HMS ''Belle Poule'' was a
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...
fifth-rate
In the rating system of the Royal Navy used to categorise sailing warships, a fifth rate was the second-smallest class of warships in a hierarchical system of six " ratings" based on size and firepower.
Rating
The rating system in the Royal N ...
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 ...
, formerly ''Belle Poule'', a 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 ...
that had been built by the Crucy family's shipyard at Basse-Indre to a design by
Jacques-Noël Sané
Jacques-Noël Sané (18 February 1740, Brest – 22 August 1831, Paris) was a French naval engineer. He was the conceptor of standardised designs for ships of the line and frigates fielded by the French Navy in the 1780s, which served during the ...
. She was
launched on 17 April 1802, and saw active service in the East. In 1806 a British squadron under Sir
John Borlase Warren
Admiral Sir John Borlase Warren, 1st Baronet (2 September 1753 – 27 February 1822) was a British Royal Navy officer, diplomat and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1774 and 1807.
Naval career
Born in Stapleford, Nottinghamsh ...
captured her off
La Palma
La Palma (, ), also known as ''La isla bonita'' () and officially San Miguel de La Palma, is the most north-westerly island of the Canary Islands, Spain. La Palma has an area of making it the fifth largest of the eight main Canary Islands. The ...
in the
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...
. The
Admiralty
Admiralty most often refers to:
*Admiralty, Hong Kong
* Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964
*The rank of admiral
* Admiralty law
Admiralty can also refer to:
Buildings
*Admiralty, Tr ...
commissioned her into the Royal Navy as HMS ''Belle Poule''. She was sold in 1816.
French Navy service
In March 1803, she joined the fleet of Rear-Admiral
Charles-Alexandre Léon Durand Linois
Charles-Alexandre Léon Durand, Comte de Linois (27 January 1761 – 2 December 1848) was a French admiral who served in the French Navy during the reign of Napoleon Bonaparte. He commanded the combined Franco-Spanish fleet during the Algec ...
, whose mission was to re-take the colonies of the
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...
, given to English at the
peace of Amiens
The Treaty of Amiens (french: la paix d'Amiens, ) temporarily ended hostilities between France and the United Kingdom at the end of the War of the Second Coalition. It marked the end of the French Revolutionary Wars; after a short peace it se ...
. The fleet included the 74-gun
ship of the line
A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed during the Age of Sail from the 17th century to the mid-19th century. The ship of the line was designed for the naval tactic known as the line of battle, which depended on the two colu ...
''Marengo'', the frigates , ''Belle Poule'' and ,
troop ship
A troopship (also troop ship or troop transport or trooper) is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime. Troopships were often drafted from commercial shipping fleets, and were unable land troops directly on shore, typicall ...
s, and transports with food and ammunition.
On 15 June 1803 ''Belle Poule'' landed troops at
Pondichéry in India. However, the French fleet left the next day and the troops surrendered in September.
At the beginning of November, the division set sail for
Batavia
Batavia may refer to:
Historical places
* Batavia (region), a land inhabited by the Batavian people during the Roman Empire, today part of the Netherlands
* Batavia, Dutch East Indies, present-day Jakarta, the former capital of the Dutch East In ...
to defend the
Dutch East Indies
The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, which ...
. En route, Linois destroyed the English counters in
Bencoolen, capturing five ships, and sailed for the
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by the shores of South China (hence the name), in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan and northwestern Phil ...
, where the China Fleet of the
British East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...
was expected. The fleets met in the
Battle of Pulo Aura
The Battle of Pulo Aura was a minor naval engagement of the Napoleonic Wars, fought on 14 February 1804, in which a large convoy of Honourable East India Company (HEIC) East Indiamen, well-armed merchant ships, intimidated, drove off and chased ...
, but the greater numbers and aggressive action of the British
East Indiamen
East Indiaman was a general name for any sailing ship operating under charter or licence to any of the East India trading companies of the major European trading powers of the 17th through the 19th centuries. The term is used to refer to vesse ...
, some of whom flew
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...
flags, drove the French away. Linois returned to Batavia. He dispatched ''Atalante'' and ''Belle Poule'' to the
Gulf of Bengal
The Bay of Bengal is the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean, bounded on the west and northwest by India, on the north by Bangladesh, and on the east by Myanmar and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India. Its southern limit is a line between ...
, where ''Belle Poule'' captured a few ships before returning to
Ile de France
Ile may refer to:
* iLe, a Puerto Rican singer
* Ile District (disambiguation), multiple places
* Ilé-Ifẹ̀, an ancient Yoruba city in south-western Nigeria
* Interlingue (ISO 639:ile), a planned language
* Isoleucine, an amino acid
* Another ...
. Among the ships was , which ''Atalante'' and ''Belle Poule'' captured on 17 April 1804.
![HMS Amazon (1799) pursuing possible Belle Poule](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2f/HMS_Amazon_%281799%29_pursuing_possible_Belle_Poule.jpg)
In 1805 and 1806, ''Belle Poule'' and some other ships of the division cruised the African coast between the
Red Sea
The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; T ...
and the
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope ( af, Kaap die Goeie Hoop ) ;''Kaap'' in isolation: pt, Cabo da Boa Esperança is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa.
A common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is t ...
, capturing some ships. At the
action of 13 March 1806
The action of 13 March 1806 was a naval engagement of the Napoleonic Wars, fought when a British and a French squadron met unexpectedly in the mid-Atlantic. Neither force was aware of the presence of the other prior to the encounter and were pa ...
, Linois met with the division of Vice-Admiral Sir
John Warren John Warren may refer to:
Medicine
* John Warren (surgeon) (1753–1815), American surgeon during the Revolutionary War
* John Collins Warren (1778–1856), American surgeon
* John Collins Warren Jr. (1842–1927), American surgeon, son of John C ...
, with seven ships of the line (including the 108-gun , the 82-gun and , and the 80-gun ), two frigates (including the 48-gun ) and one
corvette
A corvette is a small warship. It is traditionally the smallest class of vessel considered to be a proper (or " rated") warship. The warship class above the corvette is that of the frigate, while the class below was historically that of the slo ...
. After a fierce duel with ''London'', ''Marengo'' struck her colours; ''Belle Poule'' battled against ''Amazon'' and later against ''Ramillies'', and had to surrender as well.
At the time of her capture ''Belle Poule'' was armed with forty 18-pounder guns, had a crew of 320 men, and was under the command of Captain Brouillac. ''Marengo'' and ''Belle Poule'' had lost 65 men killed and 80 wounded. The British on ''London'' and ''Amazon'' had 13 officers and men killed and 26 officers and men wounded.
Royal Navy service
Adriatic
![The Capture of the Var by HMS Belle Poule off Corfu 1809 (451990)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ed/The_Capture_of_the_Var_by_HMS_Belle_Poule_off_Corfu_1809_%28451990%29.jpg)
She entered service under the same name in 1808 under captain
James Brisbane
Captain Sir James Brisbane, CB (1774 – 19 December 1826) was a British Royal Navy officer of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Although never engaged in any major actions, Brisbane served under both Lord Howe and Horatio Nels ...
, joining the forces operating in the
Adriatic campaign of 1807-1814
The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) ...
off
Corfu
Corfu (, ) or Kerkyra ( el, Κέρκυρα, Kérkyra, , ; ; la, Corcyra.) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the margin of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The isl ...
, successfully blockading the island. In February 1809 Brisbane captured the
storeship
Combat stores ships, or storeships, were originally a designation given to ships in the Age of Sail and immediately afterward that navies used to stow supplies and other goods for naval purposes. Today, the United States Navy and the Royal Nav ...
in a raid on the harbour at
Valona. ''Var'' was anchored under the guns of two fortresses that nevertheless did not fire their guns, leaving ''Belle Poule'' free to concentrate her fire on the French vessel. ''Var'' was pierced for 32 guns but only had twenty-two 9-pounder guns and four 24-pounder carronades mounted. She had a crew of 200 men and was under the command of ''Capitaine de Frigate'' Palin, however Brisbane was unable to ascertain her losses as her crew abandoned her as she
struck Struck is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
*Adolf Struck (1877–1911), German author
*Hermann Struck (1876–1944), German artist
*Karin Struck (1947–2006), German author
*Paul Struck (1776-1820), German composer
*Peter Struc ...
. She had been sailing from Corfu for any port in Italy that she could reach. The British then used ''Var'' as a storeship too.
Between 2 and 12 October of the same year ''Belle Poule'' was involved in the invasions of the
Ionian Islands of
Cerigo
Kythira (, ; el, Κύθηρα, , also transliterated as Cythera, Kythera and Kithira) is an island in Greece lying opposite the south-eastern tip of the Peloponnese peninsula. It is traditionally listed as one of the seven main Ionian Islands, ...
,
Cephalonia
Kefalonia or Cephalonia ( el, Κεφαλονιά), formerly also known as Kefallinia or Kephallenia (), is the largest of the Ionian Islands in western Greece and the 6th largest island in Greece after Crete, Euboea, Lesbos, Rhodes and Chios. It i ...
, and
Zante
Zakynthos (also spelled Zakinthos; el, Ζάκυνθος, Zákynthos ; it, Zacinto ) or Zante (, , ; el, Τζάντε, Tzánte ; from the Venetian form) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the third largest of the Ionian Islands. Za ...
, and would share in the booty captured there.
On 10 March 1810 ''Belle Poule'' captured ''Charlotta''.
Then a British force attacked the fortress of
Santa Maura
Lefkada ( el, Λευκάδα, ''Lefkáda'', ), also known as Lefkas or Leukas (Ancient Greek and Katharevousa: Λευκάς, ''Leukás'', modern pronunciation ''Lefkás'') and Leucadia, is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea on the west coast of ...
, which was a French strongpoint off Greece's west coast. ''Belle Poule''s marines formed part of the assault force; the fortress surrendered on 16 April 1810. ''Belle Poule'' had one man, Lieutenant Morrison, of the
Royal Marines
The Corps of Royal Marines (RM), also known as the Royal Marines Commandos, are the UK's special operations capable commando force, amphibious light infantry and also one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy. The Corps of Royal Marine ...
, wounded at this time. In all, during the siege of Santa Maura, from 31 March to 10 April, ''Belle Poule'' suffered six men wounded.
On 21 August 1810 ''Belle Poule'' captured ''Saint Nicholo''. Then on 11 December, ''Belle Poule'' captured the brig , pierced for 14 guns but with only 10 mounted. She had a crew of 100 men and when captured was sailing from Venice to Corfu. The Royal Navy took her into service as HMS ''Carlotta''. and shared in the prize money for the hull. At around the same time ''Belle Poule'' also assisted at the capture of a French
schooner
A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...
on the
Dalmatian Coast
Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see names in other languages) is one of the four historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of the Adriatic Sea, stretc ...
.
On 30 January 1811 ''Belle Poule'', , , and shared in the capture and destruction of the Italian man-of-war schooner ''Leoben''. ''Leoben'' was sailing along the Albanian coast from Venice to Corfu with a cargo of ordnance stores when the British caught her. She was armed with ten guns and a crew of 60 men. Her own crew set her on fire and she subsequently blew up.
From 4–5 May 1811, ''Belle Poule'' participated with in an attack on
Parenza (
Istria
Istria ( ; Croatian language, Croatian and Slovene language, Slovene: ; ist, Eîstria; Istro-Romanian language, Istro-Romanian, Italian language, Italian and Venetian language, Venetian: ; formerly in Latin and in Ancient Greek) is the larges ...
).
[ They chased a French 18-gun brig into the harbour but the ships could not close enough to bombard her. Instead, the two vessels landed 200 seamen and all their marines on an island nearby. They then landed two 9-pounders and two howitzers that they placed in one battery, and a field piece that they placed farther away. Eventually, they and the French in Parenza engaged in five hours of mutual bombardment, during which the British were able to sink the brig.][ They then returned men and cannons to their ships. In the action ''Belle Poule'' had one man killed and three wounded and ''Alceste'' had two men killed; all casualties occurred onshore.]
''Belle Poule'' then returned to Britain to join the Channel Fleet
The Channel Fleet and originally known as the Channel Squadron was the Royal Navy formation of warships that defended the waters of the English Channel from 1854 to 1909 and 1914 to 1915.
History
Throughout the course of Royal Navy's history the ...
. On 22 December 1811, ''Belle Poule'' and captured and destroyed two chasse marees.
War of 1812
During 1812 ''Belle Poule'' patrolled the Western Approaches, capturing numerous American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
merchant vessels and privateer
A privateer is a private person or ship that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or deleg ...
s. On 27 January she detained and sent in ''Spy'' from New York. Then she captured ''Prudentia'' on 31 January and ''Don Roderick'' on 16 February. At the capture of ''Don Roderick'', ''Belle Poule'' was in company with , , and .
On 30 April 1812, ''Belle Poule'' and captured the American privateer schooner ''Gipsy'' or ''Gipsey'', out of New York, in the middle of the Atlantic and after a three-day chase. ''Gipsey'' surrendered twice to ''Hermes'' and twice got away again before ''Belle Poule'' caught her. ''Gipsey'' was of 300 tons (bm) and was armed with twelve 18-pounder carronades and an 18-pounder gun on a pivot mount.
On 26 May, ''Belle Poule'' captured ''General Gates'' while in company with ''Dryad'' and . shared by agreement. Three days later ''Armide'' captured ''Purse'', and ''Belle Poule'' shared by agreement.
In September 1812 George Harris replaced Brisbane and over the next year ''Belle Poule'' captured several American vessels, including four privateers. and ''Belle Poule'' captured ''Mars'' and her cargo, on 26 February 1813. On 11 March, ''Belle Poule'' and the privateer ''Earl St Vincent'' captured the American ship ''John and Francis'', of 220 tons, two guns and 16 men. She was sailing from Bordeaux
Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...
to New York with a cargo of brandy and wine.
On 3 April 1813 ''Belle Poule'' took the schooner ''Grand Napoleon'', Howard, master, after a chase of nine hours. She was 29 days from New York, carrying a cargo of cotton and coffee to Bordeaux. She was a new vessel of 305 or 340 tons burthen, pierced for 22 guns but carrying only four, and had a crew of 43 men. Harris described her as "copper-fastened, and in every respect one of the finest vessels I ever saw." That same day captured the Prussian vessel ''Enigheidt''. , ''Belle Poule'' and shared by agreement. ''Belle Poule'' also captured the American schooner ''Napoleon'', which may have been a different vessel than the ''Grand Napoleon''. With respect to the ''Napoleon'', ''Belle Poule'' was in company with ''Briton'' and the hired armed cutter , with and ''Royalist'' sharing by agreement.
''Belle Poule'' and on 20 April 1813 took the 10-gun letter of marque schooner ''Zebra'' and her crew of 38 men. ''Zebra'' was sailing from Bordeaux to New York. At the time of the capture was in sight. The navy took ''Zebra'' into service as
On 11 May ''Belle Poule'' took ''Revenge'' after a chase that lasted from 5 p.m. the previous evening until 2am. ''Revenge'' was a new vessel, sailing from Charleston
Charleston most commonly refers to:
* Charleston, South Carolina
* Charleston, West Virginia, the state capital
* Charleston (dance)
Charleston may also refer to:
Places Australia
* Charleston, South Australia
Canada
* Charleston, Newfoundlan ...
to Bordeaux. She had a crew of 32 men and was pierced for 16 guns but carried only four long 9-pounders.
On 20 September ''Belle Poule'' captured two French chasse marees. the first was ''Rose'', of 32 tons and five men, sailing from Bordeaux to Nantes
Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...
. The second was ''Ambition'', of 25 tons and three men, sailing from Bordeaux to Rochelle.
Lastly, on 14 December ''Belle Poule'' took the brig ''Squirrel'', which was sailing from Arcasson, in the Gironde
Gironde ( US usually, , ; oc, Gironda, ) is the largest department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of Southwestern France. Named after the Gironde estuary, a major waterway, its prefecture is Bordeaux. In 2019, it had a population of 1,62 ...
, to New York. The brig was of 169 tons, armed with two guns and had a crew of 17 men.[ ''Belle Poule'' was in company with and .
In 1814 ''Belle Poule'' was under Captain Edward Williams. Then she entered the Gironde in Southern France. Before 9 April, a landing party of seamen and marines from ''Belle Poule'', under Captain George Harris, marched , successively entering and destroying the batteries of Pointe Coubre, Pointe Nègre, ]Royan
Royan (; in the Saintongeais dialect; oc, Roian) is a commune and town in the south-west of France, in the department of Charente-Maritime in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. Its inhabitants are known as ''Royannais'' and ''Royannaises''. Capi ...
, Soulac, and Mèche. In all, the landing party destroyed forty-seven 36-pounder guns and seventeen 13-inch mortars. On his return from this expedition, Harris organized the siege of the fortress at Blaye. Rear Admiral Penrose then had ''Belle Poule'' sail up the Gironde, "in advance of the advanced squadron".
Following a request from the Duke of Wellington
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of 19th-century Britain, serving twice as prime minister of ...
, ''Belle Poule'' was commissioned as a troopship in June under Captain Francis Baker. She was fitted for that role in August and September. On 15 August she was in Plymouth, having come from Portsmouth with the 93rd Regiment of Foot
The 93rd (Sutherland Highlanders) Regiment of Foot was a Line Infantry Regiment of the British Army, raised in 1799. Under the Childers Reforms, it amalgamated with the 91st (Argyllshire Highlanders) Regiment of Foot to form the Argyll and Suthe ...
. ''Belle Poule'' was in a squadron, led by as flagship, that carried the advance guard of Major General Keane's army, which was sailing for North America. On 17 September she embarked troops before sailing for Bermuda the next day and then on to New Orleans. The 93rd would then serve at the Battle of New Orleans
The Battle of New Orleans was fought on January 8, 1815 between the British Army under Major General Sir Edward Pakenham and the United States Army under Brevet Major General Andrew Jackson, roughly 5 miles (8 km) southeast of the French ...
, where they would take heavy casualties.
''Belle Poule'' was part of the flotilla that transported Pakenham's troops who fought at the battle of New Orleans. In the run-up to that battle her boats participated in the Battle of Lake Borgne
The Battle of Lake Borgne was a coastal engagement between the Royal Navy and the U.S. Navy in the American South theatre of the War of 1812. It occurred on December 14, 1814 on Lake Borgne. The British victory allowed them to disembark their tro ...
on 12–14 December 1814. Her only casualties were two men slightly wounded. Many years later her crew received a distribution of head-money arising from the capture of American gun-boats and sundry bales of cotton at the battle. In 1847 the Admiralty
Admiralty most often refers to:
*Admiralty, Hong Kong
* Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964
*The rank of admiral
* Admiralty law
Admiralty can also refer to:
Buildings
*Admiralty, Tr ...
issued a clasp (or bar) marked "14 Dec. Boat Service 1814" to survivors of the boat service who claimed the clasp to the Naval General Service Medal.
Fate
''Belle Poule'' returned to Portsmouth on 17 May 1815. A week later she sailed for Cork. She was converted to a prison hulk
A prison ship, often more accurately described as a prison hulk, is a current or former seagoing vessel that has been modified to become a place of substantive detention for convicts, prisoners of war or civilian internees. While many natio ...
in 1815. She was sold on 11 June 1816 for £2,700.
Post script
In January 1819, the ''London Gazette'' reported that Parliament had voted a grant to all those who had served under the command of Lord Viscount Keith in 1812, between 1812 and 1814, and in the Gironde. ''Belle Poule'' was listed among the vessels that had served under Keith in the Gironde.
Notes
Citations
References
*
*
*
External links
*
Phillips, Michael - ''Ships of the Old Navy'' - ''Belle Poule''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Belle Poule (1806)
Frigates of the Royal Navy
1802 ships
Captured ships
Ships built in France
War of 1812 ships of the United Kingdom