HMS Hyacinth (1829)
Encyclopedia
{|HMS Hyacinth was an 18-gun Royal Navy
sixth-rate sloop
. She was launched in 1829 and surveyed the north-eastern coast of Australia under Francis Price Blackwood
during the mid 1830s. She took part in the First Opium War
, destroying, with HMS Volage, 29 Chinese junks. She became a coal hulk at Portland in 1860 and was broken up in 1871.
in March 1826. She was launched on 6 May 1829 and commissioned for the West Indies Station on 12 January 1830.
. She was flush-decked with a small forecastle and quarterdeck.
s and two 9-pounder bow chaser guns
.
before being broken up in 1871.
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...
sixth-rate sloop
Sloop-of-war
In the 18th and most of the 19th centuries, a sloop-of-war was a warship with a single gun deck that carried up to eighteen guns. As the rating system covered all vessels with 20 guns and above, this meant that the term sloop-of-war actually encompassed all the unrated combat vessels including the...
. She was launched in 1829 and surveyed the north-eastern coast of Australia under Francis Price Blackwood
Francis Price Blackwood
Francis Price Blackwood was a British naval officer who while posted at several different locations during his time in the Royal Navy, spent much of his time posted in colonial Australia and was an instrumental pioneer of regions near Australia's east coast and nearby islands.Born as the second...
during the mid 1830s. She took part in the First Opium War
First Opium War
The First Anglo-Chinese War , known popularly as the First Opium War or simply the Opium War, was fought between the United Kingdom and the Qing Dynasty of China over their conflicting viewpoints on diplomatic relations, trade, and the administration of justice...
, destroying, with HMS Volage, 29 Chinese junks. She became a coal hulk at Portland in 1860 and was broken up in 1871.
Design and construction
Hyacinth was the second of four s, which were a ship-rigged and lengthened version of the 1796 . All four ships of the class were ordered on 10 June 1823 and Hyacinth was laid down at Plymouth DockyardHMNB Devonport
Her Majesty's Naval Base Devonport , is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy . HMNB Devonport is located in Devonport, in the west of the city of Plymouth in Devon, England...
in March 1826. She was launched on 6 May 1829 and commissioned for the West Indies Station on 12 January 1830.
Dimensions
Hyacinth measured 109 in 6 in (33.38 m) along the gun deck by 30 in 9 in (9.37 m) in the beam, and had a tonnage of 429 40/94 bmBuilder's Old Measurement
Builder's Old Measurement is the method of calculating the size or cargo capacity of a ship used in England from approximately 1720 to 1849. It estimated the tonnage of a ship based on length and maximum beam...
. She was flush-decked with a small forecastle and quarterdeck.
Armament
She was armed with sixteen 32-pounder carronadeCarronade
The carronade was a short smoothbore, cast iron cannon, developed for the Royal Navy by the Carron Company, an ironworks in Falkirk, Scotland, UK. It was used from the 1770s to the 1850s. Its main function was to serve as a powerful, short-range anti-ship and anti-crew weapon...
s and two 9-pounder bow chaser guns
Chase gun
The chase guns, usually distinguished as bow chasers and stern chasers were cannons mounted in the bow or stern of a sailing ship...
.
Service
During her 42-year career, she was stationed in the West and East Indies from 1829–41, took part in the First Opium War from 1841–42, and from 1843-46 was stationed off the west coast of Africa in the suppression of the slave trade. After being reduced to 14 guns in 1848, she later became a coal hulk at PortsmouthPortsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
before being broken up in 1871.