HMS ''Conflict'' was a

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 ...

of 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 ...

, built by John Cuthbert, Millers Point, New South Wales and launched on 11 February 1873.Bastock, p.59.

Royal Navy service

She commenced service on the Australia Station at

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

in August 1873 for anti-

blackbirding Blackbirding was the trade in indentured labourers from the Pacific in the 19th and early 20th centuries. It is often described as a form of slavery, despite the British Slavery Abolition Act 1833 banning slavery throughout the British Empire, ...

operations in the South Pacific. She was part of a punitive mission in 1879 in the New Hebrides. In 1880, she sighted the Conflict Group, which bears her name. She was paid off in 1882 and sold to Captain Thomas Brown.

''Catalpa'' incident

On 1 April 1876, ''Conflict'' visited the port of

Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia located at the mouth of the Swan River (Western Australia), Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australi ...

, remaining there until 10 April. Her presence unwittingly threw into confusion an elaborate conspiracy to free six Irish

Fenian The word ''Fenian'' () served as an umbrella term for the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) and their affiliate in the United States, the Fenian Brotherhood. They were secret political organisations in the late 19th and early 20th centuries ...

prisoners on 6 April and transport them to America aboard the whaler ''

Catalpa ''Catalpa'' (, ), commonly also called catawba, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Bignoniaceae, native to warm temperate and subtropical regions of North America, the Caribbean, and East Asia. Description Most ''Catalpa'' are decidu ...

''. The escape was postponed and successfully executed after the gunboat's departure.

Mercantile service

''Conflict'' left

Suva Suva (, ) is the Capital city, capital and the most populous city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rew ...

for

Levuka Levuka () is a Local government in Fiji, town on the eastern coast of the Fijian island of Ovalau (Fiji), Ovalau, in Lomaiviti Province, in the Eastern Division, Fiji, Eastern Division of Fiji. Prior to 1877, it was the capital of Fiji. At the ...

on 9 October and was wrecked on a reef midway between the two. There were no casualties and the ship was left stranded upright on the reef, signalling that she needed no assistance. By 12 October Captain Brown had returned to Levuka and reported that ''Conflict'' was a total loss.

Notes

References

*Bastock, John (1988), ''Ships on the Australia Station'', Child & Associates Publishing Pty Ltd; Frenchs Forest, Australia. * 1873 ships Ships built in New South Wales Victorian-era naval ships of the United Kingdom Shipwrecks of Fiji {{UK-mil-ship-stub