''Dragon'' was a 38-gun

fourth rate In 1603 all English warships with a complement of fewer than 160 men were known as 'small ships'. In 1625/26 to establish pay rates for officers, a six-tier naval ship rating system was introduced.Winfield 2009 These small ships were divided ...

of the English Navy; she became part 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 ...

after the Restoration, built by the Master Shipwright Henry Goddard at Chatham and launched in 1647. She was the first frigate to be built at Chatham (the term 'frigate' during this period referred to a vessel designed for fast sailing, with a low superstructure, rather than a role which did not develop until the following century). ''Dragon'' was the fourth named vessel since it was used for a ship of 100 ton bm, in service from 1512 to 1514

Construction and specifications

She was built at Chatham Dockyard under the guidance of Master Shipwright Henry Goddard. She was the first 'frigate' built at Chatham and launched in 1647. Her dimensions were gundeck with for keel with a breadth of and a depth of hold of . Her tonnage was tons. Her gun armament in 1647 was 38 (wartime)/32 (peacetime) guns. In 1666 her armament was 42 (wartime)/32 (peacetime) and consisted of twenty-two culverins,The culverin was a gun of 4,500 pounds with a 5.5-inch bore firing a 17.5-pound shot with a twelve-pound powder charge twenty demi-culverines,The demi-culverin was a gun of 3,400 pounds with a four-inch bore firing a 9.5-pound shot with an eight-pound powder charge eight sakers.The sacar or saker was a gun of 1,400 pounds with a 3.5-inch bore firing a 5.5-pound shot with a 5.5-pound powder charge In 1677 her armament was established as 46 guns consisting of twenty-two culverins, twenty 6-pounder guns(sakers),The 6-pounder was a captured Dutch gun used in place of sakers and four sakers on the quarterdeck. Her manning was 150 personnel in 1652 and rose to 160 a year later. By 1660 her manning had dropped to 130 personnel.

Commissioned service

Service in the English Civil War and Commonwealth Navy

She was commissioned into the Parliamentary Naval Force in 1647 under the command of Captain Anthony Young for service in the Irish Sea. She helped recapture the 12-gun ''Hart'' in 1648. In 1650 she came under the command of Captain John Stoakes remaining in the Irish sea. With the end of the English civil War she was incorporated into the Commonwealth Navy. She partook in the

Battle of Dungeness A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

on 29 November 1652. In 1653 she received a new commander in Captain Edmund Seaman. On 28 February 1653 she was in the

Battle of Portland The naval Battle of Portland, or Three Days' Battle, took place during 18–20 February 1653 (28 February – 2 March 1653 (Gregorian calendar)), during the First Anglo-Dutch War, when the fleet of the Commonwealth of England under General at ...

followed by the

Battle of the Gabbard The Battle of the Gabbard, was a naval battle fought from 2 to 3 June 1653 during the First Anglo-Dutch War. It took place near the Gabbard shoal off the coast of Suffolk, England, between fleets of the Commonwealth of England and the Dutch Repu ...

on 2–3 June 1653 as a member of Blue Squadron, Van Division. 31 July 1653 saw her participate in the

Battle of Scheveningen The Battle of Scheveningen was the final naval battle of the First Anglo-Dutch War. It took place on July 31st 1653 between the fleets of the Commonwealth of England and the Dutch Republic. The Dutch fleet suffered heavy losses. Background A ...

. She was in the River Thames during the winter of 1653/54. With the end of the

First Anglo-Dutch War The First Anglo-Dutch War, or First Dutch War, was a naval conflict between the Commonwealth of England and the Dutch Republic. Largely caused by disputes over trade, it began with English attacks on Dutch merchant shipping, but expanded to vast ...

in 1654, she would join Robert Blake's Fleet in the Mediterranean in June 1655. In 1656 her new commander was Captain Richard Haddock, who joined Robert Blake's Fleet in the Mediterranean. In July 1656 she returned to Home Waters for service in the English Channel until 1660.

Service after the Restoration May 1660

In 1664 she may have been under command of Captain Valentine Pyend. On 24 February 1665 she was under the command of Captain John Lloyd. She participated in the

Battle of Lowestoft The Battle of Lowestoft took place on during the Second Anglo-Dutch War. A fleet of more than a hundred ships of the Dutch Republic, United Provinces commanded by Lieutenant-Admiral Jacob van Wassenaer Obdam, Jacob van Wassenaer, Lord Obdam, at ...

as a member of Blue Squadron, Van Division on 3 June 1665. Captain Daniel Henning took command on 16 November 1665. She partook in the

Four Days' Battle The Four Days' Battle was a naval engagement fought from 11 to 14 June 1666 (1–4 June O.S.) during the Second Anglo-Dutch War. It began off the Flemish coast and ended near the English coast, and remains one of the longest naval battles in ...

arriving on 4 June with Prince Rupert's Squadron, Van Division. She suffered one killed and six wounded during the battle. Later in the month of June Captain Thomas Roome Coyle took command. As a member of White Squadron, Centre Division she partook in the St James Day Fight (Orfordness) on 25 July 1666. She was part of Robert Holmes Squadron during the attack on the River

Vlie The Vlie or Vliestroom () is the seaway between the Dutch islands of Vlieland, to its southwest, and Terschelling, to its northeast. The Vlie was the estuary of the river IJssel in medieval times. Today it's still possible to reach the port of ...

, also known as '

Holmes's Bonfire Holmes's Bonfire was a Raid (military), raid on the Vlie estuary in the Netherlands, executed by the English Fleet during the Second Anglo-Dutch War on 19 and 20 August 1666 New Style (9 and 10 August Old Style). The attack, named after the comma ...

' on 9–10 August 1666. In 1667 the

Second Anglo-Dutch War The Second Anglo-Dutch War, began on 4 March 1665, and concluded with the signing of the Treaty of Breda (1667), Treaty of Breda on 31 July 1667. It was one in a series of Anglo-Dutch Wars, naval wars between Kingdom of England, England and the D ...

ended.

Wenceslas Hollar - Naval battle at Bugia

On 21 March 1668 she was under the command of Captain Richard May until 4 September 1668. On 6 March 1669 she was under command of Captain Arthur Herbert and sailed with Allin's Squadron to the Mediterranean. Spragge took over the squadron in 1671. She was in the Battle of Bugia on 8 May 1671. She was in action with three Algerines in May 1672. On 1 July 1672 she came under command of Captain Thomas Chamberlaine. During the

Third Anglo-Dutch War The Third Anglo-Dutch War, began on 27 March 1672, and concluded on 19 February 1674. A naval conflict between the Dutch Republic and England, in alliance with France, it is considered a related conflict of the wider 1672 to 1678 Franco-Dutch W ...

, she was in action with two Dutch vessels off Bury Head. Captain David Trtter took command on 13 September 1672 for service in Home Waters, possibly in Ireland. Captain Sir Roger Strickland took command to sail with Narborough's in the Mediterranean. On 6 March 1682 Captain Thomas Hamilton took command for service in the Mediterranean. On 11 July 1686 she became the Flagship of the Mediterranean Squadron under the command of Captain Henry Killigrew. She also went to Sale, Morocco at this time. She returned to Home Waters in 1689. She was ordered on 9 May 1689 to rebuild at Deptford.

Rebuild at Deptford 1689

She was rebuilt at Deptford under the guidance of Master Shipwright Fisher Harding. Her dimensions after rebuild were gundeck with for keel with a breadth of and a depth of hold of . Her builder's measure calculated tonnage was tons. Her gun armament after a 1696 survey was 46 guns and consisted of eighteen 12-pounder guns,The 12-pounder was originally a captured Dutch gun copied for British service used in place of culverins twenty 8-pounder gunsThe 8=pounder was a captured Dutch gun used in place of sakers or 6=pounders due to shortages of guns eight sakers.The sacar or saker was a gun of 1,400 pounds with a 3.5-inch bore firing a 5.5-pound shot with a 5.5-pound powder charge under the 1703 Establishment her armament was as 48/42 guns consisting of twenty/eighteen 12-pounder guns of 8.5 feet in length, twenty/eighteen 6-pounder guns of 8 feet in length,The 6-pounder was a captured Dutch gun adopted for British use six/four 6-pounder guns of 7 feet in length on the quarterdeck and two 6-pounder guns of 8 feet in length on the foc's'le (Fc). Her manning was 220 personnel.

Service after Rebuild 1689

She was commissioned in 1691 under the command of Captain William Wright for service in Ireland. She moved to the English Channel in 1692. Also in 1692 Captain William Vickars took command and sailed with Wheeler;s squadron to the West Indies in early 1693. In conjunction with Russel's Fleet she helped take the French ship '' Diligente'' of Duguay-Trouin's squadron on 12 May 1694. In 1695 she was under Captain Edward Rigby sailing with Moody's Squadron to the Mediterranean escorting a convoy to Turkey. 1697 saw her with the Dunkirk Squadron. In 1701 Captain Robert Holliman took command. She sailed with Fleet. During the

War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict fought between 1701 and 1714. The immediate cause was the death of the childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700, which led to a struggle for control of the Spanish E ...

, she was in action against a French 70-gun ship on 13 October 1702 during which she suffered 26 personnel killed including Captain Holliman. Lieutenant Charles Fotherby took temporary command. In 1703 Captain Lord Henry Maynard took command for the English Channel and North Sea. She was dismantled for a rebuild at Rotherhithe in 1706/07.

Rebuild to 1706 Establishment at Rotherhithe

She was rebuilt at Cuckold's Point, Rotherhithe under the guidance of Master Shipwright James Taylor. Her dimensions after rebuild were gundeck with for keel with a breadth of and a depth of hold of . Her builder's measure calculated tonnage was tons. Her gun armament under the 1703 Establishment her armament was as 48/42 guns consisting of twenty-two/twenty 18-pounders guns of 8.5 feet in length on the lower deck (LD), twenty 6-pounder guns of 8 feet in length on the upper deck (UD), four 6-pounder guns of 7 feet in length on the quarterdeck (QD) and two 6-pounder guns of 8 feet in length on the foc's'le (Fc). Her manning was 280 (wartime) and 185 (peacetime) personnel.

Service after 1706 rebuild

She was commissioned in 1707 under the command of Captain George Martin and sailed with Baker's Squadron on the Dutch coast. She went to Newfoundland in 1709. On 8 May 1710 she sailed to Nova Scotia. She was at the capture of Annapolis (Port Royal) on 2 October 1710. She returned to Home Waters at the end of 1710. She underwent a refit in 1711.

Loss

''Dragon'' was wrecked on 15 March 1712 on '' Les Casquets'', rocks to the west of

Alderney Alderney ( ; ; ) is the northernmost of the inhabited Channel Islands. It is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, a British Crown Dependencies, Crown dependency. It is long and wide. The island's area is , making it the third-largest isla ...

.Winfield 3

Notes

Citations

References

* British Warships in the Age of Sail (1603 – 1714), by Rif Winfield, published by Seaforth Publishing, England © Rif Winfield 2009, EPUB , Chapter 4 Fourth Rates - 'Small Ships' # Vessels acquired from 25 March 1603, 1647 Programme Group, Dragon # Vessels acquired from 18 December 1688, Fourth Rates of 50 guns, 120 Ft Group (1688-90 Rebuildings), Dragon # Vessels acquired from 18 December 1688, Fourth Rates of 50 guns, 1706 Establishment Group, Dragon * 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, © the estate of J.J. Colledge, Ben Warlow and Steve Bush 2020, EPUB , Section D (Dragon) * The Arming and Fitting of English Ships of War 1600 – 1815, by Brian Lavery, published by US Naval Institute Press © Brian Lavery 1989, , Part V Guns, Type of Guns ''This article includes data donated from the

National Maritime Museum The National Maritime Museum (NMM) is a maritime museum in Greenwich, London. It is part of Royal Museums Greenwich, a network of museums in the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site. Like other publicly funded national museums in the Unit ...

Warship Histories project'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Dragon (1647) Ships of the line of the Royal Navy Ships built in Chatham Ships built in Rotherhithe Ships built in Deptford Shipwrecks in the English Channel 1640s ships