01 June 1866 laid down as an ironclad battleship on the Chatham Dockyard for the Royal Navy. She was the first sea going capital ship to be armed on the centerline principal.
25 May 1868 launched under the name HMS MONARCH.
Displacement 8.322 tons, dim. 330 x 57.6 x 24.3ft. (draught).
Powered by a Humphreys & Tennant 2 cyl. steam engine, 7.842 ihp., one screw, speed 15 knots. Bunker capacity 600 tons coal, range 2.000 miles.
Armament 4 – 12 inch ML, fitted in two turrets, 3 – 7 inch ML guns. Fitted out with a rambow.
Ship rigged, 27.700 square feet of sail, 1872 barque rigged.
Crew 575.
May 1869 commissioned at Chatham for the Channel Squadron. Shortly afterwards she made headlines when she was chosen to carry the body of the American philanthropist, George Peabody, back to the United States.
Peabody had given over a half million English pound towards the relief of London’s poor and so was sent home in a warship to Britain’s appreciation of his work.
When the HMS MONARCH reached Boston in December, she became a major tourist attraction as the Americans flocked to see an ocean-going turret ship.
1871 Armament; 4 – 12 inch ML, 2 – 9 inch ML and 1 – 7 inch ML guns.
Between 1871 and 1874 decommissioned.
June 1874 re-commissioned for the Channel Squadron.
16 April 1878 commissioned at Chatham for the Mediterranean. Earlier that year she was fitted out with torpedo launchers.
1882 In the unrest in Alexandria in the period before the bombardment of the city, HMS MONARCH and HMS INVINCIBLE were stationed in the inner harbour. Due to riots and attacks on foreigners in the city, by June 1882, MONARCH was carrying over 700 refugees holding British papers and they had to hastily be moved to a chartered P & O steamer at the beginning of July.
11 July 1882 the MONARCH engaged the Marsa and Mex forts west of the city, firing a total 125 rounds (300 shells) at the enemy position.
At 08.30 am, she hit and blew up the magazine behind Fort Marsa, she was one of the two ships presents which were not hit by any enemy fire.
13 July she entered the harbour with five other ships, and some of her complement joined the 150 seamen and 450 mariners landed to keep order in the city.
On 20 August, Captain Fairfax of the MONARCH, was instructed to occupy Port Said to secure the Suez Canal. Captain Fairfax and captain Seymour of HMS IRES led a party of 216 seamen, 276 mariners and 2 gatling guns, who landed at Port Said at dawn and in near silence. They surrounded the Egyptian garrison which surrendered immediately. Two companies of MONARCH’s seamen and a company of her mariners made up part of the force that was based at the Dutch Hotel in Ports Said from 21 August. Some of these and one of the gatling gun crews who fought at Kassassin on the 9 September 1882, under the command of Captain Fitzroy of HMS ORION, came from the MOMARCH. They were also present at the final battle of the campaign at Tel-el-Kebir on 13 September. On 16 September, all seamen and marines in the Naval brigade were returned to their ship.
This was the highpoint on her Mediterranean years, as she spent most of her time in the Mediterranean in harbour due to fuel restrictions.
In February 1884, HMS MONARCH landed men to forestall anti-British disturbances in Port Said. In 1885 she provided some of the men for Lord Charles Beresford’s Naval Brigade on the Nile in the Sudan Campaign.
During the Russian War scare after the “Penjdeb” incident in 1885, the MONARCH was summoned in March from her station at Alexandria to Malta. When she was two days overdue on a voyage of just five days, the Admiralty at first thought that she might have been lost to two Russian cruisers in the area.
The truth was MONARCH had broken down and was eventually towed in harbour by a merchant ship.
She was paid off in Malta and re-fitted before returned to Portsmouth.
15 September 1885 re-commissioned in the Channel Squadron.
1887 Attended Spithead review.
1890 Paid-off for a long refit. She was re-engined, given lower masts and a new bridge, armament 4 – 12 pdr. QF and 10 – 3 pdr. QF added to existing armament.
From 1892 until 1896 at Chatham in reserve.
26 January 1897 commissioned at Chatham as guardship for the Cape Town.
In November 1899, seamen from HMS MONARCH were landed to join the Naval Brigade, under command of Captain Prothero, to fight in the Second Boer War. They manned guns and suffered heavy casualties at the battle of Graspan on 25 November that year. The Naval Brigade, under several commanders, provided much artillery and logistical support for the army during the whole war.
March 1904 renamed SIMOON and reduced to depot ship at Simonstown.
1905 Brought home and sold for scrap to the Chatham shipbreaking Company on 4 April 1905.
Ascension 1986 £2 sg423, scott?
Source: Mostly copied from http://members.lycos.co.uk/bluejackets/monarch.htm
Chatham built Warships since 1860 by Philip MacDougall.