HMS Duke of Wellington (1880s)
HMS Duke of Wellington firing a Royal salute as Flagship in Portsmouth Harbour in (prob.) the 1880s. My colorization of an image in the Wikimedia Commons.
From my Finnish point of view the sail/steam powered HMS Duke of Wellington, which, when it was completed in 1853, was called "the most powerful warship in the world", is of particular interest. It was Vice-Admiral Sir Charles Napiers´ flagship in the British naval assault on Finland (then part of the Russian Empire as a Grand Duchy), which began the conflict between Britain and Russia in 1854-1856, known as the Crimean War.
(The eminent British maritime historians Basil Greenhill and Ann Gifford wrote a book, "The British Assault on Finland, 1854-1855, A Forgotten Naval War" (Conway Maritime Press), which tells the story of the Baltic Fleet. A very readable book for those interested in maritime history or history in general.
Greenhill and Gifford write in the blurb:
"The principal target of the Baltic Fleet were the Finns - ironically, less than happy subjects of the Tsar, but the owners of the largest proportion of Russian-flag shipping. The attacks on an almost undefended coastline and merchant marine had far reaching effects on both the Finns and the Russians, and helped to determine the development of the prosperous independent Finland of today." --
"This book describes, what at first sight seems an obscure campaign of the Royal Navy, but its significance has been greatly underestimated since it was the first time in history that a steam battlefleet went to war." )
HMS Duke of Wellington (1880s)
HMS Duke of Wellington firing a Royal salute as Flagship in Portsmouth Harbour in (prob.) the 1880s. My colorization of an image in the Wikimedia Commons.
From my Finnish point of view the sail/steam powered HMS Duke of Wellington, which, when it was completed in 1853, was called "the most powerful warship in the world", is of particular interest. It was Vice-Admiral Sir Charles Napiers´ flagship in the British naval assault on Finland (then part of the Russian Empire as a Grand Duchy), which began the conflict between Britain and Russia in 1854-1856, known as the Crimean War.
(The eminent British maritime historians Basil Greenhill and Ann Gifford wrote a book, "The British Assault on Finland, 1854-1855, A Forgotten Naval War" (Conway Maritime Press), which tells the story of the Baltic Fleet. A very readable book for those interested in maritime history or history in general.
Greenhill and Gifford write in the blurb:
"The principal target of the Baltic Fleet were the Finns - ironically, less than happy subjects of the Tsar, but the owners of the largest proportion of Russian-flag shipping. The attacks on an almost undefended coastline and merchant marine had far reaching effects on both the Finns and the Russians, and helped to determine the development of the prosperous independent Finland of today." --
"This book describes, what at first sight seems an obscure campaign of the Royal Navy, but its significance has been greatly underestimated since it was the first time in history that a steam battlefleet went to war." )