HMS Concorde (1783)
Encyclopedia
HMS Concorde was a 32-gun fifth-rate
Fifth-rate
In Britain's Royal Navy during the classic age of fighting sail, a fifth rate was the penultimate class of warships in a hierarchal system of six "ratings" based on size and firepower.-Rating:...
frigate
Frigate
A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
of the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
. She had previously served in 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...
under the name Concorde. Built in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in 1777, she entered service with the French early in the American War of Independence, and was soon in action, capturing in the West Indies. She survived almost until the end of the war, but was captured by in 1783. Not immediately brought into service due to the draw-down in the navy after the end of the war, she underwent repairs and returned to active service under the White Ensign
White Ensign
The White Ensign or St George's Ensign is an ensign flown on British Royal Navy ships and shore establishments. It consists of a red St George's Cross on a white field with the Union Flag in the upper canton....
with the outbreak of war with France in 1793.
Initially part of squadrons cruising off the French coast, she played an important 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...
, capturing the French frigate 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:...
, and at a later engagement, where she helped to capture the French frigate Virginie. From 1797 until the early 19th century she had especial success against privateers, capturing a large number in the West Indies and in the Atlantic. She had a narrow escape from a superior French force in 1801, but was able to batter her pursuer, the 40-gun Bravoure
French frigate Bravoure (1795)
The Bravoure was a 40-gun Cocarde class frigate of the French Navy.She was launched in November 1795 in Saint Servan. She took part in the Expédition d'Irlande, and later served in Ganteaume's squadron. On 28 January 1801, she fought an indecisive battle against HMS Concorde...
into submission. She was prevented from capturing her by the arrival of French reinforcements. Her last years were spent on a variety of stations, including at the Cape of Good Hope
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...
and the East Indies
East Indies
East Indies is a term used by Europeans from the 16th century onwards to identify what is now known as Indian subcontinent or South Asia, Southeastern Asia, and the islands of Oceania, including the Malay Archipelago and the Philippines...
. Laid up in 1807, she was sold for breaking up in 1811.
Construction and French career
Concorde was one of a three-ship class of Concorde-class frigates built for the French Navy to a design by Henri Chevillard. She was built at RochefortRochefort, Charente-Maritime
Rochefort is a commune in southwestern France, a port on the Charente estuary. It is a sub-prefecture of the Charente-Maritime department.-History:...
between April 1777 and January 1778, being launched on 3 September 1777. She went out to the West Indies after the French entry to the American War of Independence, and reached Martinique
Martinique
Martinique is an island in the eastern Caribbean Sea, with a land area of . Like Guadeloupe, it is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. To the northwest lies Dominica, to the south St Lucia, and to the southeast Barbados...
on 17 August 1778. On 28 August 1778 she came up on the 32-gun , under Captain John Stott, and after two and a half hours of fighting, captured her. Minerva was towed to Cap Français on Saint-Domingue
Saint-Domingue
The labour for these plantations was provided by an estimated 790,000 African slaves . Between 1764 and 1771, the average annual importation of slaves varied between 10,000-15,000; by 1786 it was about 28,000, and from 1787 onward, the colony received more than 40,000 slaves a year...
, where she was joined shortly afterwards by the captured , which had been dismasted in a hurricane in late August and was taken on 1 September by the French frigates Charmante and Dédaigneuse.
In 1781 Concorde was responsible for vital transfers of personnel, funds, and communications that contributed to the allied
Franco-American alliance
The Franco-American alliance refers to the 1778 alliance between Louis XVI's France and the United States, during the American Revolutionary War. Formalized in the 1778 Treaty of Alliance, it was a military pact in which France provided arms and money, and engaged in full-scale war with Britain. ...
success at Yorktown
Siege of Yorktown
The Siege of Yorktown, Battle of Yorktown, or Surrender of Yorktown in 1781 was a decisive victory by a combined assault of American forces led by General George Washington and French forces led by the Comte de Rochambeau over a British Army commanded by Lieutenant General Lord Cornwallis...
. In March 1781 she carried despatches to George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
and the Comte de Rochambeau
Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau
Marshal of France Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau was a French nobleman and general who participated in the American Revolutionary War as the commander-in-chief of the French Expeditionary Force which came to help the American Continental Army...
from France. These despatches included a request from the comte de Grasse
François Joseph Paul de Grasse
Lieutenant Général des Armées Navales François-Joseph Paul, marquis de Grasse Tilly, comte de Grasse was a French admiral. He is best known for his command of the French fleet at the Battle of the Chesapeake, which led directly to the British surrender at Yorktown...
, commander of the West Indies fleet, for information on planned allied operations and the delivery of pilots familiar with the American coast. She also carried 6 million livres
French livre
The livre was the currency of France until 1795. Several different livres existed, some concurrently. The livre was the name of both units of account and coins.-Etymology:...
to support the war effort, and the new commander of the French naval squadron at Newport, Rhode Island
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...
, the comte de Barras
Jacques-Melchior Saint-Laurent, Comte de Barras
Jacques-Melchior Saint-Laurent, Comte de Barras was a French Admiral of the eighteenth century. He is best known for his service during the American War of Independence and especially during the Yorktown Campaign.-Yorktown:...
. Following a conference of allied leaders in May, Concorde was sent to Cap-Français with despatches for de Grasse and the requested pilots. When de Grasse received these despatches, he made the critical decision to sail his fleet to the Chesapeake Bay
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
to assist in land operations against British forces operating under the command of Charles Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis KG , styled Viscount Brome between 1753 and 1762 and known as The Earl Cornwallis between 1762 and 1792, was a British Army officer and colonial administrator...
in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. Concorde carried de Grasse's letters for Washington, Rochambeau, and de Barras back to Newport; arrival of this news set in motion Washington's march to Virginia and the eventual entrapment of Cornwallis at Yorktown.
On 15 February 1783 she was sighted by the 74-gun , under Captain Robert Linzee
Robert Linzee
Robert Linzee was an officer of the Royal Navy who served during the American Revolutionary War, the French Revolutionary War, and the Napoleonic War....
. Magnificent had sailed from Gros Islet Bay
Gros Islet
Gros Islet is a community located near the northern tip of the island country of Saint Lucia. Originally a quiet fishing village, it has gone on to become one of the more popular tourist destinations in the country....
on 12 February on a cruise in company with the 64-gun ships and , and on sighting the strange sail, Magnificent gave chase. She was close enough to identify the mysterious ship as a frigate by 18:00, and by 20:00 as darkness fell Concorde opened fire on her pursuer with her stern guns. Magnificent overhauled the French ship by 21:15, and after fifteen minutes forced her to strike her colours. Magnificent took possession of Concorde, the latter being described as carrying 36 guns and 300 men, and being under the command of M. le Chevalier du Clesmaur. Shortly after surrendering the Concordes maintopsail caught fire, forcing the crew to cut away the mainmast to extinguish it. Prudent and St Albans came up two hours later and Magnificent towed Concorde to St. John's
St. John's, Antigua and Barbuda
St John's is the capital and largest city of Antigua and Barbuda, a country located in the West Indies in the Caribbean Sea. St John's is located at...
, Antigua
Antigua
Antigua , also known as Waladli, is an island in the West Indies, in the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region, the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua means "ancient" in Spanish and was named by Christopher Columbus after an icon in Seville Cathedral, Santa Maria de la...
.
Interwar years
Concorde was bought in to the navy and commissioned in the West Indies for a return to Britain later in the year, though her commander for this voyage is unknown. She arrived in Britain and was paid off in September at ChathamChatham Dockyard
Chatham Dockyard, located on the River Medway and of which two-thirds is in Gillingham and one third in Chatham, Kent, England, came into existence at the time when, following the Reformation, relations with the Catholic countries of Europe had worsened, leading to a requirement for additional...
. With the end of the American War of Independence and the draw-down in the navy, Concorde was not brought into immediate service but remained laid up at Chatham until November 1790, when a great repair was begun by Wilson, of Frindsbury
Frindsbury
Frindsbury is part of the Medway Towns conurbation in Kent, southern England. It lies on the opposite side of the River Medway to Rochester, and at various times in its history has been considered fully or partially part of the City of Rochester. Frindsbury refers to both a parish and a manor....
. The work, which cost a total of £18,259, was completed by April 1793, by which time the French Revolutionary Wars
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts, from 1792 until 1802, fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states...
had broken out. She was fitted for service at Chatham between April and May 1793, at a cost of £6,600, and was commissioned in April under Captain Thomas Wells.
Cruising the French coast
In 1794 she passed to Captain Sir Richard StrachanSir Richard Strachan, 6th Baronet
Sir Richard John Strachan, 6th Baronet GCB was a British officer of the Royal Navy during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, eventually rising to the rank of Admiral.-Childhood:...
, and joined Commodore
Commodore (Royal Navy)
Commodore is a rank of the Royal Navy above Captain and below Rear Admiral. It has a NATO ranking code of OF-6. The rank is equivalent to Brigadier in the British Army and Royal Marines and to Air Commodore in the Royal Air Force.-Insignia:...
John Borlase Warren's squadron off the French coast. The squadron consisted of Concorde, Warren's 36-gun , the 38-gun under Captain Sir Edward Pellew
Edward Pellew, 1st Viscount Exmouth
Admiral Sir Edward Pellew, 1st Viscount Exmouth, GCB was a British naval officer. He fought during the American War of Independence, the French Revolutionary, and the Napoleonic Wars...
and the 36-gun ships , under Captain Thomas Wells, and , under Captain George Murray
George Murray (Royal Navy officer)
Vice-Admiral Sir George Murray KCB was an officer in the Royal Navy who saw service in a wide range of theatres and campaigns. His active naval career spanned the American War of Independence and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars...
.
Concorde and Engageante
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands are an archipelago of British Crown Dependencies in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two separate bailiwicks: the Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Bailiwick of Jersey...
on 23 April the British squadron came across a French squadron under Commodore Desgareaux consisting of the 36-gun 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:...
, the 44-gun 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....
, the 36-gun Résolue
French frigate Résolue (1778)
Résolue was an Iphigénie-class 32-gun frigate of the French Navy.-French service:On 19 March 1779, Résolue captured a British fort in Senegal....
and the 24-gun Babet. Warren chased and engaged them
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...
, leading the attack in Flora. When the Flora was badly damaged from the combined fire from the French ships, the remaining British ships came up in support, and forced the rear-most French ships, Babet and Pomone, to surrender. Melampus, Nymphe and Concorde gave chase to the fleeing Résolue and Engageante. Strachan in Concorde attempted to damage the rearmost of the French ships, Engageante, before pushing on to chase Résolue, but the Résolue dropped back to support the Engageante, damaging Concordes sails and rigging. With Nymphe and Melampus still too far astern, and unable to catch Résolue himself, Strachan engaged Engageante and after 105 minutes of fighting, forced her to surrender, while Résolue made her escape. The Concorde lost one man killed and 12 wounded in the fighting.
Concorde and Virginie
Concorde was then assigned to Rear-Admiral George Montagu's squadron in May 1794, and took part in the manoeuvres during the Atlantic campaign of May 1794Atlantic campaign of May 1794
The Atlantic campaign of May 1794 was a series of operations conducted by the British Royal Navy's Channel Fleet against the French Navy's Atlantic Fleet, with the aim of preventing the passage of a strategically important French grain convoy travelling from the United States to France...
. Strachan left Concorde in July 1794 to take command of HMS Melampus, and in August Captain Anthony Hunt took over command of Concorde. Concorde was part of John Warren's squadron off Quiberon
Quiberon
Quiberon is a commune in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France.It is situated on the southern part of the Quiberon peninsula, the northern part being the commune of Saint-Pierre-Quiberon...
between June and July 1795, supporting the Quiberon Expedition
Invasion of France (1795)
The invasion of France in 1795 or the Battle of Quiberon was a major landing on the Quiberon peninsula by émigré, counter-revolutionary troops in support of the Chouannerie and Vendée Revolt, beginning on 23 June and finally definitively repulsed on 21 July...
, after which she joined Sir Edward Pellew's squadron. On 20 April 1796 Pellew's squadron, then consisting of Concorde, Pellew's 38-gun and the 36-gun under Captain Robert Carthew Reynolds
Robert Carthew Reynolds
Rear-Admiral Robert Carthew Reynolds was a long serving and widely respected officer of the British Royal Navy who served in four separate major wars in a 52 year career...
, spotted and chased a mysterious sail. After chasing her for 15 hours over 168 miles they caught up with her, with Indefatigable leading the attack. Both ships exchanged fire, considerably damaging each other, upon which Concorde came up under her stern and forced her to surrender. She was discovered to be the 40-gun Virginie, under Captain Jacques Bergeret. The captured French ship was towed to port and taken into the navy.
Later years
Command of Concorde passed from Hunt to Captain Richard Bagot in November 1796, and he in turn was succeeded by Captain Batholomew Roberts in June 1797. Concorde captured the 4-gun privateerPrivateer
A privateer is a private person or ship authorized by a government by letters of marque to attack foreign shipping during wartime. Privateering was a way of mobilizing armed ships and sailors without having to spend public money or commit naval officers...
Poisson Volant off Cape Finisterre
Cape Finisterre
right|thumb|300px|Position of Cape Finisterre on the [[Iberian Peninsula]]Cape Finisterre is a rock-bound peninsula on the west coast of Galicia, Spain....
on 24 July 1797. She was bound from Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
to Guadeloupe
Guadeloupe
Guadeloupe is an archipelago located in the Leeward Islands, in the Lesser Antilles, with a land area of 1,628 square kilometres and a population of 400,000. It is the first overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. As with the other overseas departments, Guadeloupe...
carrying wines and merchandise, after which she intended to cruise as a privateer in the West Indies. Concorde was later commanded by Captain Robert Barton, who took a number of privateers in a series of cruises in the West Indies in 1798, capturing the 16-gun Caye du Pont off St Bartholomew
Saint Barthélemy
Saint Barthélemy , officially the Territorial collectivity of Saint Barthélemy , is an overseas collectivity of France. Often abbreviated to Saint-Barth in French, or St. Barts in English, the indigenous people called the island Ouanalao...
on 3 January, the 8-gun Proserpine off Montserrat
Montserrat
Montserrat is a British overseas territory located in the Leeward Islands, part of the chain of islands called the Lesser Antilles in the West Indies. This island measures approximately long and wide, giving of coastline...
on 8 January, the 8-gun Hardi off Barbuda
Barbuda
Barbuda is an island in the Eastern Caribbean, and forms part of the state of Antigua and Barbuda. It has a population of about 1,500, most of whom live in the town of Codrington.-Location:...
on 11 February, the 2-gun Hazard off Montserrat on 13 February and the 2-gun Rosière off Montserrat on 1 April. In an action with on 8 and 9 September she captured four privateers, the 8-gun Buonaparte, 10-gun Amazone, 4-gun Sauveur and 2-gun Fortune.
Concordes success against privateers continued with the capture of the 18-gun Prudente on 14 February 1799 and the 6-gun San Josef off Oporto in December 1800 and the 1-gun San Miguel el Volante on 1 December 1800. Concorde had a narrow escape from a French squadron under Rear-Admiral Honoré Joseph Antoine Ganteaume
Honoré Joseph Antoine Ganteaume
Count Honoré Joseph Antoine Ganteaume was a French admiral.Ganteaume was born to a family of merchant sailors, and sailed on a dozen commercial cruises in his youth...
, which had sailed from Brest
Brest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
on 23 January 1801. The French sighted Concorde off Cape Finisterre
Cape Finisterre
right|thumb|300px|Position of Cape Finisterre on the [[Iberian Peninsula]]Cape Finisterre is a rock-bound peninsula on the west coast of Galicia, Spain....
on 27 January, and the 40-gun Bravoure
French frigate Bravoure (1795)
The Bravoure was a 40-gun Cocarde class frigate of the French Navy.She was launched in November 1795 in Saint Servan. She took part in the Expédition d'Irlande, and later served in Ganteaume's squadron. On 28 January 1801, she fought an indecisive battle against HMS Concorde...
was sent to chase her down. Concorde cast off a Swedish ship she was towing and drew the French frigate away from the main body of the fleet. Barton then turned and engaged her for forty minutes, silencing her guns. By now the main French fleet was fast approaching, and with his sails and rigging damaged, Barton did not attempt to take possession of Bravoure and instead made for a British port to report the encounter. Concorde had four men killed and 19 wounded in the engagement, while Bravoure had 10 killed and 24 wounded.
Captain John Wood succeeded Barton in 1802, and the following year Concorde went out to the Cape of Good Hope
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...
. She was under Captain John Cramer, probably from February 1806, and was in the East Indies in 1807, where in July that year she captured the 2-gun privateer Vigilant. Concorde returned to England and was paid off in September 1807. She spent the rest of the war laid up, and was sold at Deptford on 21 February 1811.