HMS Cressy (1810)

HMS Cressy was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 7 March 1810 at Frindsbury.

Service
On 24 December 1811 Cressy was off the west coast of Jutland, Denmark, under command by commander Charles Dudley Pater and in the company of HMS St George (1785), under Rear-admiral Robert Carthew Reynolds, and HMS Defence (1763), when an extratropical cyclone and heavy seas came up. St George was jury-rigged and so Captain Atkins of Defence refused to leave her without the Admiral's permission. As a result, both were wrecked near Ringkøbing. Cressy did not ask for permission and so avoided wrecking.

Both St George and Defence lost almost all their crews, including the Admiral. Most of the bodies that came ashore were buried in the sand dunes of Thorsminde, which have been known ever since as "Dead Mens Dunes".

Shortly after the outbreak of the War of 1812, on 12 August, Cressy shared in the seizure of several American vessels: Cuba, Caliban, Edward, Galen, Halcyon, and Cygnet.

On 11 February 1813m Severn ran down and sank Wargrave. Cressy rescued Wargrave's crew. Wargrave, Ostler, master, was on a voyage from Dublin to Surinam.

Fate
She was broken up in 1832.