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How The HMS Terror Went From Warship To Ghost Ship
The most infamous ship of the 19th century
The HMS Terror was laid down in September of 1812. Some say that names hold great power, and that was true for the Terror, which would go on to become one of the most fearsome and infamous of the 19th century. The ship was completed in the summer of 1813 and the newly constructed vessel would immediately be pressed into service against the United States during the War of 1812.
The HMS Terror was a specialized bomb ship. Instead of being armed with cannons, bomb ships were fitted with mortars in the bow and the stern. Bomb ships would sit back, screened by other traditional ships, and lob mortars and bombs at their target. Bomb ships were designed to shell fortified coastal positions, usually as the prelude to a naval invasion. At the time, bomb ships were new and feared, hence the name.
While most ships in the feared British Navy served in anonymity, the HMS Terror would go on to have one of the strangest lifespans out of any ship of this era. The HMS Terror would complete the transformation from a state-of-the-art warship to a ghost ship after 35 long years of service.
