View source for HMS Colossus (1787)

{{short description|1787 ship of the line of the Royal Navy}}
{{other ships|HMS Colossus}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2017}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2017}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image='Colossus' (1787), 'Leviathan' (1790), 'Carnatic' (1783), 'Minotaur' (1793) RMG J3066.jpg
|Ship caption=HMS ''Colossus'' (1787)
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
|Ship country=[[Kingdom of Great Britain|Great Britain]]
|Ship flag=[[File:Naval Ensign of Great Britain (1707-1800).svg|62px]]
|Ship name=HMS ''Colossus''
|Ship ordered=13 December 1781
|Ship builder=Clevely, Gravesend
|Ship laid down=October 1782
|Ship launched=4 April 1787
|Ship acquired=
|Ship commissioned=
|Ship decommissioned=
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship renamed=
|Ship struck=
|Ship reinstated=
|Ship notes=*Participated in:
*[[Battle of Groix]]
*[[Battle of Cape St Vincent (1797)|Battle of Cape St Vincent]]
|Ship captured=
|Ship fate=Wrecked, 10 December 1798
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption=<ref name="Lavery, SoLv1 p180">Lavery, Ships of the Line vol. 1, p. 180.</ref>
|Ship class={{sclass2|Courageux|ship of the line|3}}
|Ship tons burthen=1703 [[Builder's Old Measurement|bm]]
|Ship length={{convert|172|ft|3|in|m|abbr=on}} (gundeck)
|Ship beam={{convert|47|ft|9|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship draught=
|Ship hold depth={{convert|20|ft|9+1/2|in|m|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship sail plan=[[Full-rigged ship]]
|Ship propulsion=Sails
|Ship complement=
|Ship armament=*74 guns:
*Gundeck: 28 × 32 pdrs
*Upper gundeck: 28 × 18 pdrs
*Quarterdeck: 14 × 9 pdrs
*Forecastle: 4 × 9 pdrs
|Ship notes=
}}
|}
'''HMS ''Colossus''''' was a 74-gun [[third-rate]] [[ship of the line]] of the [[Royal Navy]]. She was launched at [[Gravesend, Kent|Gravesend]] on 4 April 1787<ref name="Lavery, SoLv1 p180" /> and lost on 10 December 1798. During her years of service she participated in the [[Battle of Groix]], the [[Battle of Cape St Vincent (1797)|Battle of Cape St Vincent]], and the [[Battle of the Nile]]. While carrying wounded from the latter, she was wrecked at the [[Isles of Scilly]]. The wreck is a Protected Wreck managed by [[Historic England]].

==Early history==
On 6 June 1793, in the [[Bay of Biscay]], she captured [[Vanneau (1782 ship)|''Vanneau'']], a tiny vessel with an armament of just six guns, which the Royal Navy took into service.<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=13756|page=200|date=28 February 1795}}</ref> The same year, ''Colossus'' was part of a large fleet of 51 warships of numerous types, including a Spanish squadron, but commanded overall by Vice Admiral [[Samuel Hood, 1st Viscount Hood]].{{Citation needed|date=November 2008}}

==Siege of Toulon==
{{Unreferenced section|date=November 2008}}
The Fleet arrived off [[Toulon]] on 26 August 1793, with Lord Hood in the warship {{HMS|Victory}}. The objective was to keep the French Fleet in check. In Toulon's port were 58 French warships, and Lord Hood was determined not to allow such a potent and dangerous fleet to be taken over by French revolutionary forces. The [[Bourbons]], the Royalists of France, had managed to retain control of Toulon, a vital [[Mediterranean]] port. Upon the arrival of the British Fleet, the Bourbons duly surrendered the town and ships to Hood.

Sailors and [[Royal Marines]] began to land at Toulon from the ships of the [[Royal Navy]] Fleet, with the objective of taking possession of the key forts, which they succeeded in doing. The French Republican forces quickly mobilised, and began the siege of Toulon on 7 September. By 15 December, the British and Spanish withdrew, taking with them 15,000 Royalists, as well as destroying the dockyards and a large number of French warships. The Royal Navy lost 10 ships after the French captured the heights overlooking the harbour.

In 1795, ''Colossus'' was once again part of a large fleet action, the [[Battle of Groix]]. A fleet of 25 ships commanded by Admiral [[Alexander Hood, 1st Viscount Bridport|Lord Bridport]] on his flagship, {{HMS|Royal George|1788|2}}, fought a French fleet of 23 warships under the command of Rear-Admiral [[Louis Thomas Villaret de Joyeuse|Villaret-Joyeuse]]. The battle was immense and chaotic, and raged across a vast area, yet it came to an indecisive end, when Bridport ordered his Fleet to cease fighting at 7.15am, just four hours after the initial fighting had started. This decision allowed nine important French warships to escape. ''Colossus'' received damage, suffering three killed and thirty wounded. In total, British losses were 31 killed and 113 wounded. French losses are not known; it is estimated over 670 French sailors were killed or wounded, during skirmishes that resulted in the capture of three French warships.

Though ''Colossus'' was involved in much bitter fighting, her Scots captain, [[John Monkton]], ordered his kilt-wearing piper to proceed to the maintop mast staysail netting and play the pipes throughout the battle, no doubt to the bemusement of the French sailors who witnessed it.

==Battle of Cape St. Vincent==
In February 1797, ''Colossus'' (now commanded by Captain [[George Murray (Royal Navy officer)|George Murray]]) was involved in yet another large-scale clash of fleets in the [[Battle of Cape St. Vincent (1797)|Battle of Cape St. Vincent]]. She was part of a 21-ship strong fleet (including 7 smaller craft) under the command of Admiral [[John Jervis, 1st Earl of St Vincent|John Jervis]] in his flagship HMS ''Victory'', against a Spanish Fleet of 27 ships commanded by Lieutenant-General Don [[José de Córdoba y Ramos]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.royal-navy.org/lib/index.php?title=Battle_of_Cape_St._Vincent_%28History_of_HMS_Victory%29 |title=Battle of Cape St. Vincent (History of HMS Victory) |access-date=10 January 2010 }}{{Dead link|date=January 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> ''Colossus'' sustained serious damage, her sails being virtually shot away. It looked inevitable that she would be raked by Spanish warships, until {{HMS|Orion|1787|2}} headed for ''Colossus'' and covered her.

The battle was a major victory for the Royal Navy. Despite being outnumbered, it captured four Spanish ships and crippled seven, including the largest warship afloat at that time - the [[Spanish ship Nuestra Señora de la Santísima Trinidad (1769)|''Santísima Trinidad'']]. [[Kingdom of Great Britain|Britain]] lost approximately 300 killed or wounded; the Spanish lost 1,092 killed or wounded, and 2,300 taken prisoner.

==Other action==
As the fleet repaired at Naples ''Colossus'' was immediately sent "on a cruise off Malta". She then went to Gibraltar before returning to the now repaired fleet in Naples. In the summer, [[William Bolton (post-captain)|William Bolton]] (later Captain) was promoted to Lieutenant on the ''Colossus'',<ref name="Long obit USJ">{{cite journal|title=Biographical Memoir of the Late Captain Sir William Bolton, Knt, R.N.|journal=United Service Journal and Naval and Military Magazine|date=1832|volume=Part 1|pages=84–88|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T5QEAAAAQAAJ&dq=captain+sir+william+bolton+nelson&pg=PA84|publisher=H. Colburn and R. Bentley|location=London|access-date=27 May 2018}}</ref> and the ship on the obverse of the 1797 medal featuring William Bolton may represent ''Colossus''.
''Colossus'' was not cannibalized; Captain Murray did, however, hand over to Nelson three of his guns and one bower anchor. This was done as ''Colossus'' had been ordered home to England, whereas the {{HMS|Vanguard|1787|2}} was staying within the war zone. Loaded with Greek vases and wounded men from the battle of the Nile, ''Colossus'' set off for home. She stopped at Algiers and at Lisbon on the way. At Lisbon she joined a larger convoy that was "bound for Ireland and other northern ports". The convoy dispersed in the English Channel as planned.<ref name="hmscolossus">{{Cite web

 |url= http://www.hmscolossus.co.uk/
 |title=www.hmscolossus.co.uk
 |work=hmscolossus.co.uk
 |access-date=8 December 2010
}}</ref>

=== Shipwreck===
{{location map|United Kingdom Isles of Scilly|relief=1|width=304
|lat= 49.924517
|long= -6.34175
|caption= Approximate position of the wreck 
|AlternativeMap= 
}}
Amidst the bad winter weather ''Colossus'' sighted the [[Isles of Scilly]] first and came to anchor in [[St Mary's, Isles of Scilly|St Mary's Roads]] on 7 December.<ref name = Grocott>Naval Chronicle 1798, vol. 1, pp.86, 165. Cited in Grocott 1997, pp. 64-65</ref> For three days she intended to ride out the storm, only for it to increase. On the night of 10 December an anchor cable parted and the ship ran aground on a submerged ledge of rock off [[Samson, Isles of Scilly|Samson Island]]. Only one life was lost, that of Quartermaster Richard King who drowned when he fell overboard while trying to [[Depth sounding#Lead and Line|sound the lead]].<ref name=Grocott/> Boats were immediately put out from the island, and all of the other crew were transported to safety by the morning. On 11 December the ship settled on her side, the starboard beam ends touching the waves. Attempts to reboard her were thwarted by continued high seas.

On 15 December ''Colossus''{{'}} mainmast and bowsprit broke away and it became clear she could no longer be refloated. A naval brig, {{HMS|Fearless|1794|2}}, was able to put alongside the shipwrecked vessel on 29 December and bring away a quantity of stores and the body of Admiral [[Molyneux Shuldham, 1st Baron Shuldham|Molyneux Shuldam]] which had been transported aboard ''Colossus'' for reburial in England.<ref name=Grocott/>{{efn|Admiral Shuldam's remains were ultimately laid to rest in Wyredsbury churchyard, Buckinghamshire on 9 January 1799.<ref>Naval Chronicle 1799, vol. 1, p.176. Cited in Grocott 1997, pp. 64-65</ref>}} No further salvage proved possible and the vessel sank entirely in early January 1799.

==Modern discovery and protection==
In the closing years of the 1960s, Roland Morris, a marine salver,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.cismas.org.uk/colossus_overview.php |title=The Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Maritime Archaeology Society |access-date=15 December 2015 |archive-date=5 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305025912/http://www.cismas.org.uk/colossus_overview.php |url-status=dead }}</ref> began diving on the site, searching for the antiquities that ''Colossus'' had been transporting. In 1974, he discovered ''Colossus'', as well as fragments from the collection of [[William Hamilton (diplomat)|Sir William Hamilton]] which ''Colossus'' had been transporting. Many of the items found were reconstructed and are now displayed at the [[British Museum]] in [[London]].
[[File:Stern figure from HMS Colossus 1787.jpg|thumb|Stern figure from ''Colossus'' in [[Tresco Abbey Gardens]]]]
In 2000, a report from amateur diver Todd Stevens alerted the [[Receiver of Wreck]] to the existence of further remains. As a result of this new discovery the Isles of Scilly Museum in [[Hugh Town]] was handed a vast collection of artefacts from this wreck for display. These new remains turned out to be the stern of the wreck, which held a large carving from the stern port quarter gallery. This carving was claimed to have been discovered by local diver Carmen Stevens but not reported until the following year when the wreck site was designated on 4 July 2001 under the [[Protection of Wrecks Act]] as a result of the find when reported  meaning that diving or other interference within 300 metres of the site was not permitted without a licence.

In August 2001 the Archaeological Diving Unit of the [[University of St Andrews]] obtained a survey licence and carried out a pre-disturbance survey of the site. The ''Colossus'' carving was recovered from the site in 2002 (as shown in a [[Time Team (Specials)|''Time Team'' TV special]] in October 2002) and after conservation by the [[Mary Rose Trust]], was returned to Scilly in 2010 to be placed on display in the Valhalla figurehead collection on [[Tresco, Isles of Scilly|Tresco Island]].<ref name=report2002>{{cite web
|url=http://www.cismas.org.uk/docs/colossus_survey_report_2002.pdf
|title=HMS Colossus Survey Report 2002
|author=Kevin Camidge
|year=2002
|access-date=8 December 2010}}</ref> Further extensive licensed surveys were carried out by the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Archaeological Society from 2003 to 2005.

Exploration of the wreck is ongoing year on year by Survey Licence Holder Todd Stevens and IMAG (The Islands Maritime Archaeological Group) who have produced an overall site plan of the whole wreck site. The Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Maritime Archaeology Society (CISMAS) has been routinely inspecting and recording the site since 2001.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.cismas.org.uk/colossus_index.php | title = HMS ''Colossus'' page at Cismas.org.uk | access-date = 27 April 2012 | archive-date = 17 June 2012 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120617155725/http://www.cismas.org.uk/colossus_index.php | url-status = dead }}</ref> The CISMAS projects are funded and endorsed by [[Historic England]] (at the time called [[English Heritage]]). In May 2012 CISMAS embarked on an excavation of a portion of the stern of the wreck, focusing on recording finds related to the gun deck and on initiating a long-term reburial trial.<ref name=report2012>{{cite web
|url=http://cismas.org.uk/docs/Colossus%20Monitoring%20and%20Investigation%20Report.pdf
|title=HMS Colossus. Monitoring and Investigation 2012
|author=Kevin Camidge
|year=2012
|access-date=3 May 2020}}</ref>

New wreck material was found in the vicinity of the stern in 2014, prompting further excavation work in 2015.<ref name="report2015">{{cite web
|url=http://cismas.org.uk/docs/Colossus%202015%20v1_3.pdf
|title=HMS Colossus. Investigation 2015
|author=Kevin Camidge
|year=2015
|access-date=3 May 2020}}</ref> This raised new questions about the wrecking process which was investigated in 2017, leading to a new wrecking theory.<ref name="report2017">{{cite web
|url=http://cismas.org.uk/docs/Colossus%202017%20FINAL.pdf
|title=HMS Colossus. Wrecking Report 2017
|author=Kevin Camidge
|year=2017
|access-date=3 May 2020}}</ref>

In 2018 [[Historic England]] published the investigation and conservation of artefacts from HMS ''Colossus'', thought to be a small concentration of personal items (50 buttons, a bone brush/ shoe horn and a textile fragment) recovered under a surface recovery license by the 2014 Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Maritime Archaeological Society (CISMAS) team. The objects were analysed and stabilised by the Historic England conservation lab, at Fort Cumberland, Portsmouth.<ref>{{Cite web|title=HMS Colossus, Protected shipwreck site, Isles of Scilly: Investigation and conservation of surface recovered artefacts. Historic England Research Reports 26/2018|url=https://research.historicengland.org.uk/Report.aspx?i=16024&ru=/Results.aspx?p=1&n=10&ry=2018&tsk=hms%2520colossus&ns=1|last=Middleton, Camidge, Paynter, Gleba|website=research.historicengland.org.uk| date=23 April 2018 |access-date=2020-05-04}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of shipwrecks of the Isles of Scilly]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==Citations==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
*{{cite book |title = Shipwrecks of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Eras| first =Terence | last =Grocott | year =1997 | publisher =Chatham Publishing | isbn =1861760302}}
*{{cite book |title =The Ship of the Line - Volume One: The development of the battlefleet 1650-1850 | first =Brian | last =Lavery | year =1983 | publisher =Conway Maritime Press | isbn =0851772528}}

==Further reading==
* Stevens, Todd, ''Wreck of the Colossus: the Find of a Lifetime'' (January 2007) {{ISBN|0-9553430-1-1}}

==External links==
*[http://www.hmscolossus.co.uk Wreck of ''Colossus'' - The find of a lifetime (by Todd Stevens)]
*[https://hmscolossus.cismas.org.uk/ HMS ''Colossus'' (The Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Maritime and Archaeology Society)]
*[https://www.flickr.com/photos/wessexarchaeology/sets/72157623643640954/ Photos taken during a survey (Wessex Archaeology)]
*[https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1000078 "HMS ''Colossus''" National Heritage List for England]

{{coord |49.9245167|-006.3417500 |display=title}}

{{Courageux class ship of the line}}
{{1798 shipwrecks}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Colossus (1787)}}
[[Category:Ships of the line of the Royal Navy]]
[[Category:Courageux-class ships of the line]]
[[Category:Shipwrecks of the Isles of Scilly]]
[[Category:Cornish shipwrecks]]
[[Category:Protected wrecks of England]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1798]]
[[Category:1787 ships]]
[[Category:Ships built in England]]
[[Category:1798 in England]]