On This Day

1850-1899 > Colonial Navies & RN

November 12, 1884

RADM George Tryon, CB, RN, was appointed Flag Officer Commanding the Australia Station. His flagship was HMS NELSON.

September 30, 1884

HMC gunboat PROTECTOR, (CAPT J. C. P. Walcot, RN), arrived in Port Adelaide, SA.

September 26, 1884

The Queensland Navy gunboats GAYUNDAH and PALUMA completed shipbuilder trials on the Tyne River England. Both vessels attained a speed of 10 knots.

July 28, 1884

The Admiralty requested the services of either HMQ Ships GAYUNDAH or PALUMA for survey duties in northern waters. PALUMA was selected and converted for the purpose.

July 16, 1884

HMQS MOSQUITO, (2nd class torpedo boat), was launched in the UK.

June 19, 1884

The steel twin-screw gunboat PROTECTOR was commissioned. PROTECTOR was laid down in Armstrong, Mitchell & Co., Elswick, Newcastle Upon Tyne, England, for service with the South Australian Government. Heavily armed for her size PROTECTOR was practically a small cruiser.

May 13, 1884

HMQS GAYUNDAH, (gunboat), was launched at Newcastle upon Tyne, England.

May 1, 1884

Tasmania’s only warship, a 2nd class torpedo boat known as TB191, arrived in Hobart.

March 16, 1884

HMVS CHILDERS, en route to Australia, was diverted to the port of Suakin to participate in the Sudan War. The Victorian gunboats VICTORIA and ALBERT, joined her there on 19 March, but their services were not required and they were then sent on their way to continue passage to Australia.

February 29, 1884

HMVS CHILDERS, (torpedo boat), ran out of coal off the coast of Portugal and was forced to lay-to until found by the steamer Pathan which supplied her with enough coal to reach Gibraltar. To avoid a similar situation on the run from Malta to Alexandria she was diverted to Crete, and so became the first Australian warship to visit the Greek naval base at Suda Bay.

February 14, 1884

The steam gunboat, HMVS VICTORIA, (CAPT A. B. Thomas, RN), sailed from Portsmouth for Australia.

March 18, 1883

The German corvette SMS CAROLA, sailed from Sydney with orders to lay claim to eastern New Guinea and islands of the Bismarck Archipelago, on behalf of the German Government. The Queensland premier, Sir Thomas McIlwraith, saw this as threat and dispatched the Government steamer PEARL to Port Moresby. While his actions caused serious concern within the British Foreign Office, it did forestall the Germans annexing all of eastern New Guinea. The northern portion of New Guinea became the colony of German New Guinea, with the southern section controlled by the British.

July 3, 1882

The RN established the Directorate of Intelligence under ADML Sir George Tryon. Both Tryon and ADML Sir Lewis Beaumont, who later directed DNI, served on the Australia Station, and contributed to the formation of the RAN.

March 23, 1882

The Report of a Royal Commission into Colonial Defence ordered by the British Prime Minister, Disraeli, was published in part. Sections dealing with the un-preparedness of Australian colonies to defend themselves were suppressed.

February 15, 1882

The Melbourne Age claimed the visit of ADML Aslanbegoff’s squadron to Australia was directly associated with the threatened war between Britain and Russia and their presence was for the purpose of raiding British commerce.

January 21, 1882

CDRE James E. Erskine, RN, was appointed Flag Officer Commanding Australia Station. His flagship was HMS NELSON.

January 20, 1882

HMCS WOLVERINE sailed on her first training cruise with the NSW Naval Brigade.

January 16, 1882

HMS WOLVERINE, (screw corvette), was presented to the NSW Government as a “royal gift”. The ship was used for training the NSW Naval Brigade.

June 29, 1881

HMS NELSON, (armoured-belt cruiser), was flagship of the Imperial Squadron on the Australia Station. Two warships of the same name were in Australian waters at this period. The second HMS NELSON, (1st rate), later reduced to a single deck ship, and re-named HMVS NELSON, was flagship of the Victorian Navy.

May 31, 1881

RADM Sir Leighton Seymour Bracegirdle, KCVO, CMG, DSO, RAN, was born in Balmain, Sydney.

December 19, 1878

CDRE John C. Wilson, ADC, was appointed Commodore Commanding Australia Station. His flagship was HMS WOLVERENE.

December 10, 1878

CDRE John C. Wilson, ADC, was appointed Commodore Commanding Australia Station.

September 19, 1878

CDRE J. C. Wilson, ADC, was appointed Commodore Commanding the Australia Station. His flagship was HMS WOLVERINE.

January 1, 1878

The NSW Torpedo Corps was formed under Major Cracknell. In March 1879 the name was changed to the NSW Torpedo and Signalling Corps. It’s initial strength was 6 officers and 88 men.

December 2, 1875

HMVS VICTORIA went to the rescue of the clipper ship TIENSTIN, foundering in Bass Strait. The crew of the disabled ship was taken off, and an attempt was made to tow TIENSTIN to safety, but she rolled over and sank.