HMS Shah in Anglo-Zulu War
SHAH
Designed by Sir Edward Reed, the
Shah was one of three iron-hulled fully-rigged broadside frigates built as an answer to the large wooden-hulled US frigates of the
Wampanoag class.
Shah had three complete decks and a watertight lateral bulkhead which extended up to the main deck. She was an improved
Inconstant, with an increased beam which improved stiffness. In addition to the broadside battery of 64pdr and 7in (178mm) guns, she had one 9in (229mm) gun mounted at each end of the main deck, allowing longitudinal fire through recessed ports. There was no armour protection.
Shah was in an inconclusive action with the renegade Peruvian turret ship
Huascar in May 1877.
During the Anglo-Zulu war of 1879 she was diverted to South Africa with a crew of over 100 officers and men of the 88th Connaught Rangers under a Captain Baldwin and Lieutenant Wyncow, and a detachment of the Royal Artillery belonging to No. 8 Battery 7th Brigade.
It was also decided to land a strong naval brigade from the ship which numbered 394 officers and men and was the largest naval brigade landed on these shores. It consisted of naval seamen, Royal Marine Artillery, and Royal Marine Light Infantry.
Displacement: 6250t
Dimensions: 334ft x 52ft x 25ft 5in (101.8m x 15.8m x 8m)
Machinery: single screw, horizontal single expansion; 7480hp
Armament: two 9in (229mm), 16 7in (178mm), eight 64pdr
Armour: not applicable
Speed: 16.2 knots
Range: 6840nm (12,668km) at 10 knots
Complement: 600
Pictured: As the powerful frigate Shah was unable to defeat Huascar, it became British policy to have an ironclad on most foreign stations after 1877.