''O'Higgins'' was a Chilean

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 ...

famous for her actions under Captain Lord Cochrane.

Russian career

The ship was launched in Russia in 1816, as the ''Speshni''-class frigate ''Patrikii'' ("Патрикий"). To save time and money, the Russians built her of pine and larch. In 1817 the Russians sold her to Spain, which renamed her ''María Isabel''.

Spanish career

In 1818 ''María Isabel'' sailed under Captain Dionisio Capas with a convoy to the coast of Peru. There the

First Chilean Navy Squadron The First Chilean Navy Squadron was the heterogeneous naval force that terminated Spanish colonial rule in the Pacific and protagonized the most important naval actions of in the Latin American wars of independence. The Chilean revolutionary gover ...

, under the command of

Manuel Blanco Encalada Manuel José Blanco y Calvo de Encalada (; April 21, 1790 – September 5, 1876) was a vice-admiral in the Chilean Navy, a political figure, and Chile's first President (Provisional) (1826). Biography Born in Buenos Aires which was the capital ...

, captured her at Talcahuano.

Chilean career

The Chileans renamed the ship ''O'Higgins'' after Bernardo O'Higgins, the South American Independence leader and first Chilean head of state. ''O'Higgins'' was Thomas Cochrane's flagship when he commanded the Chilean navy during the Freedom Expedition of Perú. When ''San Martín'' was wrecked in the bay of Chorrilos, Peru, in July 1821, Cochrane shifted his flag from ''San Martín'' back to ''O'Higgins''. Cochrane also sailed ''O'Higgins'' to

Acapulco Acapulco de Juárez (), commonly called Acapulco ( , also , nah, Acapolco), is a city and major seaport in the state of Guerrero on the Pacific Coast of Mexico, south of Mexico City. Acapulco is located on a deep, semicircular bay and has bee ...

. On 8 June 1823, ''O'Higgins'' suffered severe damage when she collided with the Chilean ship in the

Bay of Paraíso A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a gulf, sea, sound, or bight. A cove is a small, circular bay with a nar ...

during a gale. During 1823, after a conservative coup on 28 January 1823 deposed O'Higgins, the new government under

Ramón Freire Ramón Freire Serrano (; November 29, 1787 – December 9, 1851) was a Chilean political figure. He was head of state on several occasions, and enjoyed a numerous following until the War of the Confederation. Ramón Freire was one of the pr ...

renamed the frigate ''María Isabel'' again.

Argentine career

She was sold to Argentina on 1 April 1826 and refitted in Valparaíso and renamed ''Buenos Aires'', but she never reached Buenos Aires. She sank rounding Cape Horn.Gerardo Etcheverry
Principales naves de guerra a vela hispanoamericanas
retrieved 28 January 2011

Citations

External links