François-Thomas Le Même (Saint-Malo, 13 January 1764Cunat, p.403 — ''Waltherstow'', at 30S 79E, 30 March 1805Cunat, p.410) was a French privateer.

Career

Le Même was born in Saint-Malo in the family of an accountant, and studied in order to enlist in the navy. At the age of 14, he enlisted as a volunteer on the merchantman ''Pouponne'', which departed Saint-Malo in early 1778, bound for Northern America. After the outbreak of the

War of American Independence The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

, Le Même returned to Brest on the ''Gentille''. Le Même enlisted on the privateer ''Prince-de-Montbarrey'' which, after taking a number of prizes, was herself captured by a frigate on 28 June 1779.Cunat, p.404 Exchanged the following year, Le Même served on the ships ''Lys'', ''Pilote-des-Indes'' and ''Petite-Guêpe'', which he learnt that the war had ended. Replacing the lieutenant of the ship ''Marie-Constance'', Le Même sailed to Le Havre. Le Même then sailed on various merchantmen, rising to the rank of captain on 5 January 1790. He served as a lieutenant on the ''Mississippi'', before taking command of the ''Liberté'', bound for the

Indies The East Indies (or simply the Indies), is a term used in historical narratives of the Age of Discovery. The Indies refers to various lands in the East or the Eastern hemisphere, particularly the islands and mainlands found in and around ...

. He departed on 3 September 1791 and arrived at Mauritius before sailing to Pondicheri and Bengal, before returning to Port-Louis. Le Même then took command of the 130-ton brig ''Hirondelle'', and cruised to Java and Sumatra, returning to Mauritius in March 1793. At the outbreak of the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted France against Britain, Austria, Prussia ...

, Le Même converted ''Hirondelle'' into a privateer, arming her with twelve 4-pounder guns and recruiting a 110-man crew.Cunat, p.405 He then departed to prey on Dutch commerce. On 16 August 1793, ''Hirondelle'' met the brig 18-gun ''Good-Werwgting'', under Lieutenant Raken, and captured her by boarding. Le Même sent a prize crew under Lieutenant Legars on ''Good-Werwgting'' and continued his cruise. On 25 August, ''Hirondelle'' met the 40-gun East Indiaman ''Williams-Thesied'', under Captain John Thomson; boarded at once by both ''Hirondelle'' and ''Good-Werwgting'', ''Williams-Thesied'' surrendered after a 40-minute battle.Cunat, p.406 ''Hirondelle'' then returned to Port-Louis with her prizes. Le Même transferred on the 32-gun privateer ''Ville-de-Bordeaux'', with a 200-man complement, keeping Legars as his lieutenant. He reached

Padang Padang () is the capital and largest city of the Indonesian province of West Sumatra. With a Census population of 1,015,000 as of 2022, it is the 16th most populous city in Indonesia and the most populous city on the west coast of Sumatra. Th ...

in mid-December 1793, stormed the fortress, and captured the Dutch trading post, which he ransomed. He then sailed to Sunda Strait to patrol the area, but an epidemic aboard forced him to abbreviate his cruise and return to Mauritius. While in transit, on 12 February 1794, ''Ville-de-Bordeaux'' met the Portuguese ''Saint-Sacrement''Name in Cunat, p.406, but evidently translated to French. sailing from Bengal to Lisbon, and captured her.Cunat, p.407 A few days later, a storm separated ''Ville-de-Bordeaux'' from her prize; ''Saint-Sacrement'' reached Mauritius on 25 February and ''Ville-de-Bordeaux'', on the day after. Le Même was awarded 1 100 000

livres tournois The (; ; abbreviation: ₶.) was one of numerous currencies used in medieval France, and a unit of account (i.e., a monetary unit used in accounting) used in Early Modern France. The 1262 monetary reform established the as 20 , or 80.88 gr ...

in prize money. Le Même next captained the privateer ''Amphititrite'',Cunat (p.407) refers to ''Amphitrite'' as a "frigate"; however, no frigate ''Amphitrite'' of the French Navy operated in the Indian Ocean circa 1794 (Roche, p.40). Cunant probably means that ''Amphitrite'' was a three-masted privateer of the approximate strength of a naval corvette, instead of the more usual brigs used by privateers. a prize taken by Sercey's squadron in the Indian Ocean and sold by the colonial government of Mauritius; ''Amphititrite'' was old and in poor condition, and after cruising off Cape of Good Hope without taking any prize, she sprang leaks and foundered in Bombetoka Bay, forcing her crew to return to Mauritius on small ships. Le Même then sailed on the privateer ''Uni'' before transferring on ''Clarisse'', and retired. He started a career and a businessman, in which he lost his 1,400,000 livre tournois fortune. In 1803, with the outbreak of the

War of the Third Coalition The War of the Third Coalition) * In French historiography, it is known as the Austrian campaign of 1805 (french: Campagne d'Autriche de 1805) or the German campaign of 1805 (french: Campagne d'Allemagne de 1805) was a European conflict spanni ...

, Le Même took command of the 360-ton three-masted privateer ''Fortune''; on 26 January 1804, ''Fortune'' fought an indecisive battle against the British frigate ''Bombay''.Granier, p.445Possibly HCS ''Bombay'' After a six-month cruise, he returned to Mauritius with eight prizes.Cunat, p.408 On 20 August 1804, ''Fortune'' departed Mauritius to take station in the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The bod ...

area, where she captured the 16-gun East Indiaman brig ''Fly'' after a 30-minute battle. ''Fly'' carried 50,000 piastres for the British government. ''Fortune'' continued her patrol and captured a number of smaller prizes. Le Même then decided to cruise off

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

; on 7 November, around 10:00, ''Fortune'' met the frigate HMS ''Concorde'', under Captain John Wood. ''Concorde'' had been dispatched specifically to hunt for ''Fortune'', and even had a 60-man reinforcement to her crew for the battle.Cunat, p.409 ''Fortune'' attempted to flee and ''Concorde'' gave chase, resulting in a race that lasted for several hours before ''Concorde'' overhauled her opponent. Le Même resisted fiercely before striking his colours at 22:15. Captain Wood treated his prisoner with great courtesy and returned to Bombay; ''Fortune'', in poor state after the battle, limped in several dayslater.

Fate

Le Même embarked on the East Indiaman ''Waltherstow'', bound for England, which departed on 15 February 1805. Aboard, he fell ill and died of sickness on 30 March at 30S 79E.Cunat, p.410

Notes

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References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Le Meme, Francois-Thomas People of the Quasi-War French privateers