HMS Union (1756) on:
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HMS ''Union'' was a 90-gun 
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 ...
, built 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, ...
to the draught specified by the 1745 Establishment
The 1745 Establishment was the third and final formal establishment of dimensions for ships to be built for the Royal Navy. It completely superseded the previous 1719 Establishment, which had subsequently been modified in 1733 and again in 1741 ...
as amended in 1750, and launched on 25 September 1756.
In 1756, one of the midshipmen on the ''Union'' was John Hunter, later to become an admiral and the second Governor of New South Wales
The governor of New South Wales is the viceregal representative of the Australian monarch, King Charles III, in the state of New South Wales. In an analogous way to the governor-general of Australia at the national level, the governors of the ...
. On 1 August 1757 Arthur Phillip
Admiral Arthur Phillip (11 October 1738 – 31 August 1814) was a British Royal Navy officer who served as the first governor of the Colony of New South Wales.
Phillip was educated at Greenwich Hospital School from June 1751 unti ...
, who was to become the first Governor of New South Wales, joined the crew with the new commander.
The results (published in 1796) of an experiment made at the desire of the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, on board the ''Union hospital ship'', to determine the effect of the nitrous acid
Nitrous acid (molecular formula ) is a weak and monoprotic acid known only in Solution (chemistry), solution, in the gas phase and in the form of nitrite () salts. Nitrous acid is used to make diazonium salts from amines. The resulting diazoni ...
in destroying contagion, and the safety with which it may be employed were given in a letter addressed to the Right Hon. Earl Spencer, by James Carmichael Smyth, M. D. F.R.S., Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians
The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of physicians by examination. Founded by royal charter from King Henry VIII in 1 ...
, and Physician Extraordinary to His Majesty, published with the approbation of the lords commissioners of the Admiralty.
In 1799, ''Union'' was converted to serve as a hospital ship
A hospital ship is a ship designated for primary function as a floating medical treatment facility or hospital. Most are operated by the military forces (mostly navies) of various countries, as they are intended to be used in or near war zones. ...
.
In 1802 she was renamed ''Sussex''. She remained a hospital and receiving ship until 1816, when the decision was taken to have her broken up.
Citations
References
*Lavery, Brian (2003) ''The Ship of the Line – Volume 1: The development of the battlefleet 1650–1850''. Conway Maritime Press. . Ships of the line of the Royal Navy 1756 ships {{UK-line-ship-stub