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Spanish frigate El Gamo

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Capture of the El Gamo (Clarkson Frederick Stanfield, 1845)
History
Spain
NameEl Gamo
NamesakeSpanish for "the fallow deer"
Captured6 May 1801 by HMS Speedy
FateSold to the Regency of Algiers as a merchant ship
General characteristics
Class and type32-gun xebec-frigate
Displacement≈600 tons
Sail planInterchangeable xebec-rigged and ship-rigged
Complement319
Armament
  • 32 guns:
  • 22 × 12-pounder guns
  • 8 × 8-pounder guns
  • 2 × 24-pounder carronades

El Gamo was a 32-gun xebec-frigate of the Spanish Navy captured by the Royal Navy sloop-of-war HMS Speedy in the action of 6 May 1801. The engagement was notable for the large disparity between the size and firepower of El Gamo and Speedy; the former was around four times the size, had much greater firepower and a crew six times the size of Speedy, which had a reduced crew of 54 at the time.[1] After her capture, the British sold El Gamo to the Regency of Algiers as a merchant ship.

References

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  1. ^ Thomas, Donald (2002). Cochrane: The Story of Britannia's Sea Wolf. London, United Kingdom: Orion Books. ISBN 978-0304356591.
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