HMS Hibernia (1804)

Last updated

HMS Hibernia in dry dock in Malta.jpg
HMS Hibernia at Malta's drydocks around 1860
History
Naval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom
NameHMS Hibernia
Ordered9 December 1790
Builder Plymouth dockyard
Laid downNovember 1797
Launched17 November 1804
FateSold then broken up 1902
General characteristics [1]
Class and type110-gun first-rate ship of the line
Tons burthen2,530 (bm)
Length201 ft 2 in (61.32 m) (gundeck)
Beam53 ft 1 in (16.18 m)
Depth of hold22 ft 4 in (6.81 m)
PropulsionSails
Sail plan Full-rigged ship
Armament
  • 110 guns:
  • Gundeck: 32 × 32-pounder guns
  • Middle gundeck: 32 × 24-pounder guns
  • Upper gundeck: 34 × 18-pounder guns
  • QD: 12 × 32-pounder carronades
  • Fc: 4 × 32-pounder carronades + 2 × 18-pounder guns
HMS Hibernia, by Charles de Brocktorff HMS Hibernia RMG PY0762.jpg
HMS Hibernia, by Charles de Brocktorff

HMS Hibernia was a 110-gun first-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy. She was launched at Plymouth dockyard on 17 November 1804, and was the only ship built to her draught, designed by Sir John Henslow. [1]

Contents

On 11 January 1806, Hibernia capsized in the "Wembury River" — probably a reference to the River Yealm off Wembury, Devon, England — with the loss of 19 of her crew. [2] She was later refloated, repaired, and returned to service.

Between 1807 and 1808, Hibernia, under the command of Sir William Sidney Smith, led the British escort of the Portuguese Royal Family during the transfer of the Portuguese Court to Brazil.

Hibernia was flagship of the British Mediterranean Fleet from 1816 until 1855, when she became the flagship for the Royal Navy's base at Malta and stationed in Grand Harbour.[ citation needed ] She remained in this role until she was sold in 1902. [1]

Nonetheless, she did also take on some non-Mediterranean duties in the post-Waterloo period, such as to transport convicts to the colony of New South Wales. In 1818–1819, for example, the ship carried 160 male convicts to Sydney from Portsmouth sailing on 20 November and arriving 18 June. Also on board as passengers were the first Minister of St James' Church, Sydney, Richard Hill and his wife. [3]

The ten-day court-martial of the surviving officers and crewmen of the battleship HMS Victoria for the loss of their ship in a 22 June 1893 collision with the battleship HMS Camperdown near Tripoli was held on Hibernia's deck. The proceedings began on 17 July 1893. [4]

Hibernia was sold for £1,010 to Michele Apap on 14 October 1902 and broken up at Pietà in 1903. [5] [6] Heavily-painted timbers ended up being used to fire local bakeries, which led to an outbreak of lead poisoning on the island. [7] A statue of the Virgin Mary, in her mantle as Queen of Heaven, was carved from a section of the ship's main mast and can be seen in the Collegiate Parish Church of St Paul's Shipwreck in Valletta. Her figurehead is now displayed at the Malta Maritime Museum, which is housed in the former Royal Naval Bakery building in Birgu, Malta.

Related Research Articles

Seven ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Prince of Wales, after numerous holders of the title the Prince of Wales.

Four ships and one shore establishment of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Hibernia after the Latin name of Ireland:

HMS Victorious was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched at Blackwall Yard, London on 27 April 1785. She was the first ship of the Royal Navy to bear the name.

HMS <i>Victoria</i> (1887) Late 19th-century Royal Navy battleship

HMS Victoria was the lead ship in her class of two battleships of the Royal Navy. On 22 June 1893, she collided with HMS Camperdown near Tripoli, Lebanon, during manoeuvres and quickly sank, killing 358 crew members, including the commander of the British Mediterranean Fleet, Vice-Admiral Sir George Tryon. One of the survivors was executive officer John Jellicoe, later commander-in-chief of the British Grand Fleet at the Battle of Jutland.

HMS <i>Sans Pareil</i> (1887)

HMS Sans Pareil was a Victoria-class battleship of the British Royal Navy of the Victorian era, her only sister ship being HMS Victoria.

HMS <i>Britannia</i> (1762) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Britannia, also known as Old Ironsides, was a 100-gun first-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy.

HMS <i>Barfleur</i> (1768) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Barfleur was a 90-gun second-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, designed by Sir Thomas Slade on the lines of the 100-gun ship Royal William, and launched at Chatham Dockyard on 30 July 1768, at a cost of £49,222. In about 1780, she had another eight guns added to her quarterdeck, making her a 98-gun ship; she possessed a crew of approximately 750. Her design class sisters were the Prince George, Princess Royal, and Formidable. She was a ship of long service and many battles.

HMS <i>Hibernia</i> (1905) Pre-dreadnought battleship of the British Royal Navy

HMS Hibernia was a King Edward VII-class pre-dreadnought battleship of Britain's Royal Navy. Like all ships of the class she was named after an important part of the British Empire, namely Ireland. The ship was built by Devonport Dockyard; she was laid down in January 1904, was launched in June 1905, and was completed in December 1906. Armed with a battery of four 12-inch (305 mm) and four 9.2 in (234 mm) guns, she and her sister ships marked a significant advance in offensive power compared to earlier British battleship designs that did not carry the 9.2 in guns.

HMS <i>Prince of Wales</i> (1860) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Prince of Wales was one of six 121-gun screw-propelled first-rate three-decker line-of-battle ships of the Royal Navy. She was launched on 25 January 1860.

HMS <i>Caledonia</i> (1862)

HMS Caledonia was a broadside ironclad of the Prince Consort class. Originally laid down as a two-decker steam ship of the line of the Bulwark class, Caledonia was converted on the building stocks into an armoured frigate.

HMS <i>London</i> (1899) Pre-dreadnought battleship of the British Royal Navy

HMS London was the lead ship of the London class of pre-dreadnought battleships built for the British Royal Navy. The Londons were near repeats of the preceding Formidable-class battleships, but with modified armour protection. The ship was laid down in December 1898, was launched in September 1899, and was completed in June 1902. Commissioned the same month, she served with the Mediterranean Fleet until early 1907. She was assigned to the Nore Division of the Home Fleet for nearly a year before transferring to the Channel Fleet. Rendered obsolete with the emergence of the new dreadnoughts in late 1906, she underwent an extensive refit in 1909, after which she served with the Atlantic Fleet. She was assigned to the Second Home Fleet in 1912 as part of the 5th Battle Squadron, and was temporarily fitted with a makeshift ramp for experiments with naval aircraft until 1913.

HMS <i>Alexander</i> (1778) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Alexander was a 74-gun third-rate of the Royal Navy. She was launched at Deptford Dockyard on 8 October 1778. During her career she was captured by the French, and later recaptured by the British. She fought at the Nile in 1798, and was broken up in 1819. She was named after Alexander the Great.

HMS <i>Northumberland</i> (1798) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Northumberland was a 74-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built at the yards of Barnard, Deptford and launched on 2 February 1798. She carried Napoleon to his final exile on St Helena.

HMS <i>Warrior</i> (1781) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Warrior was a 74-gun Alfred-class third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 18 October 1781 at Portsmouth.

HMS <i>Dragon</i> (1798) 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Dragon was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 2 April 1798 at Rotherhithe. She was designed by Sir William Rule, and was the only ship built to her draught.

HMS <i>St Vincent</i> (1815) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS St Vincent was a 120-gun first-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, laid down in 1810 at Devonport Dockyard and launched on 11 March 1815.

HMS <i>Calcutta</i> (1831) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Calcutta was an 84-gun second-rate ship-of-the-line of the Royal Navy, built in teak to a draught by Sir Robert Seppings and launched on 14 March 1831 in Bombay. She was the only ship ever built to her draught. She carried her complement of smooth-bore, muzzle-loading guns on two gundecks. Her complement was 720 men.

HMS <i>Ramillies</i> (1892) Royal Sovereign-class battleship

HMS Ramillies was a Royal Sovereign-class pre-dreadnought battleship of the Royal Navy, named after the Battle of Ramillies. The ship was built by J. & G. Thompson at Clydebank, starting with her keel laying in August 1890. She was launched in March 1892 and commissioned into the Mediterranean Fleet as flagship the following October. She was armed with a main battery of four 13.5-inch guns and a secondary battery of ten 6-inch guns. The ship had a top speed of 16.5 knots.

HMS Eurydice was a 24-gun Porcupine-class post ship of the Royal Navy built in 1781 and broken up in 1834. During her long career she saw service in the American War of Independence, the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. She captured a number of enemy privateers and served in the East and West Indies, the Mediterranean and British and American waters.

Lord Eldon was launched at Sunderland in 1801. She was initially a London-based transport, but new owners contracted with the Admiralty. From certainly 1804 through approximately 1811 she served the British Royal Navy as a hired armed ship. During this period Spanish vessels captured her, but the Royal Navy recaptured her. Between 1812 and 1813 she underwent lengthening. In 1814 she returned to serving as a transport. She was driven ashore and damaged in 1817; she was no longer listed in 1819.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Lavery, Ships of the Line vol.1, p182.
  2. ↑ "Friday's Post". The Ipswich Journal. No. 3793. 18 January 1806.
  3. ↑ "HOBART TOWN, MAY 15". The Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser (NSW: 1803 - 1842) . NSW: National Library of Australia. 5 June 1819. p. 3. Retrieved 27 August 2013.
  4. ↑ Hough, pp. 121-162.
  5. ↑ "Supplementary Amended Notice to Sale of H.M.S. "Hibernia"". Daily Malta Chronicle. No. 3073. 22 September 1902. p. 6. Retrieved 23 July 2023– via British Newspaper Archive.
  6. ↑ "Local News". Daily Malta Chronicle. No. 3093. 15 October 1902. p. 2. Retrieved 23 July 2023– via British Newspaper Archive.
  7. ↑ "Lead Poison". Daily Malta Chronicle. No. 3692. 17 October 1904. p. 5. Retrieved 23 July 2023– via British Newspaper Archive.

Bibliography

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.