''Bradford'' was a

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 ...

warship of the

Commonwealth of England The Commonwealth of England was the political structure during the period from 1649 to 1660 when Kingdom of England, England and Wales, later along with Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland and Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland, were governed as a republi ...

's naval forces, one of two such ships built under the 1656 Programme (the other was ). The two ships were authorised to be built on 8 April 1656 to be built in the state dockyards at Portsmouth and Deptford, but on 10 July the Council of State directed that the two should be built in the Forest of Dean, "to make the experiment of building frigates in the Forest" (this is probably the reason for the ship's name). This was done with the first ship, but the second was later awarded to Portsmouth Dockyard on 25 September and subsequently changed to Chatham Dockyard on 29 January 1657, where she was built by Master Shipwright Captain John Taylor and was launched in March 1658. She was named ''Bradford'' to commemorate the support given by that town to the Parliamentary cause during the Civil War. Her length on the keel was recorded as for tonnage calculation. The breadth was with a depth in hold of . The tonnage was thus calculated at 294 bm tons. She was originally armed with 24 guns, comprising 18

demi-culverin The demi-culverin was a medium cannon similar to but slightly larger than a saker and smaller than a regular culverin developed in the late 16th century. Barrels of demi-culverins were typically about long, had a calibre of and could weigh up to ...

s on the single gundeck and 6 sakers on the quarterdeck. At the Restoration in 1660 she was taken into 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 ...

and renamed ''Success''. By 1665 she actually carried 30 guns, comprising 10

culverin A culverin was initially an ancestor of the hand-held arquebus, but the term was later used to describe a type of medieval and Renaissance cannon. The word is derived from the antiquated "culuering" and the French (from " grass snake", follo ...

s and 10 demi-culverins on the gundeck, and 10 sakers on the quarterdeck. In 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 ...

she took part 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 ...

in June 1665. In 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 participated in the

Battle of Solebay The Battle of Solebay took place on 6 June 1672 New Style, during the Third Anglo-Dutch War, near Southwold, Suffolk, in eastern England. A Dutch States Navy, Dutch fleet under Michiel de Ruyter attacked a combined Kingdom of England, Anglo-King ...

on 28 May 1672 and the

Battle of Texel The naval Battle of Texel or Battle of Kijkduin took place off the western coast of the island of Texel on 21 August 1673 (11 August O.S.) between the Dutch and the combined English and French fleets. It was the last major battle of the T ...

on 11 August 1673. On 2 December 1679 the ''Success'' was hunting pirates off the south coast of

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

under Lieutenant Thomas Johnson, when she ran onto the flukes of her own anchor while attempting to moor, and sank.David Hepper, ''British Warship Losses in the Age of Sail 1649-1860'', Seaforth Publishing, England, 2023, .

Notes

Citations

References

* Rif Winfield (2009), ''British Warships in the Age of Sail 1603 – 1714'', by Rif Winfield, published by Seaforth Publishing, England © 2009, , EPUB , Chapter 5, The Fifth Rates * Jim Colledge, ''Ships of the Royal Navy'', by James J. Colledge, revised and updated by Lt Cdr Ben Warlow and Steve Bush, published by Seaforth Publishing, Barnsley, Great Britain, © 2020, EPUB . {{DEFAULTSORT:Bradford (1658) Frigates of the Royal Navy Ships of the Royal Navy 1650s ships Ships of the English navy