HMS Unicorn (1824)

History
United Kingdom
NameHMS Unicorn
OperatorRoyal Navy
Ordered23 July 1817
BuilderRoyal Dockyard, Chatham, Kent, England
Laid downFebruary 1822
Launched30 March 1824; 200 years ago (30 March 1824)
In service1824
Out of service~1964
Refit1824, refit during construction to receiving/barracks vessel
HomeportDundee, Scotland
StatusMuseum ship, Dundee, Scotland
General characteristics
Class and typeModified Leda-class frigate
Tons burthen1077 bm
Length
  • 151 ft 9 in (46.25 m) (lower deck)
  • 125 ft (38 m) (keel)
Beam40 ft 3 in (12.27 m)
Depth of hold12 ft 9 in (3.89 m)
Sail planAlthough never given masts, she was planned as a full-rigged ship
RangeCannot move without tow (never rigged)
Complement315
Armament
  • Upper deck: 28 × 18-pounder guns
  • Quarter deck: 14 × 32-pounder carronades
  • Forecastle: 2 × 9-pounder guns, 2 × 32-pounder carronades

HMS Unicorn is a surviving sailing frigate of the successful Leda class, although the original design had been modified by the time that the Unicorn was built, to incorporate a circular stern and "small-timber" system of construction. Listed as part of the National Historic Fleet, Unicorn is now a museum ship in Dundee, Scotland, United Kingdom. She is the oldest ship in Scotland,[1] one of the oldest ships in the world,[1][2] and one of the last intact warships from the age of sail.[2][3]

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference ogston was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b Brady, Jon (13 April 2019). "Historic HMS Unicorn gets £29k lottery cash ahead of 200th anniversary". Evening Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Archived from the original on 14 April 2019. Retrieved 22 April 2019.
  3. ^ Breverton, Terry (2010). Breverton's nautical curiosities: a book of the sea. New York: Quercus. ISBN 9781623653200. OCLC 869301594.