French frigate Piémontaise (1804)

HMS St Fiorenzo and Piémontaise.
History
France
Name: Piémontaise
Namesake: Piedmont
Builder: Saint Malo
Laid down: 22 March 1803
Launched: 15 December 1804
Commissioned: 23 September 1805 at Saint Servan
Captured: 8 March 1808
Great Britain
Name: Piedmontaise[1]
Acquired: 8 March 1808
Fate: Broken up in 1813
General characteristics [2][3]
Class & type: Consolante-class frigate
Displacement: 1400 tons (French)
Tons burthen: 1091 83⁄94 (bm)
Length: 157 ft 5 in (47.98 m) (overall); 128 ft 10 in (39.27 m) (keel)
Beam: 39 ft 11 in (12.17 m)
Draught: 6.17 m (20.2 ft) [4]
Depth of hold: 12 ft 8 in (3.86 m)
Propulsion: Sail
Armament:
Armour: Timber

The Piémontaise was a 40-gun Consolante-class frigate of the French Navy. She served as a commerce raider in the Indian Ocean until her capture in March 1808. She then served with the British Royal Navy in the East Indies until she was broken up in Britain in 1813.

French service

Piémontaise was built by Enterprise Étheart at Saint Malo to a design by François Pastel.

On 18 December 1805 she sailed from Brest for Île de France. There she served as a commerce raider under captain Jacques Epron. On 21 June 1806, she captured the East Indiaman Warren Hasting. On 6 September, she captured the 14-gun East India Company brig Grappler, the three-masted country ship Atomany, and the East Indiaman Fame, the one-time prize to Semillante. In early March 1808, she captured three merchantmen off Southern India.

Capture

On 6 March 1808, she encountered HMS St Fiorenzo.[5] The two ships battled for three days until Piémontaise, out of ammunition and having suffered heavy casualties, had to strike her colours on 8 March. The evening before she struck, Lieutenant de vaisseau Charles Moreau, who had been severely wounded, threw himself into the sea. Captain Hardinge, of St Fiorenzo, was killed in the fighting on the last day. Over the three days the British suffered 13 dead and 25 wounded. The French suffered some 48 dead and 112 wounded.[6][7]

Lieutenant William Dawson took command and brought both vessels back to Colombo, even though Piémontaise's three masts fell over her side early in the morning of 9 March. Piémontaise had on board British army officers and captains and officers from prizes that she had taken. These men helped organize the lascars to jury-rig masts and bring Piémontaise into port. St Fiorenzo had too few men, too many casualties, and roo many prisoners to guard to provide much assistance. In 1847 the Admiralty awarded the Naval General Service Medal with clasp "San Fiorenzo 8 March 1808" to any surviving claimants from the action.

British service

The British brought Piémontaise into service as HMS Piedmontaise, commissioning her under Captain Charles Foote. From May to August 1810, she took part in an expedition to the Banda Islands, along with Caroline and Barracouta.[8] The expedition also included Mandarin.

Foote died in September and Commander Henry D. Dawson replaced him, only to die shortly thereafter. Piedmontaise's next captain was T. Epworth, who was replaced in turn by Captain Henry Edgell.[3]

Fate

Piémontaise was taken out of commission at Woolwich on 12 August 1812. She was broken up in January 1813.[3]

Footnotes

Notes
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    References

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