HMS Illustrious (1789)

For other ships with the same name, see HMS Illustrious.

Model of HMS Illustrious at Buckler's Hard
History
Great Britain
Name	HMS Illustrious
Ordered	31 December 1781
Builder	Henry Adams, Bucklers Hard
Laid down	September 1784
Launched	7 July 1789
Fate	Wrecked, 1795
Notes	Participated in: Battle of Genoa
General characteristics [1]
Class and type	Arrogant-class ship of the line
Tons burthen	1,615 51⁄94 tons burthen
Length	168 ft 2 in (51.26 m) (gundeck)
Beam	46 ft 11 in (14.30 m)
Draught	12 ft 6 in (3.81 m)
Depth of hold	19 ft 9 in (6.02 m)
Propulsion	Sails
Sail plan	Full-rigged ship
Armament	74 guns: Gundeck: 28 × 32 pdrs Upper gundeck: 28 × 18 pdrs Quarterdeck: 14 × 9 pdrs Forecastle: 4 × 9 pdrs

HMS Illustrious was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 7 July 1789 at Bucklers Hard under the direction of Henry Adams. ^{[2] [3]} She participated in the Battle of Genoa after which she was wrecked.

Service

In 1793, Illustrious was involved in the Siege of Toulon. In 1795, she earned a Battle Honour in the Battle of Genoa. Illustrious was badly damaged in the engagement with the van of the French fleet.

Loss

After the battle, Meleager was towing Illustrious when she broke free of her tow. Then the accidental firing of a lower deck gun damaged the ship so that she took on water. ^[4] She attempted to anchor in Valence Bay (between Spezia and Leghorn) to ride out the bad weather that had descended upon her. Her cables broke, however, and she struck on rocks and had to be abandoned. ^[4] Lowestoffe and Tarleton took off her stores, and all her crew were saved. ^[4] Her hull was then set on fire. ^[5]

Notes

1. Winfield, p.79
2. Lavery, Ships of the Line, vol. 1, p. 180.
3. Winklareth, Robert (2000). Naval Shipbuilders of the World From the Age of Sail to the Present Day. Chatham. pp. 85–87. ISBN   9781861761217.
4. Gossett (1986), p.7.
5. Ships of the Old Navy, Illustrious.

References

• Gossett, William Patrick (1986). The lost ships of the Royal Navy, 1793-1900. Mansell. ISBN   0-7201-1816-6.
• Lavery, Brian (1983) The Ship of the Line - Volume 1: The development of the battlefleet 1650-1850. Conway Maritime Press. ISBN   0-85177-252-8.
• Michael Phillips. Illustrious (74) (1789). Michael Phillips' Ships of the Old Navy. Retrieved 1 November 2008.
• Winfield, Rif (2007). British Warships of the Age of Sail 1714–1792: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. Barnsley, United Kingdom: Seaforth. ISBN   9781844157006.