Experimental Squadron (Royal Navy)
Encyclopedia
The Experimental Squadrons of the Royal Navy
were groups of ships sent out in the 1830s and 1840s to test new techniques of ship design, armament, building and propulsion against old ones. They came about as a result of conflict between the "empirical" school of shipbuilding (led by William Symonds
, Surveyor of the Navy
), the "scientific" school led by the first School of Naval Architecture (closed in 1832), and the "traditional" school led by master shipwrights from the royal dockyards.
coast and in the Tagus
.
' designs to be failures, the new Tory Board of Admiralty sent out successive "Experimental Squadrons" in the mid 1840s. In 1844, a brig squadron (including Symonds' and , the old , and ships by other designers) left Portsmouth on 22 October, followed three days later by a ship of the line
squadron under Rear-admiral William Bowles (with the old three-deckers and and Symonds' three-decker ). The ships of the line were joined at Lisbon
on 3 November by Symonds' two-decker , and all four arrived back in Portsmouth on 27 November, 9 days before the brig squadron.
led the pre-Symonds , St Vincent, and , along with Symonds' Queen, Albion, and , out of Portsmouth Harbour. The squadron arrived at Cork on 7 September, left on the 18th, and arrived in Plymouth on the 20th. (In this and all the other 1845 squadrons Queen performed well, having performed badly in the 1844 squadron.) In Plymouth, the same squadron was transferred to Rear-Admiral Sir Samuel Pym
and sailed on 21 October, returning to the same port on 3 December. The third and final 1845 cruise lasted 43 days and consisted solely of the two deckers from the previous two (Albion, Vanguard, Superb, Rodney and Canopus), accompanied by a brig from the 1844 squadron, . It sailed from Plymouth on 21 October, led, not by an admiral (those then available were all very old and infirm, and the Admiralty placed little confidence in them), but by successive captains in the squadron acting as commodore
(Moresby in Canopus, and then Willes in Vanguard). A final set of cruises occurred in 1846, with a "squadron of evolution" made up of steam-ships and sailing ships of the line.
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
were groups of ships sent out in the 1830s and 1840s to test new techniques of ship design, armament, building and propulsion against old ones. They came about as a result of conflict between the "empirical" school of shipbuilding (led by William Symonds
William Symonds
Sir William Symonds FRS was "Surveyor of the Navy" in the Royal Navy from 9 June 1832 to October 1847, and took part in the naval reforms instituted by the Whig First Lord of the Admiralty Sir James Robert George Graham in 1832.-Early life:He was the second son...
, Surveyor of the Navy
Surveyor of the Navy
The Surveyor to the Navy was a civilian officer in the Royal Navy. He was a member of the Navy Board from the inauguration of that body in 1546, and held overall responsibility for the design of British warships, although until 1745 the actual design work for warships built at each Royal Dockyard...
), the "scientific" school led by the first School of Naval Architecture (closed in 1832), and the "traditional" school led by master shipwrights from the royal dockyards.
1831-1832
The "Squadron of Evolution" took part in gunboat diplomacy off the BelgianBelgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
coast and in the Tagus
Tagus
The Tagus is the longest river on the Iberian Peninsula. It is long, in Spain, along the border between Portugal and Spain and in Portugal, where it empties into the Atlantic Ocean at Lisbon. It drains an area of . The Tagus is highly utilized for most of its course...
.
1844
Determined to prove William SymondsWilliam Symonds
Sir William Symonds FRS was "Surveyor of the Navy" in the Royal Navy from 9 June 1832 to October 1847, and took part in the naval reforms instituted by the Whig First Lord of the Admiralty Sir James Robert George Graham in 1832.-Early life:He was the second son...
' designs to be failures, the new Tory Board of Admiralty sent out successive "Experimental Squadrons" in the mid 1840s. In 1844, a brig squadron (including Symonds' and , the old , and ships by other designers) left Portsmouth on 22 October, followed three days later by a ship of the line
Ship of the line
A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed from the 17th through the mid-19th century to take part in the naval tactic known as the line of battle, in which two columns of opposing warships would manoeuvre to bring the greatest weight of broadside guns to bear...
squadron under Rear-admiral William Bowles (with the old three-deckers and and Symonds' three-decker ). The ships of the line were joined at Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
on 3 November by Symonds' two-decker , and all four arrived back in Portsmouth on 27 November, 9 days before the brig squadron.
1845
On 15 July the following year, the elderly Rear-Admiral Hyde ParkerHyde Parker (Sea Lord)
Vice-Admiral Hyde Parker CB was a senior British naval officer who started to serve during the Napoleonic Wars and who was appointed First Naval Lord of the Admiralty in 1852...
led the pre-Symonds , St Vincent, and , along with Symonds' Queen, Albion, and , out of Portsmouth Harbour. The squadron arrived at Cork on 7 September, left on the 18th, and arrived in Plymouth on the 20th. (In this and all the other 1845 squadrons Queen performed well, having performed badly in the 1844 squadron.) In Plymouth, the same squadron was transferred to Rear-Admiral Sir Samuel Pym
Samuel Pym
Sir Samuel Pym KCB was a British admiral, brother of Sir William Pym.In June 1788, Pym joined the Royal Navy as captain's servant of the frigate Eurydice...
and sailed on 21 October, returning to the same port on 3 December. The third and final 1845 cruise lasted 43 days and consisted solely of the two deckers from the previous two (Albion, Vanguard, Superb, Rodney and Canopus), accompanied by a brig from the 1844 squadron, . It sailed from Plymouth on 21 October, led, not by an admiral (those then available were all very old and infirm, and the Admiralty placed little confidence in them), but by successive captains in the squadron acting as commodore
Commodore (Royal Navy)
Commodore is a rank of the Royal Navy above Captain and below Rear Admiral. It has a NATO ranking code of OF-6. The rank is equivalent to Brigadier in the British Army and Royal Marines and to Air Commodore in the Royal Air Force.-Insignia:...
(Moresby in Canopus, and then Willes in Vanguard). A final set of cruises occurred in 1846, with a "squadron of evolution" made up of steam-ships and sailing ships of the line.