HMS ''Blanche'' was a 1760-ton, 6-gun wooden screw sloop built for the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

in the mid-1860s by

Chatham Dockyard Chatham Dockyard was a Royal Navy Dockyard located on the River Medway in Kent. Established in Chatham, Kent, Chatham in the mid-16th century, the dockyard subsequently expanded into neighbouring Gillingham, Kent, Gillingham; at its most extens ...

.Bastock, p. 50 She was sent to the

Australia Station The Australia Station was the British, and later Australian, naval command responsible for the waters around the Australian continent. Australia Station was under the command of the Commander-in-Chief, Australia Station, whose rank varied over t ...

in January 1868, arriving in April 1868. She undertook a punitive action against Solomon Island natives in September 1869. During 1870, she joined in the search for the

schooner A schooner ( ) is a type of sailing ship, sailing vessel defined by its Rig (sailing), rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more Mast (sailing), masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than t ...

''Daphne'', which was unsuccessful. Under the command of Captain Cortland Simpson, she undertook a survey of

Rabaul Rabaul () is a township in the East New Britain province of Papua New Guinea, on the island of New Britain. It lies about to the east of the island of New Guinea. Rabaul was the provincial capital and most important settlement in the province ...

's Harbour in 1872. Blanche Bay is named after HMS ''Blanche''. She finished service on the Australia Station in 1875. While sailing to England she was almost lost rounding

Cape Horn Cape Horn (, ) is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island. Although not the most southerly point of South America (which is Águila Islet), Cape Horn marks the nor ...

in bad weather. After being refitted and rearmed, she was sent to the

North America and West Indies Station The North America and West Indies Station was a formation or command of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy stationed in North American waters from 1745 to 1956, with main bases at the Imperial fortresses of Bermuda and Halifax, Nova Scotia. The ...

, where she remained until 1881.

Crew

A memorial to Paymaster James McAvoy and Lieutenant Thomas Thompson Auderton Smith was erected in

St James' Church, Sydney St James' Church, commonly known as St James', King Street, is an Australian heritage-listed Anglican parish church located at 173 King Street, in the Sydney central business district in New South Wales. Consecrated in February 1824 and named ...

by the captain and officers of ''Blanche'' in 1872. In 1871 the crew of ''Blanche'' (and HMS ''Rosario'') were replaced by a new crew that sailed from the UK on HMS ''Megaera''. However, it developed a serious leak in the Indian Ocean and was beached on

Île Saint-Paul is an island forming part of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands (, TAAF) in the Indian Ocean, with an area of . The island is located about south of the larger Île Amsterdam , northeast of the Kerguelen Islands, and southeast of Réuni ...

on 19 June 1871. They were marooned there for 3 months before being rescued and conveyed to Sydney on , a P&O steamer hired for the rescue. They arrived on 2 October 1871, and ''Blanche'' was recommissioned on the 12th. On 11 April 1872, ''Blanche'' was driven ashore on

New Hanover Island New Hanover Island, (), also called Lavongai, is a large volcanic island in the New Ireland Province of Papua New Guinea. This region is part of the Bismarck Archipelago and lies at . Measuring some , it had a population of 5,000 in 1960, which ...

. She was subsequently refloated. Repairs cost £2,450.

Fate

She was placed in reserve and in 1886 was sold to Castle for £3,600 for breaking.

Notes

Bibliography

* *Bastock, John (1988), ''Ships on the Australia Station'', Child & Associates Publishing; Frenchs Forest, Australia. * *Rottman, Gordon L. (2001), ''World War II Pacific Island Guide: A Geo-Military Study'', Greenwood Press; Santa Barbara, CA. * Ships built in Chatham Eclipse-class sloops Victorian-era sloops of the United Kingdom Victorian-era corvettes of the United Kingdom 1867 ships Maritime incidents in April 1870 {{UK-mil-ship-stub