Atlantean Royal Frigate Alala - 1801
Length: 160' w.l.
Beam: 42'7"
Draft: 15'8"
Displacement: 1,280 tons bm
Armament: 26x24lb long guns (gun deck); 14x32lb carronades (quarterdeck), 4x12lb chasers
Speed: 14.5 knots
Complement: 340 hands
- Notes: Sailing frigate built 1801. Class A type.
History: The Alala was laid down in Palinerus in 1801. The design diverged sharply from the 32-gun and 36-gun (18-pounder) frigates previously laid down in Atlantis. Chief Designer Mattias Evandri, the shipwright charged with her construction, exceeded his authority and built a 40-gun vessel to his own designs. The completed frigate, once commissioned, carried twenty-four pound long guns on her main deck, and thrity-two pounder carronades on her quarterdeck. She received the name Alala, after the Greek goddess of battle-cries.
The Alala immediately made an impressive showing. Evandri's frigate displayed an amazing speed, regularly logging over fourteen knots in the right sea conditions, faster than any existing Atlantean frigate, making her one of the fastest ships in the world in her day. Under a succession of different commanders and an officer cadre which included a future Atlantean emperor and twelve future admirals, Alala ranged the globe in the service of her homeland. Between 1803 and 1815, she fought an unprecedented number of single-ship actions. In 1807, she engaged a powerful Spanish frigate razeed from a battleship: the Real Carlos, with 54 guns. In heavy seas, the Alala shot away the larger frigate's upperworks and then blasted her battery into silence, forcing the Iberian commander to strike his colors. In 1812, the Alala was attacked abruptly by the Algerine frigate Hakim, which came alongside under British colors and attempted to board the Atlantean frigate. Alala's crew managed to evade the first assaults and dueled the corsair for two hours, finally pummeling the vessel into impotence, and boarding her when she still refused to surrender.
The Napoleonic and Barbary Wars over, Alala participated in the wars of South American liberation, becoming the first Atlantean warship to salute the Chilean and Argentine flags, and receive a salute in reply. Alala also bore home the coffin of a renowned Atlantean freedom fighter who had fallen in the Battle of Caracas, helping to liberate Venezuela. In 1827, the Alala led the small Atlantean frigate squadron which joined the Allies at the Battle of Navarino, a battle which sealed Greek independence from the Ottoman Empire. The Alala's captain, concerned about an Egyptian fireship near the Allied fleet, sent a boat to ask the Egyptians to shift their anchor; the Egyptians fired on the boat, and Alala responded, the first shots of the battle. Once the battle was underway, Alala engaged the more numerous Turkish frigates, coming to the aid of a beleaguered Russian frigate fighting two larger Turks.
In 1845, the now-famous frigate, undefeated victor of thirty-one fights, was scheduled for disposal by the Navy as new steam frigates entered the force. However, the ship was saved by one of her former midshipmen, the new Atlantean emperor, who ordered the Alala preserved in Cleito, setting aside money for her maintenance. Alala is usually crewed by cadets of the Atlantean Navy.
Early in her career, the Alala was inspected in detail by a number of Atlantean shipwrights who took measurements for reproducing the high-performance qualities of the frigate. Five more vessels, dubbed the Astraea-class, failed to exceed their older sister's fine handling, though all five vessels were acknowledged to be excellent sailors and capable of thirteen knots, still a respectable speed.