The first HMS ''Shah'' was a 19th-century unarmoured iron hulled, wooden sheathed
frigate
A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat.
The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...
of Britain's
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 ...
designed by
Sir Edward Reed
Sir Edward James Reed, KCB, FRS (20 September 1830 – 30 November 1906) was a British naval architect, author, politician, and railroad magnate. He was the Chief Constructor of the Royal Navy from 1863 until 1870. He was a Liberal politicia ...
. She was originally to be named HMS ''Blonde'' but was renamed following the visit of the
Shah of Persia
Iranian monarchism is the advocacy of restoring the monarchy in Iran, which was abolished after the 1979 Revolution.
Historical background
Iran first became a constitutional monarchy in 1906, but underwent a period of autocracy during the years ...
in 1873.
Building Programme
The following table gives the build details and purchase cost of the ''Shah'' and the other two iron frigates:
''Inconstant'' and
''Raleigh''. Standard British practice at that time was for these costs to exclude armament and stores.
*Date first commissioned.
Her complement was 469 officers and men, 46 boys and 87 marines.
Armament
As of 1888, ''Shah'' was armed with two
9-inch rifled muzzle-loading guns, sixteen
7-inch 6½ ton rifled muzzle-loading guns, eight
5-inch breech-loading guns, three quick-firing guns, twelve machine-guns, and four torpedo launchers.
Service career
She was only in service for three years. In 1876, she was deployed as flagship of the Royal Navy's
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 ...
under Admiral
de Horsey, relieving
HMS ''Repulse''.
On 29 May 1877, in company with the corvette
HMS ''Amethyst'', she fought an action near
Ilo, Peru
Ilo is a port city in southern Peru, with 66,118 inhabitants. It is the second largest city in the Moquegua Region and capital of the Ilo Province.
History
Before the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th century, the area was populated by the ...
, the
Battle of Pacocha
The Battle of Pacocha was a naval battle that took place on 29 May 1877 between the rebel-held Peruvian monitor ''Huáscar'' and the British ships and . The vessels did not inflict significant damage on each other, however the battle is notab ...
. This was against the Peruvian armoured single-turret ship ''
Huáscar
Huáscar Inca (; Quechua: ''Waskar Inka''; 1503–1532) also Guazcar was Sapa Inca of the Inca Empire from 1527 to 1532. He succeeded his father, Huayna Capac and his brother Ninan Cuyochi, both of whom died of smallpox while campaigning near Qui ...
'', which had been taken over by anti-government rebels, and had boarded some British merchant ships.
![The engagement between the Huascar and HMS Shah off Ilo, May 29, 1877 - The Graphic 1879 (cropped)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1a/The_engagement_between_the_Huascar_and_HMS_Shah_off_Ilo%2C_May_29%2C_1877_-_The_Graphic_1879_%28cropped%29.jpg)
The armoured ''Huáscar'' proved virtually impenetrable to the British guns, but the two unarmoured British ships had to keep clear of the ''Huáscar''’s turret guns. Although ''Shah'' was the fastest battleship then afloat, the smaller ''Huáscar'' was more maneuverable in the shallow waters. In the course of the action, ''Shah'' fired the first
torpedo
A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, su ...
to be used in anger, although it missed – being outrun by ''Huáscar''.
During her time as flagship she also visited
Pitcairn Island
Pitcairn Island is the only inhabited island of the Pitcairn Islands, of which many inhabitants are descendants of mutineers of HMS ''Bounty''.
Geography
The island is of volcanic origin, with a rugged cliff coastline. Unlike many other ...
. On her voyage home in 1879, she called at
St. Helena
Saint Helena () is a British overseas territory located in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote volcanic tropical island west of the coast of south-western Africa, and east of Rio de Janeiro in South America. It is one of three constitu ...
, where news was received of
the British defeat at Isandhlwana. ''Shah'' was diverted to carry soldiers to
Durban
Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...
in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
. She then formed part of a Royal Naval contingent that assisted in the
Anglo-Zulu War
The Anglo-Zulu War was fought in 1879 between the British Empire and the Zulu Kingdom. Following the passing of the British North America Act of 1867 forming a federation in Canada, Lord Carnarvon thought that a similar political effort, coupl ...
, before she completed her voyage to Britain.
On 24 October 1879 some of her crew were paid off at Portsmouth and ''Shah'' was placed in the fourth division of the Steam Reserve, then joined 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 ...
at the
Royal Naval Dockyard on
Ireland Island, Bermuda
Ireland Island is the north-westernmost island in the chain which comprises Bermuda. It forms a long finger of land pointing northeastwards from the main island, the last link in a chain which also includes Boaz Island and Somerset Island. It ...
, to provide accommodation.
HMS ''Malabar'' took over this task in 1897.
[Stranack, Lieutenant-Commander Ian RN (ret), FIL, AMBIM. ''The Andrew and The Onions: The Story of the Royal Navy in Bermuda, 1795-1975''. Bermuda: The Island Press Ltd., 1977; Second Edition, Bermuda Maritime Museum Press, 1990. ]
In December 1904, ''Shah'' was converted to a coal storage hulk and renamed ''C.470''. The hulk was sold on 19 September 1919. In 1926 the hulk was wrecked, at
Bermuda
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According to some sources (primarily Danish), the ship was eventually sold to Danish salvage company Petersen & Albeck in 1934, towed to
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
, and dismantled there. Part of the
teak
Teak (''Tectona grandis'') is a tropical hardwood tree species in the family Lamiaceae. It is a large, deciduous tree that occurs in mixed hardwood forests. ''Tectona grandis'' has small, fragrant white flowers arranged in dense clusters (panicl ...
wood interior was later used as floor planks at the
Royal Castle in Gråsten in 1936.
Her masts survive. Being iron, they were deemed to be a lighter, more durable, replacement for the wooden masts of
HMS ''Victory''. They were probably fitted to ''Victory'' when she was dry docked in 1887, and survive to the present day in her preserved state.
Her stern-plaque, a gift from the Shah of Persia, was restored in 1974 by
HMS ''Malabar'' (Her Majesty's Naval Base Bermuda, the remnant of the Royal Naval Dockyard). It is on display at the St. George's Historical Society Museum, in the Mitchell House in
St. George's Town, Bermuda).
"St. George's Historical Society Museum". Bermuda.com Ltd
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There is a monument to the ship's crew in Victoria Park, Portsmouth
Victoria Park is a public park located just to the north of Portsmouth Guildhall, adjacent to Portsmouth and Southsea railway station and close to the city centre in Portsmouth, Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonia ...
.
Footnotes
References
* Brassey, Lord (ed) The Naval Annual 1887
* Brassey, Lord (ed
The Naval Annual 1888
*
*
* King, JW, ''Warships and Navies of the World'', pub A Williams, 1881.
*
*
* J Winton: ''Hurrah for the Life of a Sailor''
* P Padfield: ''Rule Britannia''
External links
*
HMS Shah
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shah (1873)
Steam frigates of the Royal Navy
Ships built in Portsmouth
1873 ships