HMS Formidable (1777)

Last updated

Le Formidable Les Saintes.JPG
History
Naval Ensign of Great Britain (1707-1800).svg Great Britain
NameHMS Formidable
Ordered17 August 1768
BuilderChatham Dockyard
Laid downNovember 1768
Launched20 August 1777
FateBroken up, 1813
Notes
General characteristics [1]
Class and type Barfleur-class ship of the line
Tons burthen1934 (bm)
Length177 ft 6 in (54.10 m) (gundeck)
Beam50 ft 3 in (15.32 m)
Depth of hold21 ft (6.4 m)
PropulsionSails
Sail plan Full-rigged ship
Complement750 officers and men
Armament
  • 90 guns:
  • Gundeck: 28 × 32-pounder guns
  • Middle gundeck: 30 × 18-pounder guns
  • Upper gundeck: 30 × 12-pounder guns
  • Forecastle: 2 × 9-pounder guns
  • 98 guns:
  • Gundeck: 28 × 32-pounder guns
  • Middle gundeck: 30 × 18-pounder guns
  • Upper gundeck: 30 × 12-pounder guns
  • Quarter deck: 8 × 12-pounder guns
  • Forecastle: 2 × 9-pounder guns

HMS Formidable was a 98-gun second rate man-of-war serving the Royal Navy.

Contents

She was launched on 20 August 1777 at Chatham Dockyard. She had a fitted weight of 1945 tons. She was named after HMS Formidable captured at Quiberon in 1759 and broken in 1767.

During her career, her armament was increased to 98-guns. [1]

Battle of the Saintes

see article: Battle of the Saintes

In March 1782, Formidable was stationed at Gros Islet Bay between the island of St. Lucia in the West Indies and Pigeon Island. It was under the command of Admiral Admiral Rodney, serving as his flagship at the head of 36 ship of the line. Meanwhile the French admiral, Grasse, headed 34 ship of the line at Fort Royal Bay in Martinique (some thirty miles away). Rodney had been dispatched from Britain with 12 well-fitted ships to rescue the West Indies from a series of attacks from the French which had already resulted in the loss of several islands. They joined 24 ships on St Lucia which had already seen action against the French and were undergoing repairs. [2]

The French had allies in the Spanish, who had 13 ship of the line at Cape Haitien in San Domingo. Together with transport ships the Spanish had a considerable force of 24,000 men. THey awaited the arrival of a further 10,000 French troops dispatched from Brest, under escort of five men-of-war, to further boost their strength. The plan was that Grasse's fleet, with at least 5000 further troops, would unite with the Spanish at Cape Haitien, and from there would attack and capture the island of Jamaica with their conjoined armada of some 60 ships and some 40,000 troops.

Rodney had been in communication with Grasse during March organising the exchange of prisoners, which were conveyed by HMS Alert under Captain Vashon. The two officers had much mutual respect. Rodney's task was to intercept the French fleet en route to Cape Haitien.

Grasse's vice admiral at the time was Louis-Philippe de Rigaud, Marquis de Vaudreuil. Third in command was Louis Antoine de Bougainville. The French flagship was the huge 104-gun Ville de Paris. The troops were under the command of the Marquis de Bouille.

The Formidable was accompanied by three 98-gun ships: HMS Barfleur, HMS Prince George and HMS Duke plus the 90-gun HMS Namur. The remaining 31 ships ranged from 64-gun to 74-gun. In total the British armada had 2620 guns in comparison to the French having 2526, but the French armour was superior. Most of the British fleet was equipped with carronades on the upper decks, which had a major advantage of flexibility, and were a great advantage at close quarters.

The Formidable had a crew of 900 of whom only two were declared unfit for service on the day, thanks to the ship's physician, Dr Blane.

Rodney's second in command was Admiral Samuel Hood. Third in command was Admiral Francis Samuel Drake who commanded the vanguard. Frederick Thesiger was Acting Lieutenant on board Formidable.

The Formidable took chase on 8 April and located the French fleet during the night. In the morning the Formidable and the bulk of the fleet were becalmed and unable to reach Hood in the Barfleur and seven advance ships who were initially attacked by 15 French ships. A rise in the wind at noon on 9 April allowed the Formidable and around half the fleet to join the melee. During this period the Formidable lost 3 men, including Lt Hill, plus 10 wounded. A further rise in the wind allowed the remainder of the British fleet to approach, causing the French to retreat. [3]

On 12 April Formidable was again involved in the action. Its gun decks were under the command of Sir Charles Douglas and Captain Thomas Symonds. Each gun was given 80 priming tubes (made of quills) and a pair of Kentish flints. [4]

Dr Gilbert Blane on the Formidable later wrote on the great beauty of the battle scene: stretching from the Soufriere region of Guadeloupe, to the island of Marie Galante and the huge volcanic summit of Diablotin on Dominica. [5]

The Formidable flew the White Ensign, Rodney being Admiral of the White.

Her most important action was the breaking of the French line in the middle of the battle, and the final pursuit of the "Ville de Paris". In total she fired 80 broadsides during the battle, totalling 35 tons of shot. Her losses were relatively light given both the ferocity of the battle and the huge French losses: 14 killed and 39 wounded. [6]

After the battle she headed for Port Royal in Jamaica delivering the news of their salvation on her arrival on 29 April. [7]

She was broken up in 1813. [1]

Citations and notes

  1. 1 2 3 Lavery, Ships of the Line, vol. 1, p. 179.
  2. Famous Fighters of the Fleet, Edward Fraser 1904
  3. Famous Fighters of the Fleet, Edward Fraser, 1904, p.86-89
  4. Famous Fighters of the Fleet, Edward Fraser 1904 p.99
  5. Famous Fighters of the Fleet, Edward Fraser, 1904, p.101
  6. Famous Fighters of the Fleet, Edward Fraser, 1904, p.159
  7. Famous Fighters of the Fleet, Edward Fraser, 1904, p.162

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Rodney, 1st Baron Rodney</span> British naval officer (1718–1792)

Admiral George Brydges Rodney, 1st Baron Rodney, KB, was a British naval officer. He is best known for his commands in the American War of Independence, particularly his victory over the French at the Battle of the Saintes in 1782. It is often claimed that he was the commander to have pioneered the tactic of breaking the line.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of the Saintes</span> Naval Battle of American Revolutionary War (1782)

The Battle of the Saintes, also known as the Battle of Dominica, was an important naval battle in the Caribbean between the British and the French that took place 9–12 April 1782. The British victory was considered their greatest over the French during the American Revolutionary War.

HMS <i>Barfleur</i> (1768) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Barfleur was a 90-gun second-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, designed by Sir Thomas Slade on the lines of the 100-gun ship Royal William, and launched at Chatham Dockyard on 30 July 1768, at a cost of £49,222. In about 1780, she had another eight guns added to her quarterdeck, making her a 98-gun ship; she possessed a crew of approximately 750. Her design class sisters were the Prince George, Princess Royal, and Formidable. She was a ship of long service and many battles.

HMS <i>Monmouth</i> (1667) Royal Navy warship of the 17th and 18th centuries

HMS Monmouth was a 66-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, and was likely named for James, Duke of Monmouth. She served from 1667 to 1767, winning ten battle honours over a century of active service. She was rebuilt a total of three times during her career—each time effectively becoming a completely new ship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Cornwallis</span> Royal Navy admiral

Admiral Sir William Cornwallis, was a Royal Navy officer. He was the brother of Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis, British commander at the siege of Yorktown. Cornwallis took part in a number of decisive battles including the siege of Louisbourg in 1758, when he was 14, and the Battle of the Saintes but is best known as a friend of Lord Nelson and as the commander-in-chief of the Channel Fleet during the Napoleonic Wars. He is depicted in the Horatio Hornblower novel, Hornblower and the Hotspur.

French ship <i>Ville de Paris</i> (1764) Ship of the line of the French Navy

Ville de Paris was a large three-decker French ship of the line that became famous as the flagship of De Grasse during the American Revolutionary War.

HMS <i>Hercules</i> (1759) Third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy 1759–1784

HMS Hercules was a 74-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, designed by Sir Thomas Slade and built at Deptford Dockyard by Adam Hayes and launched on 15 March 1759.

HMS <i>Duke</i> (1777) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Duke was a 98-gun second rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 18 October 1777 at Plymouth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Faulknor the younger</span>

Robert Faulknor the younger (1763–1795) was an 18th-century Royal Navy officer, part of the Faulknor naval dynasty. He was court-martialled and died in an action off Guadeloupe in the eastern Caribbean Sea.

HMS Alfred was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 22 October 1778 at Chatham Dockyard.

HMS <i>Foudroyant</i> (1758) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

The Foudroyant was an 80-gun ship of the line of the French Navy. She was later captured and served in the Royal Navy as the Third Rate HMS Foudroyant.

Princesa was a 70-gun, two deck, ship of the line of the Spanish Navy, one of three ordered in 1748 to the specification laid down by Ciprian Autran and designed and built at Havana by Pedro de Torres. She was laid down on 11 May 1748 and launched on 15 September 1750. She and her sisters Infante and Galicia were commissioned together on 15 August 1751, and left Havana on 1 March 1752 as a squadron under the overall command of Jefe de escuadra Francisco Ponce de Leon, arriving at Cadiz on 30 April.

French ship <i>Protée</i> (1772) Ship of the line of the French Navy

Protée was an Artésien-class 64-gun ship of the line of the French Navy, launched in 1772.

French ship <i>Diadème</i> (1756) Ship of the line of the French Navy

Diadème was the lead ship of the Diadème-class 74-gun ship of the line of the French Navy.

HMS <i>Neptune</i> (1683) Ship of the line of the Royal Navy

HMS Neptune was a 90-gun second-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy. She was built under the 1677 "Thirty Great Ships" Programme and launched in 1683 at Deptford Dockyard.

French ship <i>Glorieux</i> (1756) Ship of the line of the French Navy

Glorieux was a 74-gun ship of the line in the French Navy. Built by Clairin Deslauriers at Rochefort and launched on 10 August 1756, she was rebuilt in 1777.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Knight (Royal Navy officer)</span>

Admiral Sir John Knight, KCB was a senior British Royal Navy officer during the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries most noted for his activities as a post captain during the American and French Revolutionary Wars. Serving with the Caribbean Fleet during the American war, Knight fought several significant battles and was commended for his service and made tutor of the young Prince William. During the French wars he served with the North Sea fleet under Admiral Adam Duncan and was engaged at the Battle of Camperdown against the Dutch. During the Napoleonic Wars that followed he held a senior administrative role at Gibraltar and retired in 1815 to his home and eight children. Although Knight was respected professionally, he was not popular with his men and fellow officers and was criticised for his ability to maintain discipline and for his close relationship with his family which some suggested had a negative impact on his performance as an officer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of the Mona Passage</span> Naval engagement of the American Revolutionary War

The Battle of the Mona Passage was a naval engagement on 19 April 1782 taking place in the aftermath of the Battle of the Saintes between Britain and France during the American Revolutionary War. A British fleet under Rear-Admiral Sir Samuel Hood, pursued a small French fleet under Georges-François de Framond which had managed to escape the victorious British fleet a week earlier. The two fleets met and engaged at the Mona Passage where the British overtook and captured four French ships, two of which were 64-gun ships of the line.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taylor Penny</span> RN officer (1721–1786)

Captain Taylor Penny (1721–1786) was an 18th-century officer of the Royal Navy who came to fame at the Battle of the Saintes.

Admiral Thomas Le Marchant Gosselin was a British naval officer of the 18th and 19th centuries who received the patronage of senior officers such as Samuel Hood, 1st Viscount Hood and William Cornwallis. Gosselin joined the Royal Navy in 1778 and as a junior officer had extensive service in the American Revolution, including participating in the Battle of the Saintes in April 1782. Promoted to commander in April 1793, Gosselin took part in the Glorious First of June as commander of HMS Kingfisher. He was promoted to post-captain in July 1795 and took command of a variety of ships including most notably HMS Syren, HMS Latona, and HMS Audacious. Gosselin frequently served on blockade duties in the English Channel and on convoy duties to and from the West Indies.

References