Captain Seth Jermy (1653–1724) was an officer of the Royal Navy, famous for fighting a particularly hard-fought action against an overwhelming French force while commander of HMS Nightingale.

For the next five years HMS Nightingale's duties consisted of escorting colliers and corn ships between the Forth, Tyne, Humber and Thames, protecting them from French privateers.

On the morning of the battle, a squadron of six French galleys, whose commodore, the Chevalier de Langeron, flew his flag in the La Palme, set out from Dunkirk in good weather.

With the commodore was Captain Smith, a renegade Englishman, who had obtained authority to attack and pillage the town of Harwich, using de Langeron's squadron which carried the incendiary materials and a division of soldiers.

Hardly had they hove-to than a lookout reported an English convoy thirty-five merchantmen and an escorting frigate to the northward, heading west.

The French Commodore called a council of war, which decided to try to capture the convoy instead of attacking Harwich – much to Smith's annoyance.

The French called the English cowards, and de Langeron ordered his galley to drive its beak, the strongest part, into Nightingale's stern, her weakest point, preparatory to boarding her.

Nightingale secured La Palme with grappling irons, and fired a broadside of grapeshot; at the same time a hail of grenades came from aloft.

With La Palme rendered useless, de Langeron himself hoisted the distress signal to summon his squadron to his aid, even though the four galleys had already forced most of the convoy to strike sail.

Twenty-five grenadiers from each galley boarded the frigate, but were driven back by a murderous fire from the officers gathered under the poop, and by blows from the pikes and swords of the crew, who were under a grating set in the top deck.

His officers told de Langeron that he would blow up the powder magazine, to which he had easy access, rather than surrender; this would threaten three thousand Frenchman's lives.

The commodore complimented him on his bravery; he replied, "I have no regret for the loss of my ship, since I have succeeded in my design, which was to save the convoy entrusted to my care.