HMS ''Impregnable'' was a

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 F ...

98-gun second rate

ship of the line A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed during the Age of Sail from the 17th century to the mid-19th century. The ship of the line was designed for the naval tactic known as the line of battle, which depended on the two colu ...

launched on 15 April 1786 at Deptford Dockyard. She was wrecked in 1799 off Spithead.

Service

''Impregnable'' was commissioned in October 1787 by Captain Thomas Pringle. In the following year command of the ship transferred to Captain

Thomas Byard Captain Sir Thomas Byard (bapt. 25 September 1743 – 30 October 1798) was an officer of the British Royal Navy during the French Revolutionary Wars. He is best known for his service in two significant battles, fighting at the Battle of Camperdo ...

, and ''Impregnable'' served as flag ship to Vice-Admiral Thomas Graves as the guardship at Plymouth Dockyard. In May 1790 she was

refit Refitting or refit of boats and marine vessels includes repairing, fixing, restoring, renewing, mending, and renovating an old vessel. Refitting has become one of the most important activities inside a shipyard. It offers a variety of services for ...

ted at Plymouth in preparation for service in the

Channel Fleet The Channel Fleet and originally known as the Channel Squadron was the Royal Navy formation of warships that defended the waters of the English Channel from 1854 to 1909 and 1914 to 1915. History Throughout the course of Royal Navy's history the ...

at the cost of £3,923.16.11d. This was in response to the Spanish Armament, and ''Impregnable'' served as flag ship to Rear-Admiral Sir Richard Bickerton from August. The ship continued in service during the Russian Armament of the following year, with her flag officer having changed to Rear-Admiral

Phillips Cosby Admiral Phillips Cosby (1729 – 10 January 1808) was a Royal Navy officer who fought in the American Revolutionary War. Naval career Cosby joined the Royal Navy as an ordinary seaman in 1747. He was given command of a schooner at the Siege of ...

; at the end of this 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 ...

in September. ''Impregnable'' was recommissioned in September 1793 by Captain

George Blagdon Westcott George Blagdon Westcott (Floruit, fl. 24 April 1753 – 1 August 1798) was an officer of the Royal Navy. He served during the American Revolutionary War, American Revolutionary and the French Revolutionary Wars, eventually rising to the rank ...

to serve as the flag ship of Rear-Admiral

Benjamin Caldwell Admiral Sir Benjamin Caldwell, (31 January 1739 – November 1820) was a senior and experienced British Royal Navy officer of the eighteenth century. His many victories and achievements were overshadowed by his acrimonious departure from the ...

, with the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted French First Republic, France against Ki ...

having begun. Under Caldwell and Westcott, she fought at the Glorious First of June in 1794. In October of that year Westcott was replaced in command by Captain

Charles Cotton Charles Cotton (28 April 1630 – 16 February 1687) was an English poet and writer, best known for translating the work of Michel de Montaigne from the French, for his contributions to ''The Compleat Angler'', and for the influential ''The Comp ...

, but in a quick carousel of captains, Cotton was in turn replaced by Captain Andrew Mitchell in 1795, and Captain John Thompson took over from Mitchell in July of that year. Under Thompson ''Impregnable'' was paid off in August 1796, only to be recommissioned once again in June 1799, under Captain Jonathan Faulknor.

Fate

''Impregnable'' was lost off

Chichester Chichester () is a cathedral city and civil parish in West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Date:2009. It is the only ci ...

on 18 October. She had escorted a convoy of 12 merchantmen from

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

to the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...

and her master, Michael Jenkins, was anxious to get into

Spithead Spithead is an area of the Solent and a roadstead off Gilkicker Point in Hampshire, England. It is protected from all winds except those from the southeast. It receives its name from the Spit, a sandbank stretching south from the Hampshire ...

that night. The result was that she ended up on the Chichester Shoals. Faulknor ordered the ship be lightened by cutting away the masts, and an attempt was made to anchor for the night. At dawn the crew discovered that she had beaten a mile and a half over the shoals and now lay in mud flats near the entrance to

Langstone Harbour Langstone Harbour is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Hampshire. It is an inlet of the English Channel in Hampshire, sandwiched between Portsea Island to the south and west, Hayling Island to the south and east, and Langs ...

. The following day she was found to have bilged. Faulknor determined that the ship could not be saved. A small flotilla of vessels from Langstone and Spithead dockyards was put to sea to assist, and successfully removed the crew, the ship's guns and other valuables. The

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong * Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral * Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings *Admiralty, Tr ...

later sold ''Impregnable''s remains to a

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

merchant, A. Lindenegren. A court martial on 30 October 1799 dismissed Master Jenkins from the service.

Citations and notes

References

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Impregnable (1786) Ships of the line of the Royal Navy London-class ships of the line 1786 ships Ships built in Deptford Maritime incidents in 1799 Shipwrecks of England