HMS Culloden (1776)
HMS Culloden was a 74-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built at Deptford Dockyard, England, and launched on 18 May 1776. She was the fourth warship to be named after the Battle of Culloden, which took place in Scotland in 1746 and saw the defeat of the Jacobite rising.
Engraving of HMS Culloden | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Great Britain | |
| Name | Culloden |
| Ordered | 30 November 1769 |
| Builder | Deptford Dockyard |
| Laid down | July 1770 |
| Launched | 18 May 1776 |
| Fate | Ran aground 23 January 1781 on Culloden Point, Montauk, New York and destroyed to avoid falling into the hands of the enemy. |
| Notes |
|
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Culloden-class ship of the line |
| Tons burthen | 1659 (bm) |
| Length | 170 ft (52 m) (gundeck) |
| Beam | 47 ft 2 in (14.38 m) |
| Depth of hold | 19 ft 11 in (6.07 m) |
| Propulsion | Sails |
| Sail plan | Full-rigged ship |
| Complement | 650 officers and men |
| Armament |
|
H.M.S. Culloden Shipwreck Site | |
U.S. National Register of Historic Places | |
| Nearest city | Montauk, New York |
| Coordinates | 41°4′20.5″N 71°57′38.3″W |
| NRHP reference No. | 79003795 |
| Added to NRHP | 5 March 1979 |
She served with the Channel Fleet during the American War of Independence. May, 1778 under command of Capt. George Balfour. She saw action at the Battle of Cape St Vincent, before being sent out to the West Indies. Her stay there was brief, sailing for New York City with Admiral Rodney in August 1780 to join the North American station. The ship's specific duties were to blockade the French at Newport, Rhode Island where a French army of 6,000 had disembarked in July 1780.
On 23 January 1781, while trying to intercept French ships attempting to run the blockade at Newport, Rhode Island, Culloden encountered severe weather and ran aground at North Neck Point (Will's Point) in Montauk. All attempts to refloat the vessel were unsuccessful, but all the crew were saved, and Culloden's masts were taken aboard HMS Bedford. The area is today known as Culloden Point.