HMS Minden
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| Career (UK) |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | HMS Minden |
| Ordered: | 9 July 1801 |
| Builder: | Bombay dockyard |
| Launched: | 19 June 1810 |
| Fate: | Sold for breaking up, 1861 |
| Notes: | Hulked, 1842 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Ganges-class ship of the line |
| Tons burthen: | 1721 tons (1748.6 tonnes) |
| Length: | 169 ft 6 in (51.7 m) (gundeck) |
| Beam: | 47 ft 8½ in (14.5 m) |
| Depth of hold: | 20 ft 3 in (6.2 m) |
| Propulsion: | Sails |
| Sail plan: | Full rigged ship |
| Armament: |
74 guns:
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HMS Minden was a 74-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 19 June 1810. She was named after the German town Minden and the Battle of Minden of 1759, a decisive victory of British and Prussian forces over France in the Seven Years' War. The town is about 75 km away from Hanover, where the House of Hanover comes from, the dynasty which ruled the United Kingdom from 1714 to 1901.
Built by the Indian company Jamshedji Bomanji Wadia in 1810, launched from the Duncan docks in Bombay and christened on June 23 of that year, she was the first Royal Navy ship built outside of the British Isles.
[edit] Service
Minden saw service during the War of 1812 in the Chesapeake Bay. Some accounts state that Francis Scott Key was aboard Minden when he wrote the poem "The Defense of Ft. McHenry", later renamed "The Star-Spangled Banner". These accounts are disputed.
In 1816, Minden participated in the Bombardment of Algiers. She also served in Java and Australia.
Toward the end of her career Minden saw duty as a hospital ship in Hong Kong from 1842 because a naval hospital on the shore was destroyed in a typhoon. It served those who suffered from malaria in the early colonial years. Her role was replaced by HMS Alligator in 1857. The ship was sold for scrap and broken up in 1861 in Hong Kong.
In memory of the ship, two streets were named after it, Minden Row and Minden Avenue, located behind Signal Hill of Tsim Sha Tsui in Kowloon of Hong Kong.
[edit] References
- Lavery, Brian (2003) The Ship of the Line - Volume 1: The development of the battlefleet 1650-1850. Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-252-8.
[edit] External links
- Photo of a scale model of Minden
- The American Connection to Minden Row (A brief history of HMS Minden)
- The Royal Naval Hospital, Hong Kong
- German Wikipedia Page of the City Minden
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