Attack and Burning of HMS Gaspee
- When
- June 1772
- Where
- Narragansett Bay, near Gaspee Point
- Part of
- Gaspee Affair
Providence men in 18 boats, led by Abraham Whipple and John Brown, boarded and burned HMS Gaspee to the waterline, shooting Lieutenant Duddingston.
A band of Providence men in 18 boats, armed with pistols, guns, and clubs, and led by Abraham Whipple and John Brown, resolved to end the trouble and vexation the Gaspee daily caused; an affidavit from one participant testified they intended to burn the schooner. The men attacked, boarded, and burned the Gaspee to the waterline. British midshipman William Dickinson described the attackers as merchants and masters of vessels examining his papers, and British authorities later sought those responsible for shooting Duddingston and destroying the vessel.
Sources
- Gaspee affair Wikipedia, revision of 2026-08-12
- HMS Gaspee Wikipedia, revision of 2026-06-14
Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.