HMS Virago (1895)

HMS Virago was a B-class torpedo boat destroyer of the British Royal Navy. She was completed by Laird Brothers, Birkenhead, in 1897. One of four Quail-class destroyers she served during the Great War and was sold off after hostilities ended.[1]

For other ships with the same name, see HMS Virago.

HMS Virago firing in honour of the King, 1901
History
United Kingdom
Name: HMS Virago
Builder: Laird Brothers, Birkenhead
Laid down: 13 June 1895
Launched: 19 November 1895
Completed: June 1897
Fate: Sold for disposal, 10 October 1919
General characteristics
Class and type: Quail-class destroyer
Displacement: 395 long tons (401 t)
Length: 215 ft (66 m)
Propulsion:
Speed: 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph)
Complement: 63
Armament:

Construction and design

HMS Virago was laid down as Yard number 609 at Laird's shipyard at Birkenhead on 13 June 1895, the fourth "Thirty-Knotter" destroyer ordered from Lairds for the Royal Navy as part of the 1894–95 shipbuilding programme.[2] The ship was launched on 19 November 1895,[2] undergoing sea trials on 27 November 1896, where she reached a speed of 30.365 knots (34.943 mph; 56.236 km/h) over the measured mile and an average speed of 30.049 knots (34.580 mph; 55.651 km/h) over a three-hour run.[3] Virago was completed in June 1897.[2]

Armament was a QF 12 pounder 12 cwt (3 in (76 mm) calibre), with a secondary armament of five 6-pounder guns, and two 18-inch (450 mm) torpedo tubes.[4][5] As with other early Royal Navy destroyers, the detailed design was left to the builder, with the Admiralty laying down only broad requirements.[6][7]

Laird's four ships were each powered by two four-cylinder triple expansion steam engines, fed by four Normand boilers, rated at 6,300 ihp (4,700 kW), and were fitted with four funnels. They had an overall length of 218 feet (66.45 m), a beam of 21 feet 6 inches (6.55 m) and a draught of 9 feet 6 inches (2.90 m). Displacement was 355 long tons (361 t) light and 415 long tons (422 t) full load,[8][9] while crew was 63.[10]

Service history

On 26 June 1897, the newly completed Virago took part in the naval review at Spithead to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria.[11] The Laird-built torpedo boat destroyers were considered well suited to overseas deployment, being good sea boats and having adequate stability for making long oceanic journeys to their stations,[12] and so Virago was posted, along with sister ship Sparrowhawk to the Pacific Station, based at Esquimalt in British Columbia, Canada.[13] In 1903, Virago was transferred to the China Station.[14]

On 30 August 1912 the Admiralty directed all destroyers were to be grouped into classes designated by letters based on contract speed and appearance. As a four-funneled 30-knotter destroyer, Virago was assigned to the B class.[15][16]

Virago was still listed as part of the China Squadron in December 1913,[17] but in January 1914, she was listed for sale at Hong Kong.[18] The outbreak of the First World War ended these plans, however, and Virago was re-commissioned at Hong Kong on 15 August 1914.[19] Virago was paid off in preparation for sale on 10 May 1919,[19] and was sold for scrap on 10 October that year.[14]

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References
  1. "HMS Virago". pbenyon.plus.com. Archived from the original on 19 March 2012. Retrieved 12 July 2010.
  2. Lyon 2001, p. 61
  3. "Eight Torpedo Boat Destroyers, Built by Laird Brothers, Birkenhead. — Trials between 30th September and the 18th December 1896" (PDF). The Engineer. Vol. 83. 1 January 1897. p. 16..
  4. Friedman 2009, pp. 46–47
  5. Lyon 2001, pp. 21–22
  6. Chesneau & Kolesnik 1979, p. 87
  7. Manning 1961, p. 39
  8. Lyon 2001, pp. 61–62
  9. Chesneau & Kolesnik 1979, p. 94
  10. Manning 1961, p. 40
  11. Brassey 1898, pp. 12–15
  12. Lyon 2001, p. 116
  13. Lyon 2001, pp. 62, 100
  14. Lyon 2001, p. 62
  15. Gardiner & Gray 1985, p. 18
  16. Manning 1961, pp. 17–18
  17. "Fleets and Squadrons in Commission at Home and Abroad: Eastern Fleet: China Squadron". The Monthly Naval List. December 1913. p. 270a. Retrieved 29 March 2020 – via National Library of Scotland.
  18. "List of Vessels Available for Subsidiary Services, Hulks and Vessels for Sale: Virago. Torpedo Boat Destroyer". The Navy List. January 1914. p. 416-7. Retrieved 29 March 2020 – via National Library of Scotland.
  19. "HMS Virago – August 1914 to July 1915, August 1917 to May 1919, China Station". Royal Navy Log Books of the World War 1 Era. naval-history.net. 6 November 2014. Retrieved 29 March 2020.

Bibliography
  • Brassey, T. A., ed. (1898). The Naval Annual 1898. Portsmouth, UK: J. Griffin and Co.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Chesneau, Roger & Kolesnik, Eugene M., eds. (1979). Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-133-5.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8.
  • Dittmar, F.J.; Colledge, J.J. (1972). British Warships 1914–1919. Shepperton, UK: Ian Allan. ISBN 0-7110-0380-7.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Friedman, Norman (2009). British Destroyers: From Earliest Days to the Second World War. Barnsley, UK: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-049-9.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Gardiner, Robert & Gray, Randal, eds. (1985). Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-245-5.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Lyon, David (2001) [1996]. The First Destroyers. London: Caxton Editions. ISBN 1-84067-364-8.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Manning, T. D. (1961). The British Destroyer. Putnam & Co. OCLC 6470051.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • March, Edgar J. (1966). British Destroyers: A History of Development, 1892–1953; Drawn by Admiralty Permission From Official Records & Returns, Ships' Covers & Building Plans. London: Seeley Service. OCLC 164893555.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)


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