The English frigate Gloucester (spelt Glocester by contemporary sources) was a Speaker-class third rate, built for the Navy of the Commonwealth of England.

The ship was ordered in December 1652 as part of the unprecedented expansion of the English navy during this period, during which 207 warships, mainly described as frigates, were built.

[2] Following the end of the English Civil War in 1649, the new Parliamentary regime was threatened by foreign powers and Royalist supporters exiled from England, who targeted maritime trade.

It assisted in defeating Royalists who threatened English maritime trade, reducing the threat from Royalist-sponsored privateers to commerce, and deterring them by the increased power and size of the fleet.

English naval power did much to persuade European governments of the need to recognize the Commonwealth,[9] and had by 1653 become a major force in shaping international relations.

[11] A large warship was vulnerable to raking fire, a volley of cannonballs directly in front or behind it, which could cause considerable damage, and the best protection—and the best form of attack—was having ships sailing together closely and in a straight line.

Early in the war the English government, recognising the usefulness of large ships, had ordered 30 frigates, to be built at the end of 1652.

Known as the Western Design, the expedition—consisting of 17 men-of-war, 20 transports with 3000 troops and horses, and other small craft—was intended by Cromwell to end Spanish dominance in the West Indies.

Blake, who returned home to England after Goodsonn forced him to resign,[20][note 2] was succeeded as captain of the Gloucester by Richard Newberry.

Gloucester, captained by William Whitehorne, and with 260 men and 60 guns, was one of 20 ships sent to conduct operations in the Sound, under the command of Goodsonn.

Renamed in 1660 as HMS Gloucester, the ship participated in the Battle of Lowestoft, forming part of the Red squadron (Van division).

[27] By the end of the battle, the English had captured or sunk 17 Dutch ships;[28] a number that would have been larger had not the ensuing pursuit been prematurely called off.

[31] On the last day, squadrons on both sides broke through enemy lines amid heavy fighting, but eventually the battered English fleet was forced to admit defeat and retreat.

The weaker and disorganised Dutch fleet, whose line of ships was deliberately made into a snake-like pattern, was heavily defeated.

The squadron was on its way to join the Duke of Albemarle, when it was spotted, and 30 Dutch ships, commanded by Willem Joseph van Ghent, were suddenly sent in pursuit.

The allies' fleet instead made for the Suffolk coastal town of Southwold to obtain provisions and impress men from the town—nearby Sole Bay had the ability to provide ships with a safe haven,[45] and the English were sure that the westerly winds would prevent any sudden attack.

[40] When the Dutch fleet was spotted approaching the English coast—achieving the surprise that its commander Michiel de Ruyter had wished for—the sailors ashore were forced to rush back onto their ships.

[43] During the battle, the Duke of York's flagship Prince was targeted by the Dutch, and was damaged enough for him to be forced firstly onto St. Michael, and then to London.

[43][48] Gloucester was in Red squadron (Centre division) during the Battles of Schooneveld off the coast of the Netherlands in late May and early June 1673.

[59] He intended to settle his affairs as Lord High Commissioner to the Parliament of Scotland, and collect his pregnant wife Mary of Modena (along with his daughter Anne from his previous marriage), before returning to London and taking up residence at his brother Charles's court.

[63] Gloucester, together with Ruby, Happy Return, Lark, Dartmouth and Pearl, and the royal yachts Mary, Katherine, Charlotte and Kitchen,[64][note 7] convened at Margate Road on 3 May.

[65][59] Ayres was an experienced navigator who was well aware of the dangers posed by sandbanks in the waters surrounding the eastern coast of England.

[64] The Duke was among those saved, but as many as 250 people drowned, including members of the royal party; it is thought that James's intransigence delayed the evacuation of the passengers and crew.

However, the lifting of the Sea forced her off of the Sand, and she went into 15 fathom Water before we could let go our Anchor, which proved the loss of many poor Mens Lives.

We Anchored and brought her Head up almost to Windward, we stil working with the Pumps and Bailing, but to no purpose; the Water encreasing so fast, that it was three Foot above the Gun-Deck, before we endeavoured to save our selves.

She sunk so fast, that before the Boats could take out the Men (although there was great diligence used) the Ship was under Water, and several of our Men perished with her, Sir John Berry hardly escaping by a Rope over the Stern, into Captain Wybourn's Boat.Protocol dictated that no-one could abandon a ship while there was still a member of the royal family aboard, so James' reluctance to leave the Gloucester, and his insistence that his strongbox containing his political documents should also be loaded onto his boat, delayed the start of the evacuation.

[75] In 2007, after a four-year-long search, the wreck of Gloucester was found 28 miles (45 km) off the Norfolk coast by an experienced underwater diving team, including brothers Lincoln and Julian Barnwell,[76][75][77] who have since retrieved a variety of artefacts, including the ship's bell, a cannonball, spectacles, unopened wine bottles, and a Bartmann jug.

[70][78] The finding of a 1674 pewter teaspoon produced by the English manufacturer Daniel Barton ruled out the possibility of the wreck being HMS Kent, the only other Royal Navy ship of the period to be shipwrecked in the area.

[80] The announcement of the finding of Gloucester was made in June 2022, having had to wait until after the ship's identity was confirmed, but also to protect the site, which is located in international waters.

[82][83] This article includes data released under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported UK: England & Wales Licence, by the National Maritime Museum, as part of the Warship Histories project.