French ship Hector (1756)

For other ships of the same name, see French ship Hector and HMS Hector.
|}

The Hector was a 74-gun ship of the line of the French Navy, lead ship of her class.

Career

Hector was launched on 23 July 1755, and commissioned under Captain Vilarzel d'Hélie.[1]

In 1757, the departed Toulon on 18 March, arriving in Louisbourg on 15 June.[1] Returning to Brest on 23 November with 5000 sick aboard, she spread the typhus to the town;[2] the ensuing epidemic caused 10 000 fatalities.[1] She was then decommissioned and stayed in the reserve in Brest.[1]

In July 1762, while cruising off Cap Français, she struck the bottom on a rock. The same spot had been the theatre of the wreck of Dragon on 17 March of the same year.[3]

Between 1763 and 1777, she was decommissioned in Toulon.[1] During the American War of Independence, she reactivated, sailing to the Delaware in July 1778.[1] She arrived at Newport on 8 August 1778.[1]

On 14 August 1778, Hector and the 64-gun Vaillant captured the bombship HMS Thunder.[1] The same day, she also captured the 16-gun HMS Senegal at Sandy Hook.[1]

Hector then took part in the Battle of Grenada on 6 July 1779 and in the Siege of Savannah, before returning to Brest, arriving on 10 December 1779.[1] She was decommissioned in Lorient on 21 December, before rearming and thaking part in the Battle of the Chesapeake on 5 September 1781.[1]

During the Battle of the Saintes, from 9 to 12 April 1782, she battled HMS Canada and Alcide and was captured.[1] He captain, Lavicomté, died in the action.[1]

The British took her to Jamaica, where she was repaired and recommissioned in the Royal Navy as HMS Hector.[1]

She took part in the Action of 5 September 1782, where she was damaged by the frigates Aigle and Gloire.[4]

Much damaged in this action and after suffering the 1782 Central Atlantic hurricane of 17 September, she sank on 4 October 1782.[1] The privateer Hawke saved 200 of her crew.[1]

See also

Sources and references

Notes

    References

    1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
    2. Épidémie de typhus à Brest en 1757, wiki-brest.net
    3. Roche, p.156
    4. Guérin, Les Marins illustres, p.433

    Bibliography

    History
    France
    Name: Hector
    Ordered: 2 July 1751[1]
    Builder: Toulon[1]
    Laid down: 23 July 1752[1]
    Launched: 23 July 1755[1]
    In service: June 1756[1]
    Struck: 3 October 1782[1]
    Captured: April 1782
    United Kingdom
    Name: Hector
    Acquired: April 1782 by capture
    Fate: Damaged in battle September 1782. Sunk October 1782.
    General characteristics
    Class & type: Hector class ship of the line[1]
    Displacement: 1450 tonnes[1]
    Length: 53.3 m (175 ft)[1]
    Beam: 14 m (46 ft)[1]
    Draught: 7.1 m (23 ft)[1]
    Propulsion: Sail
    Armament: 74 guns[1]
    Armour: Timber
    1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Roche, p.238
    This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Saturday, December 19, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.