HMS Mercury
Encyclopedia
Eighteen ships of the Royal Navy
have borne the name HMS Mercury, or HMS Mercure, after the God Mercury
, of Roman mythology
:
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...
have borne the name HMS Mercury, or HMS Mercure, after the God Mercury
Mercury (mythology)
Mercury was a messenger who wore winged sandals, and a god of trade, the son of Maia Maiestas and Jupiter in Roman mythology. His name is related to the Latin word merx , mercari , and merces...
, of Roman mythology
Roman mythology
Roman mythology is the body of traditional stories pertaining to ancient Rome's legendary origins and religious system, as represented in the literature and visual arts of the Romans...
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- HMS Mercury was a 6-gun galley launched in 1592 and sold in 1611.
- HMS Mercury was a ship launched in 1620. Her fate is unknown.
- HMS Mercury was a ship purchased in 1622. Her fate is unknown.
- HMS Mercury was a 6-gun advice boat launched in 1694 and captured by a French privateerPrivateerA privateer is a private person or ship authorized by a government by letters of marque to attack foreign shipping during wartime. Privateering was a way of mobilizing armed ships and sailors without having to spend public money or commit naval officers...
in 1697. - HMS Mercury was an 8-gun fireship purchased in 1739 and foundered in 1744.
- HMS Mercury was a 16-gun brigantineBrigantineIn sailing, a brigantine or hermaphrodite brig is a vessel with two masts, only the forward of which is square rigged.-Origins of the term:...
launched in 1744 and captured in 1745. - HMS Mercury was a 24-gun sixth rate launched in 1745 and broken up in 1753.
- HMS Mercury was a 20-gun sixth rate launched in 1756 and wrecked in 1777.
- HMS MercuryHMS Mercury (1779)HMS Mercury was a 28-gun Enterprise-class sixth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. She was built during the American War of Independence and serving during the later years of that conflict...
was a 28-gun sixth rate launched in 1779 and broken up in 1814. - HMS Mercure was an 18-gun sloopSloopA sloop is a sail boat with a fore-and-aft rig and a single mast farther forward than the mast of a cutter....
. She was formerly a French privateer that and captured in 1798. She was renamed HMS Trompeuse in 1799 and foundered in 1800. - HMS Mercury was a 14-gun brigBrigA brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
launched in 1806 and converted to a coal hulk by 1865. - HMS Mercury was a tender launched in 1807 and broken up in 1835.
- HMS Mercury was a 46-gun fifth rate launched in 1826, used as a coal hulk from 1861 and sold in 1906.
- HMS Mercury was a cutter tender launched in 1837, renamed YC6 in 1866, HMS Plymouth in 1876 and was sold in 1904.
- HMS MercuryHMS Mercury (1878)HMS Mercury was an Iris class second class cruiser of the Royal Navy. The two ships of the class were the first all steel ships in the Royal Navy. She was distinguished from the Iris by her straight bow, which gave her a slightly shorter length of 315 feet...
was an Iris classIris class cruiserThe Iris class comprised two ships, and , which served with the Royal Navy. They were the Royal Navy's first all steel ships.They were designed as dispatch vessels by William White under the direction of Nathaniel Barnaby but were later re-created as Second Class Cruisers...
cruiserCruiserA cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...
and despatch vessel launched in 1878, converted to a depot ship in 1906 and sold in 1919. She was to have been named HMS Columbine in 1912, but this did not happen. was a paddle steamer requisition during WWII for use as an auxiliary minesweeper which struck a mine and sank in 1940. - HMS MercuryHMS Mercury (shore establishment)HMS Mercury was a shore establishment of the Royal Navy, and the site of the Royal Navy Signals School and Combined Signals School. There was also a subsidiary branch, HMS Mercury II.-Establishment and history:...
was a Royal Naval Communications/Signal School located at the site of Leydene House near PetersfieldPetersfield, HampshirePetersfield is a market town and civil parish in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England. It is north of Portsmouth, on the A3 road. The town has its own railway station on the Portsmouth Direct Line, the mainline rail link connecting Portsmouth and London. The town is situated on the...
, EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The establishment was in commission between 1941 and 1993.