Were there any known cases of impressed sailors sabotaging or otherwise damaging their vessels?

by matdans

It seems self-evident that it would at least occur to impressed sailors to burn or otherwise disable the ship that was, in effect, their prison.

jschooltiger

I've written about impressment here a few times; this is probably the most comprehensive answer:

https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/2oo91z/during_the_age_of_sail_how_reliable_were/

and about how coercion, violence and mutinies worked in the Age of Sail here:

https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/b0o425/after_the_napoleonic_wars_how_much_protection_did/

Something to keep in mind is that an impressed sailor would be one of a crew of anywhere from 300-1000 men, and that he was under the direct supervision of a divisional officer and various warrant and petty officers depending on his job -- attempted or successful sabotage would result in punishment ranging from flogging to imprisonment. Burning the ship and causing the deaths of other crew would almost certainly result in a hanging, and it's generally not good practice to burn a ship when you're alone at sea.