HMS Bombay Castle (1782)

Bombay Castle

File:H.M.S. Bombay Castle, in two positions, in the Channel off Dover 2014 CSK 05786 0026.jpg

HMS Bombay Castle, in two positions, in the Channel off Dover, by Thomas Whitcombe

HMS Bombay Castle was a 74-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 14 June 1782 at Blackwall Yard. She grounded on 21 December 1796 in the shoals of the Tagus River's mouth.

Origins

The British East India Company (EIC) funded the construction of Bombay Castle as a contribution to the war effort.Template:SfnpTemplate:Sfnp Similarly, the EIC also paid for the construction of and .

Bombay Castle was at Plymouth on 20 January 1795 and so shared in the proceeds of the detention of the Dutch naval vessels, East Indiamen, and other merchant vessels that were in port on the outbreak of war between Britain and the Netherlands.

Loss

File:Buttersworth - The wreck of H.M.S. Bombay Castle at the mouth of the Tagus, Lisbon on the 21st December 1796, with the Bugio lighthouse seen beyond.jpg

The wreck at the mouth of the Tagus, Lisbon on 21 December 1796, with the Bugio Lighthouse seen beyond, Thomas Buttersworth

Bombay Castle was under the command of Captain Thomas Sotheby when she entered the Tagus, having taken a pilot on board. In attempting to avoid the storeship Camel, which had grounded ahead of Bombay Castle, Bombay Castle too grounded. During the subsequent week, attempts were made to float her off after boats had removed her guns and stores, but without success. The navy abandoned her as a wreck on 27 December 1798.Template:Sfnp

File:Thomas Buttersworth - The frigate H.M.S. Minerve heading for the open sea.jpg

The frigate HMS Minerve heading for the open sea in 1797, the wreckage of the Bombay Castle still clearly visible alongside the lighthouse on the left, Thomas Buttersworth

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