H.M.S. Victory
1805
(Aquarius AQ-2008)
- Class: 1st rate (3m) 100 gun
- Displacement: 2,142 bm tons
- Dimensions: 186 x 52 x 21 ft.
- Armament: 2 x 68pdr carronades, 30 x 32pdr, 28 x 24pdr, 30 x long 12pdr, 12 x short 12pdr
- Complement: 850
- Designer: Sir Thomas Slade
- Built: Chatham Dockyard, England
- Keel Laid: 23 Jul 1759
- Launched: 7 May 1765
- Rebuilt: Feb 1800 - Apr 1803
- Paid Off: 28 Nov 1812
- Service: Flagship of Adm Sir Augustus Keppel's Channel Fleet, at the indecisive action off Ushant, 27 July 1778, against d'Orvilliers. Under Adm Richard Kempenfelt, she captured a French convoy bound for America off Ushant, 12 Dec 1780. Flagship of Adm Lord Howe at the relief of Gibraltar, 1782. Paid off, 1783, and in ordinary for eight years. Became flagship of VAdm Sir Samuel Hood's Mediterranean Fleet, 1792, during occupation of Toulon. Flagship of Adm Sir John Jervis, 1795, at the Battle of Cape St. Vincent, 14 Feb 1797. Returned to England and used as a prison hospital ship, before being rebuilt. Under Capt Thomas Hardy, she became flagship of Adm Horatio Nelson's Mediterranean fleet, 1803. Led the weather division at the Battle of Trafalgar, 21 Oct 1805. Engaged by French Bucentaure, Redoutable, and Neptune, the former two both eventually struck. Nelson was wounded by a French sharpshooter and died three hours later. Victory was dismasted and towed to Gibraltar for repairs, before returning to England with Nelson's body. After a refit at Chatham, the Victory returned to service in 1808 as the flagship of the Baltic Fleet under Adm Sir James Saumarez. Paid off in 1812, she has served as flagship of the commander in chief, Portsmouth, since 1824. Dry-docked and opened as a museum in 1922, where she was slightly damaged by a German bomb during World War II.
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