HMS Childers (1778)

French batteries firing at Childers off Brest (1793); National Maritime Museum
History
Great Britain
Name	HMS Childers
Ordered	30 September 1777
Builder	James Mentone & Son, Limehouse
Laid down	3 April 1778
Launched	7 September 1778
Commissioned	October 1778
Out of service	Paid off in January 1811
Honours and awards	Naval General Service Medal with clasp "Childers 14 March 1808"[1]
Fate	Taken to pieces in February 1811
General characteristics [2]
Class and type	Childers-class brig-sloop
Tons burthen	20615⁄94 (bm)
Length	79 ft 0 in (24.1 m) (gundeck) 60 ft 9+1⁄2 in (18.5 m) (keel)
Beam	25 ft 3 in (7.7 m)
Depth of hold	10 ft 11+3⁄4 in (3.3 m)
Propulsion	Sails
Sail plan	Two masted brig-rigged
Complement	80
Armament	10 × 4-pounder guns (increased to 14 guns by 1793) + 12 × 1⁄2-pounder swivel guns Later: 14 × 12-pounder carronades[a]

HMS Childers was a brig-sloop of the British Royal Navy, initially armed with 10 carriage guns which were later increased to 14 guns. The first brig-sloop to be built for the Navy, she was ordered from a commercial builder during the early years of the American War of Independence, and went on to support operations in the English Channel and the Caribbean. Laid up for a time after the end of the American War of Independence, she returned to service shortly before the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars. She had an active career in both the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, capturing numerous French privateers and during the Gunboat War participated in a noteworthy single-ship action. The navy withdrew her from service at the beginning of 1811, at which time she was broken up.

Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).