Summary
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.
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| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | HMS Caledonia |
| Namesake | Caledonia |
| Builder | Woolwich Dockyard |
| Laid down | 10 October 1860 |
| Launched | 24 October 1862 |
| Completed | July 1865 |
| Fate | Broken up, 1886 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Prince Consort-class ironclad |
| Displacement | 6,832 long tons (6,942 t) |
| Length |
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| Beam |
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| Draught |
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| Propulsion |
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| Sail plan | Single-topsail barque, sail area 25,000 sq ft (2,300 m2) |
| Speed | |
| Complement | 605 |
| Armament |
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| Armour | Battery and belt: 4.5 in (110 mm) amidships and 3 in (76 mm) fore and aft |
Service history edit
HMS Caledonia was not completed until July 1865 due to a delay in the delivery of her main armament. Once this was installed, she was commissioned as Second-in-Command of the Mediterranean Fleet, becoming the first ever armoured flagship of the Royal Navy.
She was temporarily withdrawn from service in 1866 for reconstruction which involved the addition of a poop deck. Following this, she was flagship of the Channel Fleet until 1867, when she was paid off for re-armament.
HMS Caledonia was flagship of the Mediterranean Fleet until 1869 (relieving HMS Victoria, the last three-deck Royal Navy flagship) until 1872.[citation needed] In July 1871, she ran aground off Santorini, Greece. She was later refloated and taken in to Malta for repairs.[1] She was a guardship in the Firth of Forth from 1872 until 1875.[citation needed][dubious ] On 15 June 1873, Caledonia was in collision with the British ship Hogton Tower off St. Alban's Head, Dorset. Hogton Tower was severely damaged at the bows; Caledonia towed her in to Spithead, Hampshire. Caledonia had been serving as a Coastguard vessel at Birkenhead, Cheshire and was sailing to Portsmouth, Hampshire for a forthcoming inspection of the fleet by the Shah of Persia.[2] She was paid off at Plymouth, and was laid up there until she was sold on 30 September 1886.[citation needed]
References edit
Bibliography edit
- Ballard, G. A., Admiral (1980). The Black Battlefleet. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-924-3.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - Baxter, James Phinney The Introduction of the Ironclad Warship, published Harvard University, 1933.
- David K. Brown (30 April 1997). Warrior to dreadnought. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-86176-022-7.
- Clowes, William Laird Four Modern Naval Campaigns, Historical Strategical, and Tactical, first published Unit Library, 1902, reprinted Cornmarket Press, 1970.
- Andrew Lambert (24 September 1984). Battleships in transition. ISBN 978-0-85177-315-5.
- Parkes, Oscar (1990) [1957]. British Battleships. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-075-4.
- Roberts, John (1979). "Great Britain (including Empire Forces)". In Chesneau, Roger & Kolesnik, Eugene M. (eds.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. New York: Mayflower Books. pp. 1–113. ISBN 0-8317-0302-4.
- Reed, Edward J Our Ironclad Ships, their Qualities, Performance and Cost, published John Murray, 1869.