Essential Information
| Type | Events and festivals |
|---|---|
| Location |
Other
|
| Date and Times | Tuesday 23 September 2025 l 7.30-8.30pm (doors open from 7pm) |
| Prices | Adult: £30 l Child: £15 |
| Just £20 for Museum Members. Not a member? Join now |
Explore the story of HMS Captain alongside naval historians, descendants of its designer and crew and other VIPs in this special lecture at the Royal Geographical Society.
The Captain (1869) was a revolutionary warship, embodying the technological innovation of Victorian Britain, with rotating armoured turrets, wrought iron armour and steam propulsion as well as sails. At first appearance the ship was formidable, intended to cross oceans with its powerful guns and present a stout defence of British interests, including protecting Canada against invasion from the south.
Tragically, only five months after its commission, on 7 September 1870 HMS Captain capsized off Cape Finisterre in a severe gale. Nearly 500 officers and men, including Captain Hugh Burgoyne VC and the ship’s designer Captain Cowper Phipps Coles CB, drowned. Only 18 survivors managed to reach the rocky Spanish coast, relaying the horrifying news to Queen Victoria (whose late husband Prince Albert, had supported the design) and a shocked Britain.
Since 2021, the University of Wolverhampton’s ‘Find the Captain’ project has led an international effort to find the wreck of this largely forgotten ironclad man-o-war. Exploration of the Captain's remains will support further investigation into what happened between design, execution and launch that resulted in the ship being so overweight and unstable, that a freak storm could turn a uniquely British triumph into tragedy.
The event at the Royal Geographical Society features historians Professor Andrew Lambert (Professor of Naval History at King’s College, London), Dr Howard Fuller (Reader in War Studies at the University of Wolverhampton) and Dan Snow (broadcaster and founder of the History Hit podcast). Explore a small exhibition of artifacts associated with the Captain and hear from the panel about this revolutionary warship, explore the part it played in changing the face of naval warfare, and follow the continuing extraordinary story of HMS Captain.
Location: This event will take place at the Royal Geographical Society in the Ondaatje Lecture Theatre. Address: 1 Kensington Gore, London, SW7 2AR.
Timings:
- 7pm: doors open
- 7.30-8.30pm: lecture
Tickets are £30 for adults and £15 for children: book online here.
Royal Museums Greenwich Members enjoy discounted entry at just £20: book online here using your Membership card details.
Meet the panel
Meet the panel
1 / 3
Dan Snow
2 / 3
Howard Fuller
3 / 3
Andrew Lambert
What’s On
Find more maritime history events you may be interested in.
Main image: The foundering of HMS Captain © Geoff Hunt PRSMA, used with permission