HMS Looe (1697)

History
England
Name	HMS Looe
Ordered	24 December 1696
Builder	Portsmouth Dockyard
Launched	15 October 1697
Commissioned	1697
Fate	Wrecked in Scratchwell Bay 12 December 1705
General characteristics as built
Class and type	32-gun fifth rate
Tons burthen	38963⁄94 tons (bm)
Length	108 ft 1 in (32.94 m) gundeck; 89 ft 8 in (27.33 m) keel for tonnage;
Beam	28 ft 7 in (8.71 m)
Depth of hold	11 ft 1 in (3.38 m)
Propulsion	Sails
Sail plan	Full-rigged ship
Complement	145/110
Armament	as built 32 guns; 4/4 × demi-culverins (LD); 22/20 × 6-pdr guns (UD); 6/4 × 4-pdr guns (QD);

HMS Looe was a 32-gun fifth rate built by Portsmouth Dockyard in 1696/97. She was first employed off the Irish coast. She went to Newfoundland in 1702. On her return she was wrecked on the Isle of Wight in December 1705.

She was the second vessel to bear the name Looe since it was used for a 32-gun fifth rate built at Plymouth in 1696 and wrecked in Baltimore Bay, Ireland, on 30 April 1697.^[1]

Construction and specifications

She was ordered on 24 December 1696 to be built at Portsmouth Dockyard under the guidance of Master Shipwright William Bagwell. She was launched on 15 October 1697. Her dimensions were a gundeck of 108 feet 1 inch (32.94 metres) with a keel of 89 feet 8 inches (27.33 metres) for tonnage calculation with a breadth of 28 feet 7 inches (8.71 metres) and a depth of hold of 11 feet 1 inch (3.38 metres). Her builder's measure tonnage was calculated as 38963⁄94 tons (burthen).^[2]

The gun armament initially was four demi-culverins^[3]^{[Note 1]} on the lower deck (LD) with two pair of guns per side. The upper deck (UD) battery would consist of between twenty and twenty-two 6-pounder guns^[4]^{[Note 2]} with ten or eleven guns per side. The gun battery would be completed by four 4-pounder guns^[5]^{[Note 3]} on the quarterdeck (QD) with two to three guns per side.^[6]

Commissioned Service 1697-1705

HMS Looe was commissioned in 1697 under Captain Robert Arris for service on the Irish coast. In Late 1702 she was under Captain Timothy Bridges for Captain John Leake's Squadron for a deployment to Newfoundland. The squadron sailed on 23 July from Plymouth arriving at the Bay of Bulls (St John's) on August 27. There being no French vessels, he collect several small prizes. By the Enf of October he took twenty-nine ships, burnt two and demolished St Peter's Fort.^[7]^[2]

Loss

While returning with a homebound convoy she was wrecked in Scratchwell Bay on the Ilse of Wight on 12 December 1705. Eight member of her crew were drowned in the mishap.^[2]

Notes

^ A demi-culverin was a gun of 3,400 pounds with a four-inch bore firing a 9.5-pound shot with an eight-pound powder charge
^ A 6-pounder was a Dutch gun used to replace the saker
^ A minion renamed the 4-pounder was a gun of 1,000 pounds with a 3.5-inch bore firing a 4-pound shot with a 4-pound powder charge.

Citations

^ Colledge (2020)
^ ^a ^b ^c Winfred 2009, Ch 5, The Fifth Rates, Vessels acquired from 16 December 1688, Fifth Rates of 32 and 36 guns, 1694 Programme, Looe
^ Lavery (1989), Part V, Ch 18, culverins, page 101
^ Lavery (1989), Part V, Ch 18, The 6-pounder, page 102
^ Lavery (1989), Part V, Ch 18, Minion or 4-pounder, page 103
^ Winfred 2009, Ch 5, The Fifth Rates, Vessels acquired from 16 December 1688, Fifth Rates of 32 and 36 guns, 1694 Programme
^ Clowes (1898), Chapter XXIV, page 501

References

Winfield (2009), British Warships in the Age of Sail (1603 – 1714), by Rif Winfield, published by Seaforth Publishing, England © 2009, EPUB ISBN 978-1-78346-924-6
Colledge (2020), Ships of the Royal Navy, by J.J. Colledge, revised and updated by Lt Cdr Ben Warlow and Steve Bush, published by Seaforth Publishing, Barnsley, Great Britain, © 2020, EPUB ISBN 978-1-5267-9328-7
Lavery (1989), The Arming and Fitting of English Ships of War 1600 – 1815, by Brian Lavery, published by US Naval Institute Press © Brian Lavery 1989, ISBN 978-0-87021-009-9, Part V Guns, Type of Guns
Clowes (1898), The Royal Navy, A History from the Earliest Times to the Present (Vol. II). London. England: Sampson Low, Marston & Company, © 1898