Louis-Marie Le Gouardun (

Lorient Lorient (; ) is a town (''Communes of France, commune'') and Port, seaport in the Morbihan Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in western France. History Prehistory and classical antiquity Beginn ...

, 9 September 1753 — Lorient, 18 December 1814) was a French Navy officer. Starting his career in the

French East India Company The French East India Company (french: Compagnie française pour le commerce des Indes orientales) was a colonial commercial enterprise, founded on 1 September 1664 to compete with the English (later British) and Dutch trading companies in the ...

, he served under Suffren in the Indian Ocean during the

Anglo-French War The Anglo-French Wars were a series of conflicts between England (and after 1707, Britain) and France, including: Middle Ages High Middle Ages * Anglo-French War (1109–1113) – first conflict between the Capetian Dynasty and the House of Norma ...

, and later in important actions of the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted French First Republic, France against Ki ...

. He commanded ''Dix-Août'' during her victorious

Action of 24 June 1801 The action of 24 June 1801 was a minor naval engagement during the French Revolutionary Wars. A British ship of the line, HMS ''Swiftsure'' under Captain Benjamin Hallowell was passing westwards through the Southern Mediterranean near Cape De ...

against ''Swiftsure''. After serving through the

First French Empire The First French Empire, officially the French Republic, then the French Empire (; Latin: ) after 1809, also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental Eu ...

, Le Gouardun was forcibly retired at the

Bourbon Restoration Bourbon Restoration may refer to: France under the House of Bourbon: * Bourbon Restoration in France (1814, after the French revolution and Napoleonic era, until 1830; interrupted by the Hundred Days in 1815) Spain under the Spanish Bourbons: * ...

Biography

Born to Louise Péruchon and Renée-Marie Le Gouardun, an officer of the

,Quintin, p.220 Louis-Marie Le Gouardun started sailing in 1771 of the East indiaman ''Laverdy'', which his father captained. He rose in the ranks of the Company, sailing on ''Brune'' as an Ensign in 1774–1775, and on ''Thérèse'' as a Lieutenant in 1778–1779. On 22 August 1779, Le Gouardun joined the French Royal Navy as a Frigate Lieutenant on the 80-gun ''Orient''. In 1781, he transferred to the 64-gun ''Ajax'', on ''Pourvoyeuse'' the next year, and on ''Annibal'' in April 1782. He took part and was wounded in both 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 ...

and the Battle of Cuddalore.Quintin, p.221 With the Peace of Paris and the end of the

, Le Gouardun returned to the East India Company as First Officier on ''Langivilliers'', which he captained on the return journey. In 1789, he commanded ''Chasseur'', and on ''Indien'' in 1792, returning in 1794. With the

raging, Le Gouardun was accepted in the Navy as an ''

Enseigne de vaisseau non entretenu ''Enseigne de vaisseau non entretenu'' (literally: "Ensign without a salary") was a junior naval rank in the French Navy during the Revolutionary Wars. The duties of an ''Enseigne de vaisseau non entretenu'' were the same as those of an ''enseign ...

'' on ''Vertu''. Promoted to Captain 3rd class on 2 November 1794, he was appointed to command the 110-gun ''Révolutionnaire''. On 29 December 1794, ''Révolutionnaire'' (ex-''Bretagne''),Forrer, ''Neptunia'' 202, p.21 departed from Brest for the

Croisière du Grand Hiver The ''Croisière du Grand Hiver'' (French "Campaign of the Great Winter") was a French attempt to organise a winter naval campaign in the wake of the Glorious First of June. Context The Glorious First of June had ended on a strategic success f ...

, where she sustained severe structural damage from the foul weather.Roche, p. 85 She limped back to Brest on 2 February 1795, her hull leaking heavily, and was broken up afterwards. Le Gouardun transferred to 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 ...

''Jean Bart''. Commanding ''Jean Bart'', Le Gouardun took part in the

Battle of Groix The Battle of Groix was a large naval engagement which took place near the island of Groix off the Biscay coast of Brittany on 23 June 1795 ( 5 messidor an III) during the French Revolutionary Wars. The battle was fought between elements of the ...

, where a falling

pulley A pulley is a wheel on an axle or shaft that is designed to support movement and change of direction of a taut cable or belt, or transfer of power between the shaft and cable or belt. In the case of a pulley supported by a frame or shell that ...

severely wounded him. The first officer had to assume command. Le Gouardun underwent a

court-martial A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...

and was acquitted on 21 August 1795. In December 1797, Le Gouardun took command of ''Loire'', and transferred on ''Fraternité'' the year after. In 1800, he was given command to the

''Convention''. On 11 March 1800, Le Gouardun took command of the brand new 80-gun ''Indivisible'', commissioning the ship. On 10 March 1801, Le Gouardun transferred on the 74-gun ''Dix-Août''. In the

action of 24 June 1801 The action of 24 June 1801 was a minor naval engagement during the French Revolutionary Wars. A British ship of the line, HMS ''Swiftsure'' under Captain Benjamin Hallowell was passing westwards through the Southern Mediterranean near Cape De ...

, ''Dix-Août'' and ''Indivisible'' captured ''Swiftsure''. On 9 August 1803, Le Gouardun was given command of ''Jean Bart'' again. He rose to Captain first class on 1 January 1807, and left ''Jean Bart'' on 26 May 1808. From then on, he served ashore in Lorient. At the

, Le Gouardun was forcibly retired, although he was made a Knight in the

Order of Saint Louis The Royal and Military Order of Saint Louis (french: Ordre Royal et Militaire de Saint-Louis) is a dynastic order of chivalry founded 5 April 1693 by King Louis XIV, named after Saint Louis (King Louis IX of France). It was intended as a rewar ...

on 18 August 1814.

Notes and references

; Notes ; References ; Bibliography * * * * (1671-1870) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Le Gouardun French Navy officers