Wooden walls of England

Or the former Duguay-Trouin, captured 3/11/1805 and eventually, shamefully, sunk 2/12/1949.
Too expensive for restoration in post war Britain she was offered to France, who declined for similar reasons. So she was towed out to the east of the Isle of Wight and sunk by explosive charge.

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Implacable being towed out to be scuttled

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Note that the stern facia has been removed, and is displayed at Greenwich

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Implacable sinking

A video, in French, showing the ship being scuttled and demonstrating that jerky camera movement is nothing new – http://www.wat.tv/video/16mm-1949-fin-duguay-trouin-2fgc7_2jy7f_.html

Subsequently the World Ship Trust was founded, which features the Implacable’s stern on it’s badge with the motto “Implacable – never again“.

That is HMS Implacable Some where on the British Pathe site is a film of the Royal Navy trying to blow her up in front of the French but I can’t find it at the moment!

Nope, no trickery on my part – there was only one generic type of ship referenced by that term, so you are right. (Hope you knew the answer, rather than looking it up on the net…!)

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HMS Wellesley was launched in Bombay in 1815, built by the East India Company at a cost of £55,147. She was a 74 gun third rate ship of the line, and during her service captured Karachi, in 1839, and took part in the first Opium War (1839-42) which lead to the British taking control of Hong Kong. Despite a common misconception, she was actually named after Lord Mornington – Richard Wellesley, the elder brother of the Duke of Wellington – who had been Governor General of India between 1798 and 1805 and Foreign Secretary from 1809 to 1812.

Her longevity (125 years old when she was sunk) was almost certainly due to the fact that she was built from Indian teak. Although this would have made her heavier than a similar ship built from oak, she would be much stronger; after an exchange of gunfire with shore batteries at Chusan she was found to have 27 Chinese cannonballs embedded in her sides. Teak exudes a natural oil which prevents rot and helps preserve. If she hadn’t been sunk by the Luftwaffe in 1940, much to Lord Haw Haw’s delight, she would probably still be with us today.

Reminds me of the other survivor of Trafalgar that was deliberately sunk that same decade…

Could also include Minesweepers before they the ‘plastic ones’ .

HMS Wellesley in 1940 by those dreadful Germans in an air attack(unless this is a trick question and you mean MTB/MGB’s?)