The ''Flamand'' was a 56-gun ''Bordelois''-class

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 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 ...

. She was funded by a

don des vaisseaux The ''don des vaisseaux'' (lit. "gift of ships of the line") was a subscription effort launched by Étienne François de Choiseul, Duke of Choiseul and secretary of State to the Navy in 1761 as an effort to rebuild the French naval power, diminis ...

donation from the

Estates of Flanders Estate or The Estate may refer to: Law * Estate (law), a term in common law for a person's property, entitlements and obligations * Estates of the realm, a broad social category in the histories of certain countries. ** The Estates, representati ...

, and built by engineer Léon Guignace on a design by

Antoine Groignard Antoine Groignard (4 February 1727 – 26 July 1799), was a French naval constructor who developed standard designs for French war ships, and built and improved the dry docks at the French naval bases in Toulon and Brest. Family Groignard was so ...

. She took part in Suffren's campaign during the

American Revolutionary War 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 ...

Career

Completed too late to serve in the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

, ''Flamand'' was offered to the Ottoman Navy, along with her sister-ship ''Ferme''; however the Ottoman were disappointed by the 100,000

piastre The piastre or piaster () is any of a number of units of currency. The term originates from the Italian for "thin metal plate". The name was applied to Spanish and Hispanic American pieces of eight, or pesos, by Venice, Venetian traders in the ...

s they had to pay for the first ship, and declined to purchase a second one. Activated for the

, ''Flamand'' was assigned to Suffren's squadron in the Indian Ocean. At the

Battle of Sadras The Battle of Sadras was the first of five largely indecisive naval battles fought between a British fleet (under Admiral Sir Edward Hughes) and a French fleet (under Admiral Pierre Suffren) off the east coast of India during the Anglo-French ...

, on 17 February 1782, Suffren ordered the 64-gun ''Ajax'', under

René Joseph Bouvet de Précourt René Joseph Bouvet de Précourt ( — Trincomalee, 6 October 1782) was a French Navy officer. He was captain of the 64-gun ''Ajax'' in Suffren's squadron in the Indian Ocean during the War of American Independence, and fought at the Battle of Sa ...

, and ''Flamand'', under Cuverville, to attack the British line to leeward. They both maneuvered to this effect, but then Tromelin, on ''Annibal'', countermanded the order by signaling ''Ajax'' and ''Flamand'' to return to their post in the

line of battle The line of battle is a tactic in naval warfare in which a fleet of ships forms a line end to end. The first example of its use as a tactic is disputed—it has been variously claimed for dates ranging from 1502 to 1652. Line-of-battle tacti ...

. While ''Ajax'' obeyed the order, ''Flamand'' sailed on and Saint-Félix, of ''Brillant'', requested permission to replace ''Ajax''. In the Battle of Negapatam, she engaged the much stronger HMS ''Hero''. ''Flamand'' took part in the Battle of Cuddalore the next year; after her commanding officer, Lieutenant Perier de Salvert, was killed, her first officer, Jacques Trublet de Villejégu, assumed command.

Notes, citations, and references

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External links

French Fourth Rate ship of the line 'Le Flamand' (1765)
at Three Decks - Warships in the Age of Sail {{DEFAULTSORT:Flamand Ships of the line of the French Navy 1765 ships Don des vaisseaux Bordelois-class ships of the line