Gaspee Affair
- When
- 1772
- Where
- Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island; Narragansett Bay, near Gaspee Point; British authorities and Admiralty; Narragansett Bay and the Thirteen Colonies
- Episodes
- 4
In June 1772, Rhode Island patriots led by Abraham Whipple and John Brown attacked and burned HMS Gaspee, a Royal Navy revenue schooner enforcing customs collection in Narragansett Bay. The destruction sharply heightened tensions between colonists and Crown officials and preceded the Boston Tea Party by more than a year.
Episodes
- Gaspee Enforces Customs in Narragansett Bay
Lieutenant Duddingston sailed HMS Gaspee into Narragansett Bay in early 1772 to enforce customs collection and cargo inspection, provoking escalating resentment.
- British Response and Treason Charges
British authorities demanded apprehension and trial of the raiders, who were charged with treason despite the Dockyard Act's extradition provision.
- Escalation of Colonial Tensions
The affair sharply increased colonist-Crown tensions after the Boston Massacre and preceded the Boston Tea Party by more than a year.
- Attack and Burning of HMS Gaspee
Providence men in 18 boats, led by Abraham Whipple and John Brown, boarded and burned HMS Gaspee to the waterline, shooting Lieutenant Duddingston.
Background and detail
Background. HMS Gaspee was a Royal Navy revenue schooner that enforced the Navigation Acts around Newport, Rhode Island, in 1772. In early 1772, Lieutenant William Duddingston sailed the vessel into Narragansett Bay to enforce customs collection and mandatory inspection of cargo, and public resentment against the schooner and the British generally continued to escalate.
The Attack and Burning. Before the schooner could be moved, a band of Providence men in 18 boats, armed with pistols, guns, and clubs, and led by Abraham Whipple and John Brown, decided to act on the opportunity to end the trouble the Gaspee daily caused. One participant's affidavit testified the men intended to burn the schooner. They attacked, boarded, and burned the Gaspee to the waterline, and Duddingston was shot.
Aftermath and Significance. British authorities called for the apprehension and trial of those responsible for shooting Duddingston and destroying the Gaspee, and in 1772 the Admiralty would not ignore the destruction of a military vessel on station. The raiders were charged with treason despite the Dockyard Act of April 1772, which demanded extradition to England for anyone suspected of burning British ships. The affair sharply increased tensions, following the Boston Massacre of 1770, and marked an early act of violent uprising against Crown authority.
People involved
- Abraham Whipple · Patriot leader of the attack on HMS Gaspee
- John Brown · Patriot co-leader of the attack on HMS Gaspee
- William Duddingston · Lieutenant and commanding officer of HMS Gaspee, shot during the attack
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.