 An engraving depicting HMSApollo going before the wind | |
| History | |
|---|---|
.svg) Great Britain | |
| Name | HMSApollo |
| Ordered | 28 March 1793 |
| Builder | Perry & Hankey,Blackwall |
| Laid down | March 1793 |
| Launched | 18 March 1794 |
| Completed | 23 September 1794 atWoolwich Dockyard |
| Commissioned | August 1794 |
| Fate | Wrecked on 7 January 1799 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | 38-gunArtois-classfifth-ratefrigate |
| Tons burthen | 99412⁄94 (bm) |
| Length |
|
| Beam | 39 ft 2 in (11.9 m) |
| Depth of hold | 13 ft 9 in (4.19 m) |
| Propulsion | Sails |
| Sail plan | Full-rigged ship |
| Complement | 270 |
| Armament |
|
HMSApollo, the third ship of theRoyal Navy to be named for the Greek godApollo, was a 38-gunArtois-classfifth-ratefrigate of theRoyal Navy. She served during theFrench Revolutionary Wars, but her career ended after just four years in service when she was wrecked on the Haak sands off the Dutch coast.
Apollo was ordered on 28 March 1793 and waslaid down that month at the yards of John Perry & Hanket, atBlackwall.[1] She waslaunched on 18 March 1794 and was completed atWoolwich Dockyard on 23 September 1794.[1][2] She cost £13,577 to build; this rising to a total of £20,779 when the cost of fitting her for service was included.[1]
Apollo was launched in March 1794 andcommissioned in August under her first commander, Captain John Manley.[1] Her career began inauspiciously, when Manley accidentally ran her aground on sandbanks in the mouth ofthe Wash in late 1794. On Manley's orders the ship was lightened by the disposal over the side of her stores and several of her guns, after which she floated free of the sand. Her rudder had broken in the process, and after some difficulty she was sailed toGreat Yarmouth for repairs.[3]
In June 1796, she andDoris captured the FrenchcorvetteLégère, of twenty-two 9-pounder guns and 168 men.Légère had leftBrest on 4 June in company with three frigates. During her cruise she had captured sixprizes. However, on 23 June she encountered the two British frigates at48°30′N8°28′W / 48.500°N 8.467°W /48.500; -8.467. After a 10-hour chase the British frigates finally caught up with her; a few shots were exchanged and thenLégèrestruck.[4] The Navy took into her service as HMSLegere.[5] Then, in December,Apollo andPolyphemus were off the Irish coast when they captured the 14-gun FrenchprivateerschoonerDeux Amis, of 100 tons bm and 80 men.[6] The Royal Navy took her into service under her existing name.
In 1798 CaptainPeter Halkett was appointed to the command ofApollo.Apollo shared withCruizer,Lutine, and thehired armedcutterRose the proceeds from the capture on 13 May of theHouismon,Welfart, andOuldst Kendt.[Note 1]
An accident at sea in late 1798 forcedApollo back to port in Great Yarmouth and left her with a depleted crew. Acapstan pawl, or crossbar,[clarification needed] had broken while the crew were raising the anchor, and the weight of the anchor and chain caused the remaining pawls to turn sharply as the anchor ran back out. Around thirty men were injured after being struck by the pawls.[8] Halkett gave orders for a prompt return to port, where the injured men were discharged fromApollo's service and entrusted to local medical care. The ship then put back to sea on 5 January, without replacing the injured crew.[8]
Halkett's orders were to takeApollo to a point off the coast of Holland, and there to seek out Dutch vessels for capture. One such vessel was sighted on 6 January, andApollo was turned to give chase. The pursuit was hampered by thick fog, and at 7am on the following morningApollo ran aground on the Haak Sandbank adjacent toTexel. Halkett ordered that the ship's stores and guns be thrown overboard in order to lighten her and float her free, but despite these efforts she remained stuck fast in the sands.[8]
In the late afternoon, a Prussiangalliot was sighted and hailed byApollo's crew. After some negotiation, the Prussian captain agreed to jettison the bulk of his cargo of wines and take 250 ofApollo's crew back to England. The remaining crew members went aboardApollo's cutter with plans to make their own way to port. By 9pm all crew members had left the British ship, which was then abandoned to the tides. The Prussian ship reached Yarmouth on 11 January, followed three days later by the cutter.[8]
A Royal Navy court martial was established to examine the reasons for the loss of the ship.Apollo'spilot, John Bruce was found to have shown "great want of skill" in the execution of his duties, and he was dismissed forthwith from naval service.[9] No findings were made against Captain Halkett, who returned to the Navy at his previous rank and was granted command of a newly completed 36-gun frigate, also namedApollo.[10]
HMSApollo sank deep into the sea bed. But erosion resurfaced the wreckage. In 2020 theCultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands commissioned sonar research and divers from the North Sea-Divers fromBreezand inNorth Holland took the guns and equipment out of the water.[11]
Media related toHMS Apollo (ship, 1794) at Wikimedia Commons| Shipwrecks |
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