HMS Egeria (1807)

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HMS Egeria (centre)
HM Ship Egeria, Capt Lewis Hole, with the Aalborg, Danish Cutter, a prize, in Tow, HM Brig Childers shewing her Nos March 2 1809
Career (UK) Royal Navy Ensign
Name: HMS Egeria
Ordered: 19 November 1805
Builder: Nicholas Bools & William Good, Bridport
Launched: 31 October 1807
Fate: Receiving ship at Devonport from 1825
Broken up 1864
General characteristics
Class and type: 18-gun Cormorant-class sloop
Tons burthen: 426 42/94 bm
Length: 108 ft 3 in (33.0 m) (overall)
90 ft 7 in (27.6 m) (keel)
Beam: 29 ft 9 in (9.1 m)
Depth of hold: 9 ft 0.5 in (2.76 m)
Sail plan: Ship
Complement: 135
Armament: Upper deck:
  • Eighteen 32-pdr carronades
Quarter deck:
  • Six 18-pdr carronades
Forecastle:
  • Two 6-pdr long guns
  • Two 18-pdr carronades

The first HMS Egeria was a Royal Navy 26-gun Cormorant-class ship-sloop launched at Bridport in 1807 and eventually sold for breaking in 1864.

Design

The Cormorant class was designed by Sir William Rule and Sir John Henslow as 16-gun ship-sloops. The first batch, ordered in 1793 was armed with 6-pounder long guns, but Egeria was one of the second batch ordered in 1805, and carried 32-pounder carronades instead. She was rated 18-gun at first, but was later rated as a 26-gun sixth-rate. Under the rating system of the day her number of guns could be largely nominal (in this case the number of long guns she would have carried had she been so-armed); the re-rating in February 1817 included her carronades in the total and did not involve any actual change to her armament. She was of 426 tons (Builder's Old Measurement) and carried a crew of 135 men.

Service

On 21 December 1808, Egeria, commanded by Commander Lewis Hole, captured the French 10-gun vessel Noesois off the Scaw.[1] On 2 March 1809 she captured the Danish 6-gun cutter Aalborg, after the packet Lord Nelson had engaged her closely.[1]

On 30 December 1811 she was ordered to sea from the port of Leith to search for stragglers from a Baltic convoy. Early the following day, about 70 miles off St Abb's Head, she engaged and captured the Danish privateer 14-gun, 70-ton cutter Alvor.[1]

She was commanded by aptain John Toup Nicolas from 5 January 1820 until 1823,[2] at first at Newfoundland, and then at Newcastle.[2]

Under Captain Samuel Roberts[2] she sailed for Newfoundland[2] and the West Indies in 1823 and returned home from Vera Cruz and Havana in July 1825.[1]

Fate

Egeria became a receiving ship at Devonport in 1825 and was broken up in 1864.

References