# HMS Black Eagle

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For other ships with the same name, see [HMS Firebrand](/source/HMS_Firebrand).

Oscillating paddlewheel engines of HMS Black Eagle History United Kingdom Name Firebrand (1831–1843) Black Eagle (1843–1876) Ordered 28 January 1831 Builder Merchant's yard, Limehouse Cost £19,964[1] Laid down April 1831 Launched 11 July 1831 Commissioned 11 July 1831 Fate Broken up, March 1876 General characteristics [1] Class & type Firebrand-class steam vessel Displacement As built: 510 long tons (520 t) Tons burthen As built: 495 bm From 1843: 540 bm Length As built: 155 ft 3 in (47.3 m) From 1843: 168 ft 3 in (51.3 m) Beam 26 ft 5 in (8.1 m) Depth of hold 14 ft 10 in (4.5 m) Propulsion As built: Butterley & Co. 140 nhp 2-cylinder side lever steam engine Paddle wheel From 1833: Maudslay 120 nhp steam engine Morgan paddlewheels From 1843: 'Tubulous boilers' Penn 260 nhp steam engine Paddlewheels Complement 80 Armament As built: 6 × 9-pounder (131⁄2cwt) gun Later: 1 × 32-pounder (25cwt) pivot gun 2 × 32-pounder (17cwt) carronades

*Firebrand* emerging from Grand Harbour, Valetta, Malta, 1832, by Nicolas S. Cammillieri

**HMS *Firebrand*** was a wooden paddle vessel launched in 1831. She was rebuilt in 1843, renamed **HMS *Black Eagle*** and employed as an [Admiralty](/source/British_Admiralty) steam yacht. She was broken up in 1876.

## Construction and rebuild

Built at Merchant's Yard, [Limehouse](/source/Limehouse) as a wooden paddle vessel, *Firebrand* was launched on 11 July 1831.[2] In 1832 her original Butterley side lever steam engine was removed and replaced in 1833 by a Maudsley, and Morgan's paddlewheels were fitted. She was rebuilt in 1843, gaining 13 feet (4.0 m) in length, and receiving an [oscillating engine](/source/Marine_steam_engine#Oscillating) manufactured by [John Penn and Sons](/source/John_Penn_and_Sons). Notably, Penn doubled the power output without increasing either the weight or space occupied.[3] On 29 October 1853, she assisted in the refloating of [HMS *Rodney*](/source/HMS_Rodney_(1833)), which had run aground in the [Dardanelles](/source/Dardanelles).[4] *Firebrand* was renamed *Black Eagle* on 5 February 1842.[1]

In 1856,[5] the *Black Eagle* and the paddle-wheel troopship [*Dee*](/source/HMS_Dee_(1832)) were used in a trial of J Wethered's apparatus for [superheated steam](/source/Superheated_steam). This produced an economy of fuel of 18% in the *Black Eagle*, and 31% in the *Dee*.[6]

## Royal yacht

Queen Victoria embarking from the *Black Eagle* on her visit to HMS *Queen* at Portsmouth, 1 March 1842

She was based at [Woolwich](/source/Woolwich) in south-east London and was part of the [Royal Squadron](/source/Royal_Squadron_(Royal_Navy)) alongside the [royal yacht](/source/Royal_yacht). The *Black Eagle* was eventually [broken up](/source/Ship_breaking) at [Portsmouth](/source/Portsmouth) in March 1876.[7] A model of the vessel is in the collection of the [National Maritime Museum](/source/National_Maritime_Museum).[8]

## Figurehead

The [figurehead](/source/Figurehead_(object)) of *Black Eagle* depicts a black eagle with gold beak, talons and wing trimmings. It is also decorated with a red and gold crown on the breast.

Evidence suggests that the original figurehead, carved to suit its former name of *Firebrand*, was carved by George Faldo of [London](/source/London), with an estimated cost of [£](/source/Pound_sterling)24 12s 8d (approximately £2,091 today).[9]

In an exchange of letters in 1846, the [admiral-superintendent](/source/Admiral-superintendent) at [Portsmouth](/source/Portsmouth) invited James Hellyer of [Hellyer & Sons](/source/Hellyer_%26_Sons) to propose a new figurehead for *Black Eagle* following her rebuild.[10]

Engines of the *Black Eagle*

The new ship honoured the Prussian royal family who frequently cruised in her; King [Frederick I of Prussia](/source/Frederick_I_of_Prussia) was the maternal cousin of King [William III](/source/William_III_of_England) and supplier of troops to support the British effort during the [War of the Spanish Succession](/source/War_of_the_Spanish_Succession). The black eagle became the symbol of a united Germany and featured on the [Order of the Black Eagle](/source/Order_of_the_Black_Eagle) military medal; the highest Prussian Order of chivalry.[11] The eagle that sits centrally within the medal's design is similar in appearance to Hellyer's figurehead carving.

Upon the ship's breaking up, the figurehead stood for some time in the garden of Admiralty House in Portsmouth. It can be seen as part of the collection at the [National Museum of the Royal Navy, Portsmouth](/source/National_Museum_of_the_Royal_Navy%2C_Portsmouth).[12]

## References

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-RW_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-RW_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-RW_1-2) Winfield (2004), p.162

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["HMS Black Eagle in Naval Data Base"](https://web.archive.org/web/20110615011239/http://www.pbenyon.plus.com/18-1900/B/00570.html). Archived from [the original](http://www.pbenyon.plus.com/18-1900/B/00570.html) on 15 June 2011. Retrieved 30 December 2010.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-IME_3-0)** ["Past Presidents"](http://www.imeche.org/about-us/imeche-engineering-history/presidents#), *Institution of Mechanical Engineers*, pp. 1858–59 John Penn

1. **[^](#cite_ref-MC211153_4-0)** "The Combined Fleets of England and France". *The Morning Chronicle*. No. 27117. London. 21 November 1853.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** Brown, *Before the ironclad*, page 51 says that the *Black Eagle* was used to try Wethered's superheater in 1856; Brown does not mention that the *Dee* was also used. Busk, *The navies of the world*, page 152 makes it clear that the trials of superheaters on the *Dee* and the *Black Eagle* were about the same time.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** Busk, Hans (1859), *The navies of the world*, Routledge, Warnes and Routledge, p. 152

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** ["HMS Black Eagle"](http://phillips-carpenter.pbworks.com/w/page/16396287/HMS-Black-Eagle), *Phillips and Carpenter Family History*

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** [Paddle Yacht ‘Black Eagle’ 1831 (SLR0736)](http://www.nmm.ac.uk/collections/explore/object.cfm?ID=SLR0736&picture=2) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20101123154656/http://www.nmm.ac.uk/collections/explore/object.cfm?ID=SLR0736) 2010-11-23 at the [Wayback Machine](/source/Wayback_Machine)

1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** ["Inflation calculator"](https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/monetary-policy/inflation/inflation-calculator). *www.bankofengland.co.uk*. Retrieved 12 February 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** Pulvertaft, David (2009). *The Warship Figureheads of Portsmouth* (Illustrated ed.). UK: The History Press. p. 66. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0752450766](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0752450766).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-11)** Yisela (20 August 2018). ["The Order of the Black Eagle - Kingdom of Prussia Medals"](https://www.identifymedals.com/database/medals-by-period/pre-ww1-medals/the-order-of-the-black-eagle/). Retrieved 12 February 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-12)** ["Collections | National Museum of the Royal Navy"](https://www.nmrn.org.uk/collections). *www.nmrn.org.uk*. Retrieved 12 February 2025.

## Bibliography

- Jones, Colin (1996). "Entente Cordiale, 1865". In McLean, David & [Preston, Antony](/source/Antony_Preston) (eds.). *Warship 1996*. London: Conway Maritime Press. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [0-85177-685-X](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-85177-685-X).

- Lyon, David & Winfield, Rif (2004). *The Sail and Steam Navy List: All the Ships of the Royal Navy 1815–1889*. Chatham Publishing. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-1-86176-032-6](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-86176-032-6). [OCLC](/source/OCLC_(identifier)) [52620555](https://search.worldcat.org/oclc/52620555).

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [HMS Black Eagle](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Black_Eagle) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Black_Eagle?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.