''Alceste'' was a
''Magicienne'' class frigate
A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat.
The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...
of the
French Navy
The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...
, launched in 1780, that the British seized at the
Siege of Toulon
The siege of Toulon (29 August – 19 December 1793) was a military engagement that took place during the Federalist revolts of the French Revolutionary Wars. It was undertaken by Republican forces against Royalist rebels supported by Anglo-Spa ...
. They transferred her to the
Kingdom of Sardinia
The Kingdom of Sardinia,The name of the state was originally Latin: , or when the kingdom was still considered to include Corsica. In Italian it is , in French , in Sardinian , and in Piedmontese . also referred to as the Kingdom of Savoy-S ...
, but the French recaptured her a year later in the
action of 8 June 1794. The British captured her again at the
action of 18 June 1799
The action of 18 June 1799 was a naval engagement of the French Revolutionary Wars fought off Toulon in the wake of the Mediterranean campaign of 1798. A frigate squadron under Rear-admiral Perrée, returning to Toulon from Syria, met a 30-ship ...
and took her into service as HMS ''Alceste''. In 1801 she became a floating battery and she was sold the next year.
Career
At the outbreak of the
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...
, ''Alceste'' served in the Mediterranean until she was put in the reserved and disarmed in Toulon. The royalist insurrection found her there; the British, who supported the royalists, seized her and transferred her to the
Kingdom of Sardinia
The Kingdom of Sardinia,The name of the state was originally Latin: , or when the kingdom was still considered to include Corsica. In Italian it is , in French , in Sardinian , and in Piedmontese . also referred to as the Kingdom of Savoy-S ...
before the conclusion of the
Siege of Toulon
The siege of Toulon (29 August – 19 December 1793) was a military engagement that took place during the Federalist revolts of the French Revolutionary Wars. It was undertaken by Republican forces against Royalist rebels supported by Anglo-Spa ...
.
The 32-gun
''Boudeuse'' recaptured her in the
action of 8 June 1794. The French then took her back into French service. On 4 August 1794 ''Alceste'' and ''Vestale'' were off
Cape Bon
Cape Bon ("Good Cape") is a peninsula in far northeastern Tunisia, also known as Ras at-Taib ( ar, الرأس الطيب), Sharīk Peninsula, or Watan el Kibli;
Cape Bon is also the name of the northernmost point on the peninsula, also known as Ra ...
when they encountered and captured the brig . The French took ''Scout'' into service under existing name, but she wrecked on 12 December 1795 off Cadiz.
Under Captain
Louis-Jean-Nicolas Lejoille
Louis-Jean-Nicolas Lejoille (Saint-Valery-sur-Somme, 11 November 1759 – Brindisi, 9 April 1799 Hennequin, ''Biographie maritime'') was a French Navy officer and captain.
Career
Born to a family of sailors, Lejoille started sailing at seven a ...
, ''Alceste'' was part of
Admiral Martin's squadron, which captured in 1795.
Jean Joseph Hubert
Jean-Joseph Hubert (Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines, 17 December 1765 – off Cádiz, 25 October 1805Quintin, p.175) was a French Navy officer and captain.
Career
Hubert joined the French Royal Navy as a volunteer on 27 September 1780, and served on ...
took command of ''Alceste'' on 31 March 1795. She took part in the
Battle of Hyères Islands
A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...
, where she battled several British ships before rescuing
''Alcide''.
In March 1796, ''Alceste'' ferried
Jean-Baptiste Annibal Aubert du Bayet
Jean-Baptiste Annibal Aubert du Bayet (19 August 1759, Louisiana – 17 December 1797, Istanbul) was a French General and politician during the period of the French Revolution.
Aubert du Bayet was born in Baton-Rouge in the Louisiana (New France) ...
to his appointment as ambassador to Constantinople, along with military advisors.
From November 1796 to January 1797, ''Alceste'' patrolled the coasts of Italy under Captain
Jean-François-Timothée Trullet.
She took part in the
Expédition d'Égypte under
Jean-Baptiste Barré, ferrying General
Jean Reynier
Jean Louis Ebénézer Reynier (14 January 1771 – 27 February 1814) was a Swiss- French military officer who served in the French Army under the First Republic and the First Empire. He rose in rank to become a general during the French Revolu ...
, and was later appointed to a squadron under Admiral
Jean-Baptiste Perrée
Jean-Baptiste Perrée (19 December 1761Levot, p.394 in 1866 write 19 April 1761 – 18 February 1800Levot, p.395) was a French Navy officer and Rear-admiral.
Career
Born to a family of sailors in Saint-Valery-sur-Somme, Perrée started sailing in ...
, which also comprised the frigates
''Junon'' and ''Alceste'', and
''Courageuse'', and the brigs
''Salamine'' and
''Alerte''. In the
action of 18 June 1799
The action of 18 June 1799 was a naval engagement of the French Revolutionary Wars fought off Toulon in the wake of the Mediterranean campaign of 1798. A frigate squadron under Rear-admiral Perrée, returning to Toulon from Syria, met a 30-ship ...
, captured ''Alceste''.
Fate
The Royal Navy commissioned ''Alceste'' under Commander Thomas Bayley, who shortly thereafter received promotion to
post captain
Post-captain is an obsolete alternative form of the rank of Captain (Royal Navy), captain in the Royal Navy.
The term served to distinguish those who were captains by rank from:
* Officers in command of a naval vessel, who were (and still are) ...
in March 1800. She arrived at Chatham on 4 April.
[Winfield (2008), p. 205.] There she was registered as a sloop in July 1801 and fitted as a floating battery in August.
[Demerliac (1996), p. 64, #388.] She was sold at Sheerness on 20 May 1802 for £1,445.
[
]
See also
*List of ships captured in the 18th century
During times of war where naval engagements were frequent, many battles were fought that often resulted in the capture of the enemy's ships. The ships were often renamed and used in the service of the capturing country's navy. Merchant ships were ...
Citations
References
*Demerliac, Alain (1996) ''La Marine De Louis XVI: Nomenclature Des Navires Français De 1774 À 1792''. (Nice: Éditions OMEGA).
*Roche, Jean-Michel (2005) ''Dictionnaire des Bâtiments de la Flotte de Guerre Française de Colbert à nos Jours.'' (Group Retozel-Maury Millau), Vol. 1, p. 30.
*
*Winfield, Rif & Stephen S Roberts (2015) ''French Warships in the Age of Sail 1786 - 1861: Design Construction, Careers and Fates''. (Seaforth Publishing).
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alceste
Frigates of the Royal Navy
Age of Sail frigates of France
Ships built in France
Magicienne-class frigates
1780 ships
Captured ships
Floating batteries of the Royal Navy