HOME THE SHIPS     The York     The Discovery     The Warrior     The Success     The Defense     The Bellerophon THE HULK MASTERS REVIEW EXCERPTS THE INTRODUCTION ABOUT THE AUTHOR BUY THE BOOK CONTACT LINKS	THE YORK In 1802 Duncan Campbell left his position as Hulk master at Woolwich, taking the more seaworthy of his merchantmen with him. Thereafter almost all of the ships converted into prison hulks were decommissioned naval vessels. One of them was the York, which served as a hulk at Gosport from 1820 until 1850. Typically she confined about 500 convicts. Anchored some distance from London, she had not been subject to much scrutiny by reformers or concerned members of Parliament. It is reasonable to assume that conditions of confinement aboard her were lamentable throughout her years of service. In 1848 a serious rebellion broke out on the York. The ringleaders of the disturbance were transferred to a land prison and the hulk was taken out of service about two years later.