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French frigate Résolue (1778)
Encyclopedia
Résolue was an Iphigénie-class
Iphigénie class frigate
The Iphigénie class was a group of nine 32-gun/12-pounder frigates of the French Navy, built during the late 1770s at Lorient and Saint Malo . They were designed by Léon Guignace. The seven built at Saint Malo were initially numbered Nos. 1 - 7 respectively, and not given names until October 1777 ...
32-gun frigate of the French Navy
French Navy
The French Navy, officially the Marine nationale and often called La Royale is the maritime arm of the French military. It includes a full range of fighting vessels, from patrol boats to a nuclear powered aircraft carrier and 10 nuclear-powered submarines, four of which are capable of launching...
.
French service
On 19 March 1779, Résolue captured a British fort in Senegal.In November 1791, as she was escorting merchant ships, Résolue was captured at the Battle of Tellicherry
Battle of Tellicherry
The Battle of Tellicherry was a naval action fought off the Indian port of Tellicherry between British and French warships in November 1791 during the Third Anglo-Mysore War...
by HMS Phoenix
HMS Phoenix (1783)
HMS Phoenix was a 36-gun Perseverance-class fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. The shipbuilder George Parsons built her at Bursledon and launched her on 15 July 1783. She served in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars and was instrumental in the events leading up to the battle of Trafalgar...
and HMS Perseverance, and restored to France at Mahé.
She took part in the Action of 23 April 1794
Action of 23 April 1794
The Action of 23 April 1794 took place between a British squadron of five frigates under the command of Sir John Borlase Warren and three frigates and a corvette under the command of Chef d'escadre F. Desgarceaux during the French Revolutionary Wars. Three of the French ships were captured.-The...
, when a squadron comprising Résolue, Engageante
French frigate Engageante (1766)
Engageante was a 26-gun frigate of the French Navy, lead ship of her class. The British captured her in 1794 and converted her to a hospital ship. She served as a hospital ship until she was broken up in 1811.-French service:...
, Pomone
French frigate Pomone (1787)
Pomone was a 40-gun frigate of the French Navy built in 1783. The British captured her, along with Babet and Engageante, off the Île de Batz during the Action of 23 April 1794....
and the 22-gun corvette Babet met a squadron of five British heavy frigates. Résolue managed to escape but the British took the other three ships.
She took part in the Expédition d'Irlande
Expédition d'Irlande
The Expédition d'Irlande was an unsuccessful attempt by the First French Republic during the French Revolutionary Wars to assist the outlawed Society of United Irishmen, a popular rebel Irish republican group, in their planned rebellion against British rule...
, under captain Montalan. On 22 December 1796, she collided with Redoutable
French ship Redoutable (1791)
The Redoutable was a Téméraire class 74-gun ship of the line of the French Navy. She is known for her duel with HMS Victory during the Battle of Trafalgar and for killing Vice Admiral Horatio Nelson during the action.- Early career :...
in Bantry Bay, dismasting her. A boat was sent to seek help from Immortalité
French frigate Immortalité (1795)
The Immortalité was a Romaine class frigate of the French Navy.She took part in the Expédition d'Irlande, and was captured shortly after the Battle of Tory Island by HMS Fisgard...
, but it was washed up on the shore on Clough Beach, and its crew taken prisoner. The boat is now a local attraction. Résolue managed to return to Brest under emergency rigging, and in tow from Pégase.
She was later captured by HMS Melampus
HMS Melampus (1785)
HMS Melampus was a Royal Navy fifth-rate frigate that served during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. She captured numerous prizes before she was sold in 1815.-Design and construction:...
on 14 October 1798 at the Battle of Tory Island
Battle of Tory Island
The Battle of Tory Island, was a naval action of the French Revolutionary Wars, fought on 12 October 1798 between French and British squadrons off the northwest coast of Donegal, then in the Kingdom of Ireland...
. Résolue was fitted with hanging ports to her main deck. To meet a coming storm, her crew had run in and double-breeched her 12-pounders, and shut and barred the ports. She was, therefore, in a comparatively defenseless state with only her quarterdeck guns able to respond to Melampuss broadsides. Before she struck her colours, Résolue lost ten men killed and had some wounded, out of a crew of about 500 men. She was purchased for the Royal Navy as HMS Resolue but never saw active service.