HMS Dragon (1760)

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

The bombardment of Morro Castle on Havana -
HMS Dragon, centre
History
Royal Navy EnsignGreat Britain
NameHMS Dragon
Ordered28 December 1757
BuilderDeptford Dockyard to a design by Sir Thomas Slade
Laid down28 March 1758
Launched4 March 1760
CommissionedMarch 1760
FateSold out of the service, 1784
NotesHarbour service from 1781
General characteristics [1]
Class and typeBellona-class ship of the line
Tons burthen1,61473⁄94 (bm)
Length
  • 168 ft (51 m) (gundeck)
  • 137 ft 11 in (42.04 m) (keel)
Beam46 ft 11 in (14.30 m)
Draught21 ft 6 in (6.55 m)
Depth of hold19 ft 9 in (6.02 m)
Sail planFull-rigged ship
Armament
  • 74 guns:
  • Lower gundeck: 28 × 32 pdrs
  • Upper gundeck: 28 × 18 pdrs
  • Quarterdeck: 14 × 9 pdrs
  • Forecastle: 4 × 9 pdrs

HMS Dragon was a 74-gun Bellona-class third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 4 March 1760 at Deptford Dockyard.[1]

Service history

She was commissioned in 1760, under the command of the Hon. Augustus Hervey, as part of the Western Squadron. In October 1761 she sailed for the Leeward Islands, and until March 1763 was engaged in naval operations in the Caribbean, including the Siege of Havana in 1762.[2][3] as part of the Seven Years' War.

Francis Light, founder of Penang, served on HMS Dragon in 1760.[4]

In March 1763 she was paid off, and recommissioned as a guardship at Portsmouth in May 1763, where she served until once again paid off in 1770. From 1781 she was employed as a receiving ship at Portsmouth, before being finally paid off in April 1783 and sold in Portsmouth in June 1784 for £620.[1][2]

Commanders of Note

Notes

  1. ^ a b c Lavery, Ships of the Line, vol. 1, p. 176.
  2. ^ a b "Warship Histories (Vessel ID 365713)" (PDF). National Maritime Museum. 25 January 2010. p. 11. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 August 2011.
  3. ^ White, William (1849). Notes and Queries: A Medium of Inter-communication for Literary Men, Artists, Antiquaries, Genealogists, Etc. Oxford University Press. p. 43.
  4. ^ Clodd, Harold Parker (1948), Malaya's first British pioneer: the life of Francis Light, Luzac, p. 1, ISBN 978-0-375-42750-3

This article includes data donated from the National Maritime Museum Warship Histories project

References

  • Lavery, Brian (2003). The Ship of the Line – Volume 1: The Development of the Battlefleet 1650–1850. Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-252-8.
  • Winfield, Rif (2007). British Warships in the Age of Sail 1714–1792; Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. Seaforth. ISBN 978-1-84415-700-6.


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