HMS Royal Sovereign (1786)
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| Ship data | ||
| Surname: | Royal Sovereign | |
| Keel laying : | January 17, 1774 | |
| Launching ( ship christening ): | September 17, 1786 | |
| Builder: | Plymouth Dockyard | |
| Technical specifications | ||
| Type: | Battery ship (timber construction, three-decker) | |
| Length over all: | 183 feet , (56 m) | |
| Width: | 52 feet, 1 inch (15.9 m) | |
| Tonnage : | 2,209 t | |
| Armor system: | without | |
| Armament | ||
| 12 pounders on the quarterdeck : | 10 | |
| 12 pounders on the forecastle deck: | 4th | |
| 12 pounder on the main battery deck : | 30th | |
| 24 pounders on the middle deck: | 28 | |
| 32 pounder on the lower battery deck: | 28 | |
HMS Royal Sovereign was a 100-gun sailing ship ( 1st tier ) of the Royal Navy that served as the flagship of Vice Admiral Collingwood during the Battle of Trafalgar .
It was the third of seven ships in the Royal Navy to bear that name. The ship was designed by Sir Edward Hunt and was launched on September 11, 1786 at the Plymouth Naval Shipyard . The cost of construction at the time was £ 67,458 and it was the only ship built to this design.
On June 16, 1795, the Royal Sovereign was the flagship of Vice Admiral William Cornwallis during the action known as Cornwallis' retreat .
It was the first ship to be involved in the fighting in the Battle of Trafalgar. It led a line of warships. The HMS Victory under Admiral Horatio Nelson was at the head of the other battle line.
Since the ship's copper fittings had been replaced shortly before the battle, its sailing characteristics in the light breeze were better than other ships, so it ran faster and went far ahead. At first it broke through the Spanish line on its own and began a battle with the Spanish flagship Santa Ana . Nelson pointed to the Royal Sovereign and exclaimed: See how this noble comrade Collingwood leads his ship into battle! Around the same time, Collingwood is said to have said to his captain: What would Nelson give for being here?
Although the ship was practically shot to the wreck, it forced the Santa Ana to drop the flag. It was saved by the arrival of the rest of the British ships on its battle line.
After this eventful ship life, the Royal Sovereign was repaired and from then on made port service in Plymouth, where she was used as a receiving ship.
On August 17, 1825, the ship was renamed HMS Captain . In June 1826 it was only a Hulk , it was finally scrapped in Plymouth by August 28, 1841.
Four of its cannons have survived and are part of the Collingwood Memorial in Tynemouth .
literature
- Brian Lavery: The Ship of the Line. Volume 1: The development of the battlefleet, 1650-1850. Conway Maritime Press, London 2003, ISBN 0-85177-252-8 .
