 The Battle of Camperdown, 11 October 1797 byThomas Whitcombe, painted 1798, showing the British flagshipVenerable (flying theBlue Ensign from her stern) engaged with the Dutch flagshipVrijheid. | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 Great Britain | |
| Name | HMSVenerable |
| Ordered | 9 August 1781 |
| Builder | Perry, Wells & Green,Blackwall Yard |
| Laid down | April 1782 |
| Launched | 19 April 1784 |
| Fate | Wrecked 24 November 1804 |
| Notes |
|
| General characteristics[1] | |
| Class & type | Culloden-classship of the line |
| Tons burthen | 1669 (bm) |
| Length | 170 ft (51.8 m) (gundeck) |
| Beam | 47 ft 2 in (14.4 m) |
| Depth of hold | 19 ft 11 in (6.1 m) |
| Propulsion | Sails |
| Sail plan | Full-rigged ship |
| Armament | |
HMSVenerable was a 74-gunthird-rateship of the line of theRoyal Navy, launched on 19 April 1784 atBlackwall Yard.[1]
In 1795,Veneraable is known to have been under the command of Captain James Bissett.[2]In 1797,Venerable served as AdmiralDuncan's flagship at theBattle of Camperdown.[3]
In 1801,Venerable took part in theFirst Battle of Algeciras on 6 July and theSecond Battle of Algeciras on 12–13 July. During the latter engagement, she was driven ashore on the coast ofSpain inAlgeciras Bay, but she was refloated, repaired, and returned to service.
Venerable was wrecked on 24 November 1804, offRoundham Head nearTorbay.[3] Three of her crew were lost.[4]Newspapers reported a dispatch dated 28 November: The Venerable had gone to pieces in a tremendous gale, the number of men drowned is said to be 13 — they are supposed to have been intoxicated when the ship struck. The commander of the Venerable was Captain Hunter, a brave and skilful officer and a gentleman of considerable literary and scientific acquirements who was for some time governor of New South Wales and has favoured the public with an interesting account of that colony.[5]
Two days later, on 26 November, thehired armed shipLady Warren sailed from Plymouth to Torbay withGrowler, six gun-vessels and yard-lighters, and other craft, to save the stores, guns, etc. from the wreck ofVenerable.[6]
Elizabeth Goudge used the event of the destruction of H.M.S.Venerable in a storm as a key event in her 1950 novel,Gentian Hill, as Goudge acknowledged in her prefatory Note.
Media related toHMS Venerable (ship, 1784) at Wikimedia Commons| Shipwrecks |
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