Seven ships 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 ...
have borne the name HMS ''Fowey'', either after the
Cornish town of
Fowey
Fowey ( ; , meaning ''beech trees'') is a port town and civil parishes in England, civil parish at the mouth of the River Fowey in south Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The town has been in existence since well before the Norman invasion, ...
, or the
River Fowey
The River Fowey ( ; ) is a river in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. Its source (river), source is at Fowey Well (originally , meaning ''spring of the river Fowey'') about north-west of Brown Willy on Bodmin Moor, not far from one of its trib ...
which runs through it, whilst another two were planned:
* was a 32-gun
fifth rate
In the rating system of the Royal Navy used to categorise sailing warships, a fifth rate was the second-smallest class of warships in a hierarchical system of six " ratings" based on size and firepower.
Rating
The rating system in the Royal N ...
launched in 1696 and captured by the French in 1704.
* was a 32-gun fifth rate launched in 1705 and captured by the French in 1709.
* was a 44-gun fifth rate launched in 1709. She was renamed HMS ''Queenborough'' in 1744 and was broken up in 1746.
* was a 44-gun fifth rate launched in 1744 and wrecked in 1748.
* was a 24-gun
sixth rate
In the rating system of the Royal Navy used to categorise sailing warships, a sixth-rate was the designation for small warships mounting between 20 and 28 carriage-mounted guns on a single deck, sometimes with smaller guns on the upper works an ...
launched in 1749 and sunk in 1781.
* was a 3-gun gunvessel, originally an ex-barge purchased in 1795 and sold on 29 December 1801 for £160.
[Great Britain: Commissioners of Naval Enquiry (1803) ''The First (second-twelfth) Report of the Commissioners of Naval Enquiry, Appointed by Act 43 Geo. III. (Observations, by Way of Supplement, to the First Report of the Commissioners of Naval Enquiry, on the Memorial of the Principal Officers and Commissioners of His Majesty's Navy, in Answer to that Report.)'', p.116.]
*HMS ''Fowey'' was a planned
minesweeper
A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping.
History
The earliest known usage of ...
. She was renamed in before being launched in 1918.
* was a
sloop launched in 1930 and sold in 1946.
*HMS ''Fowey'' was laid down as a . This hull was ultimately cancelled and reordered as the .
See also
*HM Hired armed cutter , which served the Royal Navy between 1799 and 1800.
Citations
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fowey, Hms
Royal Navy ship names