Name Ambassador Out of service 1896 Launched 1869 | Owner W. Lund & Co Length 54 m | |
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Status Condemned 1895;beached & abandoned hulk | ||
Ambassador is a United Kingdom tea clipper built in 1869. She was a composite clipper, built with wooden planking over an iron skeleton and was W. Lund & Co's first tea clipper. She is now a beached wreck in southern Chile.
History
William Walker built Ambassador at Lavender Dry Dock in London.
Though considered a fast ship, Ambassador was said to be "very cranky and overmasted". Her first passage to the UK from Foochow came during the Tea Race of 1870 under Captain Duggan and took 115 days, a mediocre performance; that same year the fastest tea passage, also from Foochow, was made by the clipper Lahloo (clipper) in just 98 days. Ambassador's fastest passage between China and England was 108 days, in 1872.
Ambassador has been beached at Estancia San Gregorio, Chile since 1899. In 1973 Chile declared her a historic monument.
The wreck is now reduced to a skeletal frame. It is an example of a dwindling number of composite ship constructions. Better preserved examples include:
