HMS Sprightly (1900)

HMS Sprightly was a B-class torpedo boat destroyer of the British Royal Navy. She was built speculatively by Laird, Son & Company, Birkenhead, pre-empting further orders for vessels of this type, and was purchased by the navy in 1901.

History
United Kingdom
Name:	HMS Sprightly
Builder:	Laird, Son & Co., Birkenhead
Laid down:	20 June 1899
Launched:	25 September 1900
Completed:	March 1902
Fate:	Scrapped, 1920
General characteristics
Class and type:	Lively-class destroyer
Displacement:	385 long tons (391 t)
Length:	219 ft (67 m)
Beam:	21.25 ft (6.5 m)
Draught:	8 ft 7 in (2.6 m)
Propulsion:	Vertical triple-expansion steam engines Coal-fired Normand boilers 6,250 hp (4,661 kW)
Speed:	30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph)
Armament:	1 × QF 12-pounder gun 3 × 6-pounder guns 3 × 18 inch (450 mm) torpedo tubes

Construction

Sprightly arrived at Plymouth from Birkenhead in late November 1901 for tests and fitting of navy equipment.[1] She was placed in the B division of the Fleet Reserve at Devonport in late March 1902.[2]

Operational history

Sprightly was commissioned at Devonport by Commander Roger Keyes on 13 May 1902,[3] with the crew of the destroyer Falcon, taking that ship's place in the instructional flotilla.[4] She took part in the fleet review held at Spithead on 16 August 1902 for the coronation of King Edward VII.[5]

References

1. "Naval & Military intelligence". The Times (36621). London. 25 November 1901. p. 10.
2. "Naval & Military intelligence". The Times (36726). London. 27 March 1902. p. 4.
3. "Naval & Military intelligence". The Times (36773). London. 21 May 1902. p. 10.
4. "Naval & Military intelligence". The Times (36764). London. 10 May 1902. p. 8.
5. "Naval Review at Spithead". The Times (36847). London. 15 August 1902. p. 5.

Bibliography

• Brassey, T. A., ed. (1898). The Naval Annual 1898. Portsmouth, UK: J Griffin and Co.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Chesneau, Roger & Kolesnik, Eugene M., eds. (1979). Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-133-5.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8.
• Dittmar, F.J.; Colledge, J.J. (1972). British Warships 1914–1919. Shepperton, UK: Ian Allan. ISBN 0-7110-0380-7.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Friedman, Norman (2009). British Destroyers: From Earliest Days to the Second World War. Barnsley, UK: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-049-9.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Gardiner, Robert & Gray, Randal, eds. (1985). Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-245-5.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Lyon, David (2001) [1996]. The First Destroyers. London: Caxton Editions. ISBN 1-84067-3648.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Manning, T. D. (1961). The British Destroyer. London: Putnam & Co. OCLC 6470051.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• March, Edgar J. (1966). British Destroyers: A History of Development, 1892–1953; Drawn by Admiralty Permission From Official Records & Returns, Ships' Covers & Building Plans. London: Seeley Service. OCLC 164893555.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)