HMS Euryalus (1803)
| History | |
|---|---|
 Great Britain | |
| Name | HMS Euryalus |
| Launched | 1803 |
| Decommissioned | 1825 |
| Reclassified | Prison hulk, 1825 |
| Fate | Broken up, 1860 |
| General characteristics | |
| Complement | 264 men |
| Armament | 36 guns |
HMS Euryalus was a Royal Navy frigate of 36 guns, which saw service in the Battle of Trafalgar and the War of 1812. She was named for one of Argonauts - the mythical band of heroes who accompanied Jason in his search for the Golden Fleece.
Battle of Trafalgar
The Euryalus was built by Henry Adams's firm at Bucklers Hard, and launched in 1803. In 1805, captained by Henry Blackwood, she led a squadron of four other frigates in watching Cádiz to report the movements of the combined French and Spanish fleets anchored there.[1] The combined fleet sailed from Cádiz on 20 October and was shadowed through the night by the Euryalus and others which reported its position to the Royal Navy fleet on the horizon.
With battle imminent the following morning, Captain Blackwood proposed that Admiral Horatio Nelson transfer from HMS Victory to the faster Euryalus, the better to observe and control the engagement. This offer was declined and - being too small to play a major role - the Euryalus stood off until the late afternoon when she took the badly damaged HMS Royal Sovereign in tow and turned her to engage the French ship Formidable.
Following the death of Admiral Nelson, Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood transferred his flag from the Royal Sovereign to the Euryalus which became for the next ten days the flagship of the remaining Royal Navy fleet.
After the battle the Euryalus took on survivors from the French battleship Achille, as well as the captured French Admiral Pierre de Villeneuve. Blackwood also received the surrender of the Spanish ship Santa Ana, after two raking broadsides to the stern by the Royal Sovereign and Belleisle had caused her to strike her colours.
The Royal Sovereign was again taken in tow but the two ships collided during a sudden squall, badly damaging the frigate's masts and rigging. Once repairs were completed, the Euryalus was sent into Cádiz Harbour to allow Blackwood to negotiate an exchange of prisoners and the repatriation of French and Spanish wounded.
On 31 October, the Euryalus set sail for England with Admiral Villeneuve as a prisoner.
War of 1812
After serving in minor roles in a number of theatres, the Euryalus was in the Mediterranean when Captain (later Admiral) Charles Napier took command. She took part in successful commerce raiding and the blockade of Toulon. On 21 April in company with Undaunted she entered the harbour and learned of the defeat of Napoleon; Undaunted was detailed to transport him to Elba. Napier took Euryalus across the Atlantic for service in the War of 1812, including the expedition up the Potomac (August-September 1814), in which he was second in command of the squadron under James Alexander Gordon, and the bombardment of Fort McHenry. Following these operations Napier also issued a challenge to the captain of the US frigate Constellation to meet Euryalus in single-ship combat, which was accepted, but Euryalus was required for the naval operations preceding the Battle of New Orleans and peace was signed before the engagement could be fulfilled. During Napoleon's 'Hundred Days' Euryalus was engaged in landing troops at the mouth of the River Scheldt.
Decommissioning
The Euryalus was decommissioned in 1825 and converted into a prison hulk at Chatham. In 1847 she was moved to Gibraltar, and was sold for breaking up in 1860.
References
- ^ Tim Clayton & Phil Craig (2004). Trafalgar: the men, the battle, the storm. Hodder and Stoughton. ISBN 9780340830277.