HMS Wizard was a 10-gun Cherokee-class brig-sloop built for the Royal Navy in the 1820s. Constructed at Pembroke Dockyard, she was ordered on 28 October 1826, laid down in October 1829, and launched on 24 May 1830. The vessel was officially fitted out in ordinary by 15 June 1837 and commissioned in April of that year. Design-wise, HMS Wizard measured 90 feet (27.4 meters) in length at the gundeck, with a beam of 24 feet 8 inches (7.5 meters), and a depth of hold of 11 feet (3.4 meters). Her deep draught was 9 feet 2 inches (2.79 meters). She displaced approximately 297 long tons (302 metric tons) and had a tonnage of 23 1/94 tons burthen. The ship's complement was typically 52 men when fully manned, though she operated with only 33 during her service as a packet ship. The armament comprised ten muzzle-loading, smoothbore guns: eight 18-pound (8.2 kg) carronades and two 6-pound (2.7 kg) guns positioned in the bow as chase guns. These weapons equipped her for various roles, including patrol and escort duties. HMS Wizard's service record includes notable incidents such as running aground at Cork on 29 May 1855, where she remained on her beam ends overnight before being refloated the following day. Her career ended when she was wrecked on 8 February 1859 on Seal Rock in Bantry Bay while acting as a tender to HMS Nile. The crew was rescued by HMS Skipjack. Despite her seemingly routine service, her history reflects the challenging and often hazardous nature of naval operations during her era.

This description has been generated using GPT-4.1-NANO based on the Vessel's wikidata information and then modified by ShipIndex.org staff.