Fireships served in the Royal Navy over a period of several centuries. The earliest fireships – ships filled with combustible and flammable materials and explosives and sent into lines of enemy ships to attempt to set them on fire – were small merchant vessels deployed in large fleet actions, such as by Sir Francis Drake

Francis Drake

Sir Francis Drake, Vice Admiral was an English sea captain, privateer, navigator, slaver, and politician of the Elizabethan era. Elizabeth I of England awarded Drake a knighthood in 1581. He was second-in-command of the English fleet against the Spanish Armada in 1588. He also carried out the...

 against the Spanish Armada

Spanish Armada

This article refers to the Battle of Gravelines, for the modern navy of Spain, see Spanish NavyThe Spanish Armada was the Spanish fleet that sailed against England under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia in 1588, with the intention of overthrowing Elizabeth I of England to stop English...

 at the Battle of Gravelines in 1588. Fire was a major hazard on the wooden warships of the time, which carried large quantities of flammable and explosive materials into battle. Both sides used fireships in a number of engagements during the Anglo–Spanish War, with varying levels of effectiveness. Fireships reappeared in unconventional forms during the English Civil War

English Civil War

The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...

, and were used in earnest during the Anglo-Dutch Wars

Anglo-Dutch Wars

The Anglo–Dutch Wars were a series of wars fought between the English and the Dutch in the 17th and 18th centuries for control over the seas and trade routes. The first war took place during the English Interregnum, and was fought between the Commonwealth of England and the Dutch Republic...

, particularly to great effect in 1666 during Holmes's Bonfire

Holmes's Bonfire

Holmes's Bonfire was a raid on the Vlie estuary in the Netherlands, executed by the Royal Navy during the Second Anglo-Dutch War on 19 and 20 August 1666 . The attack, named after the commander of the landing force, Rear-Admiral Robert Holmes, was successful in destroying by fire a large merchant...

. Successes such as the burning of the at the Battle of Solebay

Battle of Solebay

The naval Battle of Solebay took place on 28 May Old Style, 7 June New Style 1672 and was the first naval battle of the Third Anglo-Dutch War.-The battle:...

 in 1672 caused considerable interest in the application of such vessels, eventually resulting in the construction of purpose-built ships. Interest in the fireship declined during the eighteenth century. Though new vessels continued to be taken into service, they did not play a significant role in either the Seven Years' War

Seven Years' War

The Seven Years' War was a global military war between 1756 and 1763, involving most of the great powers of the time and affecting Europe, North America, Central America, the West African coast, India, and the Philippines...

 or the American War of Independence. There was a resurgence in the use of fireships during the 1790s during the wars with France, and they were deployed with some success by Thomas Cochrane

Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald

Admiral Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald, 1st Marquess of Maranhão, GCB, ODM , styled Lord Cochrane between 1778 and 1831, was a senior British naval flag officer and radical politician....

 at the Battle of the Basque Roads

Battle of the Basque Roads

The Battle of the Basque Roads, also Battle of Aix Roads was a naval battle during the Napoleonic Wars off the Island of Aix...

 in 1809, but they were steadily supplanted by new methods of war, such as heated shot, torpedo

Torpedo

The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...

es and mines

Naval mine

A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...

.

The vessels employed by the navy in the fireship role were very varied. They were initially often converted warships or merchant vessels between 60 and 90 feet in length. Despite their rating, most served as sloop

Sloop-of-war

In the 18th and most of the 19th centuries, a sloop-of-war was a warship with a single gun deck that carried up to eighteen guns. As the rating system covered all vessels with 20 guns and above, this meant that the term sloop-of-war actually encompassed all the unrated combat vessels including the...

s or frigate

Frigate

A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...

s, only being fitted with combustible materials when there was the intention to expend them. The ships used were generally purchased and converted vessels, as it was not considered cost-effective to build new ships with the intention of burning them when a cheaper option existed. Purpose-built fireships were therefore a rarity, though some classes were built during the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Ship's boats were used for a similar purpose, carrying parties of men with combustible materials over to enemy ships, often while they were at anchor. New methods of attack were being pioneered by the early nineteenth century. The Raid on Boulogne

Raid on Boulogne

The Raid on Boulogne in 1804 was a naval assault by elements of the Royal Navy on the fortified French port of Boulogne, during the Napoleonic Wars. It differed from the conventional tactics of naval assaults of the period by utilizing a wide range of new equipment produced by the American-born...

 in 1804 used fireships, but also new devices designed by Robert Fulton

Robert Fulton

Robert Fulton was an American engineer and inventor who is widely credited with developing the first commercially successful steamboat...

. By the time of the attack at the Basque Roads, fireships were being used to fire rockets as well. Eventually the inherent problems involved in deploying fireships effectively, such as the difficulty of manoeuvring effectively to catch an enemy warship, and the development of new forms of attack, led to the fireship falling out of use. While they served with the Royal Navy fireships tended to be given names associated with fire, for example, names of volcanoes. Examples included Spitfire, Torch, Vulcan, Furnace, Aetna and Vesuvius.

1690 - 1714

The success of the Dutch fireship attack in 1672 led to the first enquiries from the Admiralty

Admiralty

The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...

 about the possibility of producing a purpose-built fireship design. Though this did not result in any new ships the idea was revisited in 1689 with the construction of twelve fireships, similar to existing fifth rates, but specially modified to burn effectively. A further eight vessels were ordered in 1690, with two more in 1693 and another one in 1694.

Rebuilt fireships

The earlier fireships and of 1690 were rebuilt between 1700-3. The Speedwell was broken up to be rebuilt as a sixth rate in 1715, leaving the Griffin as the only remaining fireship in the navy by that point. The of 1694 was rebuilt in 1709, but was reclassified as a sixth rate in 1711. These three vessels became the last purpose-built fireships in the navy until the 1780s, though numbers of vessels were taken up and converted throughout the eighteenth century.
(rebuilt and launched in 1702) (rebuilt and launched in 1702) (rebuilt and launched in 1709)

1714 - 1752

The Griffin of 1702 remained in service into the late 1730s, but few other fireships, a term by now interchangeable with the 20-gun sixth rate, were brought into service with the navy during the years of peace. Several frigates were re-rated as fireships during the early years of the eighteenth century, but continued to operate in the cruiser role. The first large scale expansion began with the tensions in 1739 that led to the War of Jenkins' Ear

War of Jenkins' Ear

The War of Jenkins' Ear was a conflict between Great Britain and Spain that lasted from 1739 to 1748, with major operations largely ended by 1742. Its unusual name, coined by Thomas Carlyle in 1858, relates to Robert Jenkins, captain of a British merchant ship, who exhibited his severed ear in...

 and the War of the Austrian Succession

War of the Austrian Succession

The War of the Austrian Succession  – including King George's War in North America, the Anglo-Spanish War of Jenkins' Ear, and two of the three Silesian wars – involved most of the powers of Europe over the question of Maria Theresa's succession to the realms of the House of Habsburg.The...

, with five merchants being converted in June, and another eight in October. In common with the earlier vessels they were mostly employed as sloops, with only two being expended as fireships. Most were disposed of by 1745, and were replaced by further merchant vessels acquired in 1744 and 1745, and the conversion of some existing sloops and frigates.

Re-rated frigates

• Garland (between 1716 and 1721) (between 1716 and 1718) (between 1719 and 1737) (between 1727 and 1729) (between 1734 and 1742) (between 1739 and 1743)

Ex-French prizes (1745-1746)

(intended for conversion but captured by a privateer before it could take place)

Seven Years' War (1756 - 1763)

There were no fireships in service by the early 1750s, but the outbreak of the Seven Years' War

Seven Years' War

The Seven Years' War was a global military war between 1756 and 1763, involving most of the great powers of the time and affecting Europe, North America, Central America, the West African coast, India, and the Philippines...

 led to the purchase of three merchant vessels in 1756, with six more acquired by early 1757. A seventh was added in 1760, while four existing navy sloops were converted between 1758 and 1762.

Converted warships (1755–1762)

• Lightning (converted in 1755) (converted in 1758) (converted in 1758) (converted in 1762)

Purchased vessels (1771)

The Admiralty initially intended to purchase three vessels to be converted to fireships. Only two were purchased, but neither was converted. Both instead entered service as ship sloops under different names. (later Scorpion) (later Raven)

American War of Independence (1775-1783)

The outbreak of war with the American colonies

American Revolutionary War

The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...

 in 1775 led to the purchase of a range of merchant vessels for conversion, though most spent their careers employed as sloops. These were supplemented by the conversion of twelve existing navy sloops. A significant development during this period was the reintroduction of purpose-built fireships to the navy, the first for seventy years. The Tisiphone class was introduced during the later stages of the war, and all of the vessels of the class were still in service by the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars

French Revolutionary Wars

The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts, from 1792 until 1802, fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states...

 a decade later, though most had served as sloops, or been officially re-rated as sloops at some point in their careers.

Converted warships (1775–1779)

• Strombolo  (converted in 1775)
• Pluto (converted in 1777)
• Firebrand (converted in 1778)
• Salamander (converted in 1778) (converted in 1779) (converted in 1779)
• Lightning (converted in 1779)
• Basilisk (converted in 1779)
• Comet (converted in 1779)
• Spitfire  (converted in 1779)
• Blast (converted in 1779)
• Explosion (conversion begun in 1779, but not completed. Returned to sloop in 1783)

French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars (1793-1815)

In addition to the ships of the Tisiphone class, the Admiralty expanded its fleet with the acquisition in 1794 of a number of merchant vessels. Most served as small gunvessels, and none were expended as fireships. Another twenty-two small vessels were purchased in 1804, though only four were expended in this role. About this time the Admiralty ordered a six-ship class of fireships. The ships of the resulting Thais class were employed in the sloop role, and were re-rated as such in 1808. They eventually became sixth rate frigates in 1817. Another twenty-one ships were acquired in 1809 for the attack on the French at the Basque Roads

Battle of the Basque Roads

The Battle of the Basque Roads, also Battle of Aix Roads was a naval battle during the Napoleonic Wars off the Island of Aix...

, with all of them being expended there.

1809

Vessels used at the Battle of the Basque Roads

Battle of the Basque Roads

The Battle of the Basque Roads, also Battle of Aix Roads was a naval battle during the Napoleonic Wars off the Island of Aix...

:

• Adventure
• Agenoria
• Alicia
• Apollo
• Ceres
• George
• Harmony
• Hercules
• Mary
• Merchant
• Ocean
• Pomona
• Sally
• Sally
• Sisters
• Sophia
• Thomas
• Tiber
• Triptolemus
• William
• Zephyr