Built at the Portsmouth Dockyard for the Royal Navy.
17 February 1729 ordered.
09 September 1729 keel laid down.
06 January 1733 launched under the name HMS CENTURION.
Tonnage 1.005 ton (bm), dim. 144.1 x 40.1 x 16.5ft., length of keel 117.5ft.
Armament: 24 – 24pdrs. lower deck, 26 – 9pdrs. upper deck, 8 – 6pdrs. quarter deck, 2 – 6pdrs. forecastle. From 16 September 1748 50 guns.
Crew 365 raised to 400 in 1733, from 16 September 1748 250 men.
1734 Commissioned under command of Capt. Francis Dansays. Building cost £14.460.
First with Cavendish’s fleet in British Home waters.
1736 Under command of Capt. George Proctor, he died on 04 October 1736 at Lisbon.
After Proctor died command was taken over by John Durell, he was promoted from HMS GIBRALTAR.
December 1737 under command of Capt. George Anson, first to the west coast of Africa, then to the West Indies.
From October till November 1739 in the Western Approaches.
From August 1739 till January 1740 fitted out at Portsmouth for a World Voyage.
At the outbreak of the War of the Austrian Succession in 1740, The British Admiralty ordered Commodore George Anson to the waters of the Pacific with a squadron British warship. He was ordered to damage Spanish interests in the Pacific.
18 September 1740 the squadron, consisting CENTURION, SEVERN, GLOUCESTER, PEARL, a storeship TRIAL and a snow and two victuallers the INDUSTRY and ANNA, one of 400 ton the other 200 tons sailed from St Helen’s first to Brazil.
It took 37 days to reach Madeira, from which she sailed on 3 November. After Madeira the INDUSTRY was discharged and her cargo and provision transferred to other ships of the squadron, the INDUSTY thereafter sailed away for to load a cargo for her homeward voyage.
18 December the island of St Catharine off the Brazilian coast was sighted and they stayed on this island till 18 January 1741 to replenish stores and allow sick men to recover.
Mid-January the squadron had to round Cape Horn, the weather deteriorated, and contact with the PEARL was lost
On the way to Juan Fernandez Islands on the west coast of Chile, the SEVERN and PEARL had to turn back, while the WAGER was wrecked on the coast of Patagonia on 14 May 1741.
09 June the CENTURION arrived at the island, when she arrived there her crew was so reduced by scurvy that only half of the original crew of 450 were still alive and only 30 were fit for duty.
Later was she joined by the GLOUCESTER and TRIAL and the pink ANNA a victualler.
The ships were refitted and the health of survivors restored.
CENTURION captured in the offing a Spanish merchant vessel the CARMELO with a valuable cargo.
Anson fitted her out as a warship with the guns of the ANNA a victualler, which was broken up.
November the squadron attacked the town of Paita, capturing some vessels.
06 May 1742 the CENTURION and GLOUCESTER sailed to Canton, China of the 961 men who had left England in these three ships only 335 remained.
15 August the GLOUCESTER was in such state of decay that she had to be scuttled.
26 August the CENTURION arrived at Tinian, when half of the crew was ashore to recover, a typhoon struck on 21 September, the CENTURION at anchor parted from her cables and was driven to sea, and disappeared. Three weeks later the CENTURION returned and on 21 October she sailed from Tinian to Macao where she arrived on 12 November.
After some repair there had taken place, the CENTURION sailed from there on the 18 April 1743, to look for the King of Spain’s Galleon who was expected to arrive at Manila.
Cruising of Cabo Espiritu Santo off the coast of the Philippines near Manila after 31 days on the 20th June she sighted the NUESTRA SEÑORA DE COVADONGA.
After a fight of 90 minutes she struck her flag and surrendered, 492 prisoners were taken,
After given his first Lieutenant a Commission to command her, both vessels set course to the River Canton, where she arrived on the 14 July.
The booty is given by the English as 1.313.843 Pieces of Eight, 35.682 Ounces of Virgin Silver and Plate what she got from there prize.
11 July she sailed from the Canton River after she was repaired and received stores and fresh provision she sailed homeward bound and arrived at Spithead on 15 June 1744 total worn out.
Her total booty she had on board was 2.600.000 Pieces of Eight, 150.000 Ounces of Plate, 10 Bars of Gold and a large quantity of Gold and Silver Dust, totalling 1.250.000 L Sterling.
The squadron had lost 1300 men only 4 killed during enemy action
The CENTURION was in a very bad shape, first was thought to complete rebuild her at Portsmouth, but after major repairs, and reduced to an armament of 50 guns.
15 December 1744 renamed in EAGLE.
15 November 1745 reverted again to CENTURION.
September 1746 re-commissioned under command of Capt. Peter Denis.
03 May1747 took part in the First Battle of Finisterre.
1748 With Warren’s fleet.
August 1748 under command of Capt. Augustus Keppel.
After some repair in 1748 she sailed for the Mediterranean.
1752 Paid off.
October1752 till August 1753 under repair at Chatham.
October 1754 recommissioned under Capt. William Mantell, she sailed as flagship of Commodore Augustus Keppel.
23 December 1754 sailed for Virginia, in Nova Scotia 1756 before she sailed home.
16 April 1757 sailed for North America; capture of Louisburg 1758 and capture of Quebec 1759.
09 February 1760 surveyed.
The same year under command of Capt. James Galbraith.
24 July 1760 sailed from the UK to Jamaica as flagship of Commodore Sir James Douglas.
From 06 June till 13 August 1762 took part in the Havana operations, in which Havana was captured.
1762 Paid off.
18 October 1762 surveyed, where after small repairs at Woolwich took place.
May 1763 recommissioned under command of Capt. Augustus Hervey.
22 September 1763 sailed for the Mediterranean as flagship of Commodore Thomas Harrison, stayed in the Mediterranean till 1766.
September 1766 paid off.
Broken up at Chatham, the work was completed on 18 December 1769.
Her colossal lion figurehead stood for many years in the Anson ward of the Greenwich Hospital. The figurehead was transferred to the playground of the hospital school in 1870, and fell to pieces from decay in 1873.
Ships of the World gives that the book of Patrick O’Brian’s “The Golden Ocean” is a readable and accurate, though fictional, account of the voyage.
Philippine 1997 8p sg?, scott?
Guernsey 1990 20p sg 497, scott437. sg500 37p sg500, scott440
Source: Ships on stamps CD-ROM A-D. http://www.ageofnelson.org/MichaelPhill ... p?ref=5155
British Warships in the Age of Sail 1714-1792 by Rif Winfield. Ships of the World by Lincoln P. Paine.