French ship Centaure (1818)

For other ships with the same name, see French ship Centaure.

The Robuste, sister-ship of the Centaure
History
France
Name	Centaure
Namesake	Centaure
Ordered	25 November 1811
Builder	Cherbourg
Laid down	2 November 1811
Launched	8 January 1818
In service	10 February 1823
Renamed	Santi-Pietri, 14 October 1823
Fate	Destroyed by fire 4 January 1862
General characteristics
Class & type	Bucentaure-class ship of the line
Displacement	3,868 tonneaux
Tons burthen	2,034 port tonneaux
Length	59.28 m (194 ft 6 in)
Beam	15.27 m (50 ft 1 in)
Draught	7.8 m (25 ft 7 in)
Depth of hold	7.64 m (25 ft 1 in)
Sail plan	Full-rigged ship
Crew	866 (wartime)
Armament	90 guns: Lower gun deck: 30 × 36 pdr guns Upper gun deck: 32 × 24 pdr guns Forecastle and Quarterdeck: 14 × 12 pdr guns & 14 × 36 pdr carronades

Centaure was a 3rd rank, 90-gun Bucentaure-class ship of the line built for the French Navy during the 1810s. Completed in 1818, she played a minor role in the Spanish expedition in 1823.

Description

Designed by Jacques-Noël Sané, the Bucentaure-class ships had a length of 59.28 metres (194 ft 6 in), a beam of 15.27 metres (50 ft 1 in) and a depth of hold of 7.64 metres (25 ft 1 in). The ships displaced 3,868 tonneaux and had a mean draught of 7.8 metres (25 ft 7 in). They had a tonnage of 2,034 port tonneaux. Their crew numbered 866 officers and ratings during wartime. They were fitted with three masts and ship rigged. ^[1]

The muzzle-loading, smoothbore armament of the Bucentaure class consisted of thirty 36-pounder long guns on the lower gun deck and thirty-two 24-pounder long guns on the upper gun deck. The armament on the quarterdeck and forecastle varied as the ships' authorised armament was changed over the years that the Bucentares were built. Centaure was fitted with fourteen 12-pounder long guns and fourteen 36-pounder carronades. ^[1]

Construction and career

Burning of the Santi Petri convict-ship at Toulon

Centaure was ordered in 1811, laid down on 2 November 1811 at the Arsenal de Cherbourg, and named on 25 November. The ship was launched on 8 January 1818. She was completed in April and commissioned on 10 February 1823. ^[2] Centaure participated in operations of the Spanish expedition later that year, along with Trident and Sirène, silencing Fort Santi-Pietri in Cádiz on 20 September. On 14 October, she was renamed Santi-Pietri to commemorate the event. ^[3] The ship was used as a troopship in 1836, condemned on 5 November 1849 and hulked as a prison ship before she was destroyed by fire on 4 January 1862. ^[2]

Citations

1. Winfield & Roberts, p. 57
2. Winfield & Roberts, p. 60
3. Roche, p. 102

Bibliography

• Roche, Jean-Michel (2005). Dictionnaire des bâtiments de la flotte de guerre française de Colbert à nos jours[Dictionary of French Warships from Colbert to Today]. Vol. 1: 1671-1870. Roche. ISBN   978-2-9525917-0-6. OCLC   165892922.
• Winfield, Rif and Roberts, Stephen S. (2015) French Warships in the Age of Sail 1786-1861: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. Seaforth Publishing. ISBN   978-1-84832-204-2