''Bien-Aimé'' 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 ...

warship of the

French Navy The French Navy (, , ), informally (, ), is the Navy, maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the four military service branches of History of France, France. It is among the largest and most powerful List of navies, naval forces i ...

Construction

''Bien-Aimé'' was origionally built for the

French East India Company Compagnie des Indes () may refer to several French chartered companies involved in long-distance trading: * First French East Indies Company, in existence from 1604 to 1614 * French West India Company, active in the Western Hemisphere from 1664 t ...

, but the

acquired her before she was completed.

Career

In 1777, ''Bien-Aimé'' was commanded by Captain de Bougainville. The next year, at the outbreak of the

War of American Independence The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

, she was part of the squadron under Admiral Lamotte-Picquet, and took part in the action of 2 May 1781. On 24 April 178, ''Bien-Aimé'' departed Brest, under François Pierre Huon de Kermadec, in the squadron of Admiral Lamotte-Picquet, along with the 110-gun ''Invincible'', the 74-gun ''Actif'', and the 64-gun ships ''Alexandre'', ''Hardi'' and ''Lion'', and the frigates ''Sibylle'' and ''Néréide'', and cutters ''Chasseur'' and ''Levrette''.

Fate

''Bien-Aimé'' was struck from the Navy lists in 1784, and broken up the year after.

Citations

References

* * Ships of the line of the French Navy 1769 ships Ships built in France {{France-line-ship-stub