''Généreux'' was a French

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 ...

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 tactics in the Age of Sail, naval tactic known as the line of battl ...

. After capture she completed her career as part of the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

as HMS ''Généreux''.

History

She was launched in 1785 at

Rochefort Rochefort () may refer to: Places France * Rochefort, Charente-Maritime, in the Charente-Maritime department ** Arsenal de Rochefort, a former naval base and dockyard * Rochefort, Savoie in the Savoie department * Rochefort-du-Gard, in the G ...

. Under Louis-Jean-Nicolas Lejoille, she was one of only two ships to escape the British attack at the

Battle of the Nile The Battle of the Nile (also known as the Battle of Aboukir Bay; ) was fought between the Royal Navy and the French Navy at Abu Qir Bay, Aboukir Bay in Ottoman Egypt, Egypt between 1–3 August 1798. It was the climax of the Mediterranean ca ...

in August 1798, along with . Shortly after the battle of the Nile, on 18 August 1798, she fell in with a smaller British ship of the line, of 50 guns. After a long battle, the ''Généreux'' captured the ''Leander'', with the ''Leander'' suffering 35 killed and 57 wounded and the ''Généreux'' suffered around 100 killed and 180 wounded. In March 1799, ''Généreux'' escorted a convoy to Corfu, which was being besieged by a joint Russo-Ottoman fleet. En route, her captain, Lejoille, decided to bombard

Brindisi Brindisi ( ; ) is a city in the region of Apulia in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Historically, the city has played an essential role in trade and culture due to its strategic position ...

. He was killed in the ensuing exchange of fire, and lieutenant Claude Touffet took over. The city fell on 3 March after a two-hour battle. On 6 February 1800, ''Généreux'', under Captain Renaudin, departed from Toulon leading a squadron comprising the frigate ''Badine'', the corvettes ''Sans Pareille'' and ''Fauvette'', and the fluyt ''Ville de Marseille'', under Rear-Admiral Jean-Baptiste Perrée. In the morning of 18 February, a British fleet starting chasing the French squadron off

Lampedusa Lampedusa ( , , ; ; ) is the largest island of the Italian Pelagie Islands in the Mediterranean Sea. The ''comune'' of Lampedusa e Linosa is part of the Sicilian province of Agrigento which also includes the smaller islands of Linosa and Lamp ...

island. In the ensuing Battle of the Malta Convoy, Perrée was killed, and ''Généreux'' covered the squadron, allowing ''Badine'', ''Sans Pareille'' and ''Fauvette'' to escape, before striking her colours. Her battle ensign, a 16 m by 8.3 m tricolour, was given to the city of Norwich by Berry and Nelson. The flag has been preserved; its size and completeness marking it as a special artefact of the period. She became HMS ''Généreux'' and she was in Minorca in 1801 when she press-ganged a crew from the ''Walmesley''. She engaged Spanish ships and she was intended to go to Egypt. Storm damage prevented this so she patrolled off what is now Libya. After taking part in an unsuccessful attack on the French island of

Elba Elba (, ; ) is a Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino on the Italian mainland, and the largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago. It is also part of the Arcipelago Toscano National Park, a ...

, she set sail from Minorca for Spithead after peace was declared. She arrived at

Spithead Spithead is an eastern area of the Solent and a roadstead for vessels off Gilkicker Point in Hampshire, England. It is protected from all winds except those from the southeast, with the Isle of Wight lying to the south-west. Spithead and the ch ...

on 27 July 1802. She was finally broken up in 1816.

Citations

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Genereux (1785) Ships of the line of the French Navy Ships of the line of the Royal Navy Téméraire-class ships of the line 1785 ships Ships built in France

History

See also

Citations

References