.jpg) An 18th-century engraving of theScilly naval disaster, with HMSAssociation in the centre | |
| History | |
|---|---|
.svg) Great Britain | |
| Name | Association |
| Ordered | 20 December 1694 |
| Builder | Bagwell,Portsmouth Dockyard |
| Launched | 1 January 1697 |
| Commissioned | July 1697 |
| Fate | Wrecked, 22 October 1707(OS) |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | 90-gunsecond-rateship of the line |
| Tons burthen | 145932⁄94bm |
| Length | 165 ft (50.3 m) (gundeck) |
| Beam | 45 ft 4 in (13.8 m) |
| Depth of hold | 18 ft 3 in (5.6 m) |
| Propulsion | Sails |
| Sail plan | Full-rigged ship |
| Complement | 800 officers and men (approx.) |
| Armament |
|
Association was a 90-gunsecond-rateship of the line of theRoyal Navy, launched atPortsmouth Dockyard in 1697.[1][2] She served with distinction at the capture of Gibraltar, and was lost in1707 by grounding on the Isles of Scilly in the greatest maritime disaster of the age. The wreck is a Protected Wreck managed byHistoric England.
Association survived theGreat Storm of 1703, during which she was at anchor offHarwich. Her rigging was cut away to avoid foundering on the "Galloper" sandbar, and she was blown toGothenburg in Sweden before she could make her way back to England.
Association served as the flagship of Admiral SirCloudesley Shovell in theMediterranean during theWar of the Spanish Succession. Her engagements included the capture ofGibraltar on 21 July 1704, and theBattle of Toulon in summer 1707.
In October 1707,Association, commanded by Captain Edmund Loades and with Admiral Shovell on board, was returning from the Mediterranean after the Toulon campaign. The 21 ships in the squadron entered the mouth of theEnglish Channel on the night of 22 October 1707(Old style). At 8 pm,Association struck the Outer Gilstone Rock (see image)[3] off theIsles of Scilly, and was wrecked with the loss of her entire crew of about 800 men. As a result of navigational errors, the ships were not where they were reckoned to be.Association was seen by those on boardHMSSt George to go down in three or four minutes' time. Among the dead were Captain Loades and Admiral Shovell, his stepsonsSir John Narborough and James Narborough (sons of Shovell's wife from her marriage toRear Admiral Sir John Narbrough) as well asHenry Trelawney, second son of the Bishop of Winchester. Captain Loades was the son ofRear Admiral Narbrough's sister.[4] Three other ships (HMSEagle,HMSRomney andHMSFirebrand) were also lost, bringing the death toll to nearly 2,000.[5] TheScilly naval disaster was one of the greatestmaritimedisasters in British history. It was largely as a result of this disaster that theBoard of the Admiralty instituted acompetition for a more precise method to determinelongitude. There is a memorial depicting the sinking of theAssociation in the church at the Narboroughs' home ofKnowlton near Dover.
In June 1967, theminesweeperHMSPuttenham, equipped with twelve divers under the command ofEngineer-Lieutenant Roy Graham, sailed to the Isles of Scilly and dropped anchor off Gilstone Ledge, just to the south-east ofBishop Rock[6] and close to theWestern Rocks. The year before, Graham and other specialists from theNaval Air Command Sub Aqua Club had dived in this area on a first attempt to find theAssociation. He recalled some years later: "The weather was so bad, all we achieved was the sight of a blur of seaweed, seals and white water as we were swept through the Gilstone Reef and fortunately out the other side."[7][8] On their second attempt in summer 1967, using the minesweeper and supported by theRoyal Navy Auxiliary Service, Graham and his men finally managed to locate the remains ofAssociation on the Gilstone Ledge.[7] Parts of the wreck are in 30 feet, while others can be found at between 90 and 120 feet as the sea floor falls away from the reef.[9] The divers first discovered a cannon, and on the third dive, silver and gold coins were spotted underneath that cannon.[7] TheMinistry of Defence initially suppressed news of the discovery for fear of attractingtreasure hunters, but word was soon out and excited huge national interest.[6] More than 2,000 coins and other artefacts were finally recovered from the wreck site and auctioned by Sotheby's in July 1969.[10] The rediscovery of theAssociation and the finding of so many historicalartefacts in her wreck also led to more government legislation, notably theProtection of Wrecks Act 1973, passed in an attempt to preserve British historic wreck sites as part of the maritime heritage.[11]
In 2017 Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Maritime Archaeology Society (CISMAS) undertook a survey of the site of theAssociation.[12] A 3D site plan[13] was produced forHistoric England along with photos from the dive showing the difficult diving conditions.
InRobert Goddard's novelName to a Face,[14] a central plot element is the recovery of a ring worn by Admiral Shovell at the time ofAssociation's sinking.
Media related toHMS Association (ship, 1697) at Wikimedia Commons49°51′43.81″N6°24′29.99″W / 49.8621694°N 6.4083306°W /49.8621694; -6.4083306
