HMS Victoria (1859)

HMS "Victoria" was the last British wooden first-rate three-decked ship of the line.

With a displacement of 6,959 tons, she was the largest wooden battleship which ever entered service. She was also the world's largest warship until the completion of HMS "Warrior", Britain's first ironclad battleship, in 1861.

"Victoria"´s hull was 79.2 meters (260 ft) long and 18.3 meters (60 ft) wide. She had a medium draught of 8.4 meters (27.5 ft). Her hull was heavily strapped with diagonal iron riders for extra stability. "Victoria" was the first British battleship with two funnels.

She was armed with a total of 121 Guns (32 convert|8|in|mm|sing=on guns on the lower gun deck, 30 convert|8|in|mm|sing=on guns on the central gun deck, 32 32-pounders on the upper gun deck, 26 32-pounders and one 68-pounder on the upper deck).

"Victoria" was ordered on January 6 1855, laid down on April 1 1856 at Portsmouth, and launched on November 12 1859. She cost a total of £150,578 and had a complement of 1,000.

During trials in Stokes Bay on July 5 1860 "Victoria" reached a top speed of convert|11.797|kn|km/h, making her the fastest three decker worldwide. Her Maudslay engine was powered by 8 boilers and developed 4,403 iHP.

After completion "Victoria" was laid up as part of the reserve fleet at Portsmouth from 1860 to 1864.

She first entered active service on November 2 1864, when she became Flagship of the Mediterranean fleet under Vice-Admiral Smart and Captain Goodenough (from 1865: Rear-Admiral Lord Clarence Paget, Captain Gardner). "Victoria" was based in Malta until 1867 when she returned home. Her armament had been reduced to 102 guns.

Her last public appearance came at the 1867 Spithead Review and she was paid off on August 7 1867. She became part of the reserve fleet at Portsmouth again, eventually had her armament reduced to 12 guns, and was sold for scrapping on May 31 1893 without ever having entered service again.

"Victoria"´s slightly enlarged sister ship, HMS "Howe", was launched on March 7 1860, but was never completed as a battleship. She first entered service in 1885 as a training ship at Plymouth, renamed Bulwark (6.557 tons, 12 Guns). She was moved to Devonport and renamed Impregnable in 1886. Renamed Bulwark in 1919, she was finally sold for scrap in 1921.

References

*Andrew Lambert: "Battleships in Transition" (published by Conway Maritime Press Ltd, 1984), ISBN 0-85177-315-X
* [http://www.btinternet.com/~philipr/woodmanowar.htm] NAVIES IN TRANSITION:The perfecting of the wooden man-of-war in the context of early 19th century international politics. A small guide to surviving and reconstructed 19th century warships from the pre-ironclad era in naval architecture. By Dirk J. Vries
* [http://www.battleships-cruisers.co.uk/hms_victoria1.htm] Battleships-Cruisers Naval History website.