- HMS Minden
HMS "Minden" was a 74-gun
third-rate ship of the line of theRoyal Navy , launched on 19 June 1810. She was named after the German townMinden and theBattle of Minden of 1759, a decisive victory of British andPrussia n forces overFrance in theSeven Years' War . The town is about 75 km away fromHanover , where theHouse of Hanover comes from, the dynasty which ruled theUnited Kingdom from 1714 to 1901.Built by the
India n company "Jamshedji Bomanji Wadia" in 1810, launched from the Duncan docks inBombay and christened on 23 June of that year, she was the first Royal Navy ship built outside of the British Isles.ervice
"Minden" saw service during the
War of 1812 in theChesapeake Bay . Some accounts state thatFrancis 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 inJava andAustralia .Toward the end of her career "Minden" saw duty as a
hospital ship inHong Kong from 1842 because a naval hospital on the shore was destroyed in atyphoon . It served those who suffered frommalaria 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 inHong 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 inKowloon of Hong Kong.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.External links
* [http://www.oceandictionary.net/z5419.jpgPhoto of a scale model of "Minden"]
* [http://www.blogthetalk.com/2005/04/american-connection-to-minden-row.html The American Connection to Minden Row (A brief history of HMS Minden)]
* [http://www.pdavis.nl/RN_Hosp.htm The Royal Naval Hospital, Hong Kong]
* [http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minden German Wikipedia Page of the City Minden]
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