''Bellone'' was a 44-gun ''Consolante''-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 ...

French service

''Bellone'', under the command of

Guy-Victor Duperré Guy-Victor Duperré (20 February 1775 – 2 November 1846) was a French naval officer and Admiral of France. He is known for commanding French naval forces in the Mauritius campaign of 1809–11 and was victorious in the Battle of Grand Port ...

, departed

Saint-Malo Saint-Malo (, , ; Gallo: ; ) is a historic French port in Ille-et-Vilaine, Brittany, on the English Channel coast. The walled city had a long history of piracy, earning much wealth from local extortion and overseas adventures. In 1944, the Alli ...

on 18 January 1809, bound for the Indian Ocean. She sailed from

La Réunion LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figure ...

for a combat patrol in August. On 2 November she captured HMS ''Victor''. Twenty days later, she captured the 48-gun Portuguese ''Minerva'' after a 2-hour battle. ''Bellone'' sailed back to La Réunion with her prize, arriving on 2 January 1810. In April 1810, the squadron comprising ''Bellone'', ''Minerve'' and ''Victor'' departed for another patrol, during which they fought the

action of 3 July 1810 The action of 3 July 1810 was a minor naval engagement of the Napoleonic Wars, in which a French frigate squadron under Guy-Victor Duperré attacked and defeated a convoy of Honourable East India Company East Indiamen near the Comoros Islands. ...

and the

Battle of Grand Port The Battle of Grand Port was a naval battle between squadrons of frigates from the French Navy and the British Royal Navy. The battle was fought during 20–27 August 1810 over possession of the harbour of Grand Port on Isle de France (now Maur ...

. ''Bellone'' was surrendered to the British when Île de France fell, on 4 December 1810.

British service

''Bellone'' was recommissioned in the Royal Navy as HMS ''Junon''. In June 1812, ''Junon'' escorted a convoy from Portsmouth to India. On 8 February 1813, nine boats and 200 men of the squadron of which ''Junon'' was part captured the letter of marque schooner ''Lottery''. ''Lottery'' was of 210 tons burthen (bm), copper-bottomed and fastened, and carried six 12-pounder

carronade A carronade is a short, smoothbore, cast-iron cannon which was used by the Royal Navy. It was first produced by the Carron Company, an ironworks in Falkirk, Scotland, and was used from the mid-18th century to the mid-19th century. Its main func ...

s, though she was pierced for 16 cannon. Her crew put up a strong defense with the result that the British cutting out party suffered six men wounded, half severely or dangerously, one of whom died later; ''Junon'' herself suffered two men wounded. The Americans suffered 19 men wounded, including their captain, John Southcomb, before they struck. Southcomb died of his wounds and his body was taken ashore. ''Lottery'' had been carrying a cargo of coffee, sugar and lumber from Baltimore to Bordeaux. A week later ''Lottery'' convoyed several prizes to Bermuda. The Royal Navy took ''Lottery'' into service as . In June, ''Bellone''s boats raided the

James River The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed April 1, 2011 to Chesapea ...

, and she sustained attack by US gunboats.Winfield p. 179 On 3 April 1814, as she sailed with , she encountered the USS ''Constitution'', which fled at all sail, dropping drinking water and food overboard, and eventually making it to Marblehead harbour. ''Junon'', , , and , shared in the detention, on 23 November of ''Firmina'', of 260 tons (bm), Antonio Jose Fereira, master. She had been sailing from Boston to Amelia Island in ballast. The Vice admiralty court in Halifax restored her to her owners.

Citations

References

* Fonds Marine. Campagnes (opérations ; divisions et stations navales ; missions diverses). Inventaire de la sous-série Marine BB4. Tome deuxième : BB4 1 à 482 (1790-1826

* * * * * Age of Sail frigates of France Ships built in France 1807 ships Consolante-class frigates Frigates of the French Navy Captured ships War of 1812 ships of the United Kingdom Frigates of the Royal Navy {{France-mil-ship-stub