George Mears
(1870 – 1895)
Very little-known marine painter. Lived in Brighton and worked in Newhaven in the last part of the 19th century. He was a British ship portraitist, painting shipping scenes off the English South coast. The National Maritime Museum, Greenwich has nine of his paintings; other works are held in the Folkestone Art Gallery and the Mariner’s Museum. The Peabody Museum of Salem has four of his works .George Mears was the official painter to the London to Brighton and South Coast Railway Company, he painted many of their cross channel Paddle and Screw Steamers sailing from Newhaven to Dieppe and other French channel ports. He occasionally painted Yachts.
HMS Eagle was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 27 February 1804 at Northfleet In 1830 she was reduced to a 50-gun ship, and became a training ship in 1860. She was renamed HMS Eaglet in 1919, when she was the Royal Naval Reserve training centre for North West England. Eaglet was destroyed by fire in 1926.
HMS Eagle Specifications | |
Name | HMS Eagle |
Ordered | 4 February 1800 |
Builder | Pitcher, Northfleet |
Laid down | August 1800 |
Launched | 27 February 1804 |
Fate | Burnt, 1926 |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Repulse-class ship of the line |
Tons burthen | 1923 tons (1953.9 tonnes) |
Length | 174 ft (53 m) (gundeck) |
Beam | 47 ft 4 in (14.43 m) |
Depth of hold | 20 ft (6.1 m) |
Propulsion | Sails |
Sail plan | Full rigged ship |
Armament | • 74 guns: • Gundeck: 28 × 32 pdrs • Upper gundeck: 28 × 18 pdrs • Quarterdeck: 14 × 9 pdrs • Forecastle: 4 × 9 pdrs |