HMS Stately (1784)

Summary

HMS Stately was a 64-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 27 December 1784 at Northam.[3]

History
Great Britain
NameHMS Stately
Ordered10 December 1778
BuilderRaymond, Northam
Laid down25 May 1779
Launched27 December 1784
Honours and
awards
FateBroken up, 1814
General characteristics [3]
Class and typeArdent-class ship of the line
Tons burthen1388 (bm)
Length160 ft (49 m) (gundeck)
Beam44 ft 4 in (13.5 m)
Depth of hold19 ft (5.8 m)
Sail planFull-rigged ship
Armament
  • Lower deck: 26 ×  24-pounder guns
  • Upper deck: 26 ×  18-pounder guns
  • QD: 10 ×  4-pounder guns
  • Fc: 2 ×  9-pounder guns

French Revolutionary Wars edit

Sir Richard King took command of Stately at Portsmouth on 24 July 1793, which was reported in The Times newspaper.

In 1798 Stately was at the Cape of Good Hope where she was the venue for the court-martial of Mr. Reid, second mate of the East Indiaman King George. While they were both on shore, Reid had struck Captain Richard Colnett, captain of King George The court-martial sentenced Reid to two years in the Marshalsea prison. Because Colnett had a letter of marque, King George was a "private man-of-war", and the Navy's Articles of War applied at sea. Had Reid struck Colnett aboard King George, the charge would have been mutiny, for which the penalty would have been death.[4]

The Admiralty had Stately converted for use a troopship in 1799. Because Stately served in the navy's Egyptian campaign (8 March to 2 September 1801), her officers and crew qualified for the clasp "Egypt" to the Naval General Service Medal that the Admiralty issued in 1847 to all surviving claimants.[Note 1]

Napoleonic Wars edit

The Navy reverted her to a fully armed warship once war resumed after the end of the Treaty of Amiens.

Battle of Zealand Point edit

 
Battle of Zealand Point, 22 March 1808; depicting HMS Nassau and Stately with the British squadron closing in on Prinds Christian Frederik

On 22 March 1808, Stately and Nassau destroyed the last Danish ship of the line, Prinds Christian Frederik, commanded by Captain C. W. Jessen, in the Battle of Zealand Point.

In 1847 the Admiralty awarded the Naval General Service Medal with clasps "Stately 22 March 1808" and "Nassau 22 March 1808" to any still surviving crew members of those vessels that chose to claim them.

Fate edit

Stately was broken up in 1814.[3]

Notes edit

  1. ^ A first-class share of the prize money awarded in April 1823 was worth £34 2s 4d; a fifth-class share, that of a seaman, was worth 3s 11½d. The amount was small as the total had to be shared between 79 vessels and the entire army contingent.[5]

Citations edit

  1. ^ "No. 21077". The London Gazette. 15 March 1850. pp. 791–792.
  2. ^ "No. 20939". The London Gazette. 26 January 1849. p. 241.
  3. ^ a b c Lavery, Ships of the Line vol.1, p181.
  4. ^ Parkinson (1966; 2013), p.379.
  5. ^ "No. 17915". The London Gazette. 3 April 1823. p. 633.

References edit

  • Lavery, Brian (2003) The Ship of the Line - Volume 1: The development of the battlefleet 1650-1850. Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-252-8.
  • Parkinson, C. Northcote (1966; 2013) Trade in Eastern Seas 1793–1813. (Routledge). ISBN 9780714613482