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HESPER (18) Built in 1809, Dartmouth.
Sold in 1817.

  • 1809 George HOARE, 08/1809.
  • 1810 D. PATTERSON, Madras.
    On 24 October HESPER, with the rest of Rear Ad. DRURY's squadron, joined Vice Ad. BERTIE who was proceeding to Rodriguez in AFRICAINE with the commander of the forces, Major Gen. Abercromby, to prepare for the assault on Mauritius.
  • HESPER and CORNELIA were detached to join BOADICE, NISUS and NEREIDE, who were watching the enemy in Port Louis.
    HESPER and the government armed ship EMMA spent many successive nights in sounding, and gained an extensive knowledge of the proposed landing site at Grande Bay, about 12 miles to windward of Port Louis.
    On the morning of 29 November the invasion fleet of nearly 70 sail arrived in Grande Bay and by nightfall all the troops, together with their artillery, stores and ammunition, and a large body of seamen and marines, had been landed without loss.
    On the 2 December the Governor-general, De Caen, proposed terms of capitulation and a treaty was ratified on the 3rd.
  • Capt. MONTAGUE of CLORINDE commanded the first two detachments of seamen ashore and his senior lieutenant was Mr Edward LLOYD, who volunteered his services.
    After the capitulation Vice Ad. BERTIE appointed Lieut. LLOYD to the command of HESPER and he was chosen by Major Gen. Abercromby to take him and his staff back to Bombay.
    On his arrival there he was mortified to find a Cdr. BARRINGTON waiting take command by an order of Vice Ad. DRURY, who had since died, made by him after a dispute with Vice Ad. BERTIE before HESPER arrived on the East India station.
  • 1811 Barrington REYNOLDS.
    Almost immediately HESPER was ordered to join an expedition fitting out for the reduction of Java.
    Lieut. LLOYD remained on board as a passenger until she reached Malacca where he volunteered to serve under Lieut. Gen. Sir Samuel Auchmuty in the coming campaign.
  • On 31 August 1811 NISUS, PRESIDENT PHOEBE and HESPER were ordered to Cheribon (Tjiebon) on the north coast of Java to intercept French troops retreating towards Samarang.
    As no troops were available, Rear Ad. STOPFORD was relying on the marines of the squadron to perform this service and had reinforced them with a detachment from LION.
    HESPER sailed so badly that she was unable to keep up with the frigates and arrived on 5 September, the day after the fort at Cheribon surrendered.
    Capt. REYNOLDS was appointed temporary commandant of Cheribon while the frigates continued to attack the French along the coast.
    He was promoted to post captain 22 January 1812, about 15 months after being promoted commander.
    (The main account of the reduction of JAVA will be found under NISUS.)
  • 1812 Charles Thomas THRUSTON, East Indies.
    After serving on land as a liaison officer between naval and military headquarters he received the command HESPER at Sumbaya after the conclusion of the campaign against the Dutch possessions in the East Indies and found that the harsh climate had left only 80 or 90 of her original complement of of 120 men.
    0f these 50 were either in hospital or on the sick list on board.
    (His appointment was confirmed in England on 7 February 1812)
  • When a report was received that French frigates had sailed from Brest for the relief of Java HESPER, her crew reinforced with convalescents from the hospital, was ordered to Balambuan in the Straits of Bali to try and intercept them.
    While watering at this anchorage the monsoon started with torrents of rain which reduced visibility to half a mile and when he sailed at the beginning of December, intending to return the same evening, the current swept him into the Straits of Lombo.
    Here, with no wind, the vessel was entirely at the mercy of a whirlpool which spun her rapidly from coast to coast.
    Fortunately the general trend was to the northward and within two hours HESPER was safe in the Java Sea.
  • The weather appeared to be settled for the next few days so Capt. THRUSTON sailed again but during the following night it blew a hurricane and HESPER was blown to the coast of Sumbaya.
    The sickly state of his crew made it necessary for him to find shelter but, being off a lee shore he ordered the ship to be hove-to for the night.
    Unfortunately the fore-yard was carried away in a squall and he was forced to put before the wind to clear the wreckage.
    During the night HESTER sailed with breakers on either side through the strait between two islands and and the west coast of Timor and in the morning discovered the town of Coupang on the north coast.
    He expected to see the British flag flying from the battery of Victoria on a cliff to the westward but found only the Dutch colours.
  • An officer was sent ashore under flag of truce to inform the governor of the capitulation of all Dutch settlements in the East Indies and demanded his surrender.
    The governor had had no communication with Java for two years and Capt. THRUSTON had to trick him into surrender by sending a messenger to the battery pretending to carry orders to lower the Dutch flag and hoist the British one.
  • After some weeks the Dutch began suspect the sickly state of HESPER's crew and Capt. THRUSTON heard reports of a conspiracy between the Dutch and local rajahs to take him prisoner and restore the Dutch flag.
    Bringing HESPER's broadside within 300 yards of the beach and putting every disposable man into the battery quelled the uprising and the governor and the native princes swore an oath of allegiance.
    As the monsoon relaxed a Chinese junk touched at the island with confirmation of the surrender of the Dutch eastern empire and in March HESTER was able to return to Java.
    Capt. THRUSTON returned to England in November as a passenger on the DORIS frigate suffering from a severe inflammation of the liver.
  • 1814-15 Charles BIDDULPH, East Indies.
  • 181


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