HMS Carmen

History
Spain
NameNuestra Señora del Carmén
NamesakeOur Lady of Mount Carmel
BuilderFerrol, Spain
Laid down17 June 1769
Launched24 November 1770
FateCaptured 7 April 1800
Great Britain
NameHMS Carmen
NamesakeTruncation of Spanish name
AcquiredBy capture 7 April 1800
CommissionedDecember 1800
Honours and
awards
Naval General Service Medal (NGSM) with clasp "Egypt"
FateSold February 1802
General characteristics
Tons burthen9076794 (bm)
Length
  • 147 ft 2 in (44.9 m) (overall);
  • 119 ft 9 in (36.5 m) (keel)
Beam37 ft 9 in (11.5 m)
Depth of hold11 ft 0 in (3.4 m)
Complement
  • At capture: 140
  • British service: 260
Armament
  • At capture: 36 guns
  • British service
    • Upper deck: 26 × 12-pounder guns
    • QD: 6 × 6-pounder guns
    • Fc: 2 × 6-pounder guns

HMS Carmen (often referred to as El Carmen, or sometimes Carmine, in historical documents), was a British Royal Navy frigate captured from the Spanish Navy in the Action of 7 April 1800. She previously served in the Spanish Navy as Nuestra Señora del Carmén from 1771 to 1800.

In Spanish service, Nuestra Señora del Carmén was named for Our Lady of Mount Carmel, a Roman Catholic title of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Nuestra Señora del Carmén operated against North African pirates, took part in the invasion of Algiers in 1775, saw combat in the Anglo-French War of 1778–1783, participated in the bombardment of Algiers in 1783, and fought in the French Revolutionary Wars.

As HMS Carmen, the ship served in the Royal Navy for about a year during the War of the Second Coalition, operating in the Mediterranean Sea until she arrived in the United Kingdom in 1801. There the Admiralty had her laid up in ordinary in December 1801. She was sold in February 1802.