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French ship Alcide (1782)

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History
French Royal Navy Ensign French Navy Ensign French Navy EnsignFrance
NameAlcide
BuilderRochefort
Laid downJuly 1781
Launched25 May 1782
In serviceJanuary 1783
FateDestroyed at the Battle of Hyères
General characteristics
Class and type74-gun Pégase-class ship of the line
Tons burthen1500 tonnes
Length55.2 m (181 ft)
Beam14.3 m (47 ft)
Draught6.8 m (22 ft)
PropulsionSails
Sail planFull-rigged ship
Complement600
Armament74 guns of various weights of shot, later upgraded to 78

Alcide was a 74-gun Pégase-class ship of the line of the French Navy, launched in 1782.

In 1782, she took part in the American war of Independence in De Grasse's fleet.

She took part in the Battle of Hyères, under captain Le Blond Saint-Hilaire. She was the last ship of the French rear when she was becalmed and had to fight HMS Victory, Culloden, and Cumberland. She managed to damage the rigging of Culloden, but was quickly battered by her overwhelmingly superior opponents. She surrendered to Cumberland at 2h. The frigates Justice and Alceste attempted to take her in tow to safety, but were repelled by gunfire from Victory.

Soon thereafter, a fire broke out, reportedly in her tops[1] or by her own heated shots. She exploded 30 minutes afterwards with the loss of 300.

Citations

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  1. ^ "NAVAL HISTORY of GREAT BRITAIN - Vol I". Archived from the original on 2008-06-06. Retrieved 2009-05-14.

References

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  • Roche, Jean-Michel (2005). Dictionnaire des bâtiments de la flotte de guerre française de Colbert à nos jours 1 1671–1870. ISBN 978-2-9525917-0-6. OCLC 165892922.
  • Winfield, Rif and Roberts, Stephen (2015) French Warships in the Age of Sail 1786-1861: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-204-2.