| History | |
|---|---|
 France | |
| Name | Ajax |
| Namesake | Ajax |
| Builder | Lorient [1] |
| Laid down | December 1772 [1] |
| Launched | 14 January 1774 [1] |
| Out of service | 1786 |
| Fate | Broken up 1801 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Sévère class ship of the line |
| Tons burthen | 1300 tons |
| Length | 51.2 metres [1] |
| Beam | 13.2 metres [1] |
| Draught | 6.7 metres [1] |
| Propulsion | Sails |
| Sail plan | Full-rigged ship |
| Armament | 64 guns |
Ajax was a 64-gun ship of the line of the French Navy.
Built as Maréchal de Broglie for private owners and transferred to the French East India Company, the ship sailed two journeys to China as a merchantman. In April 1779, she was purchased by the Crown to ferry furnitures to Isle de France (now Mauritius) and be commissioned as a warship upon her arrival. In June, she was coppered, and she received her name of Ajax on 13 August. [1]
On 16 February 1780, under Captain Bouvet de Précourt, [2] Ajax departed Lorient with Protée, Éléphant and Charmante, escorting a convoy bound for India. In late February, off Spain, the convoy met Rodney's fleet; Protée sacrificed herself to hold the British back and was captured on 24, [3] while Charmante returned to Lorient, arriving on 3 March, and the convoy escaped under the protection of Ajax. [4]
Arrived at Isle the France, Ajax joined Suffren's squadron. At the Battle of Sadras, on 17 February 1782, Suffren ordered Ajax and Flamand, under Cuverville, to attack the British line to leeward. They both maneuvered to this effect, but then Tromelin, on Annibal, countermanded the order by signaling Ajax and Flamand to return to their post in the line of battle. While Ajax obeyed the order, Flamand sailed on and Saint-Félix, of Brillant, requested permission to replace Ajax. [5] After the battle, Suffren apologised to Bouvet for the confusion in his orders that had frustrated him from a prime role in the battle, promising to make up for it at the next occasion. [5]
She took part in the Battle of Negapatam on 6 July 1782, still under Captain Bouvet. The rigging of Ajax having been damaged by a gale the night before and not been repaired, Bouvet requested authorisation to retreat to effect his repairs; when Suffren refused, Ajax remained with her squadron but without taking part in the action. Suffren was furious. [1]
In July 1782, in the wake of the Battle of Negapatam, Suffren appointed Lieutenant de Beaumont le Maître to replace Bouvet. [6]
In the night of 12 January 1783, chasing the frigate Fine which she had mistaken for a privateer, HMS Coventry (1757) sailed into Ganjam Roads, where Suffren's Héros, Illustre, Ajax and Brillant were at anchor. [7] Captain Wolseley, of Coventry, had no information that French vessels were in the area and so allowed the current to take him towards the vessels, the wind being weak. [8] As Coventry arrived, Suffren, on Héros, was sending a boat over to Illustre, but the boat master was drunk and instead mistakenly came aboard Coventry. The boat's crew was promptly taken prisoners and taken to the orlop deck. At this moment, the French division noticed Coventry, and Illustre, Ajax and Brillant opened fire. Interrogating his prisoners, Wolseley learnt that the ships firing on him were part of Suffren's squadron, at which point his men rushed below. Alone on his quarterdeck, Wolseley had no choice but to surrender. [7] [8]
Ajax then took part in the Battle of Trincomalee under Beaumont le Maître, [9] and in the Battle of Cuddalore under Captain Dupas de la Mancelière, [10] who was killed in the action. [1]
She was struck in 1786 but was reinstated as a floating battery at Verdon in June 1795. The ship was broken up sometime after March 1801. [11]
Annibal was a 74-gun ship of the line of the French Navy, lead ship of her class. She was designed by Jacques-Noël Sané, and was one of the earliest of his works. She was built at Brest in 1778.
The Battle of Negapatam was the third in a series of 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 American Revolutionary War. The battle was fought on 6 July 1782. Though the battle was indecisive, Suffren was stopped in his goal by Hughes and withdrew to Cuddalore, while the British remained in control of Negapatam.
HMS Coventry was a 28-gun sixth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy, launched in 1757 and in active service as a privateer hunter during the Seven Years' War, and as part of the British fleet in India during the Anglo-French War. After seventeen years' in British service she was captured by the French in 1783, off Ganjam in the Bay of Bengal. Thereafter she spent two years as part of the French Navy until January 1785 when she was removed from service at the port of Brest. She was broken up in 1786.
Bellone was an Iphigénie-class 32-gun frigate of the French Navy on plans by Léon-Michel Guignace. She took part in the American Revolutionary War in the Indian Ocean with the squadron under Suffren, and later in the French Revolutionary Wars. She was present at the Glorious First of June.
The Illustre was a 74-gun Magnanime class ship of the line of the French Navy. She took part in the War of American Independence and in the French Revolutionary Wars. Damaged beyond repairs during the Expédition d'Irlande, she was scuttled on 30 December 1796.
Admiral comte Pierre André de Suffren de Saint Tropez, bailli de Suffren, Château de Saint-Cannat) was a French Navy officer and admiral. Beginning his career during the War of the Austrian Succession, he fought in the Seven Years' War, where he was taken prisoner at the Battle of Lagos. Promoted to captain in 1772, he was one of the aids of Admiral d'Estaing during the Naval battles of the American Revolutionary War, notably taking part in the Siege of Savannah.
Brillant was a 64-gun Solitaire-class ship of the line of the French Navy.
Bizarre was a 64-gun ship of the line of the French Navy. She was present at two major battles, and was wrecked in 1782.
The Flamand was a 56-gun Bordelois-class ship of the line of the French Navy. She was funded by a don des vaisseaux donation from the Estates of Flanders, and built by engineer Léon Guignace on a design by Antoine Groignard. She took part in Suffren's campaign during the American Revolutionary War.
Fine was a Sybille class 32-gun, copper-hulled, frigate of the French Navy.
HMS Fortune was a British 14-gun sloop launched in 1778 that the French captured in April 1780. She then served with the French navy under the same name.
Charmante was a 32-gun of the French Navy, lead ship of her class.
Armand de Saint-Félix was a French Navy officer and admiral.
Louis-Hyacinte de Cavelier, chevalier de Cuverville was a French Navy officer.
The action of 12 August 1782 was a minor single-ship action that opposed the French 32-gun frigate Bellone to the British 28-gun HMS Coventry in the run-up to the Battle of Trincomalee. Although both ships were frigates, Bellone belonged to the Iphigénie class and was a comparatively large frigate for her time, carrying a battery of 18-pounder long guns, while Coventry was a sixth-rate armed only with 9-pounder long guns. Furthermore, Bellone had the advantage of the wind. The nominal crew of Coventry was about tho thirds of that of Bellone, but in the occasion it was reinforced by the troops she was carrying. In spite of these overwhelming odds, Coventry managed to inflict heavy casualties on Bellone, and most decisively to shoot most of the senior staff. The resulting confusion on Bellone allowed Coventry to escape to Madras.
René Joseph Bouvet de Précourt was a French Navy officer. He was captain of the 64-gun Ajax in Suffren's squadron in the Indian Ocean during the War of American Independence, and fought at the Battle of Sadras on 17 February 1782.
Charles Louis du Chilleau de La Roche was a French Navy officer.
Beaumont le Maître was a French Navy officer. He fought in the Indian Ocean under Suffren during the War of American Independence, notably captaining the 64-gun Ajax at the Battle of Trincomalee from 25 August to 3 September 1782 and Saint Michel at the Battle of Cuddalore on 20 June 1783.
Jean-Marie Kersauson de Goasmelquin was a French Navy officer. He fought in the War of American Independence, and took part in the French operations in the Indian Ocean under Suffren.
Charles de Mengaud de La Haye was a French Navy officer. He served in the War of American Independence.