Redbreast-class gunboat
.jpg) HMS Sparrow | |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Redbreast-class gunboats |
| Builders: |
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| Operators: |
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| Cost: |
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| Built: | 1889 |
| In commission: | 1889–1921 |
| Completed: | 9 |
| Lost: | 1 |
| General characteristics [1] | |
| Class and type: | Redbreast-class first-class gunvessel |
| Displacement: | 805 tons |
| Length: | 165 ft 0 in (50.3 m) pp |
| Beam: | 31 ft 0 in (9.4 m) |
| Draught: | 11 ft 0 in (3.35 m) min, 13 ft 9 in (4.19 m) max |
| Installed power: | 1,200 ihp (890 kW) |
| Propulsion: |
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| Sail plan: | Barquentine-rigged |
| Speed: | 13 kn (24 km/h) |
| Range: | 2,500 nmi (4,600 km) at 10 kn (19 km/h)[1] |
| Complement: | 76 |
| Armament: |
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The Redbreast class comprised nine first-class screw-driven composite gunboats built for the Royal Navy in 1889, mounting 6 guns.
Construction
Design
The Redbreast class were designed by Sir William Henry White, the Royal Navy Director of Naval Construction in 1888.[1] The hull was of composite construction, that is, iron keel, frames, stem and stern posts with wooden planking. These were the last class of composite-hulled gunboats built for the Royal Navy - the next class of gunboat, the Bramble-class gunboat of 1898, was of steel construction.
Propulsion
The class was fitted with a triple-expansion reciprocating steam engine developing 1,200 indicated horsepower, sufficient to propel them at 13 kn (24 km/h) through a single screw.
Sail plan
The class was given a barquentine rig.
Armament
The first four ships were armed with six 4-inch/25-pounder (25cwt) quick firing guns and four machine guns. The last five had an additional pair of 3-pounder quick firing guns in place of two of the machine guns.[1]
Ships
| Name | Ship builder | Launched | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Magpie | Pembroke Dockyard | 15 March 1889 | Boom defence vessel in 1902. Gunboat in 1915, depot ship in October 1915. Sold to Duguid & Stewart on 29 December 1921[1] |
| Redbreast | Pembroke Dockyard | 25 April 1889[2] | Sold in 1910[1] |
| Redpole | Pembroke Dockyard | 13 June 1889 | Served on the China Station. Sold to Cox for breaking at Falmouth on 15 May 1906[1] |
| Ringdove | Devonport Dockyard | 30 April 1889 | Became a salvage vessel on 7 December 1915, renamed Melita. Sold to Ship Salvage Corporation on 22 January 1920,[1] and renamed Telima, she was broken up in the second quarter of 1926.[3] |
| Lapwing | Devonport Dockyard | 12 April 1889 | Sold at Bombay on 10 November 1910[1] |
| Goldfinch | Sheerness Dockyard | 18 May 1889 | Survey vessel in February 1902. Sold for breaking on 14 May 1907[1] |
| Thrush | Scott’s, Greenock | 22 June 1889 | Coastguard in 1906, cable ship in 1915, salvage vessel in 1916. Wrecked off Glenarm, Northern Ireland on 11 April 1917[1] |
| Widgeon | Pembroke Dockyard | 9 August 1889 | Sold to Castle for breaking at Charlton on 15 May 1906[1] |
| Sparrow | Scott’s, Greenock | 26 September 1889 | Transferred to New Zealand as a training ship on 10 July 1906, renamed Amokura. Sold as a coal hulk in February 1922. Broken up in 1955[1] |
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References
- Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8. OCLC 67375475.
- Winfield, Rif & Lyon, David (2004). The Sail and Steam Navy List: All the Ships of the Royal Navy 1815–1889. London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-032-6. OCLC 52620555.
External links
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