HMS ''Royal Arthur'' was a first class cruiser of the , previously named ''Centaur'', but renamed in 1890 prior to launching. She served on the

Australia Station The Australia Station was the British, and later Australian, naval command responsible for the waters around the Australian continent.Dennis et al. 2008, p.53. Australia Station was under the command of the Commander-in-Chief, Australia Station, ...

and briefly on the

North America and West Indies Station The North America and West Indies Station was a formation or command of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy stationed in North American waters from 1745 to 1956. The North American Station was separate from the Jamaica Station until 1830 when the t ...

before returning to the

Home Fleet The Home Fleet was a fleet of the Royal Navy that operated from the United Kingdom's territorial waters from 1902 with intervals until 1967. In 1967, it was merged with the Mediterranean Fleet creating the new Western Fleet. Before the First ...

in 1906. 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 ...

after the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Service history

Protected cruiser HMS Royal Arthur - IWM Q 75337

''Royal Arthur'', and her

sister ship A sister ship is a ship of the same class or of virtually identical design to another ship. Such vessels share a nearly identical hull and superstructure layout, similar size, and roughly comparable features and equipment. They often share a ...

, were built to a slightly modified design and are sometimes considered a separate class. She was built at Portsmouth and launched on 26 February 1891. She first served as the flagship of the

Pacific Station The Pacific Station was created in 1837 as one of the geographical military formations into which the Royal Navy divided its worldwide responsibilities. The South America Station was split into the Pacific Station and the South East Coast of A ...

from 1893 to 1896, before being refitted at Portsmouth in 1897. She then served as the flagship of the

Australian Station The Australia Station was the British, and later Australian, naval command responsible for the waters around the Australian continent.Dennis et al. 2008, p.53. Australia Station was under the command of the Commander-in-Chief, Australia Station, ...

from 1897 to 1904.Bastock, p.117-118. In that role she provided escort for the

royal yacht A royal yacht is a ship used by a monarch or a royal family. If the monarch is an emperor the proper term is imperial yacht. Most of them are financed by the government of the country of which the monarch is head. The royal yacht is most often c ...

carrying the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York (the future

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Que ...

and Queen Mary) to Australia to open the new Federal Parliament in 1901. Captain Thomas Philip Walker was appointed in command in April 1901. She visited

Norfolk Island Norfolk Island (, ; Norfuk: ''Norf'k Ailen'') is an external territory of Australia located in the Pacific Ocean between New Zealand and New Caledonia, directly east of Australia's Evans Head and about from Lord Howe Island. Together with ...

in July 1902, and

Suva Suva () is the capital and largest city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rewa Province, Central Divi ...

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...

the following month. Captain Richard Purefoy FitzGerald Purefoy was appointed to the ship in October 1902, but did not take command until early in 1903, after Vice Admiral

Arthur Dalrymple Fanshawe Admiral of the Fleet Sir Arthur Dalrymple Fanshawe, (2 April 1847 – 21 January 1936) was a Royal Navy officer. As a captain he became commanding officer, successively, of the troopships and , which were tasked with ferrying troops between t ...

had taken command of the Australia Station. She left the Australia Station on 6 April 1904 and was paid off and refitted at Portsmouth. She recommissioned in 1905 and served on the

before returning to England in 1906. Laid up in reserve for three years, she served as part of the

and later Queenstown Training Squadron. She was a guardship at

Scapa Flow Scapa Flow viewed from its eastern end in June 2009 Scapa Flow (; ) is a body of water in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, sheltered by the islands of Mainland, Graemsay, Burray,S. C. George, ''Jutland to Junkyard'', 1973. South Ronaldsay and ...

during the early part of the

and later as a submarine depot ship. HMS Royal Arthur in drydock Sydney

Fate

She was

in 1920 and sold in August 1921 for breaking up in Germany.

References

Sources

*Bastock, John (1988), ''Ships on the Australia Station'', Child & Associates Publishing Pty Ltd; Frenchs Forest, Australia. * * Roger Chesneau and Eugene M. Kolesnik, ed., ''Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905'', (Conway Maritime Press, London, 1979),

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Royal Arthur (1891) Edgar-class cruisers Ships built in Portsmouth Victorian-era cruisers of the United Kingdom World War I cruisers of the United Kingdom 1891 ships