HMS Lord Warden

Ship of the Lord Clyde class of armoured frigates

HMS Lord Warden was the second and last ship of the wooden hulled of armoured frigates built for the Royal Navy (RN) during the 1860s. She and her sister ship, , were the heaviest wooden ships ever built and were also the fastest steaming wooden ships. They were also the slowest sailing ironclads in the RN. Lord Warden had a low centre of gravity which meant that she rolled very badly; she was said to be second only to her sister as the worst roller in the Victorian fleet. This characteristic was so dramatic that when the rolling propensities of ships were compared, it was usual to say "as bad a roller as the ", the Lord Clydes being beyond compare. In sea trials in 1867 with , Lord Warden was taking water through her gun ports, while Bellerophon could have fought her main armament in safety. She was, however, very handy and sailed well in all weathers under sail or steam. Her crew consisted of 605 officers and ratings.

The ship had a single three cylinder horizontal return, connecting rod steam engine, made by Maudslay, Sons and Field, that drove a single propeller using steam provided by nine rectangular boilers. The engine produced during sea trials on 13 September 1867 which gave Lord Warden a speed of under steam. Lord Warden was ship rigged with three masts and had a sail area of To reduce drag, the funnels were telescopic and could be lowered. Her best speed under sail alone was , nearly the slowest of any British ironclad. The shell of the nine inch gun weighed while the gun itself weighed It had a muzzle velocity of and was rated with the ability to penetrate of wrought iron armour. The eight inch gun weighed ; it fired a shell at a muzzle velocity of and was credited with the ability to penetrate of armour. The seven inch gun weighed and fired a shell that was able penetrate of armour.

The entire side of Lord Wardens hull, except for the side of the upper deck, was protected by wrought iron armour that tapered from at the ends to amidships. It extended 6 feet (2 m) below the waterline. The forward chase guns on the upper deck were protected by 4.5 inch armour plates on the sides of the hull and a 4.5 inch transverse bulkhead to their rear protected them from raking fire. The armour was backed by of oak and the iron skin of the ship.

Lord Warden, named after the position of the Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, was ordered on 25 May 1863 from Chatham Naval Dockyard. She was laid down on 24 December 1863, The ship was commissioned in July 1867 to run her sea trials and completed on 30 August, for the cost of £328,998, or £322,843, exclusive of armament. After a few months service with the Channel Squadron, Lord Warden was posted to the Mediterranean. On 30 January 1868, the wooden steam frigate was caught by a squall whilst taking up her berth in Valletta Harbour, Malta. She collided with the Ottoman ironclad Mahmoudiah, knocking off her bowsprit and then collided with Lord Warden, damaging some of the latter's boats and an accommodation ladder. Endymion was reported to be undamaged. On 3 May, she ran aground in the Mediterranean. Repairs cost £2,409. A lieutenant was severely reprimanded and lost a year's seniority. Lord Warden relieved as the squadron flagship in 1869 and served in this position until 1875. In March 1872, Lord Clyde ran aground herself whilst attempting to rescue a British steamship that had gone aground off the island of Pantellaria. Attempts to lighten Lord Clyde enough to float her off were futile, but Lord Warden was able to pull the ship free and tow her to Malta for repair. In 1875, she returned to the UK for a refit that lasted until the following year. Upon recommissioning, Lord Warden was assigned to the First Reserve, where she served as a guardship in the Firth of Forth. Lord Warden was equipped in 1884 with torpedo launchers and torpedo nets before the ship was paid off the following year with her crew being transferred en masse to She was broken up in 1889.