HMS Sidon was a first-class paddle frigate

Frigate

A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...

 designed by Sir Charles Napier

Charles Napier (naval officer)

Admiral Sir Charles John Napier KCB GOTE RN was a Scottish naval officer whose sixty years in the Royal Navy included service in the Napoleonic Wars, Syrian War and the Crimean War, and a period commanding the Portuguese navy in the Liberal Wars...

: her name commemorated his attack on the port of Sidon

Sidon

Sidon or Saïda is the third-largest city in Lebanon. It is located in the South Governorate of Lebanon, on the Mediterranean coast, about 40 km north of Tyre and 40 km south of the capital Beirut. In Genesis, Sidon is the son of Canaan the grandson of Noah...

 in 1840 during the Syrian War

Syrian War

The Syrian War is the name generally given to the war of 1839-40 fought in the Middle East, also known as the Second Syrian War, mainly on territory that is now Lebanon, between the Allied Powers of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Austrian Empire, the Russian Empire and the...

. Her keel was laid down May 26, 1845 at Deptford Dockyard, and she was launched

Ship naming and launching

The ceremonies involved in naming and launching naval ships are based in traditions thousands of years old.-Methods of launch:There are three principal methods of conveying a new ship from building site to water, only two of which are called "launching." The oldest, most familiar, and most widely...

 on May 26, 1846. She had a fairly short career for a warship, but it included the rescue of the crew of the sinking Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation

Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company

The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company, which is usually known as P&O, is a British shipping and logistics company which dated from the early 19th century. Following its sale in March 2006 to Dubai Ports World for £3.9 billion, it became a subsidiary of DP World; however, the P&O...

 vessel Ariel on May 28, 1848, and a trip up the Nile

Nile

The Nile is a major north-flowing river in North Africa, generally regarded as the longest river in the world. It is long. It runs through the ten countries of Sudan, South Sudan, Burundi, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda and Egypt.The Nile has two major...

 that same year, when her passengers included the explorer and botanist Joseph Dalton Hooker

Joseph Dalton Hooker

Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker OM, GCSI, CB, MD, FRS was one of the greatest British botanists and explorers of the 19th century. Hooker was a founder of geographical botany, and Charles Darwin's closest friend...

. She served in the Black Sea

Black Sea

The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...

 during the Crimean War

Crimean War

The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...

, 1854-55 under the command of Captain George Goldsmith. In April 1854, in company with HMS Firebrand (Captain William Houston Stewart

William Houston Stewart

Admiral Sir William Houston Stewart GCB was a British naval officer who was Controller of the Royal Navy from 1872 to 1881.-Personal life:...

), she blockaded the coast from Kavarna

Kavarna

Kavarna is a Black Sea coastal town and seaside resort in the Dobruja region of northeastern Bulgaria. It lies 64 km northeast of Varna and 49 km from Dobrich on the international road E87. As of December 2009, the town has a population of 11,397 inhabitants. A little yacht port, a...

 to the mouths of the River Danube

Danube

The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....

. In September, during the actual Allied invasion of the Crimea, she was assigned to escorting the French troop transports, and assisted the French line-of-battleship Algiers, which had gone aground in Eupatoria Bay. She was then sent to monitor Russian movements around Odessa

Odessa

Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...

, and on 4 October attacked a marching column of 12,000 men on their way to the Crimea. On this occasion she was hit in the funnel by a Russian rocket. She was sold for breaking up on 15 July 1864 to Castle and Beech.