“HMS Egeria (1873)”的意思、由来-开放百科全书

HMS Egeria was a 4-gun screw sloop of the Fantome class launched at Pembroke on 1 November 1873. She was named after Egeria, a water nymph of Roman mythology, and was the second ship of the Royal Navy to bear the name. After a busy career in the East Indies, Pacific, Australia and Canada, she was sold for breaking in 1914 and was burnt at Burrard Inlet in British Columbia.

Construction

Egeria was constructed of an iron frame sheathed with teak and copper (hence 'composite'), and powered by a two-cylinder horizontal compound-expansion steam engine. This engine, provided by Humphrys, Tennant & Co.,^[2] drove a single {{convert|11|ft|m|adj=on}} diameter screw and generated an indicated {{convert|1011|hp|kW}}. Steam was provided by three cylindrical boilers working at {{convert|60|psi|bar}}.

Perak War

In 1875, Egeria, commanded by Commander Ralph Lancelot Turton, proceeded to Perak (in modern Malaysia), as one of a squadron of six ships under Captain Alexander Buller with his senior officer’s pennant in HMS Modeste, to take part in an expedition against the murderers of Mr James Birch, the British Resident in Perak. While the troops and a naval brigade advanced on the upper reaches of the Perak River simultaneously from two points, Egeria blockaded the Perak Littoral, and sent her boats up the Kurow River. These boats destroyed or carried off some guns, arms, and ammunition which might have been useful to the enemy. Severe punishment was inflicted on the natives, but the murderers were not brought to account for some time afterwards.^[3]

Intelligence gathering in the Russian Far East

During the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878, Egeria, commanded by Commander Archibald Douglas, was sent on an intelligence gathering mission to Petropavlovsk in Kamchatka. It was found to have been abandoned by its Russian garrison.^[4]

Survey of Australia

From 1886, under the command of Captain Pelham Aldrich, Egeria was engaged in survey around Australia.^[5]

In 1890 Hansard records that {{cquote|One petty officer and one seaman of the Egeria were tried for attempting to make a mutinous assembly and for wilful disobedience to orders, and were sentenced respectively to five years' penal servitude and two years' imprisonment. Five other seamen were tried for disobedience, and sentenced to punishments varying from one year to six months' imprisonment.^[6]}}

Survey of British Columbia

In 1898, Egeria arrived in British Columbia where she was engaged in coastal surveys for the Royal Navy until 1910, by which time coast surveying responsibilities had been transferred to the Canadian Hydrographic Service. The previous surveying ship, the steamship Beaver, had been paid off 28 years earlier in 1870.

Commander Morris Henry Smyth was in command until Commander C. H. Simpson was appointed in command on 1 February 1900.^[7]

A representation of Egeria is included on a commemorative tile at the Marine Building at 355 Burrard St. in Vancouver, British Columbia. It is one of eight historic ships of British Columbia so honored by this Art Deco building which opened in 1930.

There is also an inscription carved into the rockface of a cliff overlooking Poets Cove on Pender Island, British Columbia. It says "1905 HMSEGERIA"

Decommissioning and sale

After many years in the Surveying Service, in November 1911 she was put up to public auction at Esquimalt, and sold to the Vancouver branch of the Navy League for £1,416.

Fate

She was sold for breaking up in 1914. Her hulk was beached at Burrard Inlet, she was soaked in oil and set afire. The explosion killed three men.^[9]

Legacy

HMS Egeria is commemorated in the scientific name of a species of lizard, Cryptoblepharus egeriae.^[10]

Notes

1. ^{{cite web|url=http://www.battleships-cruisers.co.uk/naval_sloops_.htm|title=Naval Sloops at battleships-cruisers.co.uk|accessdate=2008-08-30}}
2. ^¹{{winfield}}
3. ^{{cite web|url=http://www.battleships-cruisers.co.uk/name_histories_e.htm#HMS%20Egeria|title=HMS Egeria at Battleships-cruisers.co.uk website|accessdate=2008-08-30}}
4. ^Ian R. Stone (1993) Spying on the Russians: Archibald Douglas and HMS Egeria at Petropavlovsk, 1877–1878 at Cambridge Journals Online
5. ^{{cite web|url=http://www.pdavis.nl/ShowShip.php?id=1385|title=HMS Egeria at William Loney website|accessdate=2008-08-30}}
6. ^{{cite web|url=http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1890/jun/24/hms-egeria|title=Hansard 24 June 1890|accessdate=2008-08-30}}
7. ^{{Cite newspaper The Times |articlename=Naval & Military intelligence |day_of_week=Friday |date=2 February 1900 |page_number=10 |issue=36055}}
8. ^{{cite web|author=Little, Gary|url=http://www.garylittle.ca/pr-20060629.html|title=First Chart to Identify Half-Moon Bay Discovered in UK by Gary Little|accessdate=2009-01-09}}
9. ^Bastock 1988, p. 90.
10. ^¹Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. {{ISBN|978-1-4214-0135-5}}. ("Egeria", p. 81).