Provincial Marine  Provincial Marine was a coastal protection service in charge of the waters in the Great Lakes, the St. Lawrence River and parts of Lake Champlain under British control. While ships of the Provincial Marine were designated HMS, they were operated in more of a coast guard manner than as a full-fledged navy. Operations were maintained and staffed by the Royal Navy. Most ships of the Provincial Marine were built on the Great Lakes. A British coastal force was created during the Seven Years' War, when a Royal Navy detachment operated vessels against the French on Lake Ontario, the St. Lawrence River and Lake Champlain. During the American Revolutionary War, a flotilla composed of 300 sailors maintained supply routes and supported military actions in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River. The Provincial Marine followed the practices and rank structure of the Royal Navy, but with some flexibility. On 11 October 1776, a flotilla of gunboats partially manned by members of the coastal force defeated an American force on Lake Champlain. In 1777, the unit transported supplies for General John Burgoyne's Saratoga campaign. In 1779, the naval base at Carleton Island was established and foraging patrols were sent to operate on Lake Huron between Michilimackinac and Detroit. By 1780, the coastal force had thirteen vessels in service; five vessels Lake Ontario and nine on Lake Erie. Following the war, the unit diminished in size, slowly becoming known as the Provincial Marine. The unit was transferred to the department of the Quartermaster-General to the Forces of the British Army following the war. The Provincial Marine was controlled by the army and manned by personnel borrowed from the navy, by soldiers, and by direct recruitment of Great Lakes sailors. The Provincial Marine used mostly lightly-armed topsail schooners for transportation purposes, with the exception of the brig . When the Provincial Marine was not in use by the military, the ships and personnel were occasionally loaned out to merchants in the fur trade. The Provincial Marine's main base was Carleton Island, on Lake Ontario from 1785–1789. The headquarters was moved to Point Frederick, Kingston in Upper Canada and was used from this location from 1789 until 1813. Merchants who were originally located on Carleton Island and moved to Kingston used Provincial Marine vessels for transshipment of goods. Further bases were established at Amherstburg and Quebec City. Kingston and Amherstburg each housed one squadron of ships each, for Lake Ontario and Lake Erie respectively.