HMS Waterloo (1833)

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

HMS Waterloo was a 120-gun, three-deck, first rate, broadened Caledonia-class ship of the line built for the Royal Navy during the 1830s. The ship remained in ordinary until she was commissioned in 1851. She was razeed and converted into a steam-powered, 89-gun, second rate, two decker in 1859–1860. Waterloo was renamed Conqueror in 1862 and participated in the Shimonoseki campaign two years later. The ship was renamed Waterloo in 1876 and became a training ship. She was destroyed in a fire in 1918.

Waterloo, of 120 guns, launched in the Reign of William IV
History
United Kingdom
Name	Waterloo
Ordered	9 September 1823
Builder	Chatham Dockyard
Laid down	March 1827
Launched	10 June 1833
Decommissioned	Paid off 1866
Renamed	HMS Conqueror, 1862 HMS Warspite, 1877
Fate	Burnt, 1918
Notes	Converted to steam 89-gun 2-decker, 1 April 1859–12 December 1859
General characteristics (as built)
Class & type	Broadened Caledonia-class ship of the line
Tons burthen	2,694 bm
Length	205 ft 6 in (62.6 m) (gundeck)
Beam	55 ft 3 in (16.8 m)
Draught	17 ft 11 in (5.5 m)
Depth of hold	23 ft 2 in (7.06 m)
Sail plan	Full-rigged ship
Complement	900
Armament	As designed: 120 muzzle-loading, smoothbore guns: Lower gundeck: 30 × 32 pdr guns, 2 × 68 pdr carronades Middle gundeck: 32 × 32 pdr guns, 2 × 68 pdr carronades Upper gundeck: 32 × 32 pdr guns, 2 × 68 pdr carronades Quarterdeck: 16 × 32 pdr carrondaes Forecastle: 2 × 32 pdrs, 2 × 32 pdr carronades As steam line-of-battle ship: 89 guns: Lower deck: 32 × 8 in (203 mm) shell guns Upper deck: 34 × 32 pdrs Quarter deck & Forecastle: 22 × 32 pdrs; 1 × 68 pdr

Description

As an 89-gun ship, Waterloo measured 218 feet 2 inches (66.5 m) on the gundeck and 178 feet 11 inches (54.5 m) on the keel. She had a beam of 55 feet 4 inches (16.9 m),, a depth of hold of 23 feet 4 inches (7.1 m)^[1] and a deep draught of 24 feet 7 inches (7.49 m)^[2] The ship displaced 3,440 long tons (3,500 t) and had a tonnage of 2,845 tons burthen. She was fitted with a horizontal two-cylinder single-expansion steam engine built by Ravenhill, Salkeld & Co that was rated at 500 nominal horsepower and drove a single propeller shaft. Her boilers provided enough steam to give the engine 1,890 indicated horsepower (1,410 kW) that was good for a speed of 11.3 knots (20.9 km/h; 13.0 mph) during her sea trials. Her crew numbered 830 officers and ratings.^[3]

The ship's muzzle-loading, smoothbore armament consisted of thirty-two 8 in (203 mm) shell guns on her lower gundeck and thirty-four 32-pounder (56 cwt) guns^{[Note 1]} on her upper gundeck. Between her forecastle and quarterdeck, she carried twenty-two 32-pounder (42 cwt) guns and a single 68-pounder gun.^[4]

Construction and career

Launch of HMS Waterloo at Chatham

Waterloo was ordered on 16 February 1824, laid down at Chatham Dockyard in March 1827, launched on 18 June 1833 and moved to Sheerness Dockyard on 19 July to be placed in ordinary. The ship's first commission was not until 5 August 1851 under Captain Montagu Stopford as she was intended to serve as the flagship of Vice-Admiral James Dundas (Royal Navy officer), commander-in-chief of the Mediterranean Fleet, although Britannia was sent instead.^[1]

Waterloo was ordered to be cut down and converted into a steamship on 5 February 1859. The work included lengthening the ship by about 11 feet (3.4 m) and began on 1 April. She was launched on 12 November and completed in April 1860. Following the loss of the modern 101-gun steam 2-decker Conqueror in 1861, Waterloo was renamed Conqueror on 27 February 1862. The ship was not commissioned until 24 November 1863 under Captain William Luard. She was sent to the China station, and bombarded Shimonoseki in September 1864. Conqueror was paid off on 21 February 1866.^[1]

On 11 August 1876 she was renamed Warspite and became a training ship at Woolwich then Greenhithe. The ship was destroyed by fire in 1918, with 250 boys embarked at the time.^[5] Three teenage boys later claimed to have started the fire deliberately.^[6] They were charged for the alleged act and ordered to three years' detention at a reformatory.^[5]

Notes

1. "Cwt" is the abbreviation for hundredweight, 56 cwt referring to the weight of the gun.