HMS Hyacinth (1881)
Encyclopedia
HMS Hyacinth was an 8-gun Satellite-class
composite sloop
built for the Royal Navy
, launched in 1881 and sold in 1902. She and the rest of her class were re-classified as corvette
s in 1884.
, the Royal Navy Director of Naval Construction
, the hull was of composite construction; that is, iron keel, frames, stem and stern posts with wooden planking. This class of composite sloops was unique in having an internal steel deck over the machinery and magazines for protection. Propulsion was provided by a horizontal compound-expansion steam engine of 1470 ihp driving a single screw. All the ships of the class were built with a barque
rig.
Earlier ships of the class had been built with two 6-inch/100-pounder (81cwt) breech-loading guns and ten 5-inch/50-pounder (38cwt) breech-loading guns, but Hyacinth and three of her sisters had eight breech-loading 6-inch/100-pounder (81cwt) Mk II guns
instead of the mixed 5-inch and 6-inch armament. This was complemented by a single light gun and four (or more) machine guns.
, with the keel laid on 30 August 1880. She was launched on 20 December 1881, and the cost of her hull came to £52,500. Machinery provided by Humphreys and Tennant was fitted at a cost of £14,500, and she was commissioned on 27 January 1884.
Designed for low-level policing duties, Hyacinth, in common with her sister ships Heroine and Caroline, was sent to the China Station
.
Between 1886 and 1892 Hyacinth conducted annual cruises in the Pacific, showing the flag and providing protection and reassurance to British citizens of the far-flung maritime Empire. She travelled as far afield as New Zealand
, Cook Islands
, Samoa
, Fiji
, New Caledonia
, Tahiti
and Hawaii
.
On 27 September 1888 the Vice-Consul of Rarotonga
, Mr R Exham, prompted by rumours of incipient French intervention in the Cook Islands
proclaimed a protectorate over the Southern Group, that is, Rarotonga
, Mangaia
, Aitutaki
, Atiu
, Mauke
, Mitiaro
and Takutea
. In October and November Captain Edmund Bourke in Hyacinth claimed the islands in the Southern Group for the British Crown; this was later amended to make the Cook Islands a protectorate. On 10 Apr 1889 Hyacinth re-commissioned at Hong Kong.
Satellite class sloop
The Satellite class was a class of 12-gun composite sloops built for the Royal Navy between 1883 and 1888, and reclassified as corvettes in 1884.-Design:...
composite sloop
Sloop-of-war
In the 18th and most of the 19th centuries, a sloop-of-war was a warship with a single gun deck that carried up to eighteen guns. As the rating system covered all vessels with 20 guns and above, this meant that the term sloop-of-war actually encompassed all the unrated combat vessels including the...
built for the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
, launched in 1881 and sold in 1902. She and the rest of her class were re-classified as corvette
Corvette
A corvette is a small, maneuverable, lightly armed warship, originally smaller than a frigate and larger than a coastal patrol craft or fast attack craft , although many recent designs resemble frigates in size and role...
s in 1884.
Design
Designed by Nathaniel BarnabyNathaniel Barnaby
Sir Nathaniel Barnaby, KCB was Chief Constructor of the Royal Navy from 1872 to 1885....
, the Royal Navy Director of Naval Construction
Director of Naval Construction
The Director of Naval Construction was a senior British civil servant post in the Admiralty, that part of the British Civil Service that oversaw the Royal Navy. The post existed from 1860 to 1966....
, the hull was of composite construction; that is, iron keel, frames, stem and stern posts with wooden planking. This class of composite sloops was unique in having an internal steel deck over the machinery and magazines for protection. Propulsion was provided by a horizontal compound-expansion steam engine of 1470 ihp driving a single screw. All the ships of the class were built with a barque
Barque
A barque, barc, or bark is a type of sailing vessel with three or more masts.- History of the term :The word barque appears to have come from the Greek word baris, a term for an Egyptian boat. This entered Latin as barca, which gave rise to the Italian barca, Spanish barco, and the French barge and...
rig.
Earlier ships of the class had been built with two 6-inch/100-pounder (81cwt) breech-loading guns and ten 5-inch/50-pounder (38cwt) breech-loading guns, but Hyacinth and three of her sisters had eight breech-loading 6-inch/100-pounder (81cwt) Mk II guns
BL 6 inch gun Mk I - VI
The BL 6 inch guns Marks II, III, IV and VI were the second and subsequent generations of British 6-inch breechloading naval guns, designed by the Royal Gun Factory following the first 6-inch breechloader, the relatively unsuccessful BL 6 inch 80 pounder gun designed by Elswick Ordnance. They...
instead of the mixed 5-inch and 6-inch armament. This was complemented by a single light gun and four (or more) machine guns.
Construction
Hyacinth was built at Devonport DockyardHMNB Devonport
Her Majesty's Naval Base Devonport , is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy . HMNB Devonport is located in Devonport, in the west of the city of Plymouth in Devon, England...
, with the keel laid on 30 August 1880. She was launched on 20 December 1881, and the cost of her hull came to £52,500. Machinery provided by Humphreys and Tennant was fitted at a cost of £14,500, and she was commissioned on 27 January 1884.
Career
The Satellite class were reclassified as corvettes in 1884.Designed for low-level policing duties, Hyacinth, in common with her sister ships Heroine and Caroline, was sent to the China Station
China Station
The China Station was a historical formation of the British Royal Navy. It was formally the units and establishments responsible to the Commander-in-Chief, China....
.
Between 1886 and 1892 Hyacinth conducted annual cruises in the Pacific, showing the flag and providing protection and reassurance to British citizens of the far-flung maritime Empire. She travelled as far afield as New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, Cook Islands
Cook Islands
The Cook Islands is a self-governing parliamentary democracy in the South Pacific Ocean in free association with New Zealand...
, Samoa
Samoa
Samoa , officially the Independent State of Samoa, formerly known as Western Samoa is a country encompassing the western part of the Samoan Islands in the South Pacific Ocean. It became independent from New Zealand in 1962. The two main islands of Samoa are Upolu and one of the biggest islands in...
, Fiji
Fiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
, New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
, Tahiti
Tahiti
Tahiti is the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia, located in the archipelago of the Society Islands in the southern Pacific Ocean. It is the economic, cultural and political centre of French Polynesia. The island was formed from volcanic activity and is high and mountainous...
and Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
.
On 27 September 1888 the Vice-Consul of Rarotonga
Rarotonga
Rarotonga is the most populous island of the Cook Islands, with a population of 14,153 , out of the country's total population of 19,569.The Cook Islands' Parliament buildings and international airport are on Rarotonga...
, Mr R Exham, prompted by rumours of incipient French intervention in the Cook Islands
Cook Islands
The Cook Islands is a self-governing parliamentary democracy in the South Pacific Ocean in free association with New Zealand...
proclaimed a protectorate over the Southern Group, that is, Rarotonga
Rarotonga
Rarotonga is the most populous island of the Cook Islands, with a population of 14,153 , out of the country's total population of 19,569.The Cook Islands' Parliament buildings and international airport are on Rarotonga...
, Mangaia
Mangaia
Mangaia is the most southerly of the Cook Islands and the second largest, after Rarotonga.-Geography:...
, Aitutaki
Aitutaki
Aitutaki, also traditionally known as Araura, Ararau and Utataki, is one of the Cook Islands, north of Rarotonga. It has a population of approximately 2,000. Aitutaki is the second most visited island of the Cook Islands. The capital is Arutanga on the west side.-Geography:Aitutaki is an "almost...
, Atiu
Atiu
Atiu, also known as Enuamanu , is an island lying at 187 km to the northeast of Rarotonga, in the Southern Islands group of the Cook Islands Archipelago.-Geography:...
, Mauke
Mauke
Mauke is a raised atoll island, the eastern most of the Cook Islands.-Geography:...
, Mitiaro
Mitiaro
Mitiaro, the fourth island in the Cook Islands group, is of volcanic origin. Standing in water 14,750 feet deep it is four miles across at its widest point.-Geography:...
and Takutea
Takutea
Takutea, in the Cook Islands, is a small uninhabited island 21 km northwest of Atiu in the southern Cook Islands. Because it is only 1.22 km² in size and has a very dangerous landing at the northwest corner of the reef, it has been designated a wildlife sanctuary, mainly for the red-tailed tropic...
. In October and November Captain Edmund Bourke in Hyacinth claimed the islands in the Southern Group for the British Crown; this was later amended to make the Cook Islands a protectorate. On 10 Apr 1889 Hyacinth re-commissioned at Hong Kong.