HMS St Albans (1687)

For other ships with the same name, see HMS St Albans.

History
England
Name	HMS St Albans
Ordered	29 April 1682
Builder	John Shish (to his death in October 1686), then Fisher Harding, Deptford Dockyard
Launched	June 1687
Commissioned	22 October 1688
Fate	Wrecked at Kinsale on 8 December 1693
General characteristics [1]
Class and type	50-gun fourth rate ship of the line
Tons burthen	615 bm
Length	128 ft 4 in (39.1 m) (gundeck), 107 ft 3 in (32.7 m) (keel)
Beam	32 ft 10.5 in (10.0 m)
Depth of hold	13 ft 3 in (4.0 m)
Propulsion	Sails
Sail plan	Full-rigged ship
Complement	280 in war, 185 in peacetime
Armament	50 guns of various weights of shot

HMS St Albans was a 50-gun fourth rate ship of the line of the English Royal Navy, launched at Deptford Dockyard in 1687.[1] One of only three 50-gun ships to be built during James II's brief reign (all three completed with an unusual "square tuck" stern), she was first commissioned on 22 October 1688 under Captain William Constable, and joined Lord Dartmouth's fleet in that month. The ship fought in the Battle of Bantry Bay on 1 May 1689 (under Captain John Layton), at the capture of a French 36-gun ship on 18 July 1690 off Rame Head and in the Battle of Barfleur on 24 May 1692 (under Captain Richard FitzPatrick) and in the Battle of Placentia, Newfoundland on 16-21 September 1693 (under Captain Thomas Gillam).[1]

Armament

All three ships ordered in 1682 (all were launched in 1687) were intended to carry 54 guns each - twenty-two 24-pounders on the lower deck, the same number of demi-culverins (9-pounders) on the upper deck, and ten demi-culverin drakes on the quarterdeck. However, each was completed with just 50 guns in wartime service and 44 guns in peacetime.

Loss

The St Albans was wrecked at Sandy Cove, by Kinsale Harbour on 8 December 1693, after her cables parted during a gale; Captain Gillam drowned.[1][2]

Notes

1. Rif Winfield, British Warships in the Age of Sail 1603–1714 p120.
2. David Hepper, British Warship Losses in the Age of Sail 1650-1859 (Jean Boudriot Publications, 1997), p.16.

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 (1997), The 50-Gun Ship: A Complete History. Chatham Publishing (1st edition); Mercury Books (2nd edition 2005). ISBN 1-845600-09-6.
• Winfield, Rif (2009), British Warships in the Age of Sail 1603–1714: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-040-6.