''Colibri'' was a
brig
A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the ...
launched in 1802 for 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 ...
. Between 14 and 16 August ''Colibri'' cruised the Atlantic as she sailed to Cadiz. She was under the command of ''enseigne de vaisseau'' Jourdain.
She was renamed ''Saint Pierre'' on 1 September 1802. Napoleon ordered the name change preparatory to donating her to
Pope Pius VII
Pope Pius VII ( it, Pio VII; born Barnaba Niccolò Maria Luigi Chiaramonti; 14 August 1742 – 20 August 1823), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 14 March 1800 to his death in August 1823. Chiaramonti was also a m ...
. ''Saint Pierre'' left Toulon on 14 December and arrived at
Civitavecchia
Civitavecchia (; meaning "ancient town") is a city and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Rome in the central Italian region of Lazio. A sea port on the Tyrrhenian Sea, it is located west-north-west of Rome. The harbour is formed by two pier ...
on 16 December. She sailed in company with a second gift, the somewhat over-aged brig
''San Paulo'', escorted by
''Alcyon''. Lieutenant Dornaldéguy performed the official transfer of the ships to the papal delegate.
In the service of the Papal Navy she was renamed ''San Pietro''. The French Navy seized her at Civitavechia in June 1806 and listed her as ''San Petro''. The French Empire annexed Civitavecchia in May 1809; at that time she reverted to the name ''Saint Pierre''. She remained at Civitavechia until January 1813, when the French Navy found her to be unserviceable and had her struck from the Navy list.
The schematics of the ornamentation of ''Colibri'' are stored at the Service Historique de la Marine in Paris (8DD1.2 no 6) and were published in Lepelley's monograph on ''Manche''.
See also
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Papal Navy
The Papal Navy ( it, Marina Pontificia, "Pontifical Navy"; la, Classis Pontificiae) was the maritime force of the Papal States. Loosely construed, it was in sporadic existence from approximately the Battle of Ostia (849) during the pontificate of ...
Citations
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Colibri (1802)
1802 ships
Ships of the Papal Navy
Captured ships
Brigs of the French Navy