HMS Tartar (1854)

HMS Tartar was a wooden screw corvette of the Royal Navy. Originally built for the Russian Empire, she was seized by British forces on 5 April 1854, shortly before her launch.

For other ships with the same name, see HMS Tartar.

HMS Tartar with HMS Cossack
History
Russian Empire
NameVoin (Russian: "Войн")
BuilderW. & H. Pitcher, Northfleet
Out of serviceSeized while under construction in 1854
United Kingdom
NameHMS Tartar
Launched17 May 1854
Completed26 January 1855
Acquired5 April 1854
FateBroken up in February 1866
General characteristics
Class and typeCossack-class corvette
Displacement1,965 long tons (1,997 t)
Length195 ft (59 m)
Beam39 ft (12 m)
Draught9 ft (2.7 m)
Propulsion
  • 2-cyl horizontal single-expansion steam engine[1]
  • Single screw
Sail planFull-rigged ship
Armament18 guns (two 110-pdrs, four 40-pdrs and fourteen 8-inch)[2]

History

HMS Tartar was built by W. & H. Pitcher at Northfleet on the river Thames, alongside her sister ship, HMS Cossack, for the Russians. They were confiscated by the British prior to their completion, and Tartar was launched on 17 May 1854.[3]

The Red Battery opening fire on the Allied corvettes, including Tartar, at the Bombardment of Shimonoseki, 1864

She was fitted for British service from 14 December of that same year. From 1854 to 1859, Tartar was in active service throughout the Crimean War, and served on the North America and West Indies Station.[4] During that period, Captain Hugh Dunlop was the captain of HMS Tartar.[5] For her service in the Baltic she was awarded the battle honour Baltic 1855.[6] In 1860 she sailed from Sheerness Dockyard under Captain John Montagu Hayes for service in the Pacific, primarily in Japan. She underwent repairs in South Africa during her voyage to Japan. HMS Tartar was then involved in the Shimonoseki campaign of 1863-1864 and was involved in the bombardment of Shimonoseki itself.

After the Shimonoseki conflict, the ship remained at Sheerness before being sold to Castle shipbreakers and being broken up at Charlton. She was in commission for a total of five years in Japan and China, and five during the Crimean War.[7]

References
  1. Winfield, R.; Lyon, D. (2004). The Sail and Steam Navy List: All the Ships of the Royal Navy 1815–1889. London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-032-6. OCLC 52620555. p.208
  2. "HMS 'Cossack' and 'Tartar', probably on the North American station, January 1857". collections.rmg.co.uk.
  3. Andrew Lambert (2004). "Looking for gunboats: British Naval operations in the Gulf of Bothnia, 1854–55". Journal for Maritime Research. 6: 65–86. doi:10.1080/21533369.2004.9668337. S2CID 178119275.
  4. John Venn (15 September 2011). Alumni Cantabrigienses: A Biographical List of All Known Students, Graduates. ISBN 9781108036146.
  5. Professor John Beeler (28 September 2015). The Milne Papers: Volume II: The Royal Navy and the Outbreak of the America. ISBN 9781472402257.
  6. "HMS Tartar (1854) (5th)}". britainsnavy.co.uk.
  7. William Loney. "Mid-Victorian RN Vessel HMS Tartar". pdavis.nl.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.