"Naval Architect" Edward Reed Hand Written Letter Dated 1870 For Sale

When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

"Naval Architect" Edward Reed Hand Written Letter Dated 1870:
$249.99

Up for sale "Naval Architect" Edward Reed Hand Written Letter Dated 1870.

ES-9261

Sir Edward James Reed, KCB, FRS (20 September 1830 – 30 November 1906)

was a British naval architect, author, politician, and

railroad magnate. He was the Chief Constructor of the Royal Navy

from 1863 until 1870. He was a Liberal politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1874

to 1906.  Edward Reed was born in Sheerness,

Kent and was the son of John and Elizabeth Reed. He was a naval apprentice at

Sheerness and subsequently entered the School of Mathematics and Naval

Construction at Portsmouth. In 1851 he married Rosetta, the sister of Nathaniel

Barnaby. Barnaby was at that time a fellow student; he would

subsequently succeed Reed as Chief Constructor. In 1852 he entered employment

at Sheerness Dockyard, but resigned after a disagreement with the management.

He then worked in journalism, including editing the Mechanics' Magazine. In 1860, Reed was

appointed secretary of the newly formed Institute of Naval Architects.

In 1863, at the early age of 33,

succeeded Isaac Watts as Chief Constructor. His term

of office saw the final transition from wooden to ironclad warships. Notable warships constructed under

his direction included: HMS Bellerophon using an innovative

"bracket frame" system of construction in 1865. His tenure was marred

by intense controversy with the naval officer, MP and inventor Captain Cowper Phipps Coles. This culminated in the

funding by Parliament of a new battleship, HMS Captain, to be built to Coles'

requirement without reference to Reed's department and contrary to his advice.

Embittered, Reed resigned in July 1870. "His departure was described as a

national disaster by the Controller, Vice-Admiral Robert Spencer Robinson." The

following September, the Captain foundered in a gale with the loss of

nearly 500 lives, including Captain Coles. He

was a trenchant, though ultimately reactionary, critic of the policy of his

successors as Chief Constructor. After leaving the Admiralty, he continued to

design warships for the navies of other nations. These included Brazil,

Germany, Chile and Japan. A number of these vessels were subsequently purchased

by the Royal Navy. Reed was appointed Companion of the Bath (CB) in 1868, during

his term as Chief Constructor, and subsequently Knight Commander of the Bath (KCB) in

1880. He was elected Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 1876.

He was also a Knight

Commander of the Imperial Russian Order of St Stanislus, a Knight of

the Austrian Order of Franz Joseph, and of the Turkish

Order of the Medjidie. At Reed's

suggestion, the Channel Tubular Railway Preliminary Company was founded in

London in 1892, a company with a capital of £ 40,000, whose capital was to be

raised through the issue of 250,000 Parts de Fondateurs. The company, led by

Reed, planned the construction of a railroad tunnel through the [English

Channel], which would allow travelers to reach their destination faster than

would be possible with a boat crossing. The project failed due to political

considerations.

THOMAS ANDREWS, HARLAND & WOLFF'S NAVAL ARCHITECT, COLORIZED PORTRAIT, NICE

$7.88

RARE "Naval Architect" William Froude Hand Written 2 Pg Letter COA

$599.99

RARE "Naval Architect" William Froude Hand Written 4 Pg Letter COA

$699.99