HMS Volage (1869)

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

Circa 1892 photograph of HMS Volage, lead ship of the class
History
United Kingdom
NameHMS Volage
BuilderThames Ironworks and Shipbuilding Company, Blackwall, London
Cost£126,156
Laid downSeptember 1867
Launched27 February 1869
CommissionedMarch 1870
Decommissioned1899
Nickname(s)Vollidge
FateSold for scrap, 17 May 1904
General characteristics (as built)
Class and typeVolage-class iron
screw corvette
Displacement3,078 long tons (3,127 t)
Tons burthen2,322 bm
Length270 ft (82.3 m) (p/p)
Beam42 ft 1 in (12.8 m)
Draught21 ft 5 in (6.5 m)
Installed power4,130 ihp (3,080 kW)
Propulsion
Sail plan
Ship rig
Speed15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Range2,000 nmi (3,700 km; 2,300 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Complement340
Armament

HMS Volage was a

paid off in 1899 and sold for scrap
in 1904.

Description

Volage was 270 feet (82.3 m) long between perpendiculars and had a beam of 42 feet 1 inch (12.8 m). Forward the ship had a draught of 16 feet 5 inches (5.0 m), but aft she drew 21 ft 5 in (6.5 m). Volage displaced 3,078 long tons (3,127 t) and had a burthen of 2,322 tons. Her iron hull was covered by a 3-inch (76 mm) layer of oak that was sheathed with copper from the waterline down to prevent biofouling.[1] Watertight transverse bulkheads subdivided the hull.[2] Her crew consisted of 340 officers and ratings.[1] The ship was nicknamed Vollidge by her crew.[3]

The ship had one 2-cylinder

ship rigged and had a sail area of 16,593 square feet (1,542 m2).[1] The lower masts were made of iron, but the other masts were wood. The ship's best speed under sail alone was 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph). Her funnel was semi-retractable to reduce wind resistance[4] and her propeller could be hoisted up into the stern of the ship to reduce drag while under sail.[1]

The ship was initially armed with a mix of

torpedoes were added as well.[1]

Service

The hulk 'Gloucester' and HMS 'Volage' at Chatham, sometime from 1871 to 1884

HMS Volage was laid down in September 1867 and launched on 27 February 1869. The ship was completed in March 1870 at a total cost of £132,817. Of this, £91,817 was spent on her hull and £41,000 on her machinery.[1] Volage was initially assigned to the Channel Fleet under the command of Captain Sir Michael Culme-Seymour, Bt. However, by the end of 1870, she was transferred to the Flying Squadron which circumnavigated the world. The ship returned to England at the end of 1872 and was given a lengthy refit. Volage recommissioned in 1874 to ferry an expedition of astronomers to the Kerguelen Islands to observe the transit of Venus.[6] She grounded on an uncharted shoal there without damage. The following year, the ship was assigned as the senior officer's ship for the South American side of the South Atlantic. Volage was ordered home in 1879 where she was refitted, rearmed and her boilers were replaced. The ship was assigned to the Training Squadron in the 1880s until it was disbanded in 1899. Volage was then paid off[7] and sold for scrap on 17 May 1904.[1]

Notes

  1. ^ "cwt" is the abbreviation for hundredweight, 64 cwt referring to the weight of the gun.

Footnotes

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Lyon & Winfield, p. 265
  2. ^ Ballard, p. 54
  3. ^ Ballard, p. 60
  4. ^ a b Ballard, pp. 57–58
  5. ^ Ballard, pp. 55–56
  6. ^ Ballard, pp. 59–60
  7. ^ Ballard, pp. 60–61

Bibliography

  • Ballard, G. A. (1937). "British Corvettes of 1875: The Volage, Active and Rover". Mariner's Mirror. 23 (January). Cambridge, UK: Society for Nautical Research: 53–67.
  • Winfield, R.; Lyon, D. (2004). The Sail and Steam Navy List: All the Ships of the Royal Navy 1815–1889. London: Chatham Publishing.
    OCLC 52620555
    .

External links


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