English ship Gloucester (1654)
Johan Danckerts (c. 1682), The Wreck of the Gloucester off Yarmouth, 6 May 1682, Royal Museums Greenwich | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Commonwealth of England | |
| Name | Gloucester |
| Namesake | Siege of Gloucester, 1643 |
| Ordered | December 1652 |
| Builder | Matthew Graves, Limehouse |
| Cost | £5,473 |
| Launched | probably March 1654 |
| Commissioned | Margate |
| England | |
| Owner | Royal Navy |
| Acquired | 1660 |
| Renamed | Gloucester |
| Fate | Wrecked, 6 May 1682 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Speaker-class (third rate) |
| Tons burthen | 75511⁄94 (bm) |
| Length | 117 ft (35.7 m) (keel) |
| Beam | 34 ft 10 in (10.6 m) |
| Depth of hold | 14 ft 6 in (4.4 m) |
| Sail plan | Full-rigged ship |
| Complement | 50 guns (as built); 60 guns (1677) |
The English frigate Gloucester (spelt Glocester by contemporary sources) was a Speaker-class third rate, built for the Navy of the Commonwealth of England. The ship was ordered in December 1652 as part of the unprecedented expansion of the English navy during this period, during which 207 warships, mainly described as frigates, were built. She was named to commemorate the Parliamentary forces' successful defence of the English city of Gloucester during the 1643 siege by Royalist forces, rather than directly after the city itself. She was built by contract with shipwright Matthew Graves at Limehouse in East London, and launched in 1654.