Upton Castle (1793 ship)
Upton Castle was launched at Bombay in 1793. She spent her career as a "country ship", that is trading in the Far East. She made some voyages to England, including at least one, in 1809, under charter to the British East India Company (EIC). She also participated in two military campaigns as a transport. The French Navy captured her in 1804, but she returned to British hands before 1809. A fire in 1817 destroyed her. Career Upton Castle was built for Pestonjee Bomanjee and John Tasker, then the Master Attendant at Bombay, and was named after Tasker's Upton Castle estate in Wales. Capt. Thomas was an early master of the vessel and later one of its co-owners, and may have been the Captain William Thomas to whom Tasker left all his "charts and sea books" in 1800. John Pavin was master of the vessel by 1799 and married Tasker's great-niece in 1801. He was again master and was taken prisoner when Upton Castle was captured by the French in 1804. Around 1800-01 Upton Castles history becomes a little ambiguous. One report has her in the Red Sea as one of the many transports supporting General Baird's expedition to help General