Event

Gaspee affair

1772 · 18th century

The Gaspee affair was the burning of the British customs schooner HMS Gaspee by Rhode Island colonists in June 1772. After the ship ran aground near Warwick while chasing a smuggling vessel, men led by the merchant John Brown boarded her at night, wounded her commander and set her on fire. A royal commission failed to identify the culprits, and the affair heightened tensions before the American Revolution.

Gaspee affair
Image: Welcome Arnold Greene · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Mentioned in 1 state history

Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Gaspee affair. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/gaspee-affair
MLA
“Gaspee affair.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/gaspee-affair. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Gaspee affair.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/gaspee-affair.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Gaspee affair’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/gaspee-affair (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻