HMS Ringdove ( 1806 ) HMS " Ringdove " ( or " Ring Dove " ) was a Royal Navy 18 - gun " Cruizer " - class brig - sloop that Matthew Warren built at Brightlingsea and launched in 1806 . She took some prizes and participated in three actions or campaigns that qualified her crew for clasps to the Naval General Service Medal . The Admiralty sold her in 1829 to Samuel Cunard , who would go on to found the Cunard Line . Napoleonic Wars . " Ringdove " was commissioned in 1806 under Commander George Andrews for the Baltic and the North Sea . On 7 January " Ringdove " was in the company of " Ariadne " when " Ringdove " captured the French letter of marque lugger " Trente et Quarante " . The lugger was three months old and 16 days out of Dunkirk without having taken any prizes . She was under the command of M . Fanqueux , carried 16 guns ( 6 and 9 - pounders ) , of which 14 were mounted , and had a crew of 65 . Next day , two brigs , which turned out to be the Excise vessel " Royal George " and " Sappho " , were chasing a French lugger when " Ariadne " and " Ringdove " came on the scene . " Royal George " , J . T . Currie ( or Curry ) , Commander , then captured the French lugger , which was the privateer " Eglee " ( or " Eglé " ) , under the command of M . Olivier . She was armed with 16 guns , all 3 or 4 - pounders , and had left Dunkirk on 31 December . She had made one capture , the brig " Gabriel " , of Yarmouth , which she had taken the night before and scuttled . Captain A . Farquhar of " Ariadne " saw " Gabriel " still floating and dispatched " Ringdove " to investigate . Andrews reported that the brig was sinking so fast that it was impossible to save her . However , " Gabriel ' s " Master and crew were aboard " Eglé " . Farquhar then sent " Trente et Quarante " and " Eglé " into Yarmouth . Later in 1808 " Ringdove " came under the temporary command of Lieutenant George Peak and was deployed to the Shetland Islands . Within a few weeks , Peak had captured the Danish privateer " Forden Shieold " ( or " Torden Skiöld " ) off Bergen , Norway on 30 March . She was only four hours out of port . Initially " Forden Shieold " would not surrender but after a few shots from " Ringdove " had killed one man and wounded two others she struck . The bad weather prevented Peak from taking her crew of 62 men prisoners until the next day . The privateer was pierced for 14 guns , but only carried ten 6 - pounder guns . She had already captured five prizes in voyages over the previous four months . Peak was commended for his capture and the crew received prize money for the hull , stores and head money at Leith the following October . On 14 December 1808 " Ringdove " sailed for the Leeward Islands . She was at the invasion of Martinique in February 1809 . In 1847 the Admiralty authorized the issuance to all remaining survivors of the campaign of the Naval General Service Medal with clasp " Martinique " . George Andrews returned to command , but then in June 1809 command passed to Commander Humphrey Fleming Senhouse . He remained in command until December . Command passed to Commander William Dowers . " Ringdove " took part in the Action of 17 December 1809 in which a British squadron , first under Captain Volant Vashon Ballard and then under Captain Samuel James Ballard , destroyed two French frigates , the " Loire " and the " Seine " . During the operations , French batteries opened fire on the British force , one shot striking " Ringdove " , then off Pointe Lizard . Dowers landed a shore party that stormed the battery , capturing it in 15 minutes . He demolished the position and withdrew to his ship , rejoining Volant Ballard off Anse la Barque at Basse Terre Island . Subsequently , " Ringdove " was also at the Invasion of Guadeloupe , and the invasion of Sint Maarten and Sint Eustatius . These actions led to the award in 1847 of the clasps " Anse La Barque 18 Decr . 1809 " and " Guadaloupe " to the Naval General Service Medal . " Ringdove " remained in the Leeward Islands through 1812 . July 1812 proved a month of successful prize - taking for " Ringdove " . On 7 July she captured the brig " Enterprise " , of 193 tons ( bm ) , from St . Ube ' s , bound to New York . The " Enterprise " was carrying a cargo of salt . The next day she captured the " Russel " , bound to Marblehead and laden with fish . On 9 July " Ringdove " captured the " Hunter " , which was sailing to Sable Island with a cargo of fish . Nine days later " Ringdove " captured the ship " Magnet " , of 172 tons ( bm ) , from Belfast , bound to New York , with passengers , and a small quantity of linen . Apparently " Ringdove " was in company with the hired ketch " Gleaner " . On 19 July " Ringdove " captured the schooner " Rover " , of 98 tons ( bm ) , sailing from Liverpool for Amelia Island . " Rover " was carrying coals , earthenware , and hardware . Once again " Gleaner " was in sight . On the same day she " Ringdove " captured the ship " Four Sisters " , of 204 tons ( bm ) , from Lisbon , bound to New York , and laden with 1000 dollars . The next day " Ringdove " captured the brig " Hesper " , of 264 tons ( bm ) . " Hesper " was sailing in ballast from Liverpool to Norfolk . The run of good fortune continued into August when on 1 August " Ringdove " captured three vessels . First came the " Eight Sisters " , bound to Boston , and sailing in ballast . Second was the " Hannibal " , bound to St . Bartholomew with a cargo of flour . Lastly , " Ringdove " captured the " Orpha " , which was sailing to Puerto Rico , also with a cargo of flour . At some point " Ringdove " also captured the " San Pedro " and the " Marstrand " . On 2 June 1813 she sailed for the North America station . On 30 June she was one of the vessels that were present at the capture of the Letter of marque " Ulysses " , Sam Hill , Master . Then , on 28 July , she retook the brig " Stamper " which had been sailing Liverpool to Halifax . " Ringdove " returned to the Jamaica station in 1814 . Post - war . " Ringdove " remained in the West Indies until the end of 1815 when she returned to Portsmouth and was paid off there . There she underwent a major repair from January to July 1818 . In August 1821 her forecastle and head were housed over . She was then fitted for sea between December 1822 and February 1823 . Commander George Rich recommissioned her in November 1822 for the West Indies . Commander Edwin Rich , his brother , succeeded him in July 1823 . In August 1826 she was under Commander Edward Thornbrough at Halifax , Nova Scotia . In April 1827 command transferred to Commander Charles English . Fate . The Admiralty sold " Ringdove " to Samuel Cunard & Co . at Halifax for £505 on 11 June 1829 . Cunard was a Nova Scotian who built up a fleet of 40 sailing vessels before founding the Cunard Line in 1840 .