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{{Short description|Canadian side-wheel paddle steamship}}
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{{Infobox Ship Image
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|Ship image=[[Image:SS Royal William 1834 painting.png|300px|A painting of the SS Royal William, 1834]]
|Ship caption=A painting of the SS Royal William
|Ship image=[[File:SS Royal William 1834 painting.png|300px|A painting of the SS ''Royal William'', 1834]]
|Ship caption=A painting of the SS ''Royal William''
}}
}}
{{Infobox Ship Career
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
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|Ship country=
|Ship country=
|Ship flag=
|Ship flag=
|Ship name=SS Royal William
|Ship name=SS ''Royal William''
|Ship ordered=1830<ref name="Boileau44">{{cite book|first=John|last=Boileau|title=Samuel Cunard: Nova Scotia's Master of the North Atlantic|year=2006|publisher=Formac Publishing Company|isbn=0887807127|pages=44}}</ref>
|Ship ordered=1830<ref name=Boileau44>{{cite book|last=Boileau|first=John|title=Samuel Cunard: Nova Scotia's Master of the North Atlantic|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VpNurHAWL9sC&pg=PA44|date= 2006|publisher=Formac Publishing Company Limited|isbn=978-0-88780-712-1|page=44}}</ref>
|Ship builder=George Black and John Saxton Campbell<ref name="Boileau44" />
|Ship builder=[[George Black (shipbuilder)|George Black]] and [[John Saxton Campbell]], [[Quebec City|Quebec]]<ref name=Boileau44/>
|Ship yard number=
|Ship yard number=
|Ship laid down=[[September 2]], [[1830]]<ref name="Boileau44" />
|Ship laid down=September 2, 1830<ref name=Boileau44/>
|Ship launched=[[April 27]], [[1831]]<ref name="Boileau44" />
|Ship launched=April 27, 1831<ref name=Boileau44/>
|Ship acquired=
|Ship acquired=
|Ship in service=[[August 24]], [[1831]]<ref name="Boileau44" />
|Ship in service=August 24, 1831<ref name=Boileau44/>
|Ship out of service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship fate=
|Ship fate=
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|Ship status=
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{{Infobox Ship Characteristics
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=title
|Ship country=Spain
|Ship flag={{flagicon|Spain|1785}}
|Ship name=''Isabel II''
|Ship namesake=[[Isabella II of Spain|Isabella II]]
|Ship renamed=1850: ''Santa Isabel''
|Ship refit=1840
|Ship acquired=September 1834
|Ship out of service=6 January 1860
|Ship fate=Sunk by storm in [[Algeciras]] bay
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|Ship notes=
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
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|Ship class=
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|Ship displacement=
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|Ship tonnage=1,370&nbsp;ton<ref name="Boileau44" />
|Ship tonnage=1,370&nbsp;ton<ref name=Boileau44/>
|Ship capacity=
|Ship capacity=
|Ship length={{convert|160|ft|m|abbr=on}} <ref name="Boileau44" />
|Ship length={{convert|160|ft|m|abbr=on}}<ref name=Boileau44/>
|Ship beam={{convert|44|ft|m|abbr=on}} <ref name="Boileau44" />
|Ship beam={{convert|44|ft|m|abbr=on}}<ref name=Boileau44/>
|Ship draught=
|Ship draught=
|Ship draft=
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|Ship propulsion=[[Steam engine]]<ref name="Boileau44" />
|Ship propulsion=[[Marine steam engine|steam engine]];<ref name=Boileau44/> [[Paddle steamer|paddles]]
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'''SS ''Royal William''''' was a Canadian [[Paddle steamer#Types of paddle steamer|side-wheel paddle steamship]] that is sometimes credited with the first crossing of the [[Atlantic Ocean]] almost entirely under steam power, in 1833, using sails only during periods of boiler maintenance. She was the largest passenger ship in the world from 1831 to 1839, where it was then passed by the {{SS|Great Western}}. Earlier vessels that crossed partially under steam include the British-built Dutch-owned ''[[Steamship#History|Curaçao]]'' in 1827 and the sail-steam hybrid {{SS|Savannah}} in 1819.


The 1,370-ton SS ''Royal William'' (named after the ruling monarch, [[William IV of the United Kingdom|William IV]]) was {{convert|160|ft}} long, of {{convert|44|ft}} breadth and had a draught of 17¾ft, a large steamship for the time.<ref name=jl>{{cite book |last=Langley|first=John G. |title=Steam Lion: A Biography of Samuel Cunard |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lecQkgEACAAJ&pg=PP1 |year=2006 |publisher=Brick Tower Press |isbn=978-1-883283-50-6}}</ref> She was designed by 21-year old James Goudie, who had served his [[apprenticeship]], likely at [[Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company]] of [[Greenock, Scotland]],<ref name=jl/> a seaport on the [[Firth of Clyde]].
[[Image:SS Royal William.jpg|thumb|right|The SS Royal William on an envelope]]


== History ==
'''SS''' '''''Royal William''''' was a Canadian [[steamship]] that achieved the first crossing of the [[Atlantic Ocean]] to be made almost entirely under steam power, using sails only during periods of boiler maintenance.
===Genesis===
[[File:Le lancement du Royal William en 1831 - James Pattison Cockburn.jpg|thumb|left|''Royal William'', Quebec City, 1831]]
She was commissioned by brewer [[John Molson]]{{citation needed|date=October 2016}}, [[George Black (shipbuilder)|George Black]], [[John Saxton Campbell]],<ref>{{harvnb|Denison|1955|p=157}}</ref> and a group of investors from various colonies in British North America, including a group in [[Halifax, Nova Scotia]], who subscribed 196 shares at £25. There were all told 235 investors, who put a total of £16,000 in the '''Quebec and Halifax Steam Navigation Company'''. The incorporation occurred on 31 March 1830.<ref name=jl/>


===Construction===
She was commissioned by brewer [[John Molson]] and a group of investors from various colonies in British North America{{Fact|date=February 2007}}, built in [[Cape Blanc (Quebec)|Cape Blanc]], [[Quebec]] by John Saxton Campbell and Black<ref name="Library and Archives Canada">{{Citation
The ship was built in [[Cape Blanc (Quebec)|Cape Blanc]], [[Quebec]] by [[John Saxton Campbell]] and [[George Black (shipbuilder)|George Black]],<ref name=Library&Archives>{{cite DCB |last1=Blakeley |first1=Phyllis R. |authorlink=Phyllis Blakeley |title=Cunard, Sir Samuel |url=http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/cunard_samuel_9E.html |volume=9}}</ref> who laid its keel on 2 September 1830.<ref name=jl/> She was launched on 27 April 1831 by Lady and [[Matthew Whitworth-Aylmer, 5th Baron Aylmer|Lord Aylmer]] at Cape Cove, Quebec.<ref name=Library&Archives/><ref name=MaritimeMuseum>{{cite press release |publisher= Nova Scotia Museum |title=Model of SS Royal William at the Maritime Museum
| last = Blakeley
|date=August 18, 2005 |url=https://novascotia.ca/news/release/?id=20050818003}}</ref> Her [[Marine steam engine|steam engines]] were manufactured and installed in [[Montreal]], at the premises of the Bennet and Henderson Foundry, near the foot of St. Mary's current. On 13 August 1831, she made her shakedown voyage under steam from there to Quebec (calling at [[Sorel-Tracy|Sorel]] and [[Trois-Rivières|Three Rivers]] en route). She was officially registered on 22 August.<ref name=jl/>
| first = Phyllis R.
| title = Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online: CUNARD, Sir SAMUEL
| url=http://www.biographi.ca/EN/ShowBio.asp?BioId=38502
| access-date = 2007-04-01 }}</ref>
and was launched on [[27 April]], [[1831]] by Lady and [[Matthew Whitworth-Aylmer, 5th Baron Aylmer|Lord Aylmer]] at Cape Cove, Quebec.<ref name="Maritime Museum">{{cite press release|publisher = [[Nova Scotia]] Museum|title = News Release: Model of SS Royal William at the Maritime Museum|date=2005-08-18|url=http://www.gov.ns.ca/news/details.asp?id=20050818003|accessdate = 2007-02-17}}</ref><ref name="Library and Archives Canada" />
The [[steam engine]]s were made and installed in [[Montreal]]. She made several trips between Quebec and the Atlantic colonies in [[1831]], but travel became restricted because of the [[cholera]] [[epidemic]] in [[1832]].<ref name="Maritime Museum" /> The owners lost some £16,000 on the venture.<ref name="Library and Archives Canada" />


===Career as mail packeteer===
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Her owners decided to sail her to Europe and find a buyer. She departed from [[Pictou, Nova Scotia]] on [[18 August]], [[1833]] with seven passengers, a small amount of freight and a load of [[coal]] and arrived at [[Gravesend, Kent|Gravesend]] on the [[River Thames]] after a 25-day passage. ''Royal William'' was eventually sold to the [[Spanish Navy]] where she served for many years and earned the distinction of being the first steamship to fire a shot in anger during a minor Spanish rebellion. One of Royal William's co-owners was [[Samuel Cunard]] a merchant from [[City of Halifax|Halifax Nova Scotia]] who drew important lessons from the ship which he applied when he founded the [[Cunard Steamship Company]] a few years later.
She made several trips between Quebec and the Atlantic colonies in 1831, but travel became restricted because of the [[cholera]] [[epidemic]] in 1832.<ref name=MaritimeMuseum/> Some shareowners protested that she had been poorly maintained over the winter, and that as a result costly repairs were required that should have been unnecessary. One legislator suggested that the annual subsidy not be paid because ''Royal William'' had not fulfilled her schedule. The losses bankrupted the venture because the loans went unpaid.<ref name=jl/> The owners lost some £16,000 on the venture.<ref name=Library&Archives/> On 3 April 1833, she was purchased at auction by a half-dozen mortgage holders and original shareholders for £5,000.<ref name=jl/>


===Sale in England===
⚫
In the town of Pictou there is a [[Royal Canadian Sea Cadets|Royal Canadian Sea Cadet Corps]] named after this vessel. A large wooden model of ''Royal William'' is on display at the [[Maritime Museum of the Atlantic]] in Halifax.
⚫
Her new owners decided to sail her to Europe and find a buyer. She departed from [[Pictou, Nova Scotia]] on 18 August 1833 with seven passengers, a small amount of freight and a large load of coal and arrived at [[Gravesend, Kent|Gravesend]] on the [[River Thames]] after a 25-day passage that included a stop at the [[Cowes]], [[Isle of Wight]] for a fresh coat of paint.<ref name=jl/>


Aside from a one-day pause to clean her boilers, the ship had crossed non-stop using its steam engines. ''Royal William'', which initially sold for £10,000, was eventually sold to the [[Spanish Navy]] which renamed her ''Isabel Segunda'' (after [[Isabella II of Spain|Queen Isabella II]].<ref name=jl/> She served for many years and earned the distinction of being the first steam warship to [https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Special:Search/fire_in_anger fire in anger], at [[Zarauz]] on 14 April 1839 during the [[First Carlist War]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://hemerotecadigital.bne.es/issue.vm?id=0003107561&page=1&search=%22Vapor+Isabel+II%22&lang=es |work=El comercio |location=Madrid |number=n.º 1819|date=24 April 1839 |title=Noticias de España; San Sebastián |page=1}}</ref>
⚫
== References ==

On 8 January 1860, ''Isabel Segunda'' was driven ashore and wrecked at [[Algeciras]].<ref name=RCG270160>{{Cite news |title=Spain |newspaper=The Royal Cornwall Gazette, Falmouth Packet and General Advertiser |location=Truro |date=27 January 1860 |issue=2953 |page=2 }}</ref>

==Legacy==
One of ''Royal William''{{'}}s co-owners was Halifax merchant [[Samuel Cunard]], who drew important lessons from the ship which he applied when he founded the [[Cunard Steamship Company]] a few years later.<ref name=jl/>

⚫
In the town of Pictou, there is a [[Royal Canadian Sea Cadets|Royal Canadian Sea Cadet Corps]] named after this vessel. A large wooden model of ''Royal William'' is on display at the [[Maritime Museum of the Atlantic]] in Halifax.<ref name=MaritimeMuseum/>

⚫
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}


===Bibliography===
{{s-start}}
*{{cite book |last1=Marcil |first1=Eileen Reid |title=The PS Royal William of Quebec |date=2020 |publisher=Baraka Books |place=Montreal}}
{{s-ach|rec}}

{{s-bef|before=[[SS Savannah|''Savannah'']]}}
*{{cite book |last1=Denison |first1=Merrill |title=The Barley and the Stream: The Molson Story |date=1955 |publisher=McClelland & Stewart Limited|place=Toronto}}
{{s-ttl|title=World's largest [[passenger ship]]|years=1831 – 1838}}

{{s-aft|after=[[SS Great Western|''Great Western'']]}}
{{Largest passenger ships}}
{{end}}
{{1860 shipwrecks}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Royal William}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Royal William}}
[[Category:Steamships]]
[[Category:Steamships]]
[[Category:Ships built in Quebec City]]

[[Category:1831 ships]]
[[hr:SS Royal William]]
[[Category:Merchant ships of Canada]]
[[sh:SS Royal William]]
[[Category:1831 establishments in North America]]
[[Category:Frigates of Spain]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in January 1860]]

Latest revision as of 22:59, 13 May 2024

A painting of the SS Royal William, 1834
A painting of the SS Royal William
History
NameSS Royal William
Ordered1830[1]
BuilderGeorge Black and John Saxton Campbell, Quebec[1]
Laid downSeptember 2, 1830[1]
LaunchedApril 27, 1831[1]
In serviceAugust 24, 1831[1]
SpainSpain
NameIsabel II
NamesakeIsabella II
AcquiredSeptember 1834
Out of service6 January 1860
Renamed1850: Santa Isabel
Refit1840
FateSunk by storm in Algeciras bay
General characteristics
Tonnage1,370 ton[1]
Length160 ft (49 m)[1]
Beam44 ft (13 m)[1]
Propulsionsteam engine;[1] paddles

SS Royal William was a Canadian side-wheel paddle steamship that is sometimes credited with the first crossing of the Atlantic Ocean almost entirely under steam power, in 1833, using sails only during periods of boiler maintenance. She was the largest passenger ship in the world from 1831 to 1839, where it was then passed by the SS Great Western. Earlier vessels that crossed partially under steam include the British-built Dutch-owned Curaçao in 1827 and the sail-steam hybrid SS Savannah in 1819.

The 1,370-ton SS Royal William (named after the ruling monarch, William IV) was 160 feet (49 m) long, of 44 feet (13 m) breadth and had a draught of 17¾ft, a large steamship for the time.[2] She was designed by 21-year old James Goudie, who had served his apprenticeship, likely at Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company of Greenock, Scotland,[2] a seaport on the Firth of Clyde.

History

[edit]

Genesis

[edit]
Royal William, Quebec City, 1831

She was commissioned by brewer John Molson[citation needed], George Black, John Saxton Campbell,[3] and a group of investors from various colonies in British North America, including a group in Halifax, Nova Scotia, who subscribed 196 shares at £25. There were all told 235 investors, who put a total of £16,000 in the Quebec and Halifax Steam Navigation Company. The incorporation occurred on 31 March 1830.[2]

Construction

[edit]

The ship was built in Cape Blanc, Quebec by John Saxton Campbell and George Black,[4] who laid its keel on 2 September 1830.[2] She was launched on 27 April 1831 by Lady and Lord Aylmer at Cape Cove, Quebec.[4][5] Her steam engines were manufactured and installed in Montreal, at the premises of the Bennet and Henderson Foundry, near the foot of St. Mary's current. On 13 August 1831, she made her shakedown voyage under steam from there to Quebec (calling at Sorel and Three Rivers en route). She was officially registered on 22 August.[2]

Career as mail packeteer

[edit]

She made several trips between Quebec and the Atlantic colonies in 1831, but travel became restricted because of the cholera epidemic in 1832.[5] Some shareowners protested that she had been poorly maintained over the winter, and that as a result costly repairs were required that should have been unnecessary. One legislator suggested that the annual subsidy not be paid because Royal William had not fulfilled her schedule. The losses bankrupted the venture because the loans went unpaid.[2] The owners lost some £16,000 on the venture.[4] On 3 April 1833, she was purchased at auction by a half-dozen mortgage holders and original shareholders for £5,000.[2]

Sale in England

[edit]

Her new owners decided to sail her to Europe and find a buyer. She departed from Pictou, Nova Scotia on 18 August 1833 with seven passengers, a small amount of freight and a large load of coal and arrived at Gravesend on the River Thames after a 25-day passage that included a stop at the Cowes, Isle of Wight for a fresh coat of paint.[2]

Aside from a one-day pause to clean her boilers, the ship had crossed non-stop using its steam engines. Royal William, which initially sold for £10,000, was eventually sold to the Spanish Navy which renamed her Isabel Segunda (after Queen Isabella II.[2] She served for many years and earned the distinction of being the first steam warship to fire in anger, at Zarauz on 14 April 1839 during the First Carlist War.[6]

On 8 January 1860, Isabel Segunda was driven ashore and wrecked at Algeciras.[7]

Legacy

[edit]

One of Royal William's co-owners was Halifax merchant Samuel Cunard, who drew important lessons from the ship which he applied when he founded the Cunard Steamship Company a few years later.[2]

In the town of Pictou, there is a Royal Canadian Sea Cadet Corps named after this vessel. A large wooden model of Royal William is on display at the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic in Halifax.[5]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Boileau, John (2006). Samuel Cunard: Nova Scotia's Master of the North Atlantic. Formac Publishing Company Limited. p. 44. ISBN 978-0-88780-712-1.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Langley, John G. (2006). Steam Lion: A Biography of Samuel Cunard. Brick Tower Press. ISBN 978-1-883283-50-6.
  3. ^ Denison 1955, p. 157
  4. ^ a b c Blakeley, Phyllis R. (1976). "Cunard, Sir Samuel". In Halpenny, Francess G (ed.). Dictionary of Canadian Biography. Vol. IX (1861–1870) (online ed.). University of Toronto Press.
  5. ^ a b c "Model of SS Royal William at the Maritime Museum" (Press release). Nova Scotia Museum. August 18, 2005.
  6. ^ "Noticias de España; San Sebastián". El comercio. Madrid. 24 April 1839. p. 1.
  7. ^ "Spain". The Royal Cornwall Gazette, Falmouth Packet and General Advertiser. No. 2953. Truro. 27 January 1860. p. 2.

Bibliography

[edit]
  • Marcil, Eileen Reid (2020). The PS Royal William of Quebec. Montreal: Baraka Books.
  • Denison, Merrill (1955). The Barley and the Stream: The Molson Story. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart Limited.
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