Could lightning detonate an age-of-sail warship?

Was any warship ever detonated by a lightning strike?

No definite case is identified; lightning could destroy masts or start fires, and some lost sailing ships may have left no evidence of the cause.

No confirmed example comes readily to mind, and the surviving evidence is treated cautiously. Lightning was more likely to shatter a wooden ship's mast or start a fire than to be recorded as a direct magazine detonation. A possible Portuguese carrack is recalled, but its identity and fate are uncertain, while many sailing ships disappeared without evidence that could distinguish lightning from other causes. The absence of a documented case therefore cannot prove that no such loss occurred.