HMS ''Northumberland'' was a 70-gun

third-rate In the rating system of the Royal Navy, a third rate was a ship of the line which from the 1720s mounted between 64 and 80 guns, typically built with two gun decks (thus the related term two-decker). Years of experience proved that the third r ...

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 ...

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 ...

, built by Francis Bayley of

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

in 1677/79. She partook in the last great battle of the War of English Succession and the first battle of the War of Spanish Succession. She was lost in the Great Storm of November 1703. She was named in honour of Charles II illegitimate son, George Fitzroy, his son with Barbara Palmer (Duchess of Cleveland). George Fitzroy was made the Duke of Northumberland in 1678. This was the first vessel to bear the name Northumberland in the English and Royal Navy. HMS Northumberland was awarded the Battle Honours Barfleur 1692, and Vigo 1702.

Construction and Specifications

She was ordered in May 1677 to be built under contract by Francis Bayley of

. Bayley died in March 1678 and his executor, Mr. Pope, completed the ship. She was launched in June 1679. Her dimensions were a gundeck of with a keel of for tonnage calculation with a breadth of and a depth of hold of . Her builder’s measure tonnage was calculated as 1,041. Her draught was .Lavery, Ships of the Line vol.1, p162 Her initial gun armament was in accordance with the 1677 Establishment with 72/60 guns consisting of twenty-six demi-cannons (54 cwt, 9.5 ft) on the lower deck (LD), twenty-six 12-pounder guns (32 cwt, 9 ft) on the upper deck (UD), ten sakers (16 cwt, 7 ft) on the quarterdeck (QD), and four sakers (16 cwt, 7 ft) on the foc’x’le (Fc), with four 3-pounder guns (5 cwt, 5 ft) on the poop deck or roundhouse (RH). By 1688 she would carry 70 guns as per the 1685 Establishment, but with demi-culverins in place of the 12-pounder guns.

Commissioned Service

Service from 1679 to 1699

''HMS Northumberland'' was commissioned on 20 June 1679 under the command of Captain John Wetwang until 20 September 1679 for delivery to Chatham. With the outbreak of the War of English Succession, she was commissioned in September 1690 under the command of Captain Andrew Cotton. She fought in the Battle of Barfleur in Rear (Blue) Squadron, Van Division from 19 to 22 May 1692. Captain Cotton was killed on 13 June 1693. In 1693 she was under Captain Henry Botelar, who was killed in a duel on 21 September 1693. In 1694 she was under Captain David Lambert sailing with Russel’s Fleet in the English Channel then moved on to the Mediterranean in October. In 1695 she was under Captain John Benbow participating in Lord Berkeley’s operations. In August 1695 she was under Captain Baron Wyld. Captain Christopher Fogge was her commander sailing with Lord Berkeley’s Fleet. She would be rebuilt at Chatham in 1699/1702.

Rebuild at Chatham Dockyard 1699 to 1702

She was ordered rebuilt on 14 September 1699 at

Chatham Dockyard Chatham Dockyard was a Royal Navy Dockyard located on the River Medway in Kent. Established in Chatham in the mid-16th century, the dockyard subsequently expanded into neighbouring Gillingham (at its most extensive, in the early 20th century, ...

under the guidance of Master Shipwright Robert Shortiss. She was completed/launched in 1702. Her dimensions were a gundeck of with a keel of for tonnage calculation with a breadth of and a depth of hold of . Her builder’s measure tonnage was calculated as 1,096 tons.Lavery, Ships of the Line vol.1, p167 Her armament was under the 1703 Establishment was listed as 70 guns wartime / 62 guns peacetime consisting of twenty-four/twenty-two 24-pounder guns of 9.5 feet in length on the lower deck, twenty-six/twenty-four demi-culverins of 9-foot length on the upper deck, twelve/ten 6-pounder guns of 8.5-foot length on the quarterdeck, and four/two 6-pounder guns of (2/2) 9-foot length and (2/0) of 7.5-foot length, with four 5.5 foot 3-pounder guns on the poop deck or roundhouse. She may have carried her demi-cannons on the lower deck.

Service from 1702 to 1703

''HMS Northumberland'' was commissioned in 1702 under the command of Captain James Greenaway for service with Sir George Rooke’s Fleet for operations at Cadiz, Spain. The fleet sailed from Spithead on 19 July for St Helens Island in the Scillies. The arrived in the Bay of Bulls, north of Cadiz on the 12th of August. After the capture of Rota, Spain they destroyed the stores and departed for England on the 19th. After being informed of a French Fleet and Spanish treasure ships at Vigo Bay they sailed for the north-west coast of Spain. She was chosen for the attack on Vigo Bay and the harbour of Redondela on the 11th. Rear-Admiral John Graydon hoisted his flag, and she led the Blue Squadron in the attacked on the 12th. After about 90 minutes all enemy ships were either taken or destroyed. The Fleet had returned to the Downs by November 1702. She remained in Home Waters during 1703 cruising the English Channel.

Loss

During the Great Storm, she was lost on the Goodwin Sands during the night of 26/27 November 1703.Winfield (2009), Chapter 3, Vessels Acquired from 18 December 1688, Third Rates of 70 guns, Rebuildings of 1697-1704, Group 4 (all by dockyard), Northumberland Captain James Greenaway perished with his ship along with her entire crew of 220 personnel. The wreck is a Protected Wreck managed by

Historic England Historic England (officially the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England) is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. It is tasked wit ...

Wreck

The remains of the ''Northumberland'' lie south of three wrecks of other ships lost in the same storm - the ''Stirling Castle'', ''Restoration'' and ''Mary''. The ''Northumberland'' and ''Mary'' (the latter misidentified as the ''Restoration'') were found by recreational divers in 1980. The site was

designated Designation (from Latin ''designatio'') is the process of determining an incumbent's successor. A candidate that won an election for example, is the ''designated'' holder of the office the candidate has been elected to, up until the candidate's i ...

under the

Protection of Wrecks Act 1973 The Protection of Wrecks Act 1973 (c. 33) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which provides protection for designated shipwrecks. Section 1 of the act provides for wrecks to be designated because of historical, archaeological or ...

the following year. The current designation is under Statutory Instrument 2004/2395, of a radius around 51° 15.4802’ N 01° 30.0161’ E. The Archaeological Diving Unit (ADU) conducted a number of dives on the site over the next three decades and since 1999 technology has been applied in the form of

magnetometer A magnetometer is a device that measures magnetic field or magnetic dipole moment. Different types of magnetometers measure the direction, strength, or relative change of a magnetic field at a particular location. A compass is one such device, o ...

and

side-scan sonar Side-scan sonar (also sometimes called side scan sonar, sidescan sonar, side imaging sonar, side-imaging sonar and bottom classification sonar) is a category of sonar system that is used to efficiently create an image of large areas of the sea ...

surveys. The wreck was originally identified by the discovery of a bell and stock with the naval broad arrow and date; subsequently the ADU have found guns, two copper cauldrons and an anchor. The site consists of a large mound approximately long by wide, lying NW/SE near Fork Spit on the western edge of the Goodwin Sands. Parts are above the surrounding seabed, but much of the structure is thought to be buried below the sand. A dense turf of juvenile mussels covers most features, making it hard to identify them. There is a coherent piece of ship's structure just south of the centre of the designated area, with large timbers and some exposed planking, possibly corresponding to the region between the first and second futtocks (ribs) of the vessel.

Citations

References

* Colledge (2020), Ships of the Royal Navy, by J.J. Colledge, revised and updated by Lt Cdr Ben Warlow and Steve Bush, published by Seaforth Publishing, Barnsley, Great Britain, © 2020, (EPUB), Section N (Northumberland) * Winfield (2009), British Warships in the Age of Sail (1603 – 1714), by Rif Winfield, published by Seaforth Publishing, England © 2009, EPUB * Lavery, Brian (2003) ''The Ship of the Line - Volume 1: The Development of the Battlefleet 1650-1850.'' Conway Maritime Press. * Clowes (1898), The Royal Navy, A History from the Earliest Times to the Present (Vol. II). London. England: Sampson Low, Marston & Company, © 1898

External links

"Northumberland" National Heritage List for England
{{DEFAULTSORT:Northumberland (1679) Ships of the line of the Royal Navy Protected Wrecks of England Maritime incidents in 1703 Ships built in Bristol Shipwrecks in the Downs 1670s ships 1679 in England 1703 in England History of Kent