Discussion
I must admit I'd never heard of this ship until this morning - and I didn't know we had any WW1 ships left.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_President_(1918)
A pity that she may not be around much longer
http://maritimematters.com/2016/07/londons-hms-pre...
Probably won't do any good, but there is a petition running to try and save her https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/163742
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_President_(1918)
A pity that she may not be around much longer
http://maritimematters.com/2016/07/londons-hms-pre...
Probably won't do any good, but there is a petition running to try and save her https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/163742
Will be such a shame if they don't manage to save President
It puts me in mind of HMS Implacable- originally the French ship Duguay-Trouin (1797) which fought at Trafalgar and was captured by the British the following month at the Battle of Cape Ortegal.
Saw active service in the Royal Navy until the 1840s, then served as a training ship for the rest of that century. She actually got earmarked for preservation by Edward VII personally, and underwent various restoration work right through until the late 1930s.
She was even present for 'Traflagar Day' in 1943:-
At the time she was the oldest Royal Navy ship after Victory, and (I believe) the only other surviving ship from the Battle of Trafalgar.
Sadly, due to the post-war economy the funds to preserve her weren't made available and she was scuttled by explosive charges in 1949 just off the Isle of Wight, almost 150 years after being launched
It puts me in mind of HMS Implacable- originally the French ship Duguay-Trouin (1797) which fought at Trafalgar and was captured by the British the following month at the Battle of Cape Ortegal.
Saw active service in the Royal Navy until the 1840s, then served as a training ship for the rest of that century. She actually got earmarked for preservation by Edward VII personally, and underwent various restoration work right through until the late 1930s.
She was even present for 'Traflagar Day' in 1943:-
At the time she was the oldest Royal Navy ship after Victory, and (I believe) the only other surviving ship from the Battle of Trafalgar.
Sadly, due to the post-war economy the funds to preserve her weren't made available and she was scuttled by explosive charges in 1949 just off the Isle of Wight, almost 150 years after being launched
The Ors said:
Squirrelofwoe said:
...scuttled by explosive charges in 1949 just off the Isle of Wight...
Is there anything left of her?Lots of bits stripped, rear (the classic windows) removed and on display in Portsmouth.
Haven't found any mention of it being located and dived yet.
I think it was offered to the French but they didn't want it.
FourWheelDrift said:
Wasn't in great condition when they sunk it - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vObkluMUvWo
Lots of bits stripped, rear (the classic windows) removed and on display in Portsmouth.
Haven't found any mention of it being located and dived yet.
I think it was offered to the French but they didn't want it.
Minor correction: the stern is displayed in the National Maritime Museum at Greenwich.Lots of bits stripped, rear (the classic windows) removed and on display in Portsmouth.
Haven't found any mention of it being located and dived yet.
I think it was offered to the French but they didn't want it.
FourWheelDrift said:
The Ors said:
Squirrelofwoe said:
...scuttled by explosive charges in 1949 just off the Isle of Wight...
Is there anything left of her?I take it the other ship seen in some of the footage is HMS Trincomalee (1812), which served as an accommodation ship alongside Implacable for many years. Whilst nowhere near as impressive or historically significant as Implacable, thankfully she was saved and is now a museum at Hartlepool.
FourWheelDrift said:
I think it was offered to the French but they didn't want it.
Yep they were in even worse financial straights than us and therefore couldn't/didn't want to stump up the money needed to properly restore/preserve her.I was always under the impression that the overwhelming reaction to this destruction was largely responsible for increased awareness and considerable effort now made these days to preserve things of such historical significance- making the uncertainty regarding HMS President all the more baffling.
It was a particularly sad end for Implacable considering everything she had been through- even surviving the second world war, unlike HMS Wellesley (1815) which was destroyed by German bombing early in the war- consequently becoming the last ship-of-the-line destroyed by an enemy and interestingly, also the only one ever sunk by aerial bombing!
Good shout, I'd forgot the Nile.
I love seeing the black & white photos of those old ships of the line. There is just something about seeing a 20th century photo of something that seems so 'out of time', even though in the grand scheme of things some (like Nile) weren't technically that old as far as historical items go.
I guess it shows how little the outward appearance of those ships actually changed from the early 1700s to the appearance of steam funnels in the 1850s. Particularly when you consider what the 'average' battleship (such as the Nile of 1888) were starting to look like by the 1890s, just 40 years later!
I love seeing the black & white photos of those old ships of the line. There is just something about seeing a 20th century photo of something that seems so 'out of time', even though in the grand scheme of things some (like Nile) weren't technically that old as far as historical items go.
I guess it shows how little the outward appearance of those ships actually changed from the early 1700s to the appearance of steam funnels in the 1850s. Particularly when you consider what the 'average' battleship (such as the Nile of 1888) were starting to look like by the 1890s, just 40 years later!
Edited by Squirrelofwoe on Wednesday 12th October 10:50
Ayahuasca said:
We are forgetting HMS Trincomalee, 1814.
Still looking good at the historic dockyard museum in Hartlepool.
Yep, I mentioned Trincomalee in my post above as I believe that was the ship tied up alongside HMS Implacable as an accommodation ship- I'm pretty sure Trincomalee is the other ship visible in the Youtube footage that Fourwheeldrift linked earlier Still looking good at the historic dockyard museum in Hartlepool.
Not technically a Ship of the line though which is what I was originally referring to, but still very impressive and it's fantastic that's she's been preserved. I think one of her sister ships (Unicorn) has also survived too.
I'm surprised more of these frigates haven't survived considering the numbers they were built in compared to the ships of the line- 47 of those Leda class were eventually built over a 30-odd year period!
Edited by Squirrelofwoe on Wednesday 12th October 16:25
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