Caldicot Castle (1794 ship)

History
Great Britain
Name	Caldicot Castle
Namesake	Caldicot Castle
Owner	1794:H. Wife[1] 1796:M'Iver 1797:Timperon 1798:Litt & Co. 1799:Timperon 1803:Jones & Co. 1806:Dowson 1820:Hart 1823:Laings 1829:S. Keene 1830:Isabella Skee[2]
Launched	1794,[2][a] Caldicot[1]
Fate	Wrecked October 1828; last listed in 1832
General characteristics
Tons burthen	262, or 266,[3] or 268,[2] or 270,[3] or 292[1] (bm)
Propulsion	Sail
Complement	1796:30[3] 1799:30[3] 1800:25[3]
Armament	1796:16 × 6&4-pounder guns[3] 1799:16 × 6&4-pounder guns[3] 1800:16 × 6-pounder guns[3]

Caldicot Castle (or Caldecot Castle, or Caldecott Castle) was built in 1794 at Caldicot, Monmouthshire. The French captured her twice; the second time she engaged her captor in a single ship action. She also survived the perils of the sea in 1803, 1807, and 1819. She was wrecked in October 1828 and was last listed in 1832.

Caldicot Castle appears in the 1794 volume of Lloyd's Register with P. Driscoll, master, and trade Bristol—Quebec.^[1]

On 18 March 1795, as Caldecot Castle, Driscol, master, was sailing from Barcelona to Guernsey, a French squadron of six ships-of-the-line, two frigates, and a corvette captured her off Cape St. Vincent. However, on 30 March, Robust, of Admiral Colpoy's squadron, recaptured her and took her into Falmouth.^[4][5] Ten British warships, Astraea, London, Colossus, Robust, Hannibal, Valiant, Thalia, Cerberus, and Santa Margarita, shared in the proceeds of Caldicot Castle's recapture on 28 March.^[6][7]

In January 1803 Caldicot Castle was returning to Liverpool from Quebec when she had to put in at Crookhaven. She had lost her mizzen mast and rudder, and sustained other damage.^[8]

Lloyd's List reported on 4 May 1804, that privateers had captured Sarah, Cannell, master, Caldicot Castle, Skerrett, master, and Hector, Williams, master, and taken them into Guadeloupe.^[9][b] Captain Richard Sherrat wrote a letter from Barbados on 14 April in which he described the attack. He had sailed Caldicot Castle from Demerara on 27 February, and by 8 March was about 200 miles east of Guadeloupe when at 8 pm two privateers, a schooner and a ship, came up and opened fire. After about 15 minutes, the schooner had sustained damages and had sheered off. By 9:20 the ship also sheared off but remained in sight. Next morning at 6am the ship recommenced the engagement. After about 15 minutes Sherrat had to strike. Caldicot Castle's rigging had been cut to pieces and he and two other men had been wounded, one mortally. The privateer was Grand Decide, which was armed with twenty 9-pounder and two 12-pounder brass guns, and had a crew of 160 men.^[10][c]

Caldicott Castle returned to British hands, though how is not clear. Her entry in Lloyd's Register for 1805 is marked "captured", but also shows a change of master.

On 18 November 1817 Lloyd's List reported that Caldicot Castle had arrived at Portsmouth, having sailed from Malta via Gibraltar in company with several other transports until heavy weather had separated them.^[12]

On 4 December 1819, Caldicott Castle ran aground and was severely damaged at Sunderland, County Durham.^[13]

It was reported on 20 October 1828, that Caldicot Castle had struck a rock and sunk at Milford but by 15 October, had been raised and pulled up on Laurenny Beach.^[14] Caldicot Castle was last listed in 1832.

• Demerliac, Alain (2003). La marine du Consulat et du Premier Empire: nomenclature des navires français de 1800 à 1815 (in French). Éd. Ancre. ISBN 2-903179-30-1. OCLC 162449062.
• Williams, Gomer (1897). History of the Liverpool Privateers and Letters of Marque: With an Account of the Liverpool Slave Trade. W. Heinemann.