Royal Charlotte ( 1789 ) Royal Charlotte was launched in 1789 as an East Indiaman for the British East India Company ( EIC ) . She made two trips to China for the EIC and on the second of these , after the outbreak of war with France in 1793 , assisted at the British capture of Pondicherry . Then , the Admiralty , desirous of quickly building up the Royal Navy , purchased a number of commercial vessels , including nine East Indiamen , to meet the need for small two - decker fourth rates to serve as convoy escorts . The Admiralty purchased " Royal Charlotte " in 1795 and renamed her HMS " Malabar " . She made a trip to the West Indies where she was the lead ship of a small squadron that captured some Dutch colonies . She foundered in 1796 while escorting a convoy in the North Atlantic . East Indiaman . " Royal Charlotte " was the first vessel built at Northfleet . Josiah Pryce , who was her captain for both her journeys to the Far East , seems to have been a thoroughly unpleasant and cruel person . Pryce left The Downs on 5 January 1790 , bound for St Helena , Benkulen and China . " Royal Charlotte " arrived at St Helena on 27 March . She reached Benkulen on 21 June , and Whampoa anchorage on 24 August . On her return leg , she crossed the Second Bar on 15 November , arrived at the Cape of Good Hope on 9 April 1791 , St Helena on 28 April , and returned to the Downs on 26 June . " Royal Charlotte " left The Downs on 27 December 1792 , bound for St Helena , Madras and China . She arrived at St Helena on 13 March 1793 and Madras on 10 June . From there she went to Pondicherry , arriving 14 July . There " Triton " , " Warley " , and " Royal Charlotte " participated in the capture of Pondicherry by maintaining a blockade of the port , together with . During the blockade the British also captured a vessel " from the islands " that was bringing in military supplies . Pondicherry surrendered on 23 August and " Royal Charlotte " returned to Madras , arriving on 27 August . On 1 October she arrived at Penang , where the EIC had recently built a factory . Nineteen days later she was at Malacca . Having left Malacca , the same three East Indiamen from Pondicherry participated in an action in the Straits of Malacca . They came upon a French frigate , with some six or seven of her prizes , replenishing her water casks ashore . The three British vessels immediately gave chase . The frigate fled towards the Sunda Strait , abandoning her prizes . The Indiamen were able to catch up with a number of the prizes , and after a few cannon shots , were able to retake them . The British then returned the prizes to their crews , and took the French prize crews aboard as prisoners of war . " Royal Charlotte " arrived at Whampoa on 14 December . At Whampoa that December were several other East Indiamen , among which were several that on their return to Britain the Admiralty would purchase : " Warley " , " Ceres " , " Earl of Abergavenny " , and " Hindostan " . The British Government had chartered " Hindostan " to take Lord Macartney to China in an unsuccessful attempt to open diplomatic and commercial relations with the Chinese empire . " Royal Charlotte " crossed the Second Bar on 16 February 1794 and reached St Helena on 19 June . She arrived at The Downs on 8 September . Royal Navy service & loss . " Royal Charlotte " was commissioned in April 1795 under Captain Thomas Parr and renamed HMS " Malabar " the next month , as the royal yacht HMY " Royal Charlotte " was still in service . Thomas Pitcher , who had built the now " Malabar " , refitted her for naval service , completing the work on 17 July . " Malabar " sailed for the West Indies on 24 February 1796 . On 15 April , Captain Parr was the naval commander of a small task force that included " Malabar " , the frigate HMS " Undaunted " , , , and some transports , and 1200 troops from the 39th , 93rd and 99th Regiments of Foot under Major - General John Whyte to capture the Dutch settlements of Demerara , Essequibo , and Berbice . The 64 - gun third rate , under the command of Captain Francis Laforey , joined the squadron at Demerara . Demerara amd Esseqquibo surrendered on the 22nd , and Berbice followed on the 2nd of May . At Demerara the British also captured the Dutch 24 - gun ship " Thetis " , the 12 - gun cutter " Seagull " , and several merchant vessels . The Royal Navy took " Thetis " and the cutter into service . " Malabar " left Jamaica in July as escort for a convoy sailing for Britain . Some 800 miles west of Land ' s End she separated from the convoy in bad weather . By 5 October the weather was a full Atlantic storm . " Malabar " did not handle the storm well , losing all three masts , and having her tiller broken and rudder unshipped . Four cannonades came loose and killed one man , injured four others , and damaged her boats before they could be tumbled into the hold . The crew threw her guns overboard and , once the winds had dropped , jury - rigged her , but her timbers started to give way and let in water . On 8 October the merchant brig " Martha " , of Whitby , came up . She took on " Malabar " s crew , and the ship herself was abandoned on 11 October . The subsequent court martial dismissed the service of a Lieutenant Crocombe for having spent much of the time of he crisis in the wardroom drunk . It also reprimanded the master for joining Crocombe in his drinking and for getting disablingly drunk .