HMS Ranelagh was a three-decker 80-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched at Deptford Dockyard on 25 June 1697.[1] She took part in a number of actions during the War of the Spanish Succession, including the Battle of Vigo in 1702 and the Battle of Vélez-Málaga in 1704.

History
Royal Navy EnsignGreat Britain
NameHMS Ranelagh
Ordered30 May 1695
BuilderFisher Harding, Deptford Dockyard
Launched25 June 1697
RenamedHMS Princess Caroline, 1728
FateBroken up, 1764
Notes
General characteristics as built[1]
Class and type80-gun third rate ship of the line
Tons burthen1199 bm
Length158 ft 8 in (48.4 m) (gundeck)
Beam41 ft 8.75 in (12.7 m)
Depth of hold17 ft 4 in (5.3 m)
PropulsionSails
Sail planFull-rigged ship
Complement476
Armament80 guns of various weights of shot
General characteristics after 1731 rebuild[2]
Class and type1719 Establishment 80-gun third rate ship of the line
Tons burthen1353 bm
Length158 ft (48.2 m) (gundeck)
Beam44 ft 6 in (13.6 m)
Depth of hold18 ft 2 in (5.5 m)
PropulsionSails
Sail planFull-rigged ship
Armament
  • 80 guns:
  • Gundeck: 26 × 32 pdrs
  • Middle gundeck: 26 × 12 pdrs
  • Upper gundeck: 24 × 6 pdrs
  • Quarterdeck: 4 × 6 pdrs

On 20 August 1723 she was ordered to be taken to pieces and rebuilt according to the 1719 Establishment at Woolwich. She was renamed HMS Princess Caroline in 1728 (while rebuilding).[1] She was relaunched on 15 March 1731.[2]

Princess Caroline was Admiral Edward Vernon's flagship at the Battle of Cartagena de Indias during his second Spanish Caribbean campaign, in the War of Jenkins' Ear. George Washington's half-brother, Lawrence Washington, served on Princess Caroline as a captain of the Marines in 1741,[3] and named his estate Mount Vernon in honour of his commander.[4]

The Princess Caroline continued in service until 1764, when she was broken up.[2]

Notes

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  1. ^ a b c Lavery, Ships of the Line vol.1, p163.
  2. ^ a b c Lavery, Ships of the Line vol.1, p169.
  3. ^ Captain Lawrence Washington letter dated 30 May 1741 from Kingston, Jamaica, to his father, Augustine Washington, in Fredericksburg, Virginia. MVLA archives, PS-835
  4. ^ Ranft, Brian, editor. The Vernon Papers. Naval Records Society, vol. 99. London: 1958

References

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  • 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.