HMS Victory (1737)

Last updated

HMS Victory sinking.jpg
'Loss of HMS 'Victory', 4 October 1744' by Peter Monamy
History
Naval Ensign of Great Britain (1707-1800).svg Great Britain
NameHMS Victory
Ordered11 September 1733
Builder Portsmouth Dockyard
Laid down1736
Launched23 February 1737
FateWrecked, 4/5 October 1744
General characteristics [1]
Class and type 1733 proposals 100-gun first rate ship of the line
Tons burthen1921 bm
Length174 ft (53 m) gundeck
Beam50 ft (15 m)
Draught18 ft (5.5 m)
Depth of hold20 ft 6 in (6.25 m)
Sail plan Full-rigged ship
ComplementAround 900
Armament
  • 100 guns:
  • Gundeck: 28 × 42-pdrs
  • Middle gundeck: 28 × 24-pdrs
  • Upper gundeck: 28 × 12-pdrs
  • Quarterdeck: 12 × 6-pdrs
  • Forecastle: 4 × 6-pdrs

HMS Victory was a 100-gun first-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built to the dimensions of the 1733 proposals of the 1719 Establishment at Portsmouth Dockyard, and launched on 23 February 1737. [1]

Contents

Construction

Model of the Victory, painted in 1744 HMS 'Victory' LW SCMU 1864 0012 0002.jpg
Model of the Victory, painted in 1744

A small number of the timbers used in the construction of Victory were taken from the remains of the previous HMS Victory, which caught fire and was burnt to the waterline in February 1721 whilst having weed burned from her bottom (in a process called "breaming"). Originally drawn by Jacob Ackworth the plans were sent to Master Shipwright John Naish in 1721, but these were then put on hold. [2]

Officially a rebuild of the previous vessel, the new Victory was then built by master shipwright Joseph Allin and cost £38,239 to assemble, plus £12,652 fitting it as a flagship. Launched in 1737, she became the flagship of the Channel Fleet under Sir John Norris following completion in 1740. She was the last British first rate to be armed entirely with bronze cannon. [3]

The Victory was "a high-sided ship for her draught and this was believed to have made her leewardly and to have led to her loss". [4] The term "leewardly" means she had an unusual tendency to be pushed to leeward (down wind) when sailing with the wind on or forward of the beam, increasing the risk of being driven ashore. A plan of the ship reproduced in Howard and an extant contemporary model also show her with four rows of lights (stern galleries), three open balconies along her stern, and four quarter galleries, one more of each than was usual for a British three-decker. [5] [6] These expansive features improved her internal capacity and conditions for the crew, but were heavy enough to compromise her stability in rough weather. [5] Their addition to the ship reflected a long-running dispute between Jacob Acworth, the Surveyor of the Navy and representative of the Admiralty Board, and master shipwright Allin, who had carriage of the ship's actual construction. Acworth had instructed Allin that Admiralty required the ship's upper works to be "low and snug"; but Allin, jealous of his prerogatives as a shipwright, refused to follow this direction and instead built a particularly large and roomy craft. The completed ship was so incompetent a sailer, she required several refits before she passed her sea trials. [5]

Victory carried 28 guns on each of her gundecks, but with an additional set of unused gunports to the aft of the middle deck. She was one of the last Royal Navy ships to carry a full complement of bronze cannons; after her loss the Navy switched to cheaper iron-made weapons for all first- and second-rate ships. One of the 42-pounder guns recovered from Victory is extremely rare, being the only gun of its type recovered from a Royal Navy shipwreck. It was made by Swiss-born Andrew Schalch at Royal the Brass Foundry in Woolwich, in 1723. It is now on display at the National Museum of the Royal Navy in Portsmouth. [7]

Loss

Victory, by William Lionel Wyllie Victory lost 1744 RMG PV2356.jpg
Victory, by William Lionel Wyllie

Victory was wrecked, with the loss of her entire crew, while returning to England as the flagship of Admiral Sir John Balchen after relieving Sir Charles Hardy, who was blockaded in the Tagus estuary by the French Brest fleet. As Balchen's fleet reached the English Channel on 3 October 1744, it was scattered by a large storm. At around 15:30 on 4 October, the ships accompanying Victory lost sight of her near the Channel Islands. For over 260 years she was believed to have been wrecked during the night on Black Rock just off the Casquets.

Frigates were dispatched across the English Channel to search for her where she was last seen wallowing on the horizon on 4 October. Eventually, Captain Thomas Grenville of HMS Falkland landed at Guernsey in the Channel Islands to provision, and there heard from locals that wreckage and part of a topmast had been seen on the island's shores. Further investigation proved that the wreckage did indeed come from Victory, which was believed to have run into the Casquets, a group of rocks nearby. Other wreckage washed up on Jersey and Alderney, whose inhabitants had heard distress guns the night before but were unable to provide aid in the severe storm. No trace of Victory's 1,150 sailors was found until the wreck was discovered in 2008.

Discovery

On 1 February 2009, the Associated Press reported that Odyssey Marine Exploration, based in Tampa, Florida, United States, claimed to have found the wreck in May 2008, and had recovered two of the 100 bronze cannons. [8] Located in the Western Approaches between England and France, as a military wreck she remains the property of the British Government under the laws of marine salvage. [8] The wreck was found "more than 80 km (43 nm) from where anybody would have thought it went down", according to Odyssey Marine Exploration CEO Gregg Stemm, [9] and 100 m (330 ft) deep, [8] meaning that the vessel had not foundered on the Casquets as surmised, but lay approximately at latitude 49°42.5' N and longitude 3°33.3' W. The team announced their findings on 2 February and stated that they were negotiating with the British government over the wreckage. [3] On 26 March 2009, the TV show Treasure Quest , which had followed the company's ship Odyssey Explorer as it explored several different shipwrecks, aired two hours of footage of the Odyssey Explorer's initial findings of Victory, including the crew's discovery of a 42-pounder cannon that identified the remains of the Victory. The crew raised two cannon, a 42-pounder and a 12-pounder, which are now on display at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. In 2011, a Dutch salvage company was caught with an illegally looted cannon from the site. [10]

In January 2012 it was reported that the remains of HMS Victory were to be raised from the seabed, and are to be given to the Maritime Heritage Foundation, which is expected to employ Odyssey Marine Exploration for the recovery. [11] The terms of the contract remain controversial, with concerns over "allowing foreign investors to profit from the property, grave and memorial of Royal Navy personnel". [12]

Possible treasure

Research has backed up anecdotal evidence of the possibility that Victory was carrying gold and silver which could be worth hundreds of millions of pounds. At the time of the sinking, Lisbon was the bullion capital of Europe and the Mediterranean. Following the blockade of the river Tagus, there was a backlog of bullion to transport to England, and Royal Navy ships were often used to transport private coinage. [13] [14] In addition, Balchen had recently captured six prize ships [15] and could have been carrying their assets. The Amsterdamsche Courant of 18/19 November 1744 reported that a huge sum of money was being carried by the flagship when she foundered: “People will have it that on board of the Victory was a sum of 400,000 pounds sterling that it had brought from Lisbon for our merchants.” This would equate to approximately 4 tons of gold coins. [16] [17]

Notes

  1. 1 2 Lavery, Ships of the Line vol.1, p170.
  2. ↑ "'Victory' (1737) | Royal Museums Greenwich".
  3. 1 2 Broad, William J. (2 February 2009). "Wreck of Warship Is Found in English Channel". The New York Times. Retrieved 2 February 2009.
  4. ↑ Howard, Sailing Ships of War 1400-1860, p.182
  5. 1 2 3 Winfield 2010, p. 59
  6. ↑ Howard, Sailing Ships of War 1400-1860
  7. ↑ Smith, Allan M. (6 August 2020). "A 42-pounder bronze gun from HMS Victory (1737)". Ultima Ratio Project. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  8. 1 2 3 Stacy, Mitch (1 February 2009). "Wreck of renowned British warship found in Channel". Yahoo!. Associated Press. Archived from the original on 5 February 2009. Retrieved 1 February 2009.
  9. ↑ "Legendary British warship 'found'". BBC News . 1 February 2009. Retrieved 1 February 2009.
  10. ↑ "HMS Victory 1744 - Timeline". victory1744.org.
  11. ↑ "First HMS Victory 'to be raised'". The Guardian. 22 January 2012. Archived from the original on 25 January 2012.
  12. ↑ "Possible new restrictions on Victory Salvage". Heritage Daily. 20 September 2012. Ministers are considering placing further restrictions on Odyssey Marine Exploration and the Maritime Heritage Foundation as pressure builds on the Cameron Government to stop the Banks and Hedge Fund investors backing Odyssey profiting from the grave and property of lost Royal Navy sailors
  13. ↑ "HMS Victory FAQ". Victory1744.org.
  14. ↑ "HMS Victory, a First-Rate Royal Navy Warship Lost in the English Channel, 1744. Preliminary Survey & Identification (2009)" (PDF). Victory1744.org. Odyssey Marine Exploration.
  15. ↑ "The London Gazette 21 Aug 1744". The London Gazette online.
  16. ↑ "HMS Victory, a First-Rate Royal Navy Warship Lost in the English Channel, 1744. Preliminary Survey & Identification (2009)" (PDF). Victory1744.org. Odyssey Marine Exploration.
  17. ↑ Kingsley, Sean (5 February 2010). Oceans Odyssey: Deep-Sea Shipwrecks in the English Channel, the Straits of Gibraltar and the Atlantic Ocean by Sean Kingsley. ISBN   9781842177860.

Related Research Articles

HMS <i>Liverpool</i> (1758) Coventry-class Royal Navy frigate

HMS Liverpool was a 28-gun Coventry-class sixth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. Launched in 1758, she saw active service in the Seven Years' War and the American Revolutionary War. She was wrecked in Jamaica Bay, near New York, in 1778.

HMS <i>St Lawrence</i> (1814) First-rate wooden warship of the Royal Navy that served on Lake Ontario

HMS St Lawrence was a 102-gun first-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy that served on Lake Ontario during the War of 1812. Built on the lake at the Royal Navy dockyard in Kingston, Ontario, she was the only Royal Navy ship of the line ever to be launched and operated entirely in fresh water. Constructed in 1814, the ship's arrival on the lake ended all naval action and St Lawrence finished the war having never gone into battle. Following the war, the vessel was laid up, eventually being sold in 1832 to private interests. The ship later sank and is now a recreational dive spot.

HMS <i>Stirling Castle</i> (1679) 17th-century naval gunship

HMS Stirling Castle was a 70-gun third-rate built at Deptford Dockyard, in 1678/79. She was in active commission for the War of the English Succession, fighting in the Battles of Beachy Head and Barfleur. HMS Stirling Castle underwent a rebuild at Chatham Dockyard in 1699. She was in the Cadiz operation in 1702. The ship was wrecked on the Goodwin Sands off Deal on 27 November 1703. The remains are now a Protected Wreck managed by Historic England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Balchen</span> Royal Navy admiral

Admiral of the White Sir John Balchen, sometimes written as Balchin, was an officer of the British Royal Navy with a long and distinguished career during the late 17th and early 18th centuries. In the course of his service at sea, Balchen saw action in numerous battles against the French and Spanish navies across 60 years and three separate wars. He was twice captured by the French in action, both times being exonerated and commended for the defence of his ships against overwhelming odds.

The Faulknor family was an English family from Northamptonshire, of which several generations served as officers in the Royal Navy.

HMS <i>Adventure</i> (1646) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Adventure was a 34-gun fourth-rate of the English Navy, built by Peter Pett II at Woolwich Dockyard and launched in 1646. With the outbreak of the English Civil War she served on the Parliamentary side until 1649. She was incorporated into the Commonwealth Navy in 1650. She partook in the Battle off Dover in 1652, the Battle of Portland and the Battle of Gabbard in 1653. Adventure was employed on Bulstrode Whitelocke's embassy to Sweden, 1653–1654. After the Restoration she was incorporated into the Royal Navy. She was present at the Battle of Lowestoft (1665) and the Battle of Solebay (1672). She also participated in the Golden Horse and Two Lions actions in 1681. She was in the Battle of Barfleur in 1692. She captured several ships in the later part of her career, before being captured by the French in 1709.

Nonsuch was a 32-gun fourth-rate of the English Navy, built by Peter Pett I at Deptford Dockyard and launched in 1646. She was in the Parliamentary force during the English Civil War, then the Commonwealth Navy and was incorporated into the Royal Navy after the Restoration in 1660. During her time in the Commonwealth Navy she partook in the Battles of Krntish Knock, Portland and Gabbard. She was wreck at Gibraltar in 1664.

HMS Dragon was a 38-gun fourth rate of the English Navy; she became part of the Royal Navy after the Restoration, built by the Master Shipwright Henry Goddard at Chatham and launched in 1647. She was the first frigate to be built at Chatham.

HMS <i>Captain</i> (1678) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Captain was a 70-gun third rate built at Woolwich Dockyard in 1677/78. After sitting in Ordinary for ten years she was in active commission for the War of the English Succession fighting at Beachy Head and Barfleur. She was in Ordinary until 1706 when she was rebuilt. She was in active commission for the last half of the War of Spanish Succession but fought in no major engagements. She was at the Battle of Passero I 1718. She was rebuilt in 1720/22. She made two forays in to the Baltic though the bulk of her late career was spent as guardship at Portsmouth. She was hulked in 1740 and finally broken in 1762.

HMS <i>Lenox</i> (1678) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Lenox was a 70-gun third rate built at Deptford Dockyard in 1677/78. She was in active commission for the War of English Succession fighting in the Battles of Beachy Head and Barfleur. She was rebuilt in 1699. Again in active commission for the War of Spanish Succession fighting in the Capture of Gibraltar and the Battle of Velez Malaga. She followed this with the Battle off Passero. She was rebuilt again in 1721. She was active in the War with Spain, capturing the Princesa then serving in Home Waters, the Mediterranean and finally the West Indies. She was in action off Havana in 1745. She returned home and was placed in Ordinary. She was finally sunk as a breakwater at Sheerness in 1756.

HMS <i>Kent</i> (1679) 70-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy built in the late 17th century

HMS Kent was a 70-gun third rate ship of the line built by Sir Henry Johnson of Blackwall in 1677/79. She served during the War of English Succession 1699 to 1697, participating in the Battle of Barfleur. She was rebuilt in 1697/99. She served during the War of Spanish Succession 1702 to 1712 and partook in the Battles of Vigo and Velez-Malaga. She partook in the Battle of Passaro then served during the short war with Spain, December 1718 to February 1720. She was rebuilt in 1722/26. She spent the next thirteen years as a guard ship at Portsmouth. In the 1740s, she was off Cape Finisterre then in the West Indies. She returned home and was finally broken in 1744.

HMS <i>Burford</i> (1722) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Burford was a 70-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built at Deptford Dockyard to the 1719 Establishment, and launched on 19 July 1722. Burford was notably the early posting of both John Forbes and John Byng, both of whom rose to become admirals.

HMS <i>Gloucester</i> (1711) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Gloucester was a 50-gun fourth-rate ship of the line built at Deptford by Joseph Allin the elder for the Royal Navy in 1710/11. She participated in the War of the Spanish Succession. The ship was burned to prevent capture after she was damaged in a storm during Commodore George Anson's voyage around the world in 1742.

HMS <i>Victory</i> 1765 first-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Victory is a 104-gun first-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy. She was ordered in 1758, laid down in 1759, and launched in 1765. With 246 years of service as of 2024, she is the world's oldest naval vessel still in commission.

HMS Aldborough was a 24-gun sixth-rate ship of the Royal Navy, purchased in 1706 and in service in Mediterranean and English waters until 1727 when she was rebuilt as a 374 ton sixth rate in accordance with the 1719 Establishment for Sixth Rates. After the rebuild she spent her career in the West Indies, Home Waters and the Mediterranean. She was finally broken at Deptford on 31 March 1742.

HMS <i>Wolf</i> (1742) Sloop of the Royal Navy

HMS Wolf was a 14-gun snow-rigged sloop of the Royal Navy, launched in 1742 as the first of three Wolf-class sloops constructed for action against Spanish privateers during the War of Jenkins' Ear.

HMS Francis was built by Anthony Deane during his tenure as the Master Shipwright at Harwich Dockyard under the 1665 Programme. She was commissioned in July 1666, she was Allin's squadron in the Mediterranean and participated in the blockade of Salé in October 1668, she was guardship at Sheerness between 1671 and 1674 and had service in the Channel. She was sent to the Leeward Islands in 1683 where she was lost in a hurricane in August 1684.

HMS Gibraltar was the name ship of the Gibraltar Group of 24-gun sixth rates. After commissioning she spent her career in Home waters and North America on trade protection duties. She was rebuilt at Deptford between 1725 and 1727. After her rebuild, she served in Home Waters, North America, the West Indies, and the Mediterranean on trade protection. She was sold in 1749.

HMS Scarborough was a 32-gun fifth rate vessel built at Woolwich Dockyard in 1693/94. Shortly after commissioning she was taken by two French privateers and went under French service. She was recaptured in 1697 and renamed Milford. She spent some time off Africa then the West Indies. She was rebuilt in 1705. She was in the North Sea, the Mediterranean and finally the West Indies where she was wrecked in 1720.

References

49°42.5′N3°33.3′W / 49.7083°N 3.5550°W / 49.7083; -3.5550

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.