History
HMS Speedy was one of five warships rushed into service, quickly built from green timber at Cataraqui in 1798, to help defend British Upper Canada from the perceived threat from the newly formed United States of America. That threat was later realised as the War of 1812, but Speedy would not survive to see service in that conflict. Speedy carried four-pound guns and had a 55 foot, two-masted hull plus a 20+ foot bowsprit, bringing her close to 80 feet in total length. In spite of her name, Speedy was considered quite slow for her era. Because she was constructed from improperly seasoned green timber, she almost immediately began to suffer problems with leaks and dry rot after her commissioning.
Read more about this topic: HMS Speedy (1798)
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