HMS Lydia
From SpottingWorld, the Hub for the SpottingWorld network...
| 50x40px | This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations where appropriate. (April 2009) |
| HMS Lydia from the 1951 film Captain Horatio Hornblower HMS Lydia from the 1951 film Captain Horatio Hornblower | |
| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Launched: | 1796 |
| General characteristics | |
| Tons burthen: | 951 |
| Length: | 143 feet (44 m) |
| Propulsion: | Sail |
| Complement: | 274 |
| Armament: |
GD: twenty-six 18 lb guns; QD: eight 9 lb guns; FC: two 12 lb guns. |
HMS Lydia is a fictional ship from C. S. Forester’s novel The Happy Return. In the novel, Lydia is Horatio Hornblower’s first frigate command.
The Lydia is described as a middle-sized Fifth-rate built at Woolwich in 1796 to the design of Sir William Rule at a cost of £19,070. Her commission under Hornblower began on March 12, 1807. She sailed first to Alexandria, Egypt, but then in 1808 was given secret orders for a very ambitious mission to Central America. There, the 36-gun Lydia fought and sank the much larger Spanish ship of 50 guns, the Natividad.
References
- C. S. Forester, Beat to Quarters, Pinnacle Books, Los Angeles 1978.
- C. Northcote Parkinson, The Life and Times of Horatio Hornblower, Little, Brown & Company, Boston 1970.
