HMS Imperieuse was the lead ship of the Imperieuse-class

Imperieuse class cruiser

The Imperieuse class cruiser was a class of two armoured cruisers launched between 1883 and 1884 for the Royal Navy.-History:In an 1886 magazine article, Sir Edward Reed complained that these ships did not deserve to be called "armoured", as they were not armoured at bow or stern, only along the...

 of first-class armoured cruiser, built at Portsmouth

Portsmouth

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...

 and launched on 18 December 1883. She was the flagship

Flagship

A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...

 of the China Station

China Station

The China Station was a historical formation of the British Royal Navy. It was formally the units and establishments responsible to the Commander-in-Chief, China....

 from 1889 to 1894 and the Pacific Station

Pacific Station

The Pacific Station, often referred to as the Pacific Squadron, was one of the geographical divisions into which the Royal Navy divided its worldwide responsibilities...

 from 1896 to 1899.

Imperieuse was renamed as Sapphire II in February 1905 and reclassified as a depot ship for destroyers at Portland

Isle of Portland

The Isle of Portland is a limestone tied island, long by wide, in the English Channel. Portland is south of the resort of Weymouth, forming the southernmost point of the county of Dorset, England. A tombolo over which runs the A354 road connects it to Chesil Beach and the mainland. Portland and...

. Her name was reverted to Imperieuse in June 1909. She was sold on 24 September 1913 to Ward of Morecambe for breaking up.

External links

• http://www.battleships-cruisers.co.uk/hms_imperieuse.htm