disastrous cruise. She had made no captures in the 14 days she had been out of L'Orient and the previous night, the 8th., she had received a complete beating from an English ship, believed to be a packet, which had engaged her off the Scillies for two hours, killing 5 men, wounding 14 others and damaging her rigging and sails. - 1811 Spithead, with orders for the East Indies but still at Portsmouth in October, she sailed for the Mediterranean to co-operate with the Spanish forces off Catalonia.
- In January 1812, with RAINBOW and PAPILLON in company, he harassed a division of the enemy which was making its way along the coast from the eastward towards Barcelona and obliged them to retire and take a more circuitous route.
On the 29th. Capt. CODRINGTON in BLAKE, hearing that some 7,000 French troops were about to make a movement along the coast, directed Capt. TOWER to proceed with MEROPE to Mataro to aid Col. O'Ryan with its defence. - On the morning of the 30th. CURACOA made the signal that the enemy were advancing and RAINBOW opened fire on them near Vilassar, followed by CURACOA and MEROPE as they approached Mataro.
BLAKE and PAPILLON, off Arenys, weighed and worked up to Mataro to join them.
At Col. O'Ryan's request the squadron opened fire on the parts of the town occupied by the French who were busy plundering the houses and reports reached the ships that some 600 were killed.
It was hoped that this fire, and the attacks by the Spanish guerillas who lined the hills, would drive them out, but the French returned after dark giving each part of the army an opportunity to plunder in its turn.
Since it was impossible to continue expending ammunition at such a rate, the firing had to be restricted to keeping the enemy in a constant state of alarm. - When it was reported that the enemy were about to enter Arenys, CURACOA and PAPILLON were sent there with 11,500 cartridges and ship's biscuit for the Spanish patriots to maintain them on the hills behind Mataro.
Capt. TOWER found the French entering Catella, St. Pol and Canet but the want of wind prevented him attacking them except by using his boats. - The enemy pulled out of Mataro before daylight on 2 February, retreating through the vineyards at the back of the town out of gunshot.
They were harassed by the guerillas as they made a fatiguing march to Arenys and, as they halted on the hills, BLAKE, CURACOA, PAPILLON and the boats threw a few shots over the town to deter them from entering.
The boats scoured the street which ran down the sea to prevent them plundering the houses during the night. - At different periods CURACOA captured the French privateers MARSOUIN and VENUS, each mounting 14 guns.
- At the end of June CURACOA came under the orders of Capt. CAMPBELL of LEVIATHAN and with IMPERIEUSE and ECLAIR attacked a convoy of 18 sail of square and lateen rigged vessels which had assembled at Alassio and Laigueglia (Capt. CAMBELL called it Languillia) on the western side of the Gulf of Genoa.
An hour before daylight on the 27th. the marines, covered by ECLAIR, landed between the two towns.
They were immediately attacked by treble their number but drove through them with a bayonet charge and captured two batteries before entering the towns.
More than 20 French soldiers were killed and 14 taken prisoner.
The marines were re-embarked after spiking the guns but, although the ships were anchored less than a musket shot from the shore, and the launches and other boats kept up a heavy fire from their carronades, it was found impossible to bring off the vessels, so they were destroyed by the guns.
CURACOA lost 3 marines killed and 3 wounded. - On 20 May 1813 the marines and seamen of CURACOA and AIGLE landed at Campo del Porto in the island of Elba and, after routing a considerable body of troops, captured a battery of two 12-pounders and a square martello tower with a 6-pounder.
Three deeply-laden fellucas were scuttled by the enemy in the harbour.
The following morning the boats captured three settees, convoyed by the French brig ABEILLE, which had taken refuge in Portoferraio. - The boats chased two fellucas on to the beach at Mesea (? Massa) near the Gulf of Spezia on the morning of the 28th.
In the evening the breeze enabled the two ships to anchor close in and, by throwing a few shells from CURACOA, the vessels were brought off.
CURACOA lost Thomas CROPPER, capt.
of the after-guard, killed and two seamen wounded.
AIGLE had two killed and three wounded. - 1815 returned to Portsmouth in the spring.
- 1816 out of commission at Deptford.
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