''Steam Pinnace 199'' is a steam pinnace 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 in 1909 by J. Reid of

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

. She is now owned by the

National Museum of the Royal Navy The National Museum of the Royal Navy was created in early 2009 to act as a single non-departmental public body for the museums of the Royal Navy. With venues across the United Kingdom, the museums detail the history of the Royal Navy operating o ...

, and is based at

Portsmouth Historic Dockyard Portsmouth Historic Dockyard is an area of HM Naval Base Portsmouth which is open to the public; it contains several historic buildings and ships. It is managed by the National Museum of the Royal Navy as an umbrella organization representing f ...

History

During its restoration, the ship was misidentified and it became known as ''Steam Pinnace 199''. However, it was later determined that the ship's machinery originated from pinnaces ''208'' and ''224'', and that its hull, stern cabin, and funnel also came from ''224''. Despite these findings, the name ''Steam Pinnace 199'' was retained. ''Steam Pinnace 224'' was built in 1909, and was assigned to the

battlecruiser The battlecruiser (also written as battle cruiser or battle-cruiser) was a type of capital ship of the first half of the 20th century. These were similar in displacement, armament and cost to battleships, but differed in form and balance of attr ...

in 1916. It was sold out of the Royal Navy on 6 August 1948, and in 1952 she was sold to a private owner, renamed ''Treleague'', and was converted into a

houseboat A houseboat is a boat that has been designed or modified to be used primarily as a home. Most houseboats are not motorized as they are usually moored or kept stationary at a fixed point, and often tethered to land to provide utilities. How ...

located on the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

. During this time its steam machinery was removed, and replaced by a

petrol Gasoline (; ) or petrol (; ) (see ) is a transparent, petroleum-derived flammable liquid that is used primarily as a fuel in most spark-ignited internal combustion engines (also known as petrol engines). It consists mostly of organic co ...

engine. After serving as a houseboat for about 20 years, she was purchased by an antiques dealer who intended to restore her. However, the project was deemed too expensive and its hull was sold to the

in 1979.

Restoration

She was restored by a group called the Steam Launch Restoration Group, based in

Gosport Gosport ( ) is a town and non-metropolitan borough on the south coast of Hampshire, South East England. At the 2011 Census, its population was 82,662. Gosport is situated on a peninsula on the western side of Portsmouth Harbour, opposite t ...

. In 1983, she was given a boiler and compound engine from a similar steam pinnace, found at the Royal Navy shore establishment . Her original steam auxiliary engines were found at a yard in Belgium. During her restoration, the ship was given a replacement Hotchkiss 3-pounder gun dating from 1887, and salvaged from the sea by a trawler in 1980. The gun has been restored cosmetically; however, it is not functional and the inside of the barrel is corroded. The ship was finally recommissioned in 1984, and was kept in the Mast Pond of

until 1998, when she was brought to Gosport for a refit. From 1999 to 2001 her machinery was given a major refurbishment. Since then, she has taken place in many events such as the

International Festival of the Sea The International Festivals of the Sea were a series of maritime festivals, which were held in various British port cities between 1996 and 2005. The festivals were intended to be celebrations of the sea, bringing together sailors, musicians, arti ...

, the Yarmouth Old Gaffers Festival and the

Southampton Boat Show The Southampton Boat Show, also called the Southampton International Boat Show, is an on-water boat show, one of the largest in Europe and the biggest of its type in the UK. The show is held annually in September in Mayflower Park, Southampton, ...

. In May 2011, she developed leaks in her boiler tubes and was transported to the Maritime Workshop in February 2012. She was given a refit, and she was relaunched in 2015. ''Steam Pinnace 199'' is preserved afloat in Boathouse 4 at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard.

Notes

References

External links

A video showing restoration work on Steam Pinnace 199
{{Oldest surviving ships (pre-1919) 1909 ships Ships and vessels of the National Historic Fleet Pinnaces Ships built in Portsmouth