''Caton'' was a 64-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 ...
of the
French Navy, launched in 1777.
French career
In 1780, ''Caton'' was part of the squadron under
Guichen
Guichen (; ; Gallo: ''Gischen'') is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department in Brittany in northwestern France.
History
Population
Inhabitants of Guichen are called ''Guichenais'' in French.
Image gallery
File: Halles-guichen-2014 ...
, captained by
Georges-François de Framond. ''Caton'' was later attached to the squadron commanded by
De Grasse. She took part in the
Battle of Martinique on 17 April 1780, as well as in the two smaller engagements of 15 and 19 May 1780.
At the
Battle of Fort Royal
The Battle of Fort Royal was a naval battle fought off Fort Royal, Martinique in the West Indies during the Anglo-French War on 29 April 1781, between fleets of the British Royal Navy and the French Navy. After an engagement lasting four hours, th ...
, on 29 April 1781, ''Caton'' was one of the four ships to come reinforce the squadron under De Grasse, along with ''Victoire'', ''Réfléchi'' and ''Solitaire''. She took part in the
Battle of the Chesapeake on 5 September 1781.
On 10 April 1782, in the run-up to the
Battle of the Saintes, ''Caton'' found herself becalmed and Framond asked for assistance. Despite having been sent a frigate, Framond decided to anchor at
Basse-Terre without authorisation from his hierarchy. He thus failed to take part in the Battle of the Saintes, and a few days after, on 19 April 1782, ''Caton'' was captured at the
Battle of the Mona Passage.
British career
''Caton'' was captured by the
Royal Navy at the
Battle of the Mona Passage on 19 April 1782, and commissioned as the
third rate HMS ''Caton''. She sailed with the fleet for England on 25 July 1782 but was said to have been lost later that year in a hurricane storm off Newfoundland on 16–17 September, along with the other captured French prize ships Ville de Paris, and Hector. In fact, she struggled to reach Halifax NS.
On 26 January 1783, a small British convoy of eight military transports sailed out of Halifax for England; accompanied by ''Caton'', and escorted by the 36-gun frigate
HMS ''Pallas''.
Later she became a prison hospital ship at Plymouth and was placed on harbour service in 1798, and sold out of the service in 1815.
Sources and references
Notes
Citations
References
*
*
*Lavery, Brian (2003) ''The Ship of the Line - Volume 1: The development of the battlefleet 1650-1850.'' Conway Maritime Press. .
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External links
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Caton (1777)
Ships of the line of the Royal Navy
1777 ships
Ships built in France
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