second rate
In the rating system of the Royal Navy used to categorise sailing warships, a second-rate was a ship of the line which by the start of the 18th century mounted 90 to 98 guns on three gun decks; earlier 17th-century second rates had fewer guns ...
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 ...
, launched on 21 June 1826 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, ...
.
From 1 January 1839 to the end of 1840 ''Powerful'' was commanded by Captain Charles Napier, mainly in the Mediterranean and for much of the time as lead ship of a detached squadron under Napier's orders. On the evening of 29 May 1839 she was anchored in the
Cove of Cork
Cobh ( ,), known from 1849 until 1920 as Queenstown, is a seaport town on the south coast of County Cork, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. With a population of around 13,000 inhabitants, Cobh is on the south side of Great Island in Cork Harbour a ...
, Ireland when Napier received urgent orders from the Admiralty to proceed at once to
Malta
Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
in view of the imminent probability of war with Egypt. He was also informed that the ships-of-the-line HMS ''Ganges'' and HMS ''Implacable'' had already started from England. Wishing to overtake them, Napier set sail at 2 a.m. on the 30th for Gibraltar. ''Powerful'' arrived at Gibraltar on 12 June to hear the other two ships were three days ahead of her, but by superior seamanship Napier overtook them in the Mediterranean and ''Powerful'' entered the harbour of
La Valletta
Valletta (, mt, il-Belt Valletta, ) is an administrative unit and capital of Malta. Located on the main island, between Marsamxett Harbour to the west and the Grand Harbour to the east, its population within administrative limits in 2014 was ...
, Malta on the evening of 24 June, with band playing and under every stitch of canvas, twelve hours ahead of her rivals.Edward Elers Napier, ''The Life and Correspondence of Admiral Sir Charles Napier K.C.B. From Personal Recollections, Letters and Official Documents'' (2 volumes, London: Hurst & Blackett, 1862); reprinted by Elibron Classics, 2005 , Volume 1 pp. 363-7, 372.
After a year in the Mediterranean while the political situation changed, the ship took a prominent part in the Syrian War against the expansionist designs of
Acre
The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial
Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism.
Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to:
Places
United States
* Imperial, California
* Imperial, Missouri
* Imp ...
, 3 November 1840, where she sustained damage but no casualties. ''Powerful'' was then flagship of the squadron that blockaded
Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...
from 25 November. In 1841 Napier was succeeded as her captain by George Mansel, and then Sir Michael Seymour, who commanded her from 1841 until she paid off at Portsmouth in 1843. She was recommissioned in 1848 under the command of Sir
Richard Saunders Dundas
Vice-Admiral Sir Richard Saunders Dundas, (11 April 1802 – 3 June 1861) was a Royal Navy officer. As a captain, he took part in the capture of the Bogue forts in January 1841, during the First Opium War. He was appointed to the command of the ...
under whom she again served in the Mediterranean.
''Powerful'' was used as a target in 1860, and was broken up in 1864.
Notes
References
*Lavery, Brian (2003) ''The Ship of the Line - Volume 1: The development of the battlefleet 1650-1850.'' Conway Maritime Press. .