HMS Seaford (1695)

HMS Seaford was purchased from Richard Herring of Bursledon. Richard Herring had built this vessel on speculation to a similar specification as the Maidstone Group. After she was commissioned she sailed as part of the expedition to recapture Fort York on Hudson Bay. She was also part of Symond's squadron in the West Indies where she was captured and burnt by the French in 1697.[1]

For other ships with the same name, see HMS Seaford.

History
RN EnsignUnited Kingdom
NameHMS Seaford
BuilderRichard Herring, Bursledon
Cost1,688.18.2d
Acquired27 December 1695
CommissionedLate 1695
Captured5 May 1697
FateTaken by French Squadron and burnt
General characteristics
Type20-gun Sixth Rate
Tons burthen293+60⁄94 bm
Length
  • 98 ft 5 in (30.0 m) gundeck
  • 81 ft 3 in (24.8 m) keel for tonnage
Beam26 ft 1 in (8.0 m) for tonnage
Depth of hold10 ft 10 in (3.3 m)
Complement110
Armament
  • initially as ordered
  • 24 x sakers on wooden trucks (UD)
  • 4 x 3-pdr on wooden trucks (QD)

Seaford was the first named ship tin the Royal Navy.[2]

Construction

She was purchased from Richard Herring of Bursledon for 1,688.18.2d per ship with another £2,513.[Note 1] Her gundeck was 98 feet 5 inches (30.0 metres) with a keel length of 81 feet 3 inches (24.8 metres) for tonnage calculation. The breadth would be 26 feet 1 inch (8.0 metres) for tonnage with a depth of hold of 10 feet 18 inches (3.5 metres). The tonnage calculation would be 293+60⁄94. her gun armament would be twenty-four sakers mounted on wooden trucks located on the upper deck (UD) with a further four 3-pounders[Note 2] mounted on wooden trucks on the quarterdeck (QD). A saker or sacar was a muzzle loading smooth bore gun of 1,400 pounds in weight with a 31/2 inch bore firing a 51/2 pound shot with a 51/2 pound powder charge.[3]

Commissioned Service

She was commissioned in late 1695 under the command of Captain John Grange, RN. She was part of the 1696 Hudson Bay expedition to recapture Fort York at the mouth of the Nelson River. Captain Grange died in August 1696 with Captain John Watkins, RN assuming command on the 14th. On 19 January 1697 Captain George Walton, RN took command and sailed with Symond's squadron to the West Indies in April 1697.[4]

Disposition

HMS Seaford was taken by a French squadron off the Isles of Scilly on 5 May 1697 and burnt.[5]

Notes
  1. A total cost accounting for inflation of approximately £258,700 in today's money per ship.
  2. "3-pounder" refers to the weight of the ball fired

Citations
  1. Winfield
  2. Colledge
  3. Winfield, Source and data, Guns
  4. Winfield
  5. Winfield

References
  • Winfield, British Warships in the Age of Sail (1603 – 1714), by Rif Winfield, published by Seaforth Publishing, England © 2009, EPUB ISBN 9781783469246, Chapter 6, The Sixth Rates, Vessels acquired from 18 December 1688, Sixth Rates of 20 guns and up to 26 guns, Purchased Vessel (1695), Seaford
  • Colledge, Ships of the Royal Navy, by J.J. Colledge, revised and updated by Lt Cdr Ben Warlow and Steve Bush, published by Seaforth Publishing, Barnsley, Great Britain, © 2020, e ISBN 978-1-5267-9328-7 (EPUB), Section S (Seaford)


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