many ships to be heavily damaged in the October Great Hurricane of 1780 and Stewart ran from the storm with his ship jury rigged, reaching Britain in December. Berwick was repaired in a refit that was completed in February 1781, and Stewart was subsequently appointed a commodore and Commander-in-Chief, North Sea, on 27 March. Based out of Leith, Berwick and the 32-gun frigate HMS Belle Poule captured the French 32-gun privateer Calonne off the Firth of Forth on 16 April. Stewart's force was however not large enough to defend against the squadron the Dutch were forming to oppose it, and Vice-Admiral Hyde Parker was sent out with reinforcements in July. In Parker's force was the 64-gun ship of the line HMS Bienfaisant whose commander, Captain Richard Brathwaite, was senior in rank to Stewart. This forced Stewart to relinquish his position as commodore, but direct command of Berwick continued with Stewart's ex flag captain, Captain John Fergusson, and Stewart was only able to stay on in Parker's fleet as a volunteer. Stewart was present as such at the Battle of Dogger Bank, fought on 5 August, where Berwick led the British line of battle against the Dutch and was heavily damaged. Afterwards Parker resigned his command in the North Sea and Brathwaite also left the station, leaving Stewart able to re-hoist his broad pennant as commodore in September. Employed in the blockade of Dutch ports, towards the start of 1782 he failed to stop a Dutch convoy from escaping him while in the Downs, and after criticism of his actions he resigned his command in around March. Stewart was then given command of the 80-gun ship of the line HMS Cambridge, in the Channel Fleet, on 17 June. His crew from Berwick were also transferred for this. The fleet was subsequently sent to relieve the Great Siege of Gibraltar, which it did as escort to a convoy. After this it fought the Battle of Cape Spartel on 20 October, with Cambridge serving as one of the seconds to Vice-Admiral Mark Milbanke's flagship the 90-gun ship of the line HMS Ocean. Stewart's ship had four men killed during the engagement, after which the fleet returned to England. Later service and flag rank Cambridge was sent in for a refit prior to a planned sailing to join the West Indies Station, but this was still in progress when the American Revolutionary War came