HMS ''Hercule'' was a

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 ...

third rate In the rating system of the Royal Navy, a third rate was a ship of the line which from the 1720s mounted between 64 and 80 guns, typically built with two gun decks (thus the related term two-decker). Years of experience proved that the third ...

ship of the line 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 ...

. She was previously ''Hercule'', a ship of the line 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 ...

, but was captured on her maiden voyage in 1798, and spent the rest of her career as a British ship. She was broken up in 1810.

French career and capture

During her maiden journey, on 21 April 1798, and just 24 hours out of port, she was captured by the British ship after a violent fight at the Battle of the Raz de Sein, off

Île de Sein The Île de Sein is a Breton island in the Atlantic Ocean, off Finistère, eight kilometres from the Pointe du Raz (''raz'' meaning "water current"), from which it is separated by the Raz de Sein. Its Breton name is ''Enez-Sun''. The island, ...

near Brest. ''Hercule'' attempted to escape through the Passage du Raz, but the tide was running in the wrong direction, and she was forced to anchor, giving the British the chance to attack at close quarters. The two ships were of equal force, both seventy-fours, but ''Hercule'' was newly commissioned; after more than an hour and a half of bloody fighting at close quarters she struck her colours at 10.30 pm, having lost — by her own officers' estimate — 290 men killed and wounded. On ''Mars,'' 31 men were killed, including her captain, Alexander Hood, and 60 wounded. Captain Louis Lhéritier of ''Hercule'' was wounded by sabre and spike leading his boarding party. The ''Hercule'' was recommissioned in the

as HMS ''Hercule''.

British career

In mid-1803, the squadron under Captain

Henry William Bayntun Admiral (Royal Navy), Admiral Sir Henry William Bayntun Order of the Bath, GCB (1766 – 16 December 1840) was a senior officer in the Royal Navy, whose distinguished career in the French Revolutionary War, French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars ...

, consisting of , ''Hercule'', , , and captured '' Poisson Volant'' and . The Royal Navy took both into service. In May 1803, ''Hercules captain

Solomon Ferris Solomon Ferris (c. 1748 – May 1803) was an officer in the Royal Navy who served during the American War of Independence and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Ferris's rise through the ranks brought him the commands of severa ...

died suddenly on board the ship. On 28 June 1803, during the

Blockade of Saint-Domingue The Blockade of Saint-Domingue was a naval campaign fought during the first months of the Napoleonic Wars in which a series of British Royal Navy squadrons blockaded the French-held ports of Cap Français and Môle-Saint-Nicolas on the northern ...

in the Caribbean ''Hercule'' was under First Lieutenant John B. Hills, acting captain as Ferris had died a month before. She encountered the French frigate and the corvette , and attempted to capture ''Poursuivante''. However, the latter outmaneuvered and delivered

raking fire In naval warfare during the Age of Sail, raking fire was cannon fire directed parallel to the long axis of an enemy ship from ahead (in front of the ship) or astern (behind the ship). Although each shot was directed against a smaller profile ...

to assure her escape. ''Hercule'' was stricken across its rigging and dropped out of the fight.

Louis-Philippe Crépin Louis-Philippe Crépin (1772, Paris – 26 November 1851, Paris) was a French marine painter. Together with Théodore Gudin, he was appointed as one of France's first two Peintres de la Marine in 1830.Ministère de l'instruction publique et des ...

painted the sails, sky, smoke and fire in his relevant seascape. then captured ''Mignonne''. ''Hercule'', under Captain Dun, participated in the failed attempt in January 1804 to capture Curaçao. ''Hercule'', was caught in a

Hurricane A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...

off San Domingo between 4 and 11 September 1804, both she and HMS ''

Theseus Theseus (, ; grc-gre, Θησεύς ) was the mythical king and founder-hero of Athens. The myths surrounding Theseus his journeys, exploits, and friends have provided material for fiction throughout the ages. Theseus is sometimes describ ...

'' were badly damaged, but eventually survived to reach Port Royal on 15 September.

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External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hercule (1798) Ships of the line of the French Navy Ships of the line of the Royal Navy Téméraire-class ships of the line 1797 ships Captured ships Ships built in France

French career and capture

British career

See also

Citations

References

External links