HMS Kent (1652)
| History | |
|---|---|
 England | |
| Name | Kentish |
| Ordered | 1 April 1652 |
| Builder | Henry Johnson, Deptford |
| Launched | November 1652 |
| Renamed | HMS Kent, 1660 |
| Fate | Wrecked, 15 October 1672 |
| General characteristics [1] | |
| Class and type | Fourth-rate frigate |
| Tons burthen | 601 tons |
| Length | 107 ft (32.6 m) (keel) |
| Beam | 32 ft 6 in (9.9 m) |
| Depth of hold | 13 ft 6 in (4.1 m) |
| Sail plan | Full-rigged ship |
| Complement | 180 in 1653 |
| Armament | 40 guns in 1652; 46 guns by 1666 |
HMS Kentish was a 40-gun fourth-rate frigate of the Commonwealth of England Navy, built by contract at Deptford (not in the Dockyard) and launched in November 1652.[1]
She was commissioned in early 1653 under Captain Jacob Reynolds and saw active service in the Battle of Portland on 18 February, and the Battle of the Gabbard from 2 June. Command was then passed to Captain Edward Witheridge, with Kentish returned to Chatham for the winter. In early 1654 she was assigned to the British squadron in the Mediterranean, where she remained until mid-1655.[2] Her most famous action was on 4 April 1655 when she attacked a squadron of Tunisian warships lying in Porto Farina, on the Barbary Coast. She defeated both the ships and the on-shore fort to win her third battle honour.
After the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660, her name was changed to HMS Kent. She served in both the First and Second Dutch Wars with distinction and was involved in the Battle of Lowestoft, which remains the most crushing naval defeat in Dutch history, and the St. James's Day Battle, a two-day-long fight which ended in a closer English victory. She was wrecked in October 1672 off Cromer.[1]
Notes
References
- 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.
- Lavery, Brian (2003) The Ship of the Line - Volume 1: The development of the battlefleet 1650-1850. Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-252-8.
- Winfield, Rif (2009) British Warships in the Age of Sail 1603-1714: Design, Construction, Careers & Fates. Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-040-6.