Sinking of the Rochdale and the Prince of Wales The Rochdale " and the " Prince of Wales were two troop ships that sank in Dublin Bay in 1807 . Dublin Port had long been dangerous because it was accessible only at high tide and was subject to sudden storms . Many ships were lost while waiting for the tide , but little was done until this disaster . The impact of 400 bodies being washed up on an urban shore had an effect on public and official opinion . This event was the impetus to the building of Dún Laoghaire Harbour . On November 19 , 1807 several ships left Dublin carrying troops bound for the Napoleonic war . The next day , two ships , the brig " Rochdale " and H . M . Packet ship " Prince of Wales " , having been caught in gale force winds and heavy snow , were lost . Troops on the Prince of Wales may have been deliberately locked below deck while the ship ’ s captain and crew escaped . No lifeboat was launched . There was looting . Maritime background . This tragedy was the impetus to the building of Dún Laoghaire Harbour , which was initially called “ Dunleary ” , then “ Kingstown ” , and now “ Dún Laoghaire ” . Dublin port was hampered by a sandbar , which meant that ships could enter or leave only at high tide . A solution , the building of the North Bull Wall , had been identified by Vice - Admiral William Bligh in 1800 . If there was a storm , a ship would have to ride out , waiting for the tide , the storm in the open sea . " The bay of Dublin has perhaps been more fatal to seamen and ships than any in the world , for a ship once caught in it in a gale of wind from ENE to SSE must ride it out at anchors or go on shore , and from the nature of that shore the whole of the crews almost invariably have perished . " - Captain Charles Malcolm of George IV ' s royal yacht . A pier had been built at Dún Laoghaire , now known as the “ coal harbour ” , in 1767 , but it had rapidly silted up . The early nineteenth century was unusually stormy . Dublin Bay was notoriously treacherous for boats . The remains of at least 600 vessels rest at the bottom of the bay . On November 19 , 1807 , the sea began to swell . Wind speed increased to hurricane force . Sleet and snow fell to such intensity that visibility was reduced to zero ; they may not have realised how close they were to shore . The east wind blew the ships back towards the shore . While the " Rochdale " and the " Prince of Wales " were lost , another troop transport , the " Lark " , which left earlier , safely reached Holyhead . Other ships were lost at that time . A collier was lost at the South Bull ( outside Dublin Port ) . The inbound Liverpool packet was lost off Bray . Military background . In July 1807 , following military successes , Napoleon signed the Treaties of Tilsit with Russia and Prussia leaving him master of central and eastern Europe . He then turned his attention westward to Spain and Portugal . The British government was alarmed . Soldiers were recruited to defend England ' s coast and to intervene in Spain ( see Peninsular War ) under Wellington . Fear of an invasion of Ireland was further increased by the building of Martello Tower s on the southern and eastern coasts and watchtower s on the other coastlines . French troops had invaded Ireland on 22 August 1798 , under General Humbert , establishing the short - lived Republic of Connacht . On that occasion the Mayo Militia was ingloriously defeated in what became known as the Races of Castlebar . In 1807 many members of the North Mayo and South Mayo Militias volunteered and were lost from the Prince of Wales . They joined the 97th Regiment of Foot , the Minorca Regiment , which was known as the “ Queens Own Germans ” as it was initially formed from Swiss and German mercenaries . ( In 1816 , the 97th was renumbered as the 96th ) . The North Cork militia was active in suppressing the Irish Rebellion of 1798 . They suffered a defeat at the Battle of Oulart Hill . In 1807 , while most joined the 18th Regiment of Foot so many members of the North Cork Militia volunteered that they had to be dispersed over 25 different regiments . They joined the British Army for a shilling a week and three meals a day - an alternative to terrible poverty . HM Packet ship " Prince of Wales " . HM Packet ship " Prince of Wales " was a sloop of 103 tons with a draught of 11 feet . She was built in Parkgate , Cheshire in 1787 . She sailed under Captain Robert Jones of Liverpool carrying the 97th regiment on 19 November . The next day she had progressed only to a point opposite Bray Head , a matter of a few miles . She cast anchor , but the sea was so violent that she failed to come to anchor ; she was blown back past Dún Laoghaire . Her sails were completely torn . She was driven onto rocks at Blackrock . There was just one longboat aboard . Captain Jones , nine seamen , two women with children ( family members ) , and two soldiers escaped on this lifeboat . They did not know where they were , or how close they were to the shore . They rowed parallel to the shore until one of the sailors fell overboard and found that he was standing in shallow water . It was alleged that the troops were locked below deck , the ladder withdrawn , and the hatch battened down . All 120 soldiers drowned in the storm and are interred in Merrion Cemetery not too far from where the incident occurred . " Rochdale " . The " Rochdale " was larger than the " Prince of Wales " . She was built in 1797 ; she was a brig of 135 tons and a ten foot draught . She sailed under Captain Hodgson . She was driven along a similar path as the Prince of Wales . She cast anchors but the cable snapped . On shore cries of the terrified passengers could be heard . As she swept past Dún Laoghaire , soldiers on board fired their muskets to attract attention . At Salthill , would - be rescuers had to shelter from the gunfire . Off Blackrock , blue lights were seen and gunfire heard . She stuck the rocks at the Seapoint Martello tower . A twelve foot plank would have rescued them , but all 265 , including 42 women and 29 children , on board were lost . Their bodies were unrecognisable , being mutilated by the sea and the rocks . Most of those who perished are interred in Carrickbrennan Churchyard in Monkstown with a memorial . Lifeboats . Although there were lifeboats stationed at Clontarf , Bullock , Howth , Dún Laoghaire and Islandbridge none were launched . Looting . There was looting of the ships and the items washed ashore . An immense amount of baggage was washed ashore and troops were put on guard . Looters gathered as was usual at the time and one from Dún Laoghaire was drowned . All the weekend was spent in collecting the bodies for burial . The Regimental Silver Plate of the Queens Own Germans was lost . Rewards were offered . Six persons were convicted and sent to Kilmainham Gaol for plundering bodies or articles . Murder Charge . Captain Robert Jones and his crew survived in the only lifeboat . Two soldiers also survived . The captain was accused of murder . The Captain said that the lifeboat was not launched ; rather , it was cast into the sea by the storm , so he ordered those on deck to get into it . Anthony McIntyre of the 18th Royal Irish said that the captain launched the lifeboat and that the ladder from the hold to the deck was withdrawn . Andrew Boyle , also of the 18th Royal Irish , spoke through an Irish interpreter , saying that the ladder was not removed because “ persons below held on to it very tightly ” . The verdict was " Casual death by shipwreck " . The case was dismissed . Dún Laoghaire Harbour . The Irish Parliament having been abolished , from January 1 , 1801 Irish Members of Parliament had to travel to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom . That meant frequent travel across the Irish Sea . A campaign to build a harbour at Dún Laoghaire was already under way . The person chiefly responsible was a resident Norwegian master mariner and shipbroker named Richard Toucher , who worked tirelessly campaigning to bring about the construction of a safe port . His Asylum Harbour was conceived as a refuge for sailing ships in trouble in Dublin Bay . After this tragedy , the campaign received the support required . The term ‘ asylum ’ in this context means a harbour where ships can seek refuge from a storm . Construction commenced on a packet harbour at Howth , which was completed in 1809 . Travelling from Dublin to Howth meant travelling through the ‘ badlands of Sutton ’ , where coaches were liable to be raided . Howth was a shallow harbour , and as larger ships were built , in particular with the introduction of steam packets from 1819 , it became unsuitable , its rocky bottom precluded any dredging . In 1815 , eight Harbour Commissioners were appointed to supervise the building of a new harbour at Dún Laoghaire . George IV visited in 1821 , arriving at Howth and departing from Dún Laoghaire . He renamed the town “ Kingstown ” . The name reverted to Dún Laoghaire in 1921 .