HMS Orpheus

Last updated November 18, 2021

Seven ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Orpheus. Orpheus was the magical father of songs in Greek mythology.

HMS Orpheus (1773) was a modified Lowestoffe-class frigate launched in 1773. She was burnt in 1778 to avoid capture by the French at Rhode Island.
HMS Orpheus (1780) was a 32-gun fifth rate launched in 1780. In 1807 she was wrecked in the West Indies.
HMS Orpheus (1809) was a 36-gun fifth rate launched in 1809. She was broken up in 1819.
HMS Orpheus (1860) was a 22-gun Jason-class wooden screw corvette launched in 1860. She was wrecked on the Manukau sandbars in New Zealand in 1863.
HMS Orpheus (1916) was an Admiralty M-class destroyer launched in 1916. She was sold for scrap in 1921.
HMS Orpheus (N46) was an Odin-class submarine launched in 1929. She was lost with all hands off Tobruk in 1940 after being depth-charged by the Italian destroyer Turbine.
HMS Orpheus (S11) was an Oberon-class submarine, launched in 1959. She was paid off in 1987 and became a harbour training ship. She was sold for scrap in 1994.

Related Research Articles

Twelve ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Thetis, named after the sea-nymph in Greek mythology:

Sixteen different ships of the British Royal Navy have been named HMS Greyhound, after the greyhound, a breed of dog notable for its speed.

Twelve ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Repulse:

Sixteen vessels and two shore establishments of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Phoenix, after the legendary phoenix bird.

Nine Royal Navy ships have borne the name HMS Ambuscade:

Eight ships or submarines of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Anson, after Admiral George Anson:

Seven ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Juno after the Roman goddess Juno:

Nine ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Severn after the River Severn:

Six ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Amethyst, whilst another was planned:

Twelve ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Active or HMS Actif, with a thirteenth announced:

Thirteen ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Shark after the shark:

Seven ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Nymphe, HMS Nymph or HMS Nymphen after the Nymphs of Greek Mythology. Another was planned but never completed:

Nine ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Undaunted:

Eight ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Siren, Syren or Sirene, after the Sirens of Greek mythology:

Ten ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Blanche:

Nine ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Racehorse:

Sixteen ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Lark or HMS Larke, after the bird, the lark:

Several Royal Navy ships have borne the name HMS Proserpine:

Ten ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Laurel. Another was planned but never completed. The first British ship of the name served in the Commonwealth navy. All were named after the plant family Lauraceae.

References

Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8.

This article includes a list of ships with the same or similar names. If an internal link for a specific ship led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended ship article, if one exists.

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.