HMS Shannon, a 1066-ton fifth rate (38-gun frigate) was built in England in 1806. She was commanded for the next seven years by Captain Philip Broke, R.N., who carefully trained his officers and crew in the art and science of gunnery. Shannon operated in the northern and eastern Atlantic until 1811, then served off the North American coast. In July 1812, soon after the outbreak of the War of 1812, she took part in the abortive pursuit of USS Constitution. On 1 June 1813 her Commanding Officer's emphasis on gunnery skill and discipline was rewarded by a decisive victory over the U.S. Frigate Chesapeake, an action that provided a badly-needed boost to the Royal Navy's morale after it had suffered several defeats in ship-to-ship combat with the U.S. Navy.

Shannon was relegated to harbor service as a receiving ship in 1832. She was renamed St. Lawrence in 1844 and broken up at Chatham Dockyard, England, in 1859.