Spanish cruiser Gravina

An unidentified Velasco-class (here called "Infanta Isabel-class") cruiser in U.S. waters during the 1880s or 1890s, showing the appearance of Gravina
History
Armada Española EnsignSpain
NameGravina
NamesakeFederico Carlos Gravina y Nápoli (1756–1806), Italian-Spanish admiral
Awarded1880
BuilderThames Ironworks & Shipbuilding & Engineering Co. Ltd., Leamouth, London, England
Laid down1881
Launched27 July 1881
Completed1881
FateWrecked 10 July 1884
General characteristics
Class and typeVelasco-class unprotected cruiser
Displacement1,152 tons
Length64.01 m (210 ft 0 in)
Beam9.75 m (32 ft 0 in)
Height5.33 m (17 ft 6 in)[1]
Draft4.17 m (13 ft 8 in) maximum
Depth3.86 m (12 ft 8 in)[1]
Installed power1,500 ihp (1,119 kW)
Propulsion1-shaft, horizontal compound, 4-cylinder boilers, 200 to 220 tons coal (normal)
Sail plan
Speed13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph)
Range2,000 nmi (3,700 km; 2,300 mi)
Complement173 officers and enlisted men
Armament

Gravina was a Velasco-class unprotected cruiser of the Spanish Navy in service from 1881 to 1884. She was wrecked in a typhoon in 1884.

Characteristics and construction

Gravina was an iron-hulled unprotected cruiser[1] designed for colonial service in the Spanish Empire. She was barque-rigged, with three masts and a bowsprit,[1] and she had one rather tall funnel. She and the lead ship of the class, Velasco, both built in the United Kingdom, were differently armed and slightly faster than the final six ships of the class, all of which were built in Spain.

Gravina was built by the Thames Ironworks & Shipbuilding & Engineering Co. Ltd. at Leamouth, London, in the United Kingdom. Her keel was laid in 1881, and she was launched on 27 July 1881.[1] After her completion, she was delivered to the Spanish Navy later in 1881.[1]

Operational history

Gravina completed her delivery voyage to Spain with her arrival at Ferrol at the end of 1881.[1] She departed Ferrol on 2 January 1882 and, after a stop at Cartagena, deployed to the Philippines.[1]

On 26 October 1882, Gravina got underway from Manila as part of a Spanish Navy squadron which also included Velasco and the unprotected cruiser Aragon.[1] The squadron conducted operations against the Jolo Pirates from 29 October through mid-November 1882.[1] In November 1883 she again was part of a squadron that mounted an expedition against the Jolo pirates.[1]

On 8 July 1884, Gravina departed Manila bound for Shanghai, China.[1] During the voyage, she encountered a typhoon and was wrecked on Fuga Island in the Babuyan Islands north of Luzon on 10 July 1884 with the loss of nine lives — two officers (an ensign and a midshipman) and seven enlisted men.[1][2] In a subsequent court martial her commanding officer, Capitán de fragata (Frigate Captain) José García de Quesada, was acquitted of wrongdoing in her loss.[1]

References

Citations

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o "Gravina_(1882)". todoavante.es (in Spanish). 8 April 2022. Retrieved 14 January 2025.
  2. ^ "Cable Notes". Chicago Tribune. 16 July 1884. Retrieved 25 June 2016 – via Newspapers.com.

Bibliography

  • La Ilustración Española y Americana nºXXXV (in Spanish). Madrid. 24 September 1884.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  • Aguilera, Alfredo; Elías, Vicente (1980). Buques de guerra españoles, 1885-1971 (in Spanish). Madrid: Editorial San Martín.
  • Bordejé y Morencos, Fernando de (1995). Crónica de la Marina española en el siglo XIX, 1868-1898 (in Spanish). Vol. II. Madrid: Ministry of Defence.
  • Chesneau, Roger; Kolesnik, Eugene M. (1979). Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. New York: Mayflower Books Inc. ISBN 0-8317-0302-4.
  • Lledó Calabuig, José (1998). Buques de vapor de la armada española, del vapor de ruedas a la fragata acorazada, 1834-1885 (in Spanish). Agualarga Editores. pp. 96–98. ISBN 8495088754.
  • Nofi, Albert A. (1996). The Spanish–American War, 1898. Conshohocken, Pennsylvania: Combined Books, Inc. ISBN 0-938289-57-8.
  • Rivas Fabal, José Enrique (2007). Historia de la Infantería de Marina española Tomo II (in Spanish). Madrid: Ministry of Defense.
  • VV.AA (1999). El Buque en la Armada española (in Spanish). Madrid: Editorial Sílex.