HMS America was a 64-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, designed by John Williams and built by Adam Hayes at Deptford Dockyard and was launched on 5 August 1777.

America was under way off the Azores on 13 December 1800 when she ran against the Formigas Reef and suffered severe damage to her hull.

On 27 December America's captain and senior officers were court martialled aboard HMS Carnatic, which was anchored off Port Royal, Jamaica.

All were acquitted when the court established that the grounding had been caused by errors in the ship's charts, upon which the reef was marked as being substantially to the south of its actual location.

[3] Following the grounding, America was withdrawn from active service and in 1801 was redesignated as a prison ship moored off Jamaica.