fourth rate
In 1603 all English warships with a compliment of fewer than 160 men were known as 'small ships'. In 1625/26 to establish pay rates for officers a six tier naval ship rating system was introduced.Winfield 2009 These small ships were divided i ...
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
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 ...
, built by Adams of
Bucklers Hard
Buckler's Hard is a hamlet on the banks of the Beaulieu River in the English county of Hampshire. With its Georgian cottages running down to the river, Buckler's Hard is part of the Beaulieu Estate. The hamlet is some south of the village of ...
and launched on 26 December 1779. The captured ''Hannibal'' off
Sumatra
Sumatra is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the sixth-largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 (182,812 mi.2), not including adjacent i ...
on 21 January 1782.
British career
In October 1781, off
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 ...
, ''Hannibal'' encountered the French frigate ''Bellone'', escorting the transports ''Neker'' and ''Sévère''. She captured the transports and brought them to
Saint Helena
Saint Helena () is a British overseas territory located in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote volcanic tropical island west of the coast of south-western Africa, and east of Rio de Janeiro in South America. It is one of three constitu ...
.
On 7 December 1781, a French fleet under d'Orves sortied Isle de France, with 11 ships of the line, 3 frigates and 3 corvettes. On 19 January, the 64-gun ''Sévère'' detected HMS ''Hannibal'', under Captain Christy. D'Orves detached the
74-gun
The "seventy-four" was a type of two- decked sailing ship of the line, which nominally carried 74 guns. It was developed by the French navy in the 1740s, replacing earlier classes of 60- and 62-gun ships, as a larger complement to the recently-de ...
''Héros'' and the 64-gun ''Artésien'', under Suffren, to investigate. Suffren closed in, making signals according to tables captured at
Porto Praya
Praia (, Portuguese for "beach") is the capital and largest city of Cape Verde.''Hinchinbrooke'', until ''Hannibal'' made signals that he was unable to answer. A chase ensued, and with the night Suffren abandoned the pursuit to rejoin his fleet. On 21, the fleet encountered ''Hannibal'' again, and again detached ''Héros'', ''Artésien'' and ''Vengeur'', but this time with other ships deploying as to ensure communication between the pursuers and the main body of the fleet, allowing Suffren to press on his chase. Suffren caught up with his quarry on 22 around noon and forced her to surrender.
French career
''Hannibal'' was brought into French service as ''Petit Annibal'', to distinguish her from the
74-gun
The "seventy-four" was a type of two- decked sailing ship of the line, which nominally carried 74 guns. It was developed by the French navy in the 1740s, replacing earlier classes of 60- and 62-gun ships, as a larger complement to the recently-de ...
that was serving in d'Orves' fleet.English-language histories often refer to her as ''Hannibal'' for this reason. Lieutenant de Ruyter, first officer of ''Héros'', was given command; all the warships in the French fleet were required to contribute personnel to constitute ''Annibal''s crew. The provided a company of the Régiment de hussards de Lauzun. After
Thomas d'Estienne d'Orves
Jean-Baptiste Barthélémy Thomas, comte d’Orves (1727 — ''Orient'', off Madras,Present-day Chennai 9 February 1782Cunat, p.103 ) was a French Navy officer, who rose to have flag officer rank.
Biography
Thomas d'Estienne d'Orves was born ...
died on 9 February 1782 and he assumed command of the French forces in the Indian Ocean, Suffren put Captain
Morard de Galles
Justin-Bonaventure Morard de Galles (30 March 1741, Goncelin, Isère – 23 July 1809, Guéret) was a French navy officer and admiral.
Family
Morard was born to a noble family from Dauphiné whose origins stretched right back to the end of the ...
in command, while De Ruyter took command of ''Pourvoyeuse''.
''Annibal'' saw service in his five battles with British Admiral Sir Edward Hughes in 1782 and 1783.
At the
Battle of Providien
The Battle of Providien was the second in a series of naval battles fought between a British fleet, under Vice-Admiral Sir Edward Hughes, and a French fleet, under the Bailli de Suffren, off the coast of India during the Anglo-French War. The ...
, ''Petit Annibal'' was third in the French line, behind ''Artésien'' (Captain de Maurville). She came within pistol range of his opposite number, (Captain Reddel) before opening fire. Her captain, Morard de Galles, was wounded but kept his station.
In January 1783, she was under Beaulieu.
Fate
''Petit Annibal'' was decommissioned in 1787 and used as a
hulk
The Hulk is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in the debut issue of ''The Incredible Hulk (comic book), The Incredible Hulk' ...