HMS ''Amphion'' was a 36-gun wooden hulled screw
frigate
A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat.
The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...
of the
Royal Navy. She was initially ordered as a sail powered ship, but later reordered as a prototype
screw frigate
Steam frigates (including screw frigates) and the smaller steam corvettes, steam sloops, steam gunboats and steam schooners, were steam-powered warships that were not meant to stand in the line of battle. There were some exceptions like for exam ...
conversion.
Design and construction
''Amphion'' was initially planned and ordered from
Woolwich Dockyard as HMS ''Ambuscade'' on 13 May 1828, but was renamed on 31 March 1831. She was laid down on 15 April 1840, but on 18 June 1844 she was reordered as a screw propelled frigate, to a design by White. She was duly launched on 14 January 1846, and commissioned on 13 May 1847. Her engines and machinery were provided by Miller, Ravenhill & Co, to a design by
John Ericsson
John Ericsson (born Johan Ericsson; July 31, 1803 – March 8, 1889) was a Swedish-American inventor. He was active in England and the United States.
Ericsson collaborated on the design of the railroad steam locomotive ''Novelty'', which com ...
. ''Amphion'' had cost £36,115 for her hull, with a further £16,673 spent on buying and fitting the machinery, which was installed at the
East India Docks. A further £22,794 was spent on fitting her for sea, which was carried out at
Sheerness
Sheerness () is a town and civil parish beside the mouth of the River Medway on the north-west corner of the Isle of Sheppey in north Kent, England. With a population of 11,938, it is the second largest town on the island after the nearby town ...
. The space taken up by the machinery was found to considerably restrict the amount available to store provisions and munitions.
Career
She was reduced to 30 guns in 1848, but had been restored to 36 guns in 1856.
During the
Crimean War, she served in the
Baltic Sea. In June 1855, she ran aground at
Vipuri,
Grand Duchy of Finland and was fired on by Russian artillery. One of her crew was killed and two were injured.
She was sold to Williams on 12 October 1863 to be broken up.
See also
*
List of ship names of the Royal Navy
References
*
* Lyon, David and Winfield, Rif, ''
The Sail and Steam Navy List, All the Ships of the Royal Navy 1815-1889'', pub Chatham, 2004,
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Amphion, HMS
Frigates of the Royal Navy
Ships built in Woolwich
1846 ships
Crimean War naval ships of the United Kingdom
Maritime incidents in June 1855