HMS Colossus was a 74-gun warship built in 1787 by a private shipyard at Gravesend and wrecked at Scilly in 1798. These 74s was one of the most successful warships of the period. They were about 51m (170 feet) in length and had a crew of 600. During a relatively short working life (eleven years) Colossus saw action at Toulon, Groix, Cape St Vincent and Cadiz and also took part in the capture of two enemy ships Le Vanneau and Vrai Patriot in 1793.
In December 1798 Colossus was returning to England for refit with a remarkable cargo including eight crates of Greek antiquities, wounded sailors from Nelson’s victory at the battle of the Nile and the body of a dead admiral. What the ship did not have on board was one of its spare bower anchors, which had been given to Nelson’s ship Vanguard in Naples. While sheltering from a gale in St Mary’s Roads the anchor cable parted and Colossus was driven aground to the south of Samson. All but one member of the crew were taken off safely before the ship turned onto its beam ends and proceeded to break up.