HMS Leda (1828)

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

Leda
History
United Kingdom
Name	Leda
Namesake	Leda
Ordered	15 May 1821
Builder	Pembroke Dockyard
Laid down	October 1824
Launched	15 April 1828
Completed	May 1828
Commissioned	Never
Reclassified	As a water police ship, March 1865
Fate	Sold for scrap, 15 May 1906
General characteristics
Class and type	Seringapatam-class frigate
Tons burthen	1171 38/94 bm
Length	159 ft (48.5 m) (gundeck) 133 ft 5 in (40.7 m) (keel)
Beam	41 ft 2 in (12.5 m)
Draught	15 ft (4.6 m) (unloaded only)
Depth	12 ft 9 in (3.9 m)
Sail plan	Full-rigged ship
Complement	315
Armament	46 guns: Upper gundeck: 28 × 18-pdr cannon Quarterdeck: 14 × 32-pdr carronades Forecastle: 2 × 9-pdr cannon and 2 × 32-pdr carronades

HMS Leda was a 46-gun Seringapatam-class fifth-rate frigate built for the Royal Navy during the 1820s, one of seven ships of the Druid sub-class.

Description

The Druid sub-class was an enlarged and improved version of the Serinapatam design, modified with a circular stern.^[1] Leda had a length at the gundeck of 159 feet (48.5 m) and 133 feet 5 inches (40.7 m) at the keel. She had a beam of 41 feet 2 inches (12.5 m), a draught of 15 feet (4.6 m) and a depth of hold of 12 feet 9 inches (3.9 m). The ship's tonnage was 1171 38⁄94 tons burthen.^[2] The Druid sub-class was armed with twenty-eight 18-pounder cannon on her gundeck, fourteen 32-pounder carronades on her quarterdeck and a pair of 9-pounder cannon and two more 32-pounder carronades in the forecastle. The ships had a crew of 315 officers and ratings.^[3]

Construction and career

Leda, the fourth ship of her name to serve in the Royal Navy,^[4] was ordered on 15 May 1821, laid down in October 1824 at Pembroke Dockyard, Wales, and launched on 15 April 1828.^[3] She was completed for ordinary at Plymouth Dockyard in May 1828 and the ship was roofed over from the mainmast forward.^[2]

Notes

1. Winfield, p. 717
2. Winfield, p. 713
3. Winfield & Lyon, p. 107
4. Colledge, p. 240

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.
• Phillips, Lawrie; Lieutenant Commander (2014). Pembroke Dockyard and the Old Navy: A Bicentennial History. Stroud, Gloucestershire, UK: The History Press. ISBN 978-0-7509-5214-9.
• Winfield, Rif (2014). British Warships in the Age of Sail, 1817-1863. Barnsley, UK: Seaforth. ISBN 978-1-47383-743-0.
• Winfield, R.; Lyon, D. (2004). The Sail and Steam Navy List: All the Ships of the Royal Navy 1815–1889. London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-032-6. OCLC 52620555.