HMS Revenge (1577)
"Sir Richard Grenville's Gallant Defence of the Revenge", print from 1804
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| History | |
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 England
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| Name: | Revenge |
| Builder: | Mathew Baker at Deptford Royal Dockyard |
| Cost: | £4,000 (£1.03 million today) |
| Launched: | 1577 |
| Fate: |
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| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Race-built galleon |
| Tons burthen: | 440 |
| Length: | 140 ft (43 m) |
| Sail plan: | Early full-rigged ship |
| Complement: | Approx. 260 |
| Armament: |
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Revenge was an English race-built galleon of 46 guns, built in 1577 and captured by the Spanish in 1591, sinking soon afterwards. She was the first of 13 English and Royal Navy ships to bear the name.
Revenge was built at a cost of £4,000 at the Royal Dockyard, Deptford in 1577 by Master Shipwright Mathew Baker. Her race-built design was to usher in a new style of ship building that would revolutionise naval warfare for the next three hundred years. A comparatively small vessel, weighing about 400 tons, being about half the size of the Henri Grâce à Dieu, Revenge was rated as a galleon.
The armament of ships of this period was fluid; guns might be added, removed or changed for different types for dozens of reasons. Revenge was particularly heavily armed during her last cruise: she carried 20 heavy demi-cannon, culverins and demi-culverins on her gun deck, where the sailors slept. On her upper decks were more demi-culverins, sakers, and a variety of light weapons, including swivel-mounted breech-loaders, called "fowlers" or "falcons".
In 1587, Sir Francis Drake sailed to the Spanish coast and destroyed much materiel that Philip II had accumulated in preparation for the Armada. In consequence, Spanish plans for the invasion of England were put off until the following year.
In early 1588, Drake moved his flag from Elizabeth Bonaventure to Revenge, which was considered to be the best by far of the new ships. On 29 July 1588 the Battle of Gravelines (named after a Flemish town near Calais), was concluded as one of the fiercest and most decisive battles engaged in during these years. At the outset of the conflict, Revenge proved worthy of her reputation. Following Revenge at the head of the line, the English fleet engaged their broadsides into the Spanish Armada. Many Spanish vessels were severely damaged, although only a few sank or ran aground. However, it was only when fireships were sent in that the Spanish broke their formation and sailed into the North Sea. The English fleet monitored them until they drew level with Edinburgh, and then returned to port.
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