HMS Dartmouth
.jpg){kind=link}
Marker: recorded wreck position (Date not recorded).
Key facts
| Name | HMS Dartmouth | Wikidata label |
|---|---|---|
| Ship type | fifth-rate frigate | Wikidata P31 instance of |
| Nationality / flag | United Kingdom | Wikidata P137 operator → P17 country |
| Operator | Royal Navy | Wikidata P137 operator |
| Sea / ocean | Inner Seas | Natural Earth marine areas (public domain), point-in-polygon |
| Nearest coast | Scotland | official dataset |
| Position | 56.5030, -5.7003 | Historic Environment Scotland Historic MPAs, wreck position (OGL v3) |
| Historic MPA | Dartmouth Historic MPA (HMPA6) | Historic Environment Scotland |
| Designated | 2013-11-01 | Historic Environment Scotland |
About the wreck
The Dartnouth was a fifth-rate warship of the Commonwealth of England's naval forces, one of six such ships ordered on 28 December 1654, all six from the state dockyards (the others were Norwich, Pembroke, Cheriton, Wakefield, and Oxford). She was built by Master Shipwright John Tippetts at Portsmouth Dockyard, and was launched on 22 September 1655 as a 22-gun fifth rate. She cost £1.693-5-od to build (or £6.10.0d per ton for a total of 2601⁄2 tons bm. She was named Dartmouth to commemorate the capture of that town by Parliamentary forces under Thomas Fairfax in January 1646.
Her length was recorded as 80 feet 0 inches (24.4 metres) on the keel for tonnage calculation. The breadth was 24 feet 9 inches (7.5 metres) with a depth in hold of 10 ft 0 in (3.0 m). The tonnage was thus calculated at 26062⁄94 bm tons.
She was originally armed with 22 guns, comprising 18 demi-culverins on the single gundeck and 4 sakers on the quarterdeck. At the Restoration in 1660 she was taken into the Royal Navy as HMS Dartmouth. By 1665 she actually carried 28 guns, comprising the 18 demi-culverins on the gundeck, and 10 sakers on the quarterdeck.
Diving & visiting
This site lies within a Historic Marine Protected Area designated under the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010. Check the HES designation record for what activities are permitted before diving.
In 1973, divers from Bristol discovered a wreck on the north coast of Eilean Rudha an Ridire, an island in the Sound of Mull. A recovered brass ship's bell confirmed the wreck as the Dartmouth. The site underwent three years of archaeological survey. Twenty iron guns were identified, and parts of the ship's hull were recovered for closer examination. A varied selection of 17th century military, navigational, medical and domestic items were also recovered. The archaeological study supported traditional accounts of the ship's wrecking, and revealed that parts of Dartmouth's construction differed from conventional methods used during the period.
On 11 April 1974, the wrecksite was one of the first to be designated under the Protection of Wrecks Act. It was redesignated on 25 June 1992.
Location
- Recorded position: 56.5030, -5.7003 (Historic Environment Scotland Historic MPAs, wreck position (OGL v3); may be approximate)
- Sea / ocean: Inner Seas
- Nearest coast: Scotland
Wreck positions on this site are for interest only and are not for navigation. Many wrecks are war graves or legally protected: never disturb human remains or remove artefacts, and check local law before diving.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article English ship Dartmouth (1655) (revision 1375269797), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section and section(s) “Discovery of the Wreck”; condensed by selecting paragraphs; citations and formatting removed. No text added. This excerpt is available under the same licence.
Contains Historic Environment Scotland data © Historic Environment Scotland – Scottish Charity No. SC045925 2026, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Wreck facts from Wikidata (CC0).
Nearby wrecks
- Duart Point 6 km
- Mingary 31 km
- HMS Sir Galahad 1957 · 35 km
- HMS Jason 1917 · 49 km
- HMS Grampus 65 km
- HMS K13 1917 · 76 km
Browse more: UK & Ireland wrecks · wrecks off Scotland · Inner Seas