''Berceau'' was a 22-gun
corvette
A corvette is a small warship. It is traditionally the smallest class of vessel considered to be a proper (or " rated") warship. The warship class above the corvette is that of the frigate, while the class below was historically that of the slo ...
of the
French Navy, built to a design by
Jacques-Noël Sané
Jacques-Noël Sané (18 February 1740, Brest – 22 August 1831, Paris) was a French naval engineer. He was the conceptor of standardised designs for ships of the line and frigates fielded by the French Navy in the 1780s, which served during the ...
, and launched in 1794. The Americans captured her in 1800 but restored her to France the next year. She then served in the Indian Ocean before returning to Spain, where she was broken up in 1804.
Career
On 17 October 1794 ''Berceau'' was in the
ÃŽle-d'Aix
Île-d'Aix () is a commune and an island in the Charente-Maritime department, region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine (before 2015: Poitou-Charentes), off the west coast of France. It occupies the territory of the small Isle of Aix (''île d'Aix''), in the ...
roads. Her commander was ''lieutenant de vaisseau'' Bonamy.
[Fonds Marine BB4, 1790-1804.]
''Berceau'' participated in 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 ...
, an unsuccessful sortie by the French fleet at
Brest on 24 December 1794.
On 18 September 1797 ''Berceau'' was at
Saint-Nazaire
Saint-Nazaire (; ; Gallo: ''Saint-Nazère/Saint-Nazaer'') is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France, in traditional Brittany.
The town has a major harbour on the right bank of the Loire estuary, near the Atlantic Ocean ...
and under the command of ''capitaine de frégate'' Bourrand. Between 21 May and 8 June 1799 she carried dispatches from Toulon to Malaga, and then returned to
Palamós
Palamós () is a town and municipality in the Mediterranean Costa Brava, located in the ''comarca'' of Baix Empordà , in the province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain. Palamós is located at the northern end of a large bay. The town is by-passed by th ...
.
[
In 1799, ''Berceau'' took part in the Cruise of Bruix. On 11 May, Admiral Bruix set his flag on ''Berceau'' to direct a battle against the British off Cadiz; after the Spanish broke contact, Bruix cancelled the attack.
''Berceau'' captured on 21 January 1800. On 3 February the Antiguan privateer ''Peggy'' recaptured ''Sarah Ann''. ''Peggy'' sent ''Sarah Ann'' into Antigua, where she was condemned in prize and sold.
On 9 October 1799, Commander (''capitaine de frégate'') took command of ''Berceau''.][Quintin, p. 341] On 13 July 1800, ''Berceau'' engaged two Portuguese corvettes[ and five letters of marque, sinking one corvette and capturing four of the letters of marque.][
]
Capture by USS ''Boston''
On 12 October 1800 ''Berceau'' met the 28-gun American frigate ''Boston''; at the time neither vessel knew that the treaty that ended the Quasi-War had already been signed. In the ensuing engagement, ''Berceau'' was badly damaged and lost 34 men killed and 28 wounded before she eventually struck her colours. The Americans had four men killed, three men mortally wounded, and eight men wounded.[
''Berceau'' had been dismasted, so ''Boston'' towed her as a prize to Boston. During the voyage prize-master Lieutenant ]Robert Haswell
Robert Haswell (November 24, 1768 – 1801?) was an early American maritime fur trader to the Pacific Northwest of North America. His journals of these voyages are the main records of Captain Robert Gray's circumnavigation of the globe. Later du ...
rigged a jury mast and then sailed her on in an impressive feat of seamanship.[ The battle having been fought two weeks after a formal peace agreement, ''Berceau'' was repaired at American expense for $32,839.54.][ On 22 June 1801, she was restituted to France and recommissioned under Lieutenant Michelon.][ Canney, 2001 p.55] He then sailed her from Boston to Port-Louis
Port Louis (french: Port-Louis; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Polwi or , ) is the capital city of Mauritius. It is mainly located in the Port Louis District, with a small western part in the Black River District. Port Louis is the country's eco ...
, arriving around 19 October 1801.[
]
Resumption of French career
She sailed from Saint-Pierre, Martinique, to Lorient. Between 29 March and 14 April ''Berceau'' was under the temporary command of ''lieutenant de vaisseau'' Emmanuel Halgan
Emmanuel Halgan (Donges, 31 December 1771 - Paris, 20 April 1852) was a French Navy officer and admiral.
Biography
Born to the family of a bailiff, Halgan joined the French Royal Navy aged 16. He then served as a lieutenant and first officer ...
. ''Capitaine de frégate'' Brouard succeeded Halgan.[
On 25 September 1803, under , ''Berceau'' joined up with Linois' squadron off ÃŽle de France, bringing the news that the War of the Third Coalition had broken out.
On 21 November the and ''Berceau'' captured the large country ship as she was sailing from Bengal to China with a cargo of cotton and rice. In December, ''Sémillante'' and ''Berceau'' sent their boats in to attack British vessels anchored at Pulo Bay, and burn the East India Company factory and naval arsenal there.][ Accounts differ, but the French succeeded in burning between six and twelve vessels.
In February 1804, ''Berceau'' took part in the Battle of Pulo Aura under ''capitaine de frégate'' Halgan. Afterwards, the captains of the French vessels and the one Dutch vessel involved, including Halgan, wrote reports on the incident.][
]
Fate
''Berceau'' returned to Europe, reaching Vigo in August or September 1804, in bad condition. On 28 September Emperor Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
ordered her sold; she was decommissioned on 4 November and sold, for 21,000 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.[Leiner (2014), Chap. 6: The ''Boston'' and the perils of taking prizes.]
See also
* List of ships captured in the 19th century
*USS Boston vs Berceau
The Action between the USS ''Boston'' and ''Berceau'', was a single ship action off Guadeloupe, during the Quasi-War with France. (32 guns), Capt. George Little, captured the French corvette , ''capitaine de frégate'' Louis-André Senez. Cru ...
Notes, citations, and references
Notes
Citations
References
*
Url
*Fonds Marine - Campagnes (opérations ; divisions et stations navales ; missions diverses); Inventaire de la sous-série Marine BB 4. Tome premier (1790-1804).
*Kelly, Patrick (1811) ''The Universal Cambist, and Commercial Instructor: Being a General Treatise on Exchange, Including the Monies, Coins, Weights and Measures of All Trading Nations and Their Colonies : with an Account of Their Banks and Paper Currencies''. Vol. 2.
*Leiner, Frederick (2014) ''Millions for Defense: The Subscription Warships of 1798''. (Naval Institute Press).
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Berceau (1794)
Age of Sail corvettes of France
Ships built in France
1794 ships
Captured ships