HMS Amphion (1780)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For other ships of the same name, see HMS Amphion
HMS Amphion was a Royal Navy 32-gun fifth-rate ship built in Chatham in 1780 that blew up on September 22, 1796.
On 10 September 1781, a small squadron under the command of the Amphion's captain, in conjunction with General Benedict Arnold, completely destroyed the town of New London, Connecticut, together with stores and shipping in the harbour.
On 22 Sept 1796, Amphion had completed some repairs at Plymouth, England. She was due to sail the next day, so in addition to her crew she had a number of relatives and other visitors on board. She exploded without warning or explanation, killing 300 out of 312 on board. Among the few survivors was her captain, Israel Pellew, who went on to command a ship at the Battle of Trafalgar and ended the Napoleonic Wars as a Rear-Admiral.
Although not proven, it was generally accepted that the explosion was caused by the gunner either stealing gunpowder or carelessly handling the contents of the magazine. [1]
[edit] Reference
Fleet Battle and Blockade, Robert Gardiner (Ed.), Chatham Publishing, 1996. ISBN 1-84067-363-X
