HMS Erne explained

The Royal Navy has four vessels with the name HMS Erne; the name comes from the white-tailed eagle, also known as the erne.

• The 20-gun sixth-rate post ship, launched in 1813 and wrecked in 1819 on the Isle of Sal, Cape Verde.^[1]
• The Albacore-class gunboat launched in 1856 and broken up in 1874.
• The torpedo boat destroyer launched in 1903 and wrecked in 1915 at Rattray Head.
• The sloop launched in 1939, renamed Wessex in 1952, and broken up in 1965.

References

• • Gossett, William Patrick (1986) The lost ships of the Royal Navy, 1793-1900. (London:Mansell).

Notes and References

1. Gossett (1986), p.99.