HMVS Countess of Hopetoun was a torpedo gunboat

Torpedo boat

A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval vessel designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs rammed enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes, and later designs launched self-propelled Whitehead torpedoes. They were created to counter battleships and other large, slow and...

 of the Victorian Naval Forces, Commonwealth Naval Forces and the Royal Australian Navy

Royal Australian Navy

The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...

. She was named after Hersey, Countess of Hopetoun

Hersey, Marchioness of Linlithgow

Hersey, Marchioness of Linlithgow was a British aristocrat, who was the wife of John Hope, 1st Marquess of Linlithgow, who, as the 7th Earl of Hopetoun, was the first Governor-General of Australia 1901-1902.-Biography:...

 and later Marchioness of Linlithgow, the wife of the 7th Earl of Hopetoun

John Hope, 1st Marquess of Linlithgow

John Adrian Louis Hope, 1st Marquess of Linlithgow KT, GCMG, GCVO, PC , also known as Viscount Aithrie before 1873 and as The 7th Earl of Hopetoun between 1873 and 1902, was a Scottish aristocrat, politician and colonial administrator. He is best known for his brief and controversial tenure as the...

, the then Governor of Victoria

Governors of Victoria

The Governor of Victoria is the representative in the Australian state of Victoria of its monarch, Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia. The Governor performs the same constitutional and ceremonial functions at the state level as does the Governor-General of Australia at the national level...

 and later the first Governor-General of Australia

Governor-General of Australia

The Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia is the representative in Australia at federal/national level of the Australian monarch . He or she exercises the supreme executive power of the Commonwealth...

.

Operational history

Built by Yarrow and Co.

Yarrow Shipbuilders

Yarrow Limited , often styled as simply Yarrows, was a major shipbuilding firm based in the Scotstoun district of Glasgow on the River Clyde...

 on the River Thames

River Thames

The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...

, Countess of Hopetoun was the last vessel constructed for the Victorian Naval Forces. She arrived at Williamstown, Victoria

Williamstown, Victoria

Williamstown is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 8 km south-west from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Hobsons Bay. At the 2006 Census, Williamstown had a population of 12,733....

 via the Cape of Good Hope

Cape of Good Hope

The Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...

 after 154 days under way.

The vessel joined the Commonwealth Naval Forces with federation in 1901 and the Royal Australian Navy when it was formed in 1911. During World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

 she served in Victorian waters and as a tender to HMAS Cerberus. She attended the arrival of His Royal Highness Edward, The Prince of Wales

Edward VIII of the United Kingdom

Edward VIII was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth, and Emperor of India, from 20 January to 11 December 1936.Before his accession to the throne, Edward was Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall and Rothesay...

 in Port Phillip on 28 May 1920. The Prince arrived abord the battlecruiser HMS Renown

HMS Renown

Eight ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Renown, whilst three others have borne the name at various stages in their construction:...

 and was received by no less than 31 warships.

Fate

Countess of Hopetoun was sold to Edward Hill of North Melbourne in April 1924 and scrapped the following year. Her hull was later sunk near Swan Island in Port Phillip

Port Phillip

Port Phillip Port Phillip Port Phillip (also commonly referred to as Port Phillip Bay or (locally) just The Bay, is a large bay in southern Victoria, Australia; it is the location of Melbourne. Geographically, the bay covers and the shore stretches roughly . Although it is extremely shallow for...

.

See also

• List of Victorian Naval Forces ships
• Colonial navies of Australia - Victoria
• List of Royal Australian Navy ships