HMS ''Lizard'' was a ''Jackal''-class second-class iron paddle

gunvessel A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies. History Pre-steam ...

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 F ...

. She was built by

Robert Napier and Sons Messrs Robert Napier and Sons was a famous firm of River Clyde, Clyde shipbuilders and marine engineers at Govan, City of Glasgow, Glasgow founded by Robert Napier (engineer), Robert Napier in 1826. It was moved to Govan for more space in 1841. Hi ...

Govan Govan ( ; Cumbric?: ''Gwovan'?''; Scots: ''Gouan''; Scottish Gaelic: ''Baile a' Ghobhainn'') is a district, parish, and former burgh now part of south-west City of Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated west of Glasgow city centre, on the south ba ...

to a design by

William Symonds Sir William Symonds CB FRS (24 September 1782 – 30 March 1856, aboard the French steamship ''Nil'', Strait of Bonifacio, Sardinia)Surveyor of the Navy The Surveyor of the Navy also known as Department of the Surveyor of the Navy and originally known as Surveyor and Rigger of the Navy was a former principal commissioner and member of both the Navy Board from the inauguration of that body in 15 ...

. She was launched in 1844, was damaged at the

Anglo-French blockade of the Río de la Plata The Anglo-French blockade of the Río de la Plata was a five-year-long naval blockade imposed by France and Britain on the Argentine Confederation ruled by Juan Manuel de Rosas. It was imposed in 1845 to support the Colorado Party in the Urug ...

, performed fishery protection duties off Scotland and broken up in 1869.

Design

Orders for ''Lizard'' and her sister were placed on 16 January 1844. They were designed by the builder,

and approved on 17 April 1844 by the

Surveyor of the Navy The Surveyor of the Navy also known as Department of the Surveyor of the Navy and originally known as Surveyor and Rigger of the Navy was a former principal commissioner and member of both the Navy Board from the inauguration of that body in 15 ...

Sir William Symonds Sir William Symonds CB FRS (24 September 1782 – 30 March 1856, aboard the French steamship ''Nil'', Strait of Bonifacio, Sardinia)nominal horsepower Horsepower (hp) is a unit of measurement of power, or the rate at which work is done, usually in reference to the output of engines or motors. There are many different standards and types of horsepower. Two common definitions used today are the ...

and on trials developed . She was provided with two

gaff-rig Gaff rig is a sailing rig (configuration of sails, mast and stays) in which the sail is four-cornered, fore-and-aft rigged, controlled at its peak and, usually, its entire head by a spar (pole) called the ''gaff''. Because of the size and shape ...

ged masts, making her a

schooner A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...

. Her armament consisted of a single 18-pounder (22 cwt) carronade on a pivot mounting and two 24-pounder (13cwt) carronades.

Construction

Both ships were built at Napier's

yard. ''Jackall'' was built as yard number 8, and ''Lizard'' as number 9.HMS ''Lizard'', ''Shipping Times'' Clydebuilt database
accessed 10 December 2011 ''Lizard'' was launched on 28 December 1844, exactly a month after ''Jackal''. After fitting out, ''Lizard''s first commissioning took place on 27 November 1845.

Service

''Lizard''s first commission was in the Mediterranean, and later on the south-east coast of South America. She took part in an Anglo-French action in Uruguay in 1845, during which she was "riddled from stem to stern" passing the

San Lorenzo San Lorenzo is the Italian and Spanish name for Lawrence of Rome, Saint Lawrence, the 3rd-century Christian martyr, and may refer to: Places Argentina * San Lorenzo, Santa Fe * San Lorenzo Department, Chaco * Monte San Lorenzo, a mountain on t ...

shore battery, and suffered 4 men killed and 4 wounded. On 1 August 1848, she assisted in the refloating on the British merchant ship ''Sappho'', which had run aground in the River Plate on 23 July. By 1858 she, like her sister ship, was engaged in fishery protection duties off Scotland, as a tender to .

Fate

''Lizard'' was broken up at

Chatham Chatham may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Canada * Chatham Islands (British Columbia) * Chatham Sound, British Columbia * Chatham, New Brunswick, a former town, now a neighbourhood of Miramichi * Chatham (electoral district), New Brunswic ...

in April 1869.

Notes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lizard, HMS Ships built on the River Clyde 1844 ships Victorian-era gunboats of the United Kingdom Gunvessels of the Royal Navy