Prospero had a model of the British ship, the Actaeon, on his mantelpiece (The Face in the Frost, 35). After he casts a shrinking spell on himself and Roger Bacon, the two set sail along an underground river to escape the encroaching henchmen of the evil sorcerer Melichus.
Actaeon was a famous Theban hero figure in Greek mythology who, after running afoul of Artemis, was transformed into a stag, after which his hounds attacked and killed him. Nice. By why name a ship such a thing?
The choice of the name followed a trend initiated in 1748 by John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, in his capacity as First Lord of the Admiralty, of using figures from classical antiquity as descriptors for naval vessels [1].
Six ships of the Royal Navy were named HMS Actaeon (or Acteon) [2]. We're assuming Prospero's Actaeon was the first one commissioned, a 28-gun Enterprise-class frigate in 1775. During the First Siege of Charleston on June 28, 1776, it was grounded off Sullivan's Island, South Carolina. The following morning, the British, unable to drag the ship off the sandbar, set fire to the ship to prevent her from falling into enemy hands [3].
References
- [1] Wikipedia: HMS Actaeon (1775)
- [2] Wikipedia: HMS Actaeon
- [3] Wikipedia: Battle of Sullivan's Island
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