Duncan - class ship of the line ( 1859 ) The " Duncan " class of 101 - gun two - decker steam line - of - battle ships are considered by Professor Andrew Lambert to have been the " final statement of the British design progress " for steam two - deckers . The class consisted of HMS " Duncan " and HMS " Gibraltar " . The " Bulwark " class had identical hulls . HMS " Gibraltar " was the last wooden steam line - of - battleship to commission as a private ship in the Royal Navy . Design . The first British steam 101 - gun two - decker was the " St Jean d ' Acre " , which was ordered and laid down in 1851 and was " the first ship that can be directly attributed to Sir Baldwin Walker ' s influence . [ She was ] an expansion of the " Agamemnon " [ 91 - guns ] , her superior qualities were developed in the succeeding Conqueror and " Duncan " classes of 101 - gun ships . " The " Duncan " class were longer and broader versions of the Conqueror , which was a success as they were noticeably faster ( see table below ) . " The early steam battleships , such as the " Agamemnon " , combined a measure of speed under sail or steam with similar manoeuvring powers to the sailing ships . This persuaded Walker to try even longer hulls , the " Renown " being drawn out to and the " Bulwark " to . While the post - war ships , from their greater length and finer lines , reached higher speeds they did so at the expense of the facility and precision of their response to the helm . New ships such as the " Donegal " , 101 and " Renown " , 91 were considered slow in their stays . This lack of handiness was emphasised by their operating in company with older ships such the " St Jean d ' Acre " , 101 and " James Watt " , 91 which lacked speed , but tacked and wore far more easily . Lord Aukland had anticipated this problem in 1847 . " " Duncan " and " Gibraltar " " presented a very different appearance from the Baroque splendour of the early Eighteenth Century , with their regular outline bereft of almost all embellishment beyond the elliptical stern gallery and the figurehead and painted in the severe black and white bands of the era . These were the most striking and intimidating of all wooden warships , replacing elegance with majesty . As such they were fitting precursors for the industrial architecture of the iron - clads . " " * * " Note that " Gibraltar ' s " trial speed was undertaken without masts or stores . Source : Lambert Key dates . The following table shows key dates for the " Duncan class " . Career HMS " Duncan " . 10 February 1862 : Reduction in the number of guns carried in peacetime to 89 . 6 January 1864 : Commanded by Captain Robert Gibson , flagship of Vice - Admiral James Hope , North America and West Indies . Whilst serving on the North America and West Indies Station , Captain John Bythesea VC was carried on the books of " Duncan " as second captain from 1 April 1866 to Spring 1867 , for special service as Naval Attaché in Washington . 15 June 1867 – 10 September 1867 : Commanded by Captain George Hancock , Coast Guard , Leith ( Queensferry ) ( replacing " Trafalgar " ) . 10 September 1867 – 28 February 1870 : Commanded ( until paying off ) by Captain Charles Fellowes , Coast Guard , Leith ( and flagship of Commodore of John Walker Tarleton ' s Coast Guard squadron comprising " Duncan " , " Donegal " , " Revenge " , " Irresistible " , " Lion " , " Dauntless " and " Argus " ) . HMS " Repulse " replaced " Duncan " as Coast Guard , Queensferry by 20 August 1870 . 1 April 1873 – 1 January 1875 : Commanded by Captain George Willes Watson , Sheerness , replacing " Pembroke " . 1 January 1875 : Commanded by Captain Charles Thomas Curme , flagship of Vice - Admiral George Fowler Hastings , Sheerness . From some time in 1878 – 1 January 1879 : Commanded by Captain Thomas Bridgeman Lethbridge , Sheerness . 1 January 1879 – 27 July 1881 : Commanded by Captain Thomas Baker Martin Sulivan , Sheerness . Tenders : " Hydra " , " Porcupine " , " Trent " and " Wildfire " . 27 July 1881 – 31 December 1881 : Commanded ( until paying off at Sheerness ) by Captain John D ' Arcy , Sheerness ( replaced by the Naval Barracks at Sheerness , renamed " Duncan " , but retained with a small crew as " saluting ship " ) . In 1890 she was Chatham . Machinery probably removed . That year she was listed as harbour service and renamed " Pembroke " . 1895 : Receiving ship , Chatham . By September 1905 she had been renamed " Tenedos II " . 11 October 1910 Sold for breaking up at London for £7 , 525 . Career HMS " Gibraltar " . 8 September 1863 – December 1864 : Commanded ( from commissioning at Plymouth ) by Captain James Charles Prevost , Mediterranean Fleet . December 1864 – 12 January 1867 : Commanded ( until paying off at Plymouth ) by Captain Robert Coote , Mediterranean Fleet . 1871 onwards : Lent to the Belfast Training Ship Committee as training ship for boys in Belfast . 1889 : renamed " Grampian " . 16 March 1899 : Sold to Castle for breaking up at Charlton .