16 December

1653 - First issue of the Articles of War, read on board HMS Swiftsure (from which came the phrase "naval justice is swift and sure")

1796 - HMS Cleopatra captured the French privateer Hirondelle 500 miles W of Ushant

1805 - HMS Kingfisher (18), Nathaniel Day Cochrane, captured the French privateer schooner Elisabeth (14) in the West Indies

1808 - HM Ships Naiad and Narcissus captured the French privateer Fanny off Noirmoutier

1812 - Captain John Hayes saves his ship in a violent gale off Ile de re in the Bay of Biscay.

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