HMS Crocodile (1867)
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| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | HMS Crocodile |
| Ordered | 1865 |
| Builder | Money Wigram and Sons[1] |
| Launched | 7 January 1867 |
| Fate | Sold 11 May 1894 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Euphrates-class troopship |
| Displacement | 6,211 tons |
| Tons burthen | 4,206 tons BM[1] |
| Length | 360 ft (109.7 m) (overall) |
| Beam | 49 ft 1.5 in (15.0 m) |
| Depth of hold | 22 ft 4 in (6.81 m) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion |
|
| Sail plan | Barque |
| Speed | 15 kn (28 km/h) |
| Armament | Three 4-pounder guns |
HMS Crocodile was a Euphrates-class troopship launched into the Thames from the Blackwall Yard of Money Wigram and Sons on 7 January 1867. She was the fourth and last vessel of the Royal Navy to carry the name.
Design
[edit]Crocodile was one of five iron-hulled vessels of the Euphrates class. All five were built to a design of 360 feet (110 m) overall length by about 49 feet (15 m) breadth, although Malabar was very slightly smaller than the rest of the class. They had a single screw, a speed of 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph), one funnel, a barque-rig sail plan, three 4-pounder guns, and a white painted hull. Her bow was a "ram bow" which projected forward below the waterline.
Identification
[edit]The Euphrates-class troopships could each be identified by a different coloured hull band. Crocodile's hull band was yellow. The blue hull band of her sister Euphrates became the standard for all HM Troopships.[2]
Career
[edit]
Crocodile was built for the transport of troops between the United Kingdom and the Indian sub-continent, and was operated by the Royal Navy. She carried up to 1,200 troops and family on a passage of approximately 70 days.[citation needed] Between November 1866 and April 1870 she was commanded by Captain George Willes Watson.[3] On 27 November 1867, she collided with the Canadian merchant ship John Dwyer in the English Channel 40 nautical miles (74 km; 46 mi) off Start Point, Devon. John Dwyer sank with the loss of four of her crew. Crocodile rescued the survivors.[4]
Crocodile was re-engined rather later in life than her sisters, with her single-expansion steam engine replaced with a more efficient compound-expansion type.[Note 1]
In December 1888, Crocodile towed the Dutch steamship Sourabaja to Malta, the steamship having suffered an engine failure 9 nautical miles (17 km; 10 mi) off Cape Trafalgar, Spain.[5] Crocodile's last voyage began at Bombay in October 1893. On 3 November, as she was approaching Aden, the high-pressure steam cylinder exploded and the ship came to a halt. The next day she was towed to an anchorage near Aden.[6] Most of the soldiers and their families were brought home on other ships. Crocodile eventually arrived back at Portsmouth on 30 December 1893, having travelled using only the low-pressure steam cylinder, and was not further employed for trooping.[7]
Fate
[edit]Crocodile was sold for breaking on 11 May 1894.[1][8]
Notes
[edit]- ^ Winfield does not show a re-enginning of Crocodile. This is a misprint and the Errata should be consulted.
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d 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.
- ^ The Royal Navy at Malta, Volume One: The Victorian Era - 1865-1906, page 51, by Richard Ellis & Lt. Cdr. Ben Warlaw RN - ISBN 0907771432
- ^ "HMS Crocodile at William Loney RN website". Retrieved 23 June 2009.
- ^ "Ship News". The Times. No. 26295. London. 30 November 1868. col F, p. 9.
- ^ "Latest Shipping Intelligence". The Times. No. 32566. London. 11 December 1888. col E, p. 10.
- ^ Birmingham Daily Post 29 November 1893
- ^ The Times, London, 1 January 1894
- ^ Colledge. Ships of the Royal Navy. p. 83.