HMS Defence (1861)
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| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Laid down: | December 1859 |
| Launched: | April 24, 1861 |
| Commissioned: | December 4, 1861 |
| Broken up: | After 1940 |
| Specifications | |
| Displacement: | 6,150 tons |
| Length: | 280 ft (85.3 m) pp, 302 ft (92 m) overall |
| Beam: | 54 ft 2 in (16.5 m) |
| Draught: | 25 ft (7.6 m) |
| Propulsion: | One-shaft Penn trunk engines with I.H.P. 2,540=10.75 knots. |
| Sail: | Barque-rig, area 24,500 square feet. Speed under sail 10.5 knots |
| Complement: | 460 |
| Armament: | Eight 7 inch breech-loaders, ten 68 pounders, four 5 inch breech-loaders |
| Re-armed 1867: | Two 8 inch muzzle-loading rifles, fourteen 7 inch muzzle-loading rifles |
| Armour: | 4'5 inch belt with 18 inch teak backing. Bulkheads 4.5 inch |
HMS Defence was the lead ship of the Defence Class of 1859, her sister ship being HMS Resistance.
After completion in 1862 she served in the Channel Fleet until 1866, when she paid off in Plymouth for refit and re-armament. She returned to the Channel Fleet in 1868, and in 1869 she was sent to the North America station to relieve HMS Royal Alfred. She served in the Mediterranean from 1871 to 1872, and had a further lengthy refit in Plymouth between 1872 and 1874. She was the guardship on the Shannon from 1874 to 1876, and then served a further three years in the Channel until 1879. She was guardship in the Mersey until 1885, after which she saw no further sea-going service. In 1890 she was converted into a floating workshop, and was renamed Indus in 1898. She was still afloat at Devonport at least until 1940.
[edit] References
Oscar Parkes British Battleships ISBN 0-85052-604-3
Conway Maritime Press All the World's Fighting Ships ISBN 0-85177-133-5
