HMS Porcupine (1807)
| Career (United Kingdom) |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | HMS Porcupine |
| Ordered: | 30 January 1805 |
| Builder: | Thomas Owen, Topsham, Exter |
| Laid down: | September 1805 |
| Launched: | 26 January 1807 |
| Completed: | 22 June 1807 at Plymouth Dockyard |
| Commissioned: | March 1807 |
| Out of service: | Sold 18 April 1816 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Banterer-class post ship |
| Tons burthen: | 538 bm |
| Length: |
118 ft 0.625 in (36.0 m) (overall) 98 ft 7.75 in (30.1 m) (keel) |
| Beam: | 32 ft 0.25 in (9.8 m) |
| Depth of hold: | 10 ft 6 in (3.20 m) |
| Sail plan: | Full-rigged ship |
| Complement: | 155 (later 175) |
| Armament: |
Rated at 24 guns:
Later:
|
HMS Porcupine was a Royal Navy Banterer-class post ship of 24 guns, built in 1805-07 at Topsham, Exeter, England.
She was rated a 24-gun ship and the original plan was that she would mount that number of long 9-pounders on her main deck. However she also carried eight 24-pounder carronades and two long 6-pounders on her quarter-deck and forecastle. By the time that Captain Henry Duncan commissioned her in March 1807,[1] the Admiralty had added two brass howitzers to her armament, while exchanging her 9-pounders for 32-pounder carronades. Her complement was increased by twenty to 175 officers, men and boys.
Service
Porcupine entered service in March 1807, operating in the Mediterranean Fleet during the Napoleonic Wars under the command of Captain Henry Duncan. Detached to serve on independent command in the Adriatic Campaign, Porcupine fought numerous minor actions with shore batteries and coastal merchant ships.
In 1808, Duncan was ordered to cruise in the Western Mediterranean off Naples and continued his successful operations against coastal shipping. Following the outbreak of the Peninsular War, Duncan was ordered to take the Duke of Orléans to Cadiz. Duncan refused and was subject to disparaging comments about his age, although he was later proven correct in his assessment. In June 1808, Duncan was replaced by Robert Elliott.
In 1811, Porcupine was ordered to sail to Brazil and returned to Portsmouth, later joining the squadron off Bordeaux, assisting the British advance during the Peninsular War. Operating through early 1814 against French coastal positions and squadrons, now under command of Captain John Goode and carrying the flag of Rear-Admiral Charles Penrose, the Porcupine proved very effective until she was paid off at the end of the war.[1]
Fate
Although there were some plans for her to serve on the South America station, Porcupine never sailed again. She was sold at Woolwich Dockyard in April 1816 for breaking up.[1]
References
- Colledge, J.J. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of All Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy From the Fifteenth Century to the Present. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1987. ISBN 0-87021-652-X.
- Ships of the Old Navy
- Winfield, Rif. British Warships in the Age of Sail, 1793-1817: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. Seaforth Publishing, 2nd edition, 2008. ISBN 978-1-84415-717-4.
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