HMS Newport (1867)
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The HMS ''Newport'' was launched in Wales in 1867. Having become the first ship to pass through the
Suez Canal The Suez Canal (; , ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, Indo-Mediterranean, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia (and by extension, the Sinai Peninsula from the rest ...
, she was sold in 1881 and renamed ''Pandora II''. She was purchased again in about 1890 and renamed ''Blencathra'', taking part in expeditions to the north coast of Russia. She was bought in 1912 by
Georgy Brusilov Georgy Lvovich Brusilov (; May 19, 1884 – disappeared in 1914) was a Russian naval officer of the Imperial Russian Navy and an Arctic explorer. His father, Lev Brusilov, was also a naval officer. In 1912 Brusilov led a maritime expedition whic ...
for use in his ill-fated 1912 Arctic expedition to explore the
Northern Sea Route The Northern Sea Route (NSR) (, shortened to Севморпуть, ''Sevmorput'') is a shipping route about long. The Northern Sea Route (NSR) is the shortest shipping route between the western part of Eurasia and the Asia-Pacific region. Ad ...
, and was named ''Svyataya Anna'' (
Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...
: ''Святая Анна''), after
Saint Anne According to apocrypha, as well as Christianity, Christian and Islamic tradition, Saint Anne was the mother of Mary, mother of Jesus, Mary, the wife of Joachim and the maternal grandmother of Jesus. Mary's mother is not named in the Bible's Gosp ...
. The ship became firmly trapped in ice; only two members of the expedition,
Valerian Albanov Valerian Ivanovich Albanov (; 26 May 1881 – 1919) was a Russian navigator, best known for being one of two survivors of the Brusilov expedition of 1912, which killed 22. Early life Albanov was born in 1881 in Voronezh and was raised b ...
and
Alexander Konrad Alexander Eduardovich Konrad (; 1890 – 1940) was a Russian sailor. Along with Valerian Albanov, he was one of two survivors, and the only surviving sailor, of the Brusilov expedition in which 22 people died. Biography There are no data abou ...
, survived. The ship has never been found.


Design

The ''Philomel''-class gunvessels were an enlargement of the earlier of 1856. The first six of the class were ordered by the UK Admiralty from the naval dockyards between April 1857 and April 1859. Another twelve were ordered on 14 June 1859 to be constructed by contract in private yards, receiving their names on 24 September the same year; these were then fitted out at naval dockyards. The last eight of the class, of which ''Newport'' was the first, were ordered on 5 March 1860 for construction in naval dockyards, although six of them were later cancelled.Winfield, p.222


Construction

''Newport'' was
laid down Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship. Keel laying is one ...
at
Pembroke Dockyard Pembroke Dockyard, originally called Pater Yard, is a former Royal Navy Dockyard in Pembroke Dock, Pembrokeshire, Wales. History It was founded in 1814, although not formally authorized until the George IV of the United Kingdom, Prince Regent s ...
in
Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
on 17 September 1860. She and ''Alban'' were suspended in 1862, and six of the uncompleted vessels, including ''Alban'' were cancelled in 1863. ''Newport'' was finally launched on 20 July 1867. She was fitted with a
Laird Brothers Cammell Laird is a British shipbuilding company. It was formed from the merger of Laird Brothers of Birkenhead and Johnson Cammell & Co of Sheffield at the turn of the twentieth century. The company also built railway rolling stock until 1929, ...
two-cylinder horizontal single-expansion steam engine driving a single screw and developing . She was armed with a
68-pounder 95 cwt The 68-pounder cannon was an artillery piece designed and used by the British Armed Forces in the mid-19th century. The cannon was a smoothbore muzzle-loading gun manufactured in several weights firing projectiles of . Colonel William Dundas de ...
muzzle-loading smooth-bore gun, two 24-pounder howitzers and two 20-pounder breech-loading guns. All ships of the class later had the 68-pounder replaced by a 7-inch/110-pounder breech-loading gun. The class were fitted with a
barque A barque, barc, or bark is a type of sailing ship, sailing vessel with three or more mast (sailing), masts of which the fore mast, mainmast, and any additional masts are Square rig, rigged square, and only the aftmost mast (mizzen in three-maste ...
-rigged sail plan.


Survey ship

She was commissioned in April 1868 under Commander
George Strong Nares Vice-Admiral Sir George Strong Nares (24 April 1831 – 15 January 1915) was a Royal Navy officer and Arctic explorer. He commanded the ''Challenger'' Expedition, and the British Arctic Expedition. He was highly thought of as a leader an ...
, and employed in survey work in the Mediterranean. In 1869 during the opening ceremony and first passage of ships through the
Suez Canal The Suez Canal (; , ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, Indo-Mediterranean, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia (and by extension, the Sinai Peninsula from the rest ...
, although the French Imperial yacht ''L'Aigle'' was officially the first vessel to pass through the canal, ''Newport'', commanded by Nares, actually passed through it first. On the night before the canal was due to open, Nares navigated his vessel, in total darkness and without lights, through the mass of waiting ships until it was in front of ''L'Aigle''. When dawn broke, the French were horrified to find that 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 ...
was now first in line and that it would be impossible to pass them. Captain Nares received both an official reprimand and an unofficial vote of thanks from the Admiralty for his actions in promoting British interests and for demonstrating superb seamanship.


''Pandora II''

She was sold to Sir
Allen Young Sir Allen William Young, (12 December 1827 – 20 November 1915) was an English master mariner and explorer, best remembered for his role in Arctic exploration including the search for Sir John Franklin. Re the dinner of May 24,1877 attended ...
in May 1881. He had previously owned another former ''Philomel''-class gun vessel, , and he named his new ship ''Pandora II'' after her.


''Blencathra''

The ship was sold in about 1890 to the wealthy F. W. Leyborne-Popham, who intended to use her as a yacht, and had an interest in Arctic waters. The vessel was specially adapted at the Richmond Dry Dock in
Appledore Appledore may refer to: Places England * Appledore, Kent ** Appledore (Kent) railway station * Appledore, Mid Devon, near Tiverton * Appledore, Torridge, North Devon, near Bideford United States * Appledore Island, off the coast of Maine In fic ...
, where an ice-ram was fitted and her quarter-deck extended. Leybourne-Popham appointed
Joseph Wiggins Joseph Wiggins Royal Geographical Society, FRGS (3 September 1832 – 13 September 1905) was an English people, English mariner, born at Norwich into a family of mailcoach operators. He rounded out a successful career as a sea captain by utili ...
as captain of ''Blencathra'' for an 1893 voyage to the
Kara Sea The Kara Sea is a marginal sea, separated from the Barents Sea to the west by the Kara Strait and Novaya Zemlya, and from the Laptev Sea to the east by the Severnaya Zemlya archipelago. Ultimately the Kara, Barents and Laptev Seas are all ...
and into the
Yenisey River The Yenisey or Yenisei ( ; , ) is the fifth-longest river system in the world, and the largest to drain into the Arctic Ocean. Rising in Mungaragiyn-gol in Mongolia, it follows a northerly course through Lake Baikal and the Krasnoyarsk Dam b ...
, thus taking the ship to the furthest reaches of
Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...
. To combine business with pleasure, he formed a syndicate to exploit the commercial opportunities offered by the carriage of cargo to the far north. As plans were being finalised, Wiggins received an urgent request from the Russians to carry rails for the
Trans-Siberian Railway The Trans-Siberian Railway, historically known as the Great Siberian Route and often shortened to Transsib, is a large railway system that connects European Russia to the Russian Far East. Spanning a length of over , it is the longest railway ...
up the Yenisey to
Krasnoyarsk Krasnoyarsk is the largest types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and administrative center of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. It is situated along the Yenisey, Yenisey River, and is the second-largest city in Siberia after Novosibirsk, with a p ...
. A 2,500-ton steamer, ''Orestes'', was chartered and four Russian river vessels were provided for the final stages of transport in the Yenisey. With the river vessels embarked in ''Orestes'', and ''Blencathra'' in company, the group left
Vardø Vardo or Vardø may refer to: Places * Vardø Municipality, a municipality in Finnmark county, Norway *Vardø (town) (Norwegian language, Norwegian; ), , or is a List of towns and cities in Norway, town and the administrative centre of Vard ...
on 22 August 1893, reaching the mouth of the Yenisey on 3 September. ''Blencathra'' and ''Orestes'' returned to England via
Arkhangelsk Arkhangelsk (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia. It lies on both banks of the Northern Dvina near its mouth into the White Sea. The city spreads for over along the ...
, while Wiggins stayed with the Russian river vessels, reaching
Yeniseysk Yeniseysk ( rus, Енисейск, p=jɪnʲɪˈsʲejsk) is a town in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, located on the Yenisei River. Population: 20,000 (1970). History Yeniseysk was founded in 1619 as a stockaded town—the first town on the Yenisei ...
on 23 October. Among the party was Miss Helen Peel, granddaughter of Sir
Robert Peel Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet (5 February 1788 – 2 July 1850), was a British Conservative statesman who twice was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1834–1835, 1841–1846), and simultaneously was Chancellor of the Exchequer (1834–183 ...
, who wrote a book about her experiences titled ''Polar Gleams''. Leyborne-Popham sold his yacht to Major Andrew Coats, and in company with
William Speirs Bruce William Speirs Bruce (1 August 1867 – 28 October 1921) was a British Natural history, naturalist, polar region, polar scientist and Oceanography, oceanographer who organised and led the Scottish National Antarctic Expedition (SNAE, 1902–0 ...
, Coats made a long hunting voyage to the Arctic waters around Novaya Zemlya and Spitsbergen. Bruce joined ''Blencathra'' at
Tromsø Tromsø is a List of towns and cities in Norway, city in Tromsø Municipality in Troms county, Norway. The city is the administrative centre of the municipality as well as the administrative centre of Troms county. The city is located on the is ...
, Norway in May 1898, and the cruise explored the
Barents Sea The Barents Sea ( , also ; , ; ) is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, located off the northern coasts of Norway and Russia and divided between Norwegian and Russian territorial waters.World Wildlife Fund, 2008. It was known earlier among Russi ...
, the dual islands of
Novaya Zemlya Novaya Zemlya (, also , ; , ; ), also spelled , is an archipelago in northern Russia. It is situated in the Arctic Ocean, in the extreme northeast of Europe, with Cape Flissingsky, on the northern island, considered the extreme points of Europe ...
and
Kolguyev Kolguyev Island () is an island in Nenets Autonomous Okrug of Russia, located in the south-eastern Barents Sea (west of the Pechora Sea) to the north-east of the Kanin Peninsula. Etymology There are different versions about the origin of th ...
, before a retreat to Vardø to re-provision for the voyage to
Spitsbergen Spitsbergen (; formerly known as West Spitsbergen; Norwegian language, Norwegian: ''Vest Spitsbergen'' or ''Vestspitsbergen'' , also sometimes spelled Spitzbergen) is the largest and the only permanently populated island of the Svalbard archipel ...
. In a letter Bruce reported, "This is a pure yachting cruise and life is luxurious". Nevertheless, the scientific purpose of the voyage was not forgotten; measurement of temperature and salinity and meteorological observations went on day and night.Speak, Peter: ''William Speirs Bruce'' NMS Publishing, Edinburgh 2003


1912 Arctic expedition

The ship was lost in 1914 during the disastrous Arctic expedition captained by
Georgy Brusilov Georgy Lvovich Brusilov (; May 19, 1884 – disappeared in 1914) was a Russian naval officer of the Imperial Russian Navy and an Arctic explorer. His father, Lev Brusilov, was also a naval officer. In 1912 Brusilov led a maritime expedition whic ...
, when it was hopelessly locked in the ice. ''Svyataya Anna'' was last seen by the party led by the second-in-command
Valerian Albanov Valerian Ivanovich Albanov (; 26 May 1881 – 1919) was a Russian navigator, best known for being one of two survivors of the Brusilov expedition of 1912, which killed 22. Early life Albanov was born in 1881 in Voronezh and was raised b ...
who abandoned the ship to try and reach safety. Only two members of the expedition survived, Albanov included. ''Svyataya Anna'', Brusilov and the rest of the crew were never seen again. A geological feature in the
Arctic Ocean The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five oceanic divisions. It spans an area of approximately and is the coldest of the world's oceans. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) recognizes it as an ocean, ...
basin, the St. Anna or ''Svyataya Anna'' Trough, located east of
Franz Josef Land Franz Josef Land () is a Russian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. It is inhabited only by military personnel. It constitutes the northernmost part of Arkhangelsk Oblast and consists of 192 islands, which cover an area of , stretching from east ...
, with a depth of 620 m, has been named in memory of this ill-fated ship.


References

* Albanov, Valerian; Tr. Dubosson, Linda. ''In the Land of White Death : An Epic Story of Survival in the Siberian Arctic'', Modern Library, 2000,
Remote Sensing of Sea Ice in the Northern Sea Route, Springer Berlin Heidelberg, 2007
* Barr, William
''Otto Sverdrup to the rescue of the Russian Imperial Navy''
{{Coord unknown Polar exploration by Russia and the Soviet Union Missing ships Ships of Russia Kara Sea Philomel-class gunvessels 1867 ships Ships built in Pembroke Dock