HMVS Lonsdale facts for kids
HMVS Lonsdale
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Quick facts for kids History |
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.svg){kind=small} Colony of Victoria |
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| Name | HMVS Lonsdale |
| Operator | Victorian Naval Forces |
| Builder | John I. Thornycroft & Company, Chiswick |
 Australia |
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| Name | HMAS Lonsdale |
| Acquired | 1901 |
| Out of service | 1912 |
| Fate | Sunk on mud flats at Swan Island in 1912 after being stripped of machinery and equipment. |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Second-class torpedo boat |
| Tonnage | 12.5 tons |
| Length | 67 ft (20 m) |
| Draught | 3.25 ft (0.99 m) |
| Speed | 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph) (max) |
| Armament |
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HMVS Lonsdale was a special kind of small, fast warship called a torpedo boat. It was built for the Victorian Naval Forces, which was like Australia's navy before it became one country. Later, it was used by the Royal Australian Navy. The Lonsdale was sunk in 1912 near Swan Island in Port Phillip Bay, after its useful parts were taken off.
Even though it was sunk, the Lonsdale is very important. It was launched in 1884 and became part of the Commonwealth Naval forces in 1901. This makes it the oldest Royal Australian Navy ship that still exists, even though it's buried underground!
Contents
Building the Lonsdale
Why a Torpedo Boat?
In 1882, the government of Victoria was worried about possible attacks from countries like Russia or France. To protect the colony, they ordered several torpedo boats, including the Lonsdale. These boats were designed to be quick and powerful.
Design and Features
The Lonsdale was built by a company called John I. Thornycroft & Company. It was about 67 feet (20 m) (20.4 meters) long. It had a very low freeboard, which means the part of the boat above the water was very small. This made it harder for enemies to spot it.
The boat could travel at a maximum speed of 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph) (about 31 kilometers per hour). This speed was important for quickly getting close to enemy ships before attacking them.
Weapons of the Lonsdale
When it was first built, the Lonsdale had two 14-inch torpedoes. These torpedoes were stored in special openings at the front of the boat. It also had a spar torpedo, which was a long pole with explosives at the end. This spar would be pushed against an enemy ship to blow it up.
In 1888, the boat was changed. The two 14-inch torpedoes were moved to a new system called 'dropping gear'. This was like a small crane (a davit) that would lower the torpedoes into the water before they were launched. The Lonsdale also had two Hotchkiss machine guns for defense.
The Fate of the Lonsdale
Where it was Sunk
Official records say that the Lonsdale was sunk in 1912. It was placed on mud flats near Swan Island in Port Phillip. Before it was sunk, all its important machinery and equipment were removed.
A Surprising Discovery
Years later, people thought the ship might have been buried somewhere else. There were old stories that it was buried in Queenscliff. Some older local people even remembered seeing the ship before it was completely covered by land. When the ship was buried, the area was a beach. But over time, new land was created (this is called land reclamation), and the burial site ended up being about 1 kilometer inland!
In 1983, a team of marine historians and archaeologists started looking for the ship. They used a digger, ground radar, and other tools. At first, they didn't find anything. Then, they tried using a water probe, searching about 1.5 meters deep.
Found at Last!
Finally, they found the remains of a torpedo boat! It was very likely the Lonsdale, though it could have been a similar ship called the Nepean. The amazing part was that it was found on the grounds of the Queenscliffe Maritime Museum! So, the ship's burial spot had become part of a museum's collection.
Even though a lot of effort went into finding the boat, work stopped after they uncovered just the conning tower. The conning tower is like the control room or bridge of a submarine or torpedo boat, where the commander would stand. The rest of the boat remains buried and cannot be seen by visitors.
It's quite special because the Lonsdale is the oldest Royal Australian Navy ship still in existence. It's also a rare shipwreck that can be reached without needing to dive underwater. However, no big effort has been made to dig up or protect the whole ship. As of 2010, only the top of its conning tower is still visible.
