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HMS Active - World Naval Ships Directory

HMS Active

Name : HMS Active
Laid Down : 1867
Launched : 13th March 1869
Completed : March 1871
Type : Corvette
Class : Volage
Builder : Thames Iron Works
Country : UK
Pennants :
Fate : Sold 19th July 1906.

HMS Active was laid down in 1867 and launched on 13 March 1869. The ship was completed in March 1871 at a total cost of £126,156. Of this, £85,795 was spent on her hull and £40,361 on her machinery. Unlike her sister ship Volage, Active was placed in reserve after completion until 1873 when she was commissioned to serve as the flagship of the Commander-in-Chief, Cape of Good Hope and West Coast of Africa Station, Commodore William Hewett. The ship participated in naval operations during the Third Anglo-Ashanti War of 1874 and some of her crew were landed to reinforce the forces ashore. Commodore Francis Sullivan replaced Hewett in 1876 and he retained command until 1879 when the ship returned home to refit

Between 19 November 1878 and 21 July 1879, during the Anglo-Zulu War, 173 men of Active (along with men from Tenedos, Shah and Boadicea) served ashore as part of an 858-man naval brigade. The group from Active comprised 10 officers, 100 seamen, 5 idlers, 42 Marines, 14 Kroomen, and 2 medical attendants. In addition to small arms, they were equipped with two 12-pounder breech-loading guns, 24-pounder rockets, and a Gatling gun. The 12-pounders were exchanged for two of the Army's 7-pounder mountain guns before entering Zululand. Attached to the No.1 Column commanded by Colonel Charles Pearson, they crossed the Tugela River from Natal into Zululand on 12 January 1879. On 22 January they saw action in the Battle of Inyezane, driving off an attacking force of Zulus with rockets, Martini-Henry rifles and the Gatling gun. The same day the British main force was defeated at the Battle of Isandlwana, and so Pearson's column advanced to Eshowe, where it was besieged for two months, until relieved on 3 April. During the campaign, Active's crew suffered only one man killed, and nine wounded in action against the enemy, while nine died of disease during the siege, and one man drowned while crossing the Tugela. In 1881 the South Africa Medal was awarded to those members of Active's crew that had served there.

Active was rearmed and refitted in 1879 and placed in reserve until she was selected in 1885 to be the commodore's flagship in the newly formed Training Squadron. Active was the last square-rigged naval ship to leave Portsmouth Harbour under sail. She was paid off in 1898 and was sold for scrap on 10 July 1906. A memorial to the men of Active who lost their lives during the African campaigns can be found in Victoria Park, Portsmouth

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Database Currently Holds : 6284 ships and 6289 crew!

Last edited : 22:18, January 2, 2017
By : HMS

First Added : 10:29, May 10, 2011
By : kc


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