page_title: HMS Greenwich (1747)
section_title: Capture
hierarchical_section_title: HMS Greenwich (1747) / British career / Capture
caption_attribution_description: English: Joseph_de_Bauffremont_with_M_de_Broves_being_welcome_into_Smyrne_by_the_French_Consul_28_September_1766_detail.
context_page_description: HMS Greenwich was a 50-gun fourth rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy. She was built during the War of the Austrian Succession, and went on to see action in the Seven Years' War, during which she was captured by the French and taken into their service under the same name. She was wrecked shortly afterwards.
  Built at Lepe, Greenwich was one of a number of 50-gun ships designed to the dimensions laid down in the 1745 Establishment. She had only three British commanders during her career with the Royal Navy. Her first, John Montagu, commanded her during the end of the War of the Austrian Succession, after which she was surveyed and probably laid up. She was returned to active service under William Holburne with the outbreak of the Seven Years' War, though he was soon succeeded by Robert Roddam. Roddam took her out to the Caribbean, where in 1757 he fell in with a French squadron under Joseph de Bauffremont. Despite being heavily outnumbered, Roddam fought his ship for 12 hours before surrendering her.
context_section_description: Roddam cruised for a while off Cape Cabron, San Domingo, but on 18 March 1757 mysterious sails were sighted, which were at first assumed to be a small fleet of merchant ships being conveyed by two frigates. This was in fact a squadron of French warships under Joseph de Bauffremont, consisting of the 84-gun Tonnant, the 74-gun ships Diadème and Desauncene, the 64-gun ships Éveillé and Inflexible, the frigates Sauvage and Brune, and a 20-gun storeship.  The French were to windward, and Bauffremont, unsure of Greenwich's identity, sent one of his frigates to examine her. Realising that with the wind in the Frenchman's favour, he could not escape, Roddam attempted to lure the frigate towards him, hoping to capture her before the rest of the fleet could intervene, and then send her immediately to Rear-Admiral George Townshend, the commander at Jamaica, with news of the French movements. 
  The frigate soon determined that Greenwich was a two-decked warship, and sailed back to the protection of the squadron, which then came up and attacked, with action commencing at 9 a.m. when Diadème opened fire. For the next twelve hours Greenwich was constantly engaged with one or other of the French ships. Roddam assembled his men in an attempt to board the 64-gun Éveillé, but several of her consorts bore up and opened fire, damaging Greenwich's rigging and leaving her unmanageable. After consulting with his officers, Roddam expressed his desire to fight on, but eventually agreed to surrender Greenwich, as further resistance would only cause further casualties among his men.
  The colours were then struck to Éveillé, but Roddam refused her commander's demands that he come aboard his ship, instead insisting the French send a boat for him. Roddam threatened to rehoist the colours and defend the ship until she sank if this was not done, and eventually a French officer was sent across in a boat. The French took possession of Greenwich, ransacking her, then taking Roddam and his men to Hispaniola where they were imprisoned.
caption: Joseph de Bauffremont, whose squadron captured Greenwich off San Domingo
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