HMS Nonsuch explained

Several vessels of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Nonsuch, presumably named after Nonsuch Palace:

• , a 38-gun great ship, rebuilt from a previous ship and sold c. 1645
• , a 34-gun ship launched in 1646 and wrecked 1664
• , an 8-gun ketch launched in 1650 that the Royal Navy purchased in 1654 and sold in 1667; later as the merchant vessel Nonsuch she made the trading voyage establishing the Hudson's Bay Company
  • , a 36-gun fifth rate launched in 1668. Upgraded to a 42-gun fourth rate in 1669, but reverted to 36-gun fifth rate in 1691. She was captured in 1695 by the French privateer, a 5-gun hoy launched in 1686 and sold 1714
• , a 48-gun fourth-rate ship of the line, launched in 1696, rebuilt 1717, and broken up in 1745
• , a 50-gun fourth-rate ship of the line in service from 1741 to 1766
• , a 64-gun third-rate ship of the line launched in 1774, used as a floating battery from 1794, and broken up in 1802
• , an launched in 1915 and sold in 1921
• , a sloop laid down in February 1945 and canceled in October of that year
• , the former German Type 1936A ('Narvik') destroyer taken after the end of World War II, and scrapped in 1949

Battle honours

• Kentish Knock 1652
• Portland 1653
• Gabbard 1653
• Texel 1673
• St. Lucia 1778
• The Saints 1782
• Jutland 1916^[1]

See also

• , a Canadian Forces Naval Reserve division in Edmonton, Alberta
• HMS Nonsuch is used as a sample ship name by the Royal Navy, signifying a hypothetical vessel, or a "ghost consort"
• A fictional HMS Nonsuch (a 74-gun ship of the line) appears in the tales of Horatio Hornblower

Notes and References

1. Web site: HMCS Nonsuch. 9 March 2005.