HMS ''Egeria'' was a 4-gun

screw sloop A screw sloop is a propeller-driven sloop-of-war. In the 19th century, during the introduction of the steam engine, ships driven by propellers were differentiated from those driven by paddle-wheels by referring to the ship's ''screws'' (propelle ...

of the launched at Pembroke on 1 November 1873. She was named after Egeria, a water

nymph A nymph ( grc, νύμφη, nýmphē, el, script=Latn, nímfi, label= Modern Greek; , ) in ancient Greek folklore is a minor female nature deity. Different from Greek goddesses, nymphs are generally regarded as personifications of nature, are ...

Roman mythology Roman mythology is the body of myths of ancient Rome as represented in the literature and visual arts of the Romans. One of a wide variety of genres of Roman folklore, ''Roman mythology'' may also refer to the modern study of these representa ...

, and was the second ship 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 ...

to bear the name. After a busy career in the East Indies, Pacific, Australia and Canada, she was sold for breaking in 1914 and was burnt at Burrard Inlet in British Columbia.

Construction

''Egeria'' was constructed of an iron frame sheathed with teak and copper (hence 'composite'), and powered by a two-cylinder horizontal compound-expansion steam engine. This engine, provided by Humphrys, Tennant & Co., drove a single diameter screw and generated an

indicated In medicine, an indication is a valid reason to use a certain test, medication, procedure, or surgery. There can be multiple indications to use a procedure or medication. An indication can commonly be confused with the term diagnosis. A diagnosis ...

. Steam was provided by three cylindrical boilers working at .

Perak War

In 1875, ''Egeria'', commanded by Commander Ralph Lancelot Turton, proceeded to Perak (in modern

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

), as one of a squadron of six ships under Captain Alexander Buller with his senior officer's pennant in HMS ''Modeste'', to take part in an expedition against the murderers of Mr James Birch, the British

Resident Resident may refer to: People and functions * Resident minister, a representative of a government in a foreign country * Resident (medicine), a stage of postgraduate medical training * Resident (pharmacy), a stage of postgraduate pharmaceuti ...

in Perak. While the troops and a naval brigade advanced on the upper reaches of the

Perak River The Perak River ( ms, Sungai Perak; ) is the second longest river in Peninsular Malaysia after Pahang River in Pahang, Malaysia. A number of towns are on the banks of the river including the royal town of Kuala Kangsar. Most of the settlement ...

simultaneously from two points, ''Egeria'' blockaded the Perak Littoral, and sent her boats up the Kurow River. These boats destroyed or carried off some guns, arms, and ammunition which might have been useful to the enemy. Severe punishment was inflicted on the natives, but the murderers were not brought to account for some time afterwards.

Intelligence gathering in the Russian Far East

During the

Russo-Turkish War The Russo-Turkish wars (or Ottoman–Russian wars) were a series of twelve wars fought between the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire between the 16th and 20th centuries. It was one of the longest series of military conflicts in European histo ...

of 1877–1878, ''Egeria'', commanded by Commander Archibald Douglas, was sent on an intelligence gathering mission to Petropavlovsk in

Kamchatka The Kamchatka Peninsula (russian: полуостров Камчатка, Poluostrov Kamchatka, ) is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of about . The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk make up the peninsula's eastern and west ...

. It was found to have been abandoned by its Russian garrison.

Survey of Australia

From 1886, under the command of Captain

Pelham Aldrich Admiral Pelham Aldrich, CVO (8 December 1844 – 12 November 1930) was a Royal Navy officer and explorer, who became Admiral Superintendent of Portsmouth Docks. Biography He was born in Mildenhall, Suffolk, the son of Dr. Pelham Aldrich and El ...

, ''Egeria'' was engaged in survey around Australia. In 1887 she called at

Christmas Island Christmas Island, officially the Territory of Christmas Island, is an Australian external territory comprising the island of the same name. It is located in the Indian Ocean, around south of Java and Sumatra and around north-west of the ...

StateLibQld 1 102640 Ships at anchor in the Brisbane River, including the Royal Navy sloop, Egeria

In 1890

Hansard ''Hansard'' is the traditional name of the transcripts of parliamentary debates in Britain and many Commonwealth countries. It is named after Thomas Curson Hansard (1776–1833), a London printer and publisher, who was the first official prin ...

records that

Survey of British Columbia

In 1898, ''Egeria'' arrived in British Columbia where she was engaged in coastal surveys for the Royal Navy until 1910, by which time coast surveying responsibilities had been transferred to the

Canadian Hydrographic Service ''Retired Canadian Hydrographic Service logo or crest'' The Canadian Hydrographic Service (CHS) is part of the federal department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada and is Canada's authoritative hydrographic office. The CHS represents Canada in t ...

. The previous surveying ship, the steamship ''Beaver'', had been paid off 28 years earlier in 1870. Commander Morris Henry Smyth was in command until Commander C. H. Simpson was appointed in command on 1 February 1900. ''Egeria'' was primarily involved in resurveying settled areas of the British Columbia coast to create modern charts on a larger scale. The last survey it conducted was of Welcome Pass off the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia. A representation of ''Egeria'' is included on a commemorative tile at the

Marine Building The Marine Building is a skyscraper located at 355 Burrard Street in Downtown Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada near the Financial District. Completed in 1930, at the time of its opening it was the city's tallest skyscraper and it is one of ...

at 355 Burrard St. in

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. The ...

. It is one of eight historic ships of

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

so honored by this

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...

building which opened in 1930. There is also an inscription carved into the rockface of a cliff overlooking Poets Cove on

Pender Island Pender Island ( Saanich: ) is one of the Southern Gulf Islands located in the Gulf of Georgia, British Columbia, Canada. Pender Island is approximately in area and is home to about 2,250 permanent residents, as well as a large seasonal popula ...

, British Columbia. It says "1905 HMSEGERIA" The galley and mess of HMCS Quadra at Goose Spit Site of 19 Wing Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Comox is named Egeria Hall after the HMS Egeria. It was constructed in 1995.

Decommissioning and sale

After many years in the Surveying Service, in November 1911 she was put up to public auction at

Esquimalt The Township of Esquimalt is a municipality at the southern tip of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. It is bordered to the east by the provincial capital, Victoria, to the south by the Strait of Juan de Fuca, to the west by Esquim ...

, and sold to the

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

branch of the Navy League for £1,416.

Fate

She was sold for breaking up in 1914. Her hulk was beached at

Burrard Inlet french: Baie Burrard , image = Burrard Inlet 201807.jpg , image_size = 250px , alt = , caption = Aerial view of Burrard Inlet , image_bathymetry = Burrard-Inlet-map-en.svg , alt_bathymetry ...

, she was soaked in oil and set afire. The explosion killed three men.Bastock 1988, p. 90.

Legacy

HMS ''Egeria'' is commemorated in the scientific name of a species of lizard, '' Cryptoblepharus egeriae''.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . ("Egeria", p. 81).

Notes

Bibliography

* *Bastock, John (1988), ''Ships on the Australia Station'', Child & Associates Publishing Pty Ltd; Frenchs Forest, Australia. * * *

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Egeria (1873) Fantome-class sloops Ships built in Pembroke Dock 1873 ships Victorian-era sloops of the United Kingdom Survey vessels of the Royal Navy History of Perak History of British Columbia History of Vancouver