HMS ''Cambrian'' was a second-class

protected cruiser Protected cruisers, a type of naval cruiser of the late-19th century, gained their description because an armoured deck offered protection for vital machine-spaces from fragments caused by shells exploding above them. Protected cruisers re ...

, of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

, built at the

Pembroke Dockyard Pembroke Dockyard, originally called Pater Yard, is a former Royal Navy Dockyard in Pembroke Dock, Pembrokeshire, Wales. History It was founded in 1814, although not formally authorized until the Prince Regent signed the necessary Order in Counc ...

and launched on 30 January 1893.Bastock, pp. 138-139. She was the last flagship of the

Australia Station The Australia Station was the British, and later Australian, naval command responsible for the waters around the Australian continent.Dennis et al. 2008, p.53. Australia Station was under the command of the Commander-in-Chief, Australia Station, ...

Prince Louis of Battenberg Admiral of the Fleet Louis Alexander Mountbatten, 1st Marquess of Milford Haven, (24 May 185411 September 1921), formerly Prince Louis Alexander of Battenberg, was a British naval officer and German prince related by marriage to the British ...

, later

First Sea Lord The First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff (1SL/CNS) is the military head of the Royal Navy and Naval Service of the United Kingdom. The First Sea Lord is usually the highest ranking and most senior admiral to serve in the British Armed Fo ...

, captained ''Cambrian'' in the Mediterranean Fleet from October 1894 to May 1897. In March 1901 she was commissioned at HMNB Devonport by Captain Frederick Sidney Pelham, with a crew of 345, to become senior officer's ship on the

South East Coast of America Station The South East Coast of America Station was a formation of the Royal Navy which existed from 1838 until just after the end of the 19th century. History The station was separated from the Pacific Station in 1838 in order to combat the slave trade i ...

. From May 1901 she was commanded by Commodore

Robert Leonard Groome Admiral Robert Leonard Groome CVO (10 September 1848 – 22 November 1917) was a Royal Navy officer who became Commander-in-Chief of the South East Coast of America Station. Naval career Promoted to captain on 4 August 1890, Groome became comm ...

, when Captain Pelham had transferred to a different vessel. Captain Frank Finnis was appointed Commodore, 2nd class in command of the South East American Station based on the ''Cambrian'' in June 1902, and arrived to take up the command the following month. By the middle of August, Commander Edward Stafford Fitzherbert was in command of the ship, when she visited Montevideo and Santos, Brazil. She continued to

Bahia Bahia ( , , ; meaning "bay") is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo, Minas Gerais, and Rio de Janeiro) and the 5th-largest b ...

and

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a ...

the following months. In 1907 she was on the

Mediterranean Station The British Mediterranean Fleet, also known as the Mediterranean Station, was a formation of the Royal Navy. The Fleet was one of the most prestigious commands in the navy for the majority of its history, defending the vital sea link between ...

. She commenced service on the Australia Station on 3 October 1905 under the command of Captain E.F. Gaunt arriving in Sydney in December. She left the Australia Station after the arrival of the Australian Navy Fleet and returned to England on 13 October 1913. Upon arrival in England she was

paid off Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to placing a warship in ...

. She was converted into a base ship and renamed HMS ''Harlech'' in March 1916 and later HMS ''Vivid'' in September 1921.

Fate

She was sold in 1923 to Young in Southerland for breaking up.

Citations

References

*Bastock, John (1988), ''Ships on the Australia Station'', Child & Associates Publishing Pty Ltd; Frenchs Forest, Australia. 1893 ships Ships built in Pembroke Dock Victorian-era cruisers of the United Kingdom {{UK-mil-ship-stub