HMS Spitfire (1895)

For other ships with the same name, see HMS Spitfire.

HMS Spitfire was one of two Swordfish-class destroyers which served with the Royal Navy. She was launched on 7 June 1895 by Armstrong Mitchell & Co. at Newcastle upon Tyne^[1] and sold off in 1912. Her fate is unknown.

History
United Kingdom
Name	HMS Spitfire
Namesake	Spitfire
Ordered	1893
Builder	Armstrong Mitchell & Co., Elswick, Tyne and Wear
Laid down	1894
Launched	7 June 1895
Commissioned	November 1896
Decommissioned	1912
Fate	Sold, 1912
General characteristics
Class & type	Swordfish-class destroyer
Propulsion	Yarrow boilers
Speed	27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph)
Armament	1 × 12 pounder gun 2 × torpedo tubes

Service history

Spitfire served in home waters. In early February 1900 she had repairs at Chatham, before joining the Medway instructional flotilla on 26 February to replace HMS Coquette, whose crew under the command of Lieutenant Charles Pipon Beaty-Pownall turned over to her from 7 March.^[2][3] She was tender to Wildfire, the shore establishment at Sheerness. She underwent repairs to re-tube her boilers in 1902.^[4] On 7 May 1902 she was commissioned as tender to the cruiser Immortalité, which itself served as a sea-going tender at Sheerness.^[5]