HMAS Protector (1884)

HMCS Protector was a large flat-iron gunboat commissioned and purchased by the South Australian government in 1884, for the purpose of defending the local coastline against possible attacks in the aftermath of the ‘Russian scare', of the 1870s. She arrived in Adelaide in September 1884 and subsequently served in the Boxer Rebellion, World War I and World War II.During July 1943, Protector was requisitioned for war service by the US Army. On the way to New Guinea and off Gladstone, she was damaged in a collision with a tug and abandoned. The hull was subsequently taken to Heron Island off the Queensland coast and later sunk for use as a breakwater. Her rusting remains are still visible to this day.Description and armamentBuilt at William Armstrong & Co, Newcastle-on-Tyne, England, Protector was built to a standard type F1 flat-iron gunboat design, but was one of the largest of its type, and was classified as a light cruiser, with a displacement of 920 tons. Her length was 180ft, with two compound surface-condensing engines that produced. Her top speed was. To conserve fuel (coal) she was also originally rigged as a topsail schooner.For her size, Protector was exceptionally heavily armed. Her largest weapon was the 8in Armstrong rifled breech-loading gun mounted at the bow. The gun weighed 12 tons and could fire a 180lb shell using a charge of 90lb of black powder.