HMS Triton (1773)

HMS Triton was a modified Mermaid-class frigate sixth-rate 28-gun frigate of the Royal Navy.

Design, construction and armament
HMS Triton was a 28-gun sailing frigate built for the Royal Navy and designed by Thomas Slade. She was ordered on 25 December during the Falklands Crisis of 1770, a conflict that was resolved the following January, before work on her had begun.

Triton's keel of 103 ft was laid down in February at Bucklers Hard, Beaulieu, Hampshire under the supervision of the master shipwright Henry Adams. As built, her dimensions were 124 ft along the gundeck with a beam of 33 ft and a depth in hold of 11 ft, making her 620 $21⁄94$ tons burthen (bm).

Triton was a sixth rate, built to carry a main battery of twenty-four 9 pdr long guns on her upper deck, four 3 pdr on the quarterdeck.

Service
Following her launch on 1 October 1773, she was taken to Portsmouth Dockyard for full fitting out, a process taking two years.

She was first commissioned in August 1775 under Captain Skeffington Lutwidge, prior to her completion (fitting out) in November 1775. Only in March 1776 did she make her first trans-Atlantic voyage initially to North America and from 1777 stationed in the St Lawrence River where she remained for two years. During this period she captured the privateer "Pompey" on 13 Jne 1778

From February to April 1779 she was fitted with a copper bottom at Chatham Docks. She was fitted with six extra heavy guns in August. Returning to America she captured the American privateer "Gates" in September 1779.

On 8 January 1780 she was part of the attack on the Caracas Convoy off the coast of Spain, where around two dozen Royal Navy vessels attacked around a dozen Spanish merchant ships. Several ships were captured and recommissioned as Royal Navy ships including HMS St Fermin. Eight days later she was in the Battle of Cape St Vincent. A month later she had a further upgrade of guns.

She spent some time in the Leeward Islands and in December 1780 command passed briefly to Captain Andrew Sutherland before passing to Captain John McLaurin who took the ship to Tobago and on 12 April 1782 took part in the huge Battle of the Saintes against the French fleet which was amajor British victory. Afterwards she was berthed at St Kitts. Presumably damaged from the battle she was paid off in November and returned to England for "major repairs' at Limehouse Docks in London which took five months.

In December 1787 Captain Valentine Edwards took command and had an uneventful three years with the ship. She was recommissioned in June 1790 and refitted at Deptford. She then sailed for Jamaica under Captain George Murray.

In April 1794 Captain Scory Barker took command and took her on one final trip to Jamaica. She was paid off in November 1795 and broken in Deptford in January 1796.