HMS Lynx was a 16-gun ship-rigged sloop of the in the Royal Navy, launched in 1794 at Gravesend. In 1795 she was the cause of an international incident when she fired on . She was at the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801, and during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars took numerous prizes, mostly merchant vessels but also including some privateers. She was also at the second Battle of Copenhagen in 1807. She was sold in April 1813. She then became the whaler Recovery. She made 12 whaling voyages in the southern whale fishery, the last one ending in 1843, at which time her owner had her broken up.
French Revolutionary War Lynx was commissioned in April 1794 under Commander Charles Vinicombe Penrose on the Halifax Station. Penrose was promoted to Post-captain on 7 October 1794 and Commander Charles Rowley replaced Penrose in November.
On 17 November 1794, Lynx recaptured . shared in the reward. By agreement, these vessels also shared the prize money with and . Lloyd's List reported that the recapture took place off the Virginia Capes and that Amphitrite had been "much plundered".LL 13 February 1795, No. 2690. Lloyd's List later reported that Amphitrite, Tardiff, master, had arrived at Antigua. The report credited the capture to Cleopatra.LL 31 March 1795, No. 2703.
On 31 January 1795, Rear-Admiral George Murray, the commander-in-chief on the North America station, sent Lynx, under the command of John Poo Beresford, and the newly-captured former French warship on a cruise out of Halifax. On 1 March the two vessels captured Cocarde Nationale (or National Cockade), a privateer from Charleston, South Carolina, of 14 guns, six swivels and 80 men. Esperance and Lynx recaptured the ship Norfolk, of Belfast, and the brig George, of Workington.
Lynx and Eagle The United States Coast Guard records that in 1795, Lynx, under the command of Beresford, fired a shot across the bow of the United States revenue cutter . Hendrick Fischer, Eagles acting captain, attempted to heave-to, but he had on board Senator Pierce Butler, from South Carolina, who ordered him to sail on. Lynx then began to fire continuously as Eagle sailed towards the shoal waters on the north point of Jekyll Island. As Lynx drew too much water to continue the chase, Beresford sent his pinnace and cutter in pursuit, under the command of Lieutenant Alexander Skene, who four years later would command Lynx. Skene's men quickly overtook the schooner and came on board, demanding to know why it had not come about in response to the shots. After learning the schooner was in fact a revenue vessel of the U.S. government, Skene and his men returned to Lynx.
In the ensuing international political furor, Beresford stated that Lynx had been beyond the limit and noted that the schooner was not flying any flag. Eagle had not in fact flown the national ensign; for unexplained reasons it was instead stored in the captain's cabin. Eagle did apparently display some sort of small pennant that was not visible to Lynx. Unfortunately, the United States Coast Guard history of Eagle represents the only record of the incident.
Prize taking On 9 June 1795 Lynx captured Bedford, which had some bullion amongst her cargo. Rowley was apparently again her captain. On 3 July Commander Robert Hall was appointed to command Lynx, but apparently the Admiralty did not confirm the appointment until January 1796.Burke, Edmund, Annual Register, Vol. 84, p.269.
In August 1795 Commander Thomas Tireman took command of Lynx.
On 24 February 1796, Lynx captured the Hannah. Commander John Rennie replaced Tireman in February 1797. Then in October Hall replaced Rennie and finally took command.
On 13 June 1798, Lynx captured the French privateer Isabelle, of two guns and 30 men. Two weeks later, she captured Mentor, also a French privateer, of 14 six pounders and 79 men. During the chase, Mentor threw six of her guns overboard to lighten her and thus, albeit insufficiently, improve her speed. Both privateers had set out from Puerto Rico to cruise the coast of the United States. Around this time Lynx captured the privateer Solide. The merchants of St. Johns sent Hall a letter of appreciation for the protection this capture gave to the colony.The Gentleman's magazine, Volume 172, p.207.
On 6 July Lynx captured the American ship Pegasus. Four days later Lynx recaptured the American ship Liberty, from Philadelphia and bound for Liverpool, which a French privateer had captured on 4 July, a few hours after Liberty had left the Delaware River. On 8 August Lynx recaptured Friendship.
On 14 April 1799, she and captured the American merchant ship General Washington, declaring the arms and military stores on board "contraband".
On 17 September 1799 Lynx captured the brigantine Columbia. In October, Commander Alexander Skene took over command of Lynx.
On 31 August 1800 Lynx captured Vernang. Then on 8 September she captured Vrow Neltje. The gun-vessel shared in the capture of Vrow Neltje.
In June 1801 Lynx returned to Britain from Copenhagen carrying Captain John F. Devonshire and dispatches.The United service magazine, Part 1, p.97. She does not appear to have participated in the Battle of Copenhagen in April as her name does not appear in the list of vessels whose crews qualified to share in the prize money stemming from the battle, nor in the list of vessels whose crew qualified for the Naval General Service Medal for the battle.
Shortly thereafter, on 15 April, Lynx captured the Dutch vessels Charlottenburg and Lucchesine. Then on 31 July Lynx and captured Brockmerlust, with the capture of Neptunus following on 1 August. The next day Jalouse and Lynx captured the Vrow Caterine. On 8 August Lynx and captured Vryheid. Eight days later, Lynx and captured Prosperitas. On 6 September Lynx, Jalouse, Squirrel and Driver shared in the capture of three vessels, Snelle, Jager, and Engestede. Six days later, Lynx, Driver and shared in the capture of Cygnet. The next day Lynx and Driver captured Jussrow Harmyna. On 17 September Lynx, , and recaptured Pursuit. On 11 November Lynx and Driver captured Norden.
Commander John Willoughby Marshall took command of Lynx in June 1802.
Napoleonic Wars In the months before the resumption of war with France, the Navy started preparations that included impressing seamen. The crews of outbound Indiamen were an attractive target. and were sitting in the Thames in March 1803, taking their crews on board just prior to sailing. At sunset, a press gang from HMS Immortalite rowed up to Woodford, while boats from and Lynx approached Ganges. As the press gangs approached they were noticed, and the crews of both Indiamen were piped to quarters. That is, they assembled on the decks armed with pikes and cutlasses, and anything they could throw. The officers in charge of the press gangs thought this mere bravado and pulled alongside the Indiamen, only to meet a severe resistance from the crewmen, who had absolutely no desire to serve in the Royal Navy. The men from Immortalite suffered several injuries from shot and pike that were thrown at them, and eventually the marines opened fire with muskets, killing two sailors on Woodford. Even so, the press gangs were not able to get on board either Indiaman, and eventually withdrew some distance. When Woodfords officers finally permitted the press gang from Immortalite to board, all they found on board were a few sickly sailors.
On 23 May 1803, Lynx and Immortalite captured the French ship Paix. A year later, on 10 May 1804, Lynx and captured Union.
In July 1804 Lynx took numerous prizes. She took Four Brothers and Nike (or Nilea) on 10 July, Jonge Pieter Casper Piersberg on 12 July, and the brigs Jonge Jan and Jacobus Zeeper on 30 July. Lloyd's List reported that Lynx was in company with the sloop and the gun-brig , and that together they captured 10 vessels that were sailing from Riga to Emden carrying masts. By this account the vessels they captured were: Vrow Hermina, Bowman, master; Juno, Gulzeet, master; Frau Margaretta, Roloff, master; General Van Bloucher, Ruyle, master; Jonge Oune & Brower, Ruyle, master; Four Brothers, Stemmings, master; Jonge Peter Caspar, Jobs, master; Gute Foffnung; and Piepersburg. The British sent their captives into Yarmouth.Lloyd's List, no.4474, – Retrieved 16 October 2014.
In April 1806 Lynx captured several Prussian vessels. These were Electrum, Romulus, Goode Intentie, and Vrow Mazka, on the 15th, 21st, and 26th. Earlier, in company with and , Lynx captured the Prussian ship Einigkeit on 6 April. They also captured Jonge Ebeling, Freundschaft, and Morgenstern off Lieth. Then on 20 April Lynx captured another Prussian vessel, Fortuna.
On 21 April 1807, Lynx recaptured the brig Providence, Edward Fox, Master. Lynx, the hired armed cutter , and shared in the proceeds of the capture of the Danish merchant-vessel Adjutor, on 6 August. Eight days later Lynx, Resolution and shared in the capture of Aurora.
Lynx shared with in the capture of Catharina Frederika on 3 June. That same day the two British ships also captured the Philip. On 13 July they captured Jussrouw Antje. The gun-brig shared with Lynx the capture, on 7 May, of Rebecca and Jonge Tobias. Lynx also shared in the prize money for captures at Heligoland on 5 September in connection with the surrender of the Danish fleet at the Battle of Copenhagen.
On 22 March 1808, Lynx, , and were presentLogbook of HMS Falcon held at National Archives, Kew, London – reference ADM51/4446. at the Battle of Zealand Point, though they did not actually take part in the battle. In the battle the ships of the line and Nassau succeeded in destroying the Danish ship of the line .
In May, Lynx shared with in the capture of a schuyt. While sailing in company with the gun-brig , Lynx captured Jagten Sophia Cecilia on 12 July. On 16 November Lynx captured three vessels: Neptune, Resolution, and Elizabeth. In December, Lynx captured Achir, Kairn, Elizabeth, Haabert, Spimgeren, Venus, St. Andreas, Nicholay, and Ann, on the 11th, 13th, 14th, and 15 December.
On 30 April 1809 , in company with Lynx and , captured Charlotte.
On 12 August, Commander John Willoughby Marshall and Lynx, in the company of the gun-brig under the command of Lieutenant Thomas Fitzgerald, discovered three Danish luggers off the Danish coast. The water was too shallow for Lynx, so Marshall sent Monkey and boats from Lynx in to cut them out. The largest of the luggers, which had four guns and four howitzers, opened fire on Monkey before all three luggers ran ashore once Monkey and the launch's 18-pounder carronade returned fire. The British refloated the luggers and brought them out the next day, having taken no casualties. In their haste to quit the vessel, the Danes failed to fire the fuse on a cask of gunpowder they had left by the fireplace on the largest lugger. Marshall thought the Danes' behaviour in leaving the explosive device disgraceful. The largest lugger was Captain Japen (or Captain Jassen). She had had a crew of 45 men, who had fled, and during the engagement she had thrown two of her howitzers overboard. The second lugger, name unknown, had four guns and a crew of 20. The third lugger was Speculation, of three guns and 19 men. Her crew too had thrown two guns overboard. At the end of the month, on 27 August, Lynx captured a Danish sloop that also bore the name Speculation.
On 28 October 1809 captured Destrigheiden, Rinaldine and a sloop, name unknown, while in the company of Tartar and Lynx. By agreement, Marshall and Commander Joseph Baker of Tartar pooled their share of the prize money with that due Lieutenant Daniel Carpenter, the commander of Cheerful.
Vanguard and were in company with Lynx on 2 November when they captured Ornen and another vessel. Lynx was again in company with Vanguard on 4 November when they captured Frende Broder. Five days later Lynx captured the Danish sloops St. Ole and Sterkadder.