List of ships of the Queensland Maritime Defence Force

In 1884, following the recommendations of the Jervois-Scratchley reports, the Queensland Marine Defence Force was established. To equip the new force, the Queensland colonial government purchased two gunboats and a torpedo boat. Queensland bought eight more vessels to create the second largest fleet in the Australian colonies behind Victoria.[1] With the federation of the Australian colonies, those vessels still in service joined the Commonwealth Naval Forces in 1901 and the Royal Australian Navy when it was formed in 1911. No ship ever met the enemy in battle or fell victim to enemy action despite the fact that most went on too long, albeit in some cases humble, careers in both naval and private hands past World War II.[2]

Two gunboats on the river at Bundaberg, Queensland, ca. 1898. Paluma in the foreground and Gayundah on the right.

Vessels in alphabetical order

B
Name Type Class Dates Displacement Armament Notes References
Bonito Auxiliary gunboat – 1884–unknown 450 tons 1 x 64 pdr gun – [3]
Bream Auxiliary gunboat – 1884–unknown 450 tons 1 x 5-inch gun Dive wreck Tangalooma [3][4]

D
Name Type Class Dates Displacement Armament Notes References
Dolphin Auxiliary gunboat – 1884–unknown 450 tons 1 x 5-inch gun Dive wreck Tangalooma [3][4]

G
Name Type Class Dates Displacement Armament Speed Notes References
Gayundah Gunboat Gayundah class 1884–1918 360 tons 1 x 8-inch gun; 1 x 6-inch gun; 2 x 1.5-inch gun; 2 machine-guns 10.5 knots Breakwater Woody Point [5][6]

M
Name Type Class Dates Displacement Armament Speed Notes References
Midge Torpedo launch – 1887–1912 – 1 x 3-pdr gun; 2 x machine-guns; two x 14-inch torpedo dropping gear – – [7]
Miner Mining tender – 1887–1901 65 tons – 8 knots Breakwater Bishop Island [7][8]
Mosquito Torpedo boat – 1884–1910 – – – First warship in Queensland service; served in the RAN between 1901 and 1910. [3]

O
Name Type Class Dates Displacement Armament Speed Notes References
Otter Patrol vessel – 1887–1906 220 tons 1 x 5-inch gun (replaced later with 1 x 64-pdr gun) – Requisitioned by RAN in World War I and World War II. [3]

P
Name Type Class Dates Displacement Armament Speed Notes References
Paluma Gunboat Gayundah class 1884–1916 360 tons 1 x 8-inch gun; 1 x 6-inch gun; 2 x 1.5-inch gun; 2 x machine-guns 10.5 knots – [5]
Pumba Auxiliary gunboat – 1884–1901 450 tons 1 x 5-inch guns – Rebuilt in 1958 and renamed Enterprise, served as a civilian cargo vessel into the 1970s. [3]

S
Name Type Class Dates Displacement Armament Speed Notes References
Stingaree Auxiliary gunboat – 1984–1895 450 tons 1 x 5-inch gun – Dive wreck Tangalooma [3][4]

Vessels in chronological order by class

Torpedo boat

Gayundah-class gunboats

Patrol vessel

Auxiliary gunboats

Torpedo launch

Mining tender

See also

Notes
  1. Gillett 1977, p. 105.
  2. Gillett 1977, pp. 107–111.
  3. Gillett 1977, p. 110.
  4. Diving the Gold Coast.
  5. Gillett 1977, p. 109.
  6. Royal Australian Navy.
  7. Gillett 1977, p. 111.
  8. McLeod 1974, pp. 23–24.

References
  • Banks, Ian. "Diving the Gold Coast". Archived from the original on 4 April 2012. Retrieved 31 May 2013.
  • Gillett, Ross (1977). Warships of Australia. Graham, Colin (illus). Adelaide, South Australia: Rigby. ISBN 0-7270-0472-7.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • "HMAS Gayundah". Royal Australian Navy. Retrieved 31 May 2013.
  • McLeod, Roderick (1974). History Along the Waterways: The Abandoned Hulks of the Brisbane River and Moreton Bay (PDF). Royal Historical Society of Queensland. OCLC 729223232.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
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