HMS Auguste (1705)

Last updated

History
Flag of the Kingdom of France (1814-1830).svg France
NameL'Auguste
Ordered2 January 1704
BuilderÉtienne Hubac, Brest
Laid downJanuary 1704
Launched3 May 1704
CommissionedJuly 1704
In service1704–1705
Captured8 August 1705
General characteristics in French service
Class and type60-gun Third Rank ship of the line
Tons burthen800
Length
Beam36½ French feet
Draught18 French feet
Depth of hold16 French feet
Sail plan Full-rigged ship
Complement400 (320 in peacetime), + 10 officers
Armament
  • 54 guns comprising:
  • Gun deck: 24 × 18-pounders
  • Upper deck: 26 × 8-pounders
  • Quarterdeck: 4 × 4-pounders
  • Forecastle nil
Naval Ensign of Great Britain (1707-1800).svgGreat Britain
NameHMS Auguste
Acquired8 August 1705
Commissioned28 August 1705
In service1705–1716
FateWrecked 10 November 1716
General characteristics in British service
Class and type60-gun fourth-rate ship of the line
Tons burthen932894 bm
Length
  • 141 ft 6 in (43.1 m) (gun deck)
  • 115 ft 2 in (35.1 m) (keel)
Beam39 ft 0 in (11.9 m)
Depth of hold16 ft 0 in (4.88 m)
Sail plan Full-rigged ship
Complement365 (240 in peacetime)
Armament
  • Gun deck: 24 × 24-pounder guns
  • Upper deck: 24 × 9-pounder guns
  • QD: 8 minions
  • Fc: 2 minions

HMS Auguste was the French 54-gun Auguste built in Brest in 1704 that the British captured in 1705. In her brief French service she captured two British men-of-war. She was wrecked in 1716.

Contents

French service

Étienne Hubac designed Auguste as a privateer for René Duguay-Trouin. in whose service she was employed as part of a naval squadron of four vessels. Together with the 54-gun Jason (1704), she captured HMS Coventry in September 1704. Then, on 12 November, 30 miles south of the Isles of Scilly, together with Jason and the 26-gun frigate Valeur (1704), she captured the third rate Elizabeth. In February 1705 Auguste and the 44-gun fourth-rate Thétis were escorting Gloutonne, Élephant, and Jean et Jacques (which were armed en flute ), when the convoy ran into a squadron under Admiral George Byng off Cape Finisterre. Only Auguste escaped. [1]

Chatham, together with Medway and Tryton, captured Auguste on 8 August 1705 (Old Style Calendar) - 19 August (New Calendar). [1]

British service

Auguste was registered for Royal Navy service from 28 August 1705 and fitted out for service in the English Channel. Commissioned for active service by Captain Robert Bokenham, she proved her worth by capturing the French privateers La Marie-Madeleine on 13 September 1706, and L'Hirondelle on 30 September 1706. [2]

Bokenham died in 1707 and Captain Thomas Scott replaced him. The next year, Auguste joined the fleet of Admiral George Byng, which was in need of reinforcement after the Scilly naval disaster of 1707. The fleet patrolled the Channel and the North Sea throughout 1708. [2] In 1709, Lord Duffus replaced Scott. From 1710 to 1713, she was under the command of Captain Robert Thompson in the Dunkirk squadron (1710), the Mediterranean (1711), and the West Indies (1712). [3]

Loss

In 1716, while under the command of Captain Robert Johnson, Auguste was in the Baltic. She had sailed from Nore on 18 May with a squadron under Sir John Norris to join a combined English-Dutch-Danish-Russian fleet in a demonstration to Sweden that Britain and her allies would resist Swedish interference with trade. [4]

In November she was returning to England from Copenhagen with a convoy. As the weather worsened, the convoy took shelter on the evening of 9 November at Læsø island. During the night Auguste's cables broke and she sailed out to sea to avoid being driven on shore. On the night of 10 November a gale drove her ashore on the nearby island of Anholt. [5] Captain Johnson, his officers, and at least 250 of his men were saved. Another 40 may have landed in Sweden. [6] In all, most of her people were saved. [4]

See also

Notes

  1. The pre-metric French foot or pied was 6.575% longer than the equivalent British unit of measurement.

Citations

  1. 1 2 Roche (2005), p. 57.
  2. 1 2 Winfield (2007), p. 117.
  3. "NMM, vessel ID 380379" (PDF). Warship Histories, vol v. National Maritime Museum. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 August 2011. Retrieved 30 July 2011.
  4. 1 2 Clowes et al. (1897-1903), Vol. 3, pp.26-27.
  5. Hepper (1994), p. 30.
  6. "No. 5494". The London Gazette . 11 December 1716. p. 1.

Related Research Articles

HMS <i>Captain</i> (1678) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Captain was a 70-gun third rate built at Woolwich Dockyard in 1677/78. After sitting in Ordinary for ten years she was in active commission for the War of the English Succession fighting at Beachy Head and Barfleur. She was in Ordinary until 1706 when she was rebuilt. She was in active commission for the last half of the War of Spanish Succession but fought in no major engagements. She was at the Battle of Passero I 1718. She was rebuilt in 1720/22. She made two forays in to the Baltic though the bulk of her late career was spent as guardship at Portsmouth. She was hulked in 1740 and finally broken in 1762.

HMS <i>Lenox</i> (1678) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Lenox was a 70-gun third rate built at Deptford Dockyard in 1677/78. She was in active commission for the War of English Succession fighting in the Battles of Beachy Head and Barfleur. She was rebuilt in 1699. Again in active commission for the War of Spanish Succession fighting in the Capture of Gibraltar and the Battle of Velez Malaga. She followed this with the Battle off Passero. She was rebuilt again in 1721. She was active in the War with Spain, capturing the Princesa then serving in Home Waters, the Mediterranean and finally the West Indies. She was in action off Havana in 1745. She returned home and was placed in Ordinary. She was finally sunk as a breakwater at Sheerness in 1756.

HMS Berwick was a 70-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built at Chatham Dockyard during 1677/1679. After completion she was placed in Ordinary for 10 years. She was commissioned for the War of the English Succession 1689-1697, participating in the battles of Beachy Head and Barfleur. She was rebuilt between 1697 and 1700. She was commissioned for the War of Spanish Succession 1702-1712, participating in the battles of Vigo Bay, Capture of Gibraltar and Velez Malaga. placed in Ordinary in 1712, she was converted to a hulk at Portsmouth in 1715 before being broken in 1742.

HMS Burford was a 70-gun third rate ship of the line built at Woolwich Dockyard in 1677/79 as part of the Thirty Ships Programme of 1677. She fought in the War of the English Succession, including the Battle of Barfleur, before being rebuilt at Deptford in 1699, remaining as a 70-gun third rate. During the War of Spanish Succession she was mostly in the Mediterranean fleet and fought at the capture of Gibraltar and the Battle of Málaga in 1704 before being extensively repaired between 1710 and 1712 at Portsmouth Dockyard. Burford served in the Baltic in 1715 and 1717 before returning to the Mediterranean to fight the Spanish at the Battle of Cape Passaro in 1718. She was wrecked on the Italian coast in a storm on 14 February 1719.

HMS <i>Eagle</i> (1679) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Eagle was a 70-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built at Portsmouth Dockyard during 1677/79. When completed she was placed in Ordinary for 10 years. She was in active commission during the War of the English Succession partaking in the Battle of Barfleur. She was rebuilt in 1699 at Chatham. She again played an active role in the early part of the War of Spanish Succession participating in the Capture of Gibraltar, and the Battle of Velez Malaga. She was wrecked in the Isles of Scilly in October 1707.

HMS <i>Kent</i> (1679) 70-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy built in the late 17th century

HMS Kent was a 70-gun third rate ship of the line built by Sir Henry Johnson of Blackwall in 1677/79. She served during the War of English Succession 1699 to 1697, participating in the Battle of Barfleur. She was rebuilt in 1697/99. She served during the War of Spanish Succession 1702 to 1712 and partook in the Battles of Vigo and Velez-Malaga. She partook in the Battle of Passaro then served during the short war with Spain, December 1718 to February 1720. She was rebuilt in 1722/26. She spent the next thirteen years as a guard ship at Portsmouth. In the 1740s, she was off Cape Finisterre then in the West Indies. She returned home and was finally broken in 1744.

HMS <i>Suffolk</i> (1680) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Suffolk was a 70-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, built by contract of 20 February 1678 by Sir Henry Johnson at Blackwall. She participated in the War of the English Succession 1689 - 1697, in the Battles of Beachy Head and Barfleur. She was rebuilt in 1699. She was actively involved in the War of Spanish Succession 1702 - 1713. Her later career was as guard ship duties, deployments to the Baltic Sea and the West Indies. She was finally broken in 1765 after lying in Ordinary for almost twenty years.

HMS Coventry was a 50-gun fourth rate ship of the line of the English Royal Navy, one of five such ships authorised on 16 November 1693. The Coventry was built by Master Shipwright Fisher Harding at Deptford Dockyard and launched there on 20 April 1695.

HMS <i>Chatham</i> (1691) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Chatham was a 50-gun fourth rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, the first of five such ships to be ordered in 1690. The Chatham was built by Master Shipwright Robert Lee at the eponymous dockyard, and launched on 20 October 1691. She was designed to the same lines as Lee's previous 50-gun ship, the Sedgemoor of 1687 - her specification was for a length of 123 ft, breadth of 34ft 3in and depth in hold of 13ft 9in, although she measured very slightly more on completion.

HMS Dunwich was a member of the standardized 20-gun sixth rates built at the end of the 17th century. After commissioning she spent her career mainly in Home Waters with forays to Morocco, North America and the Mediterranean. She was involved in the capture of five privateers. She was sunk as a breakwater in 1714.

HMS Valeur was a 24-gun French sixth rate named Le Valeur take by HMS Worcester on 2 April 1705 in the Channel. She was purchased at Plymouth by Admiralty Order (AO) 30 May 1705 for £405. She was commissioned into the Royal Navy in 1705 for service in the Mediterranean. From 1706 thru 1708 she was with Admiral Byng's squadron. In Newfoundland, she was taken by the French, then retaken by the British. She spent time in the Irish Sea then was converted to a fireship and then converted back to a sixth rate. she was finally broken at in 1718.

Vice-Admiral Sir Charles Hardy, also known as Charles Hardy the Elder, was a Royal Navy officer of the eighteenth century. Hardy entered the Royal Navy in 1695, joining his cousin Captain Thomas Hardy's ship HMS Pendennis. Promoted to lieutenant in 1701, he served in several ships of the line before being promoted to commander in 1705. Hardy commanded sloops in the English Channel, Mediterranean and North Seas, before taking command of HMS Dunwich in 1709, in which he was promoted to post captain. Hardy subsequently served for a year at Jamaica before commanding two ships during the Great Northern War between 1718 and 1720. Having changed commands several times, in 1727 he fought at the thirteenth siege of Gibraltar in HMS Kent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Hardy (Royal Navy officer, died 1732)</span> English naval officer

Rear-Admiral Sir Thomas Hardy was a Royal Navy officer of the late 17th and early 18th centuries. Having joined the navy sometime before 1688, Hardy's career was supported by Captain George Churchill, whom he served as first lieutenant during the Battle of Barfleur in 1692. Promoted to captain in 1693, Hardy served in the Channel Islands and off the coast of England until 1702 when he was given command of HMS Pembroke off the coast of Spain. He fought at the Battle of Cádiz, and subsequently discovered the location of the Franco-Spanish fleet through the intervention of his chaplain, which resulted in the Battle of Vigo Bay. Hardy was knighted for his services.

HMS Scarborough was a 32-gun fifth rate vessel built at Woolwich Dockyard in 1693/94. Shortly after commissioning she was taken by two French privateers and went under French service. She was recaptured in 1697 and renamed Milford. She spent some time off Africa then the West Indies. She was rebuilt in 1705. She was in the North Sea, the Mediterranean and finally the West Indies where she was wrecked in 1720.

HMS Sorlings was a 32-gun fifth rate vessel built under contract at Shoreham in 1693/94. After commissioning she spent her time in trade protection services between Home Waters, North America, West Indies and the Mediterranean. She was captured by the French in October 1705. Incorporated into the French Navy, she was loaned to the Privateering squadron at Dunkerque then recaptured by the British in 1711 and sold.

HMS Lyme was a 32-gun fifth rate built by Mr. Flint of Plymouth in 1694/95. She spent her career on counter piracy patrols and trade protection duties in Home Waters, the Mediterranean and in North America and the West Indies. She was rebuilt to the 1719 Establishment as a sixth rate in 1720/21. Her breaking was completed in January 1739.

HMS Rye was a 32-gun fifth rate built at Sheerness Dockyard in 1694/96.

HMS Scarborough was a 32-gun fifth rate built under contract by James Parker of Southampton in 1695/96. She served in the trade protection and counter-piracy operations during her service. She was captured by the French, then recaptured by the British and renamed Garland, She was converted to a fireship for the Baltic then the Mediterranean. She was at the Battle of Passero in 1718. She was reduced to a 20-gun sixth rate in 1717. Rebuilt to the 1719 Establishment in 1721, she was finally sold in 1744.

HMS Fowey was a 32-gun fifth rate built by Mr. Flint of Plymouth in 1695/96. She was employed in trade protection and counter-piracy patrols in Home Waters and North America. She was in on the capture of a 50-gun Frenchman while returning from Virginia. She was taken by the French off the Scilly Islands in August 1704.

HMS Tartar was a 32-gun fifth rate built by the Woolwich Dockyard in 1702. Her initial commissioning was in time for the War of the Spanish Succession. She partook in the Battle of Velez Malaga in 1704. She spent the rest of her career on counter piracy and trade protection patrols. She was rebuilt as a 20-gun sixth rate in 1733. She was finally broken in 1755.

References

This article includes data released under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported UK: England & Wales Licence, by the National Maritime Museum, as part of the Warship Histories project.