HMS Sapphire (1651)

History
Commonwealth of England
Name	Sapphire
Builder	Peter Pett I, Ratcliffe
Launched	1651
Commissioned	1651
Honours and awards	Kentish Knock 1652 Dungeness 1652 Portland 1653 The Gabbard 1653 Scheveningen 1653
Fate	Wrecked 30 May 1657
England
Name	Sapphire
Acquired	May 1660
Fate	Run ashore to evade capture on 31 March 1670
General characteristics
Class and type	38-gun Fourth-rate
Tons burthen	442+20⁄94 tons bm
Length	100 ft 0 in (30.5 m) keel for tonnage
Beam	28 ft 10 in (8.8 m)
Depth of hold	14 ft 5 in (4.4 m)
Sail plan	ship-rigged
Complement	140 in 1653 160/130/90 in 1666
Armament	38 guns in 1653 40 guns under 1666 Establishment 12 × culverins 10 × demi-culverins 14 × sakers 4 × 3-pounder guns 36/30 guns in 1670

Sapphire was a 38-gun fourth-rate of the Commonwealth of England. After commissioning she was actively involved in the First Anglo-Dutch War participating in most major fleet actions. During the Second Anglo-Dutch War she was only in the first two engagements then spent her time in Irish Waters and the Mediterranean. She was run ashore due to a pending attack by suspected Algerian pirates on Sicily in March 1670.^[1]

Sapphire was the first named vessel in the English and Royal Navy.^[2]