Launched in June 1777, she was commissioned the following month and sent to the West Indies where she formed part of a squadron under Vice-admiral Clark Gayton, attacking American shipping interests in the area.

[2] At the beginning of 1794 Aurora was among the British vessels assisting Sir David Dundas in capturing the town of San Fiorenzo, Corsica.

Returning to the West Indies in 1808, she joined Charles Dashwood's squadron which took possession of the town of Samaná in November and in July 1809, escorted a large force under Hugh Lyle Carmichael sent to expel the French from the city of Santo Domingo.

[4] Designed to take a complement of 200 men, her armament consisted of a 24-gun main battery of 9-pounders on the upper deck with four 3-pound guns on the quarterdeck.

[6] In April 1778, Aurora was part of Admiral James Young's squadron in the Leeward Islands and, at some point before 13 March, had captured the sloop, Fly from North Carolina.

[a][9] Between late April and early May 1781, Aurora took two French privateers in The Channel, Le Compte de Guichen and L'Esperance, which was captured off Land's End.

Lloyd's List for 14 December 1781 reported that Aurora and the armed ship Heart of Oak had sent the Three Sisters, Cornelieson, master, into Penzance.

[4][13] With the assistance of HMS Lively, on 29 April, Aurora captured the Marquis d'Aubeterre, a French privateer, and recaptured the two brigs in her company, Hope and Two Brothers.

First Lieutenant Crofton and a midshipman, Thomas Vanderdussen, presented evidence that Rodgers would regularly drink himself into a stupor in his cabin or one of the ship's boats, and would refuse, whilst drunk, to let any of the crew carry out carpentry tasks in his absence.

[20] When Garnier drowned in December 1796, Philip Wodehouse briefly became Aurora's captain before command passed to Henry Digby in January 1797.

[21] Whilst cruising off the coast of Portugal on 13 August 1797, Aurora encountered and captured the Marie Anne, a 14-gun privateer, 21 days out of Nantes.

In November, Aurora was involved in a nine-hour chase off Cape Roxent, Madiera, which resulted in the capture of a French schooner, L'Aventure.

[26] While cruising off the north-west coast of Spain, on 6 June 1798, Aurora spotted and chased an unidentified, armed vessel which sought shelter in the fog, in the bay of Curmes.

With Aurora providing covering fire, two of her boats were sent in to investigate and, on discovering a brigantine and a schooner, burned the former and scuttled the latter, before returning with three of their number wounded.

Instead, two battleships cruised up and down outside the harbour, creating a diversion while Aurora, Cormorant and Argo escorted the transports a little further along the coast to Addaya creek.

Using guns taken from three of the squadron's ships, these troops were able tor drive off two divisions of Spaniards who were hoping to regain control of the recently deserted battery at the mouth of the creek.

[34] Later that evening, Centaur and Leviathan, having been anchored off the entrance to the creek during the landings, returned to Fournella with Argo whilst Aurora, Cormorant and seven transports proceeded to create a diversion of Port Mahon.

On 9 November, a detachment of 300 British troops captured Mahón and removed a boom across the harbour which had been preventing access to Aurora and Cormorant.

George Seymour became her captain in June 1806 then in 1808, command passed to John Duer who sailed her to Jamaica that April, where she became part of Charles Dashwood's squadron that took possession of the town of Samaná in November 1808.

[37][38] Dashwood in the 36-gun La Franchise was accompanied by Aurora, Daedalus, Reindeer and the brig, Port Mahon, when they captured the town of Samaná, on the east end of the island, against minimal resistance on 11 November.

[39] William Pryce Cumby in the 64-gun Polyphemus assisted by Aurora, escorted the squadron of sloops and transports that carried the troops and artillery for these operations.