Historic Warships of the World By Norman Brouwer
Drake's Golden Hind was preserved in a Thames River dock after her epic circumnavigation of the globe four hundred years ago; she fell to pieces, and a project exists to recover possible remnants from under riverside landfill today. Nelson's great three-decker 路 Victory, an old ship somewhat rebuilt when she fought at Trafa/gar in I 805, was long kept in service, latterly on public view in drydock, and sustained bomb damage flying the flag of C-in-C Portsmouth, during the Battle of Britain when she was coming up to her two hundredth birthday. Our own super-frigate Constitution, victor in an incredible series of single-ship fights, was saved by public outcry when her turn came to go to scrap, and after many rebuildings remains afloat in Boston today. Great issues rode with these ships, and the course of world history was turned by what they achieved at sea. Here a distinguished student lists the fighting ships of the world that have been saved and can be seen. The list is arranged to foil ow chronological development of different types as the world's navies graduated into the machine age. A number of proposed warship saves are not listed and may be material/or a future review. The author asks, as usual, for corrections, additions and updating of this listing. -ED.
Sailing Warships 1628 sh ip of the line Vasa. 200 ft., (hu ll , overa ll), buil t in Royal Dockyard, Stockholm , ca psized leavi ng port on ma iden
1776 lake gunboa t Philadelphia. 51 ft. , buil t at Ske nesboro ugh, New Yor k. G un da low; si ngle mast , sq uare-rigged . Sun k in October 1776, d uri ng engagement with British fl eet at Valcour Isla nd , Lake C hamp lai n. Armament ; l-12pdr. & 2-9pdrs. Raised in 1935, a nd now o n ex hibit in the Smith soni an Instituti o n Mu seum o f Hi sto ry a nd T echnology, Was hington, D.C., U.S.A. 1797 fri ga te USS Constitution. 175 ft. , between perpen dicula rs, built at Boston. Took pa rt in the War aga inst the Barbary Pirates, a nd in severa l fa mo us ac ti ons of the Wa r of 18 12. Ar mame nt; 44 gu ns, 32pdrs . & 24pdrs. Saved fro m scra pping a nd reb uilt in 1833-34, 1897, 1906, 1927 -31. Recently thoro ughl y rebuil t aga in . Mu seum at Boston, U. S.A.
( 1879). Arm a ment : 2-8in . guns in single turret, ram . P rese rved as Nava l memo ria l a t T alca hu ano, Chile.
fri gate HMS Foudroyant ex- Trincomalee. 180 ft., built by Eas t Indi a Co . Drydock, Bombay. T ra ining hulk si nce 1860, currentl y moo red in Portsmo uth Harbor . Spent mos t of ea rli er career in reserve. A rmament; 22-32 pdrs . (1 845). Res tora ti o n a nd use as a Mu seum has been proposed . Gt. Britain.
1868 seagoin g mo nitor Buffel. 200 ft., built in Gl asgow , Sco tla nd. Des igned for coastal defense. Arma ment: U in. gun in single turret, ra m. Undergoing restoration for mu seum at Rotterd a m, Netherlands. Oth er survivin g vessel o f type: Schorpioen (1868). Tra inin g hul k a t Den Held er, Netherlands.
1817
1824 fr iga te HMS Unicorn. 152 ft., buil t a t C hath an Dockyard , wood , has iro n knees a nd diagonal iron strapping. Spent entire career eith er in layup or as tra ining hulk . Never rigged o r armed fo r co mbat. Mu seum a t Dundee, Scot la nd . Eventua l riggin g, a nd fitt ing o ut as 1820s wa rship pla nn ed . Gt. Britain. 1854 corvett e USS Constellation. 176 ft. , between per pendicul ars, built a t No rfo lk Naval Yard, Virginia. Employed in suppress io n of slave trade o n west coas t o f Afri ca. Served as tra in ing ship from 187 1 to 1940. A rma ment ; 20-8 in . & 2- IOin . gun s. In recent yea rs has been lyin g at Ba lti more, undergoin g " resto ra ti o n" to serve as replica of 1797 fr iga te of same name. U .S.A . Evolution of th e Steam-Powered Warship 1860 steam fri gate Jylland. 210 ft. , built by Naval Dock ya rd , Co penh agen . . Woodenhulled, una rmored , full -rigged shi p with 1300 HP horizo nta l engin e a nd screw. T oo k pa rt in 1864 batt le off H elgo la nd with A ustroP russ ia n sq uadron. Armament; 44 guns, ra ngi ng fro m 12pdrs. to 30 pd rs. Museum at Ebelt oft, Denm ark, parti all y res tored . Eventua l di splay at old Navy Yard in Cope nhagen is pl anned . Denmark.
voyage. Arm ament; 64 guns ranging fr o m I pd rs. to 62 pdrs. Refl oa ted May 4, 196 1, a nd now displayed in a specia l building at Stockholm, Sweden. 1765 ship of the line HMS Victory. 186 ft., built at Chath am Dockya rd . Flags hip of Admiral Lord Nelso n at th e Ba ttle of T rafa lgar in Octo ber 1805 , a nd the ship on which he died . World 's last surviving ship-of-the- line of the period . Armament; 100 guns ranging fro m 12pdrs. to 68pd . carronades. Museum a t P ortsmo uth , Great Britain.
SEA HISTORY, FALL 1978
1865 seago ing monito r Huascar. 200 ft. , bui lt a t 路 Birkenh ead, Engla nd . Iron-hull ed bri grigged stea mer, built fo r Peru a nd ca ptured fr om that Co untry in the War of the Pacifi c
1861 a rmored ri ver gunb oat USS Cairo. 175 ft., built by James B. Eads at Moun d Ci ty, Ill. Act ive in Civ il War ca mpa igns o n O hi o a nd Mi ss issippi ri ve rs a nd tributar ies . Sunk by a min e in Yazoo Ri ver Dec. 1862. Broke up whil e bein g ra ised in I 960 's. Reassembl y in specia l museum ex hi bi t at Vicksburg, Miss. is pla nned . Armament: 6-42 pd rs. & 6-32 pdrs. United States. 1861 a rm ored stea m fri ga te HMS Warrior. 380 ft. , bui lt at Blac kwa ll , Lo ndon . World 's fi rst seago ing iro nclad warship. A rmament : 26-68pdrs. & I 0- 11 Opdrs . C urre ntl y pipeline pier near Mil ford Haven, Wa les. Gt. Britain.
1868 coast defense ba ttleship HMS Cerberus. 225 ft. , built Ja rrow, iron hull. First British warship with superstructure a midships a nd turrets fo re a nd a ft. Spent entire ca reer in Au strali a. G rounded in 1926 as breakwater fo r yacht club nea r Melbourne; engin es removed , bu t o riginal gun s sti ll in turrets, Movement begun to restore and use as museum 1970 . Ma in a rm ament : 4- IOin . guns in two tu rre ts. Australia. 1891 pre-dreadn o ught arm ored crui ser USS
Olympia. 344 ft. , built by Uni on Iron Work s, San Francisco. Flags hip o f Adm . Dewey a t Ba ttle o f Ma nil a Bay in Spa ni sh-American Wa r, May 1898. Also acti ve in W orld Wa r I, in cl ud ing expediti on to north ern Ru ss ia . Ar ma ment : 4-8 in. guns in two turrets & IO-Sin. Mu seum at Phil adelphi a , Pa., U.S.A. 1900 pre-dreadnought crui ser Aurora. 41 6 ft. , built a t Galernii Island , St. Petersburg. Gave signal for storming o f Winter Pa lace in
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Bolshev ik Revoluti on of 191 7. Ma in a rmament : 8-6in . gun s. Hi sto ri ca l monument a nd tra inin g ship , moored in Neva River at Leningrad, USSR. 1902 pre-dreadnought ba ttleship Mikasa. 415 ft. , built by Vickers-Armstrong, Barrow, Engla nd . Flags hip o f Admiral Togo at ba ttle of Tsushim a, decisive ac tio n o f Russo-Japa nese Wa r, September 1905. Ma in armament: 4- 12in. gun s in 2 tu rrets. Museum at Yokosuk a, Japan. 1910 a rm ored crui ser A veroff. 461 ft. , built in Ita ly. Armam ent : 4-9in . gun s in two turrets & 8-7i n. gun s in fo ur turrets. Stationa ry training ship a nd museum a t Poros, Greece.
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