HMS ''Wolverine'' (also HMS ''Wolverene'') was a ''Jason''-class three-masted wooden

screw A screw is an externally helical threaded fastener capable of being tightened or released by a twisting force (torque) to the screw head, head. The most common uses of screws are to hold objects together and there are many forms for a variety ...

corvette A corvette is a small warship. It is traditionally the smallest class of vessel considered to be a proper (or " rated") warship. The warship class above the corvette is that of the frigate, while the class below was historically that of the sloo ...

, 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 ...

. Later she became

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...

of the

Australia Station The Australia Station was the British, and later Australian, naval command responsible for the waters around the Australian continent. Australia Station was under the command of the Commander-in-Chief, Australia Station, whose rank varied over t ...

, eventually being presented to the

Colony of New South Wales The Colony of New South Wales was a colony of the British Empire from 1788 to 1901, when it became a State of the Commonwealth of Australia. At its greatest extent, the colony of New South Wales included the present-day Australian states of New ...

as a training ship for the

New South Wales Naval Brigade Before Federation in 1901 five of the six separate colonies maintained their own naval forces for defence. The colonial navies were supported by the ships of the Royal Navy's Australian Station which was established in 1859. The separate colonie ...

and New South Wales Naval Artillery Volunteers.

History

HMS ''Wolverine'' was built at the

Woolwich Dockyard Woolwich Dockyard (formally H.M. Dockyard, Woolwich, also known as The King's Yard, Woolwich) was an English Royal Navy Dockyard, naval dockyard along the river Thames at Woolwich - originally in north-west Kent, now in southeast London - whe ...

and launched at

Woolwich Woolwich () is a town in South London, southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was mainta ...

on 29 August 1863. She served in the

North America and West Indies Station The North America and West Indies Station was a formation or command of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy stationed in North American waters from 1745 to 1956, with main bases at the Imperial fortresses of Bermuda and Halifax, Nova Scotia. The ...

in the 1860s and early 1870s. In June and July 1872, ''Wolverine'' assisted in the refloating the

Sultan of Zanzibar The sultans of Zanzibar (; ) were the rulers of the Sultanate of Zanzibar, which was created on 19 October 1856 after the death of Said bin Sultan. He had ruled Oman and Zanzibar as the sultan of Oman since 1804. The sultans of Zanzibar were of ...

's warship , which had been blown ashore at

Zanzibar Zanzibar is a Tanzanian archipelago off the coast of East Africa. It is located in the Indian Ocean, and consists of many small Island, islands and two large ones: Unguja (the main island, referred to informally as Zanzibar) and Pemba Island. ...

in a

cyclone In meteorology, a cyclone () is a large air mass that rotates around a strong center of low atmospheric pressure, counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere as viewed from above (opposite to an ant ...

. She was commissioned as the

of the

on 7 September 1875, under the command of Commodore

Anthony Hoskins Admiral Sir Anthony Hiley Hoskins, (1 September 1828 – 21 June 1901) was a Royal Navy officer. As a junior officer, he took part in the Cape Frontier War of 1851 and then saw action at the Battle of Canton in December 1857 and the Battle of ...

. In 1880,

Francis Pringle Taylor Francis Pringle Taylor (1852 – 16 February 1913) was Naval officer, naval commandant of the Queensland colonial navy. Taylor was born in Edinburgh, the son of Rev. Robert Taylor, of Blairgowrie, Scotland, and joined the navy as a cadet in 18 ...

was appointed lieutenant in command, a position he held until 1884. In late May 1880, ''Wolverie'' ran aground in the

River Tamar The Tamar (; ) is a river in south west England that forms most of the border between Devon (to the east) and Cornwall (to the west). A large part of the valley of the Tamar is protected as the Tamar Valley National Landscape (an Area of Outsta ...

. She was refloated. During her service ''Wolverine'' was present for the Royal Navy's Detached Squadron world cruise in 1881 when the princes

Albert Albert may refer to: Companies * Albert Computers, Inc., a computer manufacturer in the 1980s * Albert Czech Republic, a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic * Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands * Albert Market, a street mar ...

and

George George may refer to: Names * George (given name) * George (surname) People * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Papagheorghe, also known as Jorge / GEØRGE * George, stage name of Gior ...

undertook naval training. The ''Wolverine'' left Sydney Harbour at the same time as the Detached Squadron on 10 August 1881, with Commodore

John Wilson John Wilson may refer to: Academics * John Wilson (historian) (1799–1870), author of ''Our Israelitish Origin'' (1840), a founding text of British Israelism * John Wilson (agriculturalist) (1812–1888), British agriculturalist * John Matthias ...

, Commander-in-Chief of the Australia Station, her destination being Brisbane and then New Guinea. The scientist

Nicholas Miklouho-Maclay Nicholai Nikolaevich Miklouho-Maclay (; 1846 – 1888) was a Russian explorer of Ukrainian origin. He worked as an ethnologist, anthropologist and biologist who became famous as one of the earliest scientists to settle among and study indigen ...

travelled to New Guinea on this voyage where, aided by the Rev. James Chalmers, he intervened with the Commodore to stop the destruction of the entire native village of Kalo in reprisal for the recent murder of some missionaries there. ''Wolverine's'' service came to an end and was replaced by HMS ''Nelson'' and paid off in 1882 at Sydney. She was presented to the

as a training ship for the

and New South Wales Naval Artillery Volunteers – challenging "enemy" ships at Sydney heads and "attacking" coastal and harbour fortifications. The ship was decommissioned in 1892, sold to a private firm (Peter Ellison, Sydney) for £2,200 in August 1893 and with the engines removed was used as a

hulk The Hulk is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in the debut issue of ''The Incredible Hulk (comic book), The Incredible Hulk ...

. After refit and conversion to 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 ...

, she commenced service as a merchant vessel. On a voyage from Sydney to Liverpool, England she sprung leaks and returned to Auckland for repairs, however upon docking she was found to be unfit. She was sold to G. Niccol, Auckland, for £1,000.

Fate

She was partly scrapped and her hull was burnt.Bastock, John (1988), ''Ships on the Australia Station'', Child & Associates Publishing Pty Ltd; Frenchs Forest, Australia. pp. 69–70.

Gallery

StateLibQld 1 16146 Gun deck of H.M.S. Wolverene, 1881.jpg, Gun deck of HMS ''Wolverine'', 1881 HMS Wolverine (1863) cutlass drill.jpg, A cutlass drill on HMS ''Wolverine'', 1882 Stanley Bay? Showing remains of a wreck, 59571-a.jpg, Wreck of the HMS ''Wolverine'' at Stanley Bay, Auckland, New Zealand photographed in 1902

Notes

References

External links