crews of the two ships changed places, with Camperdown returning to the Channel fleet. Hoskins was impressed with Evan-Thomas' performance, placing him in charge of arrangements for refloating Victoria after she ran aground in the Gulf of Corinth in February 1891. Hoskins was in the habit of leaving the bridge during manoeuvres, so that his junior officers would get a chance acting as admiral to complete them. On 14 January 1892, a telegram arrived on Victoria advising of the death of Prince Edward, and as officer of the watch, Evan-Thomas was responsible for ordering flags to half mast. A few weeks later, he was transferred to the royal yacht at Prince George's request. The ship was unready for sea due to problems with supplying boilers, leaving Thomas with little to do. George, however, received command of . Prince George had received rapid promotions and was thus commander of the ship with much less experience than would normally be the case. In such circumstances, it was normal to appoint an older officer as first lieutenant, but instead the post went to Evan-Thomas. Other officers were also selected from friends of the prince. As a new ship, Melampus was commissioned in June 1892, proceeded to trials off Ireland and then took part in the Cowes week naval review. The ship received creditable reports, and Evan-Thomas was commended in the admiralty formal report for his part in preparing the ship. The ship's company was then disbanded, with Evan-Thomas returning to duties on Osborne, captained by Archibald Berkeley Milne. Osborne remained out of service throughout 1892, giving Evan-Thomas plenty of time for shore leave. In February 1893, Osborne sailed for Genoa where they met Prince George, his mother and sisters for a royal tour of the Mediterranean. Evan Thomas, with other officers, frequently accompanied the royal party ashore. In a relatively small ship he was required to stand sea watches, but also had direct responsibility for all details of ensuring royal life ran smoothly. The ship returned to England on 3 June. Milne reported he was 'a zealous and hardworking officer and in every way to my satisfaction'. Mediterranean Squadron On 22 June 1893, the flagship of the Mediterranean fleet, HMS Victoria, collided with HMS Camperdown, resulting in serious damage to Camperdown, but the sinking of Victoria with the loss of 358 lives. Vice-Admiral George Tryon, who had ordered the manoeuvre which resulted in