History
Great Britain
Name	Cicero
Namesake	Cicero
Builder	Sunderland
Launched	1796
Fate	Wrecked and condemned 1832
General characteristics
Tons burthen	429[1][2] (bm)
Complement	1798:25[2] 1799:30[2] 1800:36[2]
Armament	1798:10 × 9-pounder guns[2] 1799:10 × 9-pounder guns[2] 1800:18 × 9-pounder guns[2] 1804:8 × 6-pounder guns 1808:2 × 6-pounder guns + 8 × 18-poundercarronades

Cicero was launched at Sunderland in 1796 and initially sailed as aWest Indiaman. She was briefly captured in 1799 in asingle-ship action with a French privateer. Later, she wentwhale hunting both in thenorthern whale fishery (1803-1808), and thesouthern whale fishery (1816-1823). She capsized at Limerick in September 1832 and was condemned there.

Cicero first enteredLloyd's Register (LR) in 1798 with M.May, master, T.Barton, owner, and trade Liverpool–Barbados.^[3] Between 1798, and perhaps before, until c.1802, her owners were the Liverpool firm ofBarton, Irlam and Higginson.

Captain Matthew May acquired aletter of marque on 15 November 1798. On 22 April 1799Lloyd's List (LL), reported that asCicero was on her way to Barbados a French privateer captured her. However,Cicero was retaken.^[4]

Cicero had been sailing from Cape Verde when she was captured on 25 February.

CaptainJohn Barry was sailing theUSS United States east ofMarie-Galante when on 26 February he sighted two ships. He capturedCicero, of Liverpool and 430 tons (bm), put a prize crew on board, and sailed after her captor, the French privateerDemocrat, of 12 guns and 100 men.^[a] At nightfallUnited States had to give up the chase and she rejoinedCicero.Cicero had resisted her initial capture and had many casualties.^[7] The American prize master reported thatCicero's master and three men had been killed, and that 26 men were wounded. Her crew had consisted of 35 men and 15 boys. Her cargo consisted of live stock such as oxen, jackasses, and horses, and the prize master estimated that it was worth $30,000, of which one-eighth would accrue toUnited States as salvage.^[8]

In the 36 or so hours since her capture her French captors had leftCicero's dead and wounded unattended. Barry took the wounded intoUnited States's sick bay and put the 33-man French prize crew into her hold as prisoners.United States then sailed south toSaint-Pierre, Martinique, whereCicero was libelled.^[7][b]

Captain James Burton sailed her home. He acquired a letter of marque on 2 August 1799.^[2]LR (1799) showed her master changing from May to James Burne.

Captain John Crosbie acquired a letter of marque on 25 February 1800.^[2] In 1801 there is a report of her sailing in company withBarton (another Barton, Irlam and Higginson ship) from Demerara to Liverpool and passing Barbados on 18 May.^[10]

In 1802–1803 her owners soldCicero and she then spent about five years as a Greenland whaler.

While Haskayne wasCicero's master, he sailed her fromNarva to Liverpool. A letter from Elsinor dated 25 October 1803 reported that she had gone onshore atSaltholm.^[11] The next report was that she had gone onshore atDragoe, but that she had been gotten off.^[12]

Between 1816 and 1823,Cicero made three whaling voyages to the British Southern Whale Fishery for Gale & Co.^[13]

1st whaling voyage (1816–1818): Captain Taylor sailed in 1816. He returned to Britain on 13 July 1818 with 500 casks ofwhale oil, and fins.^[13]

2nd whaling voyage (1818–1820): Captain Brown sailed from Britain on 24 August 1818.Cicero put intoDelagoa Bay in 1820 to effect repairs, and returned to Britain on 24 March 1820. She was under the command of Captain Kelly when she returned.^[13] She underwent a large repair in 1820.

3rd whaling voyage (1820–1823): Captain Baxter sailed on 29 June 1820. Captain Clarke returnedCicero to Britain on 12 August 1823 with 420 casks of whale oil.^[13]

Captain Friend sailed from London on 8 July 1825 and arrived at Quebec on 4 September, with passengers.

Cicero, Evans, master, ran aground in theRiver Shannon atLimerick on 21 September 1832 and capsized. She was on a voyage from Limerick toQuebec City.^[14] She was condemned at Limerick.

• Clark, William Bell (1938).Gallant John Barry 1745 1803 The Story Of A Naval Hero Of Two Wars. Macmillan.
• Demerliac, Alain (1999).La Marine de la Révolution: Nomenclature des Navires Français de 1792 A 1799 (in French). Éditions Ancre.ISBN 2-906381-24-1.
• Hackman, Rowan (2001).Ships of the East India Company. Gravesend, Kent: World Ship Society.ISBN 0-905617-96-7.
• United States: United States. Office of Naval Records and Library (1935)Naval Documents Related to the Quasi-war Between the United States and France: Naval Operations ... February 1797-December 1801. Volume 3. U.S. Government Printing Office.

• 1796 ships
• Ships built on the River Wear
• Age of Sail merchant ships of England
• Captured ships
• Maritime incidents in 1799
• Maritime incidents in 1803
• Shipwrecks of Denmark
• Whaling ships
• Maritime incidents in September 1832
• Shipwrecks of Ireland
• Shipwrecks in rivers

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