The ''Phoenix'' was a

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

Kingdom of England The Kingdom of England was a sovereign state on the island of Great Britain from the late 9th century, when it was unified from various Heptarchy, Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, until 1 May 1707, when it united with Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland to f ...

. Her initial commission was in the Parliamentary Naval Force during the English Civil War. During the

First 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 ...

she was taken by the Dutch at the

Battle of Elba The naval Battle of Elba (or Battle of Monte Cristo) was a naval battle which took place on 28 August 1652 during the First Anglo-Dutch War, between a Dutch squadron under Johan van Galen and an English squadron under Captain Richard Badiley ...

(or Montecristo), but was recaptured during the

Battle of Leghorn The naval Battle of Leghorn took place on 4 March 1653 (14 March Gregorian calendar), during the First Anglo-Dutch War, near Leghorn (Livorno), Italy. It was a victory of a Dutch Republic, Dutch squadron under Commodore (rank), Commodore Johan ...

by a boat attack. After being recommissioned she participated 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 went to the Mediterranean in 1658 and remained there until wrecked in December 1664. ''Phoenix'' was the third vessel in the English Navy to bear that name, since it was first used for a 20-gun

galleass A galleass was a warship that combined the sails and armament of a galleon or carrack with the maneuverability of the oared galley. While never quite matching up to the full expectations for its design, the galleass nevertheless remained in us ...

, purchased in 1545, rebuilt in 1558 and sold in 1573, and then re-used for another 20-gun ship built in 1613 which lasted until 1624.Jim Colledge, ''Ships of the Royal Navy''.

Construction and specifications

The ''Phoenix'' was one of four new frigates ordered by Parliament and built under the 1647 Programme (the others were the ''Dragon'', ''Elizabeth'' and ''Tiger''). She was built at Woolwich Dockyard on the River Thames under the guidance of Master Shipwright Peter Pett II, and was launched in 1647. Her dimensions were keel length with a breadth of and a depth in hold of . Her builder's measurement tonnage was 414 bm tons. Initially she was equipped with 38 guns in wartime and 32 guns in peacetime. In 1664 she carried 40 guns in wartime and 32 in peacetime. 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 under the command of Captain Owen Cox. She was with Warwick's Fleet in the Downs in September 1648. In 1649 she was under Captain Thomas Harrison for service in the Irish Sea.In 1650 she was under Captain William Brandley sailing with Popham's squadron off the Tagus she later joined Robert Blake's Squadron. Later in 1650 she was under Captain John Wadsworth as Flagship for Robert Blake in the Irish Sea followed by the Isle of Scilly in June 1651 followed by the Channel Islands in October. She sailed with Badiley's Squadron to the Mediterranean. ''Phoenix'' was captured by the 40-gun Dutch ship ''Eendracht'' off Elba in the Mediterranean during the

, on 28 August 1652 (O.S.)/6 September 1652 (N.S.), an action between the English squadron commanded by Richard Badiley and a Dutch squadron under

Jan van Galen Johan "Jan" van Galen (1604 – 23 March 1653) was a Commodore of the Republic of the Seven United Provinces of the Netherlands. he participated in the First Anglo-Dutch War. Biography Johan van Galen was born in Essen. He fought in the ...

. She was retaken on 26 November 1652 by an attack by English small boats at Leghorn. She recommissioned under Captain Owen Cox again. She was in the

on 4 March 1653. She followed this by returning to Home Waters and then took part in the

on 31 July 1653. Later in 1653 Captain Nicholas Foster took command and spent the winter of 1653/54 in the Sound. During 1656 to 1658 she was under the command of Captain Thomas Whetstone with Blake's Fleet. She returned home between July and November 1656. In 1658/59 she was under Captain Thomas Bunn sailing with Stoake's squadron in the Mediterranean.

Service after the Restoration May 1660

In 1660 Captain Edward Nixon was in command. On 30 April 1663 she was under Captain Richard Utbar. On 16 September 1664 she was under the command of John Chicheley with Allin's squadron in the Mediterranean.

Loss

She was wrecked on 3 December 1664 (along with the similar ''Nonsuch'') during a storm in Gibraltar Bay while attempting to pass through the Straits of Gibraltar.

Citations

References

* Rif Winfield (2009), ''British Warships in the Age of Sail 1603 – 1714'', published by Seaforth Publishing, England, EPUB , Chapter 4 Fourth Rates - 'Small Ships', Vessels acquired from 25 March 1603, 1647 Programme Group, Phoenix * Jim 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 P (Phoenix) {{DEFAULTSORT:Phoenix (1647) Ships of the line of the Royal Navy Ships built in Woolwich Shipwrecks in the Mediterranean Sea 1640s ships Maritime incidents in 1664 Captured ships Ships of the English navy