HMS Kangaroo was an 18-gun sloop of the Royal Navy launched in 1805, constructed as a vessel of approximately 369 tons. Commissioned in January 1806, she served primarily in the North Sea Station under commanders Henry Laroche and later John Baker. During her naval service, Kangaroo engaged in various operations including recapturing vessels, capturing privateers, and towing repairs for other ships. Notably, she recaptured the ship Two Brothers from a French privateer and captured the privateer lugger Egayant, armed with 14 guns and crewed by 31 men, after a two-hour chase in November 1808. Kangaroo also participated in the Walcheren Campaign of 1809, a significant but ultimately unsuccessful expedition against the French-held Walcheren Island. During this campaign, she was involved in the rescue efforts for the flagship San Domingo after grounding, and later shared in prize money for property seized during the campaign. In her later years, Kangaroo primarily escorted convoys along the Channel, to the Baltic, and to the Iberian Peninsula. In March 1815, she arrived at Halifax with dispatches and later escorted transports carrying American prisoners following the end of the war with America. Her naval service concluded in December 1815 when she was sold at Plymouth for £1,900. Renamed Countess of Morley, she transitioned into the whaling industry, sailing on three voyages to the South Seas between 1816 and 1825 under master H. Best and later Captain Luck. Her whaling expeditions yielded substantial amounts of whale oil, with her first voyage returning with 1,900 barrels and her second with 2,400 barrels, including sperm oil. After her third voyage, she underwent repairs and changed ownership, with her trade routes shifting to South America. By 1827, she was reported to have run aground near Sierra Leone, and by 1828 she was found to be leaky and discharged at Sierra Leone. She was last listed in Lloyd’s Register and the Register of Shipping in 1833, likely condemned around that time, marking the end of her maritime service.

This description has been generated using GPT-4.1-NANO based on the Vessel's wikidata information and then modified by ShipIndex.org staff.