HMS Vanguard was a 40-gun ship 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...

, launched

Ship naming and launching

The ceremonies involved in naming and launching naval ships are based in traditions thousands of years old.-Methods of launch:There are three principal methods of conveying a new ship from building site to water, only two of which are called "launching." The oldest, most familiar, and most widely...

 in 1631 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 was the second vessel to bear the name. Officially she was rebuilt from the first Vanguard

HMS Vanguard (1586)

VanguardThe 'HMS' prefix was not used until the middle of the 18th century, but is sometimes applied retrospectively was a 32-gun galleon of the English Royal Navy, launched in 1586 from Woolwich, and was the first ship of the navy to bear the name....

, but likely only shared some of the timber and fittings from the previous ship. By 1660, her armament had been increased to 56 guns.

She took part in both the First

First Anglo-Dutch War

The First Anglo–Dutch War was the first of the four Anglo–Dutch Wars. It was fought entirely at sea between the navies of the Commonwealth of England and the United Provinces of the Netherlands. Caused by disputes over trade, the war began with English attacks on Dutch merchant shipping, but...

 and Second

Second Anglo-Dutch War

The Second Anglo–Dutch War was part of a series of four Anglo–Dutch Wars fought between the English and the Dutch in the 17th and 18th centuries for control over the seas and trade routes....

 Dutch Wars. The ship served as the flagship for General-at-Sea George Monck at the Battle of Portland

Battle of Portland

The naval Battle of Portland, or Three Days' Battle took place during 28 February-2 March 1653 , during the First Anglo-Dutch War, when the fleet of the Commonwealth of England under General at Sea Robert Blake was attacked by a fleet of the Dutch Republic under Lieutenant-Admiral Maarten Tromp...

 in 1653, and of Vice-Admiral Joseph Jordan

Joseph Jordan

Sir Joseph Jordan was a naval officer and admiral. From a Thames shipowning family, he is initially recorded as importing tobacco from Nevis and Barbados aboard the Amity....

 at the Battle of the Gabbard

Battle of the Gabbard

The naval Battle of the Gabbard, also known as the Battle of Gabbard Bank, the Battle of the North Foreland or the second Battle of Nieuwpoort took place on 2–3 June 1653 according to the Old Style of Julian calendar then used in England during the First Anglo-Dutch War near the Gabbard...

 and the Battle of Scheveningen

Battle of Scheveningen

The Battle of Scheveningen was the final naval battle of the First Anglo-Dutch War...

 later the same year. She also took part in several actions of the Second Dutch War, including the Battle of Lowestoft

Battle of Lowestoft

The naval Battle of Lowestoft took place on 13 June 1665 during the Second Anglo-Dutch War.A fleet of more than a hundred ships of the United Provinces commanded by Lieutenant-Admiral Jacob van Wassenaer Obdam attacked an English fleet of equal size commanded by James Stuart, Duke of York forty...

 in 1665 and the Four Days Battle

Four Days Battle

The Four Days Battle was a naval battle of the Second Anglo–Dutch War. Fought from 1 June to 4 June 1666 in the Julian or Old Style calendar then used in England off the Flemish and English coast, it remains one of the longest naval engagements in history.In June 1665 the English had soundly...

 and St James's Day Fight in 1666. In 1667 Vanguard was scuttled to form a barrier in the Medway River

Medway River

*River Medway is a river in the south-east of England*Medway River, New Zealand is a river in South Island of New Zealand*Medway River, Australia, a river in New South Wales, Australia*Medway River, Nova Scotia, a river in Nova Scotia, Canada...

to prevent the Dutch fleet from capturing or burning the British ships there. She was subsequently sold.