Albion-class ship of the line (1842) facts for kids

Her Majesty's Ship Albion entering the Bosphorus after the action of 17 October 1854.
Quick facts for kids Class overview
Name:	Albion
Operators:	Royal Navy
Preceded by:	Rodney class
Succeeded by:	None
In service:	6 September 1842
Planned:	5
Completed:	3
General characteristics
Type	Ship of the line
Length	205 ft 6 in (62.6 m) (gundeck) 170 ft 4 in (51.9 m) (keel)
Beam	54 ft 5 in (16.59 m)
Propulsion	Sails
Armament	90 guns: Gundeck: 28 × 32-pounders, 4 × 68-pounder carronades Upper gundeck: 26 × 32-pounders, 6 × 8 in (203.2 mm) Quarterdeck: 16 × 32-pounders, 2 × 8 in (203.2 mm) Forecastle: 8 × 32-pounders
Notes	Ships in class include: Albion, Aboukir, Exmouth

The Albion-class ships were powerful sailing warships built for the Royal Navy (Britain's navy). These ships were known as "ships of the line" because they were strong enough to fight in the main battle line. They were also called "second rates," which meant they were large and carried many guns, but not the very biggest ships.

Sir William Symonds designed these impressive ships. The first two were planned in March 1840. They were originally going to be smaller, with 80 guns. However, just three months later, their design was changed to make them even stronger, with 90 guns. Three more ships were ordered, but two of them were later redesigned into different types of ships.

Ships in the Class

Here are the three ships that were built as part of the Albion-class:

• HMS Albion

  Builder: Plymouth Dockyard (where it was built)

  Ordered: March 18, 1839 (when the order was placed)

  Launched: September 6, 1842 (when it was put into the water for the first time)

  Fate: Broken up, 1884 (this means the ship was taken apart)

• HMS Aboukir

  Builder: Plymouth Dockyard

  Ordered: March 18, 1839

  Launched: April 4, 1848

  Fate: Broken up, 1878

• HMS Exmouth

  Builder: Plymouth Dockyard

  Ordered: March 12, 1840

  Launched: July 12, 1854

  Fate: Broken up, 1905