HMS Phoenix was a fourth rate frigate of the English

Kingdom of England

The Kingdom of England was, from 927 to 1707, a sovereign state to the northwest of continental Europe. At its height, the Kingdom of England spanned the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain and several smaller outlying islands; what today comprises the legal jurisdiction of England...

 Royal Navy

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...

, built by Peter Pett II at Woolwich

Woolwich

Woolwich is a district in south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.Woolwich formed part of Kent until 1889 when the County of London was created...

 and launched in 1647. The term 'frigate' during the period of this ship referred to a method of construction, rather than a role which did not develop until the following century. As completed she was established with a peacetime 32 guns, but by 1652 carried 38 guns as a wartime establishment. She was enlarged during her life and by the 1660s was measured at 556 tons.

Phoenix was captured by the Dutch ship Eendracht off Elba in the Mediterranean during the Battle of Elba

Battle of Elba

The naval Battle of Elba was a naval battle which took place on 6 September 1652 between a Dutch fleet under Johan van Galen and an English fleet under Richard Badiley.- Battle :...

, 28-8-1652 (O.S.)/6-9-1652 (N.S.), an action between the English squadron commanded by Richard Badiley

Richard Badiley

Richard Badiley was an English naval officer. He saw service during the First Anglo-Dutch War.-Early service:He was a merchant, ship-owner, and ship-captain, probably related to several Badileys who, appear in Trinity House lists of shipmasters in the 1620s...

 and a Dutch squadron under Jan van Galen. She was retaken on 20 November 1652 by an attack by English small boats at Leghorn. She was finally wrecked on 3 December 1664 during a storm in Gibraltar Bay while attempting to pass through the Straits of Gibraltar.