HMS Excellent was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line

Ship of the line

A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed from the 17th through the mid-19th century to take part in the naval tactic known as the line of battle, in which two columns of opposing warships would manoeuvre to bring the greatest weight of broadside guns to bear...

 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...

, launched at Harwich

Harwich

Harwich is a town in Essex, England and one of the Haven ports, located on the coast with the North Sea to the east. It is in the Tendring district. Nearby places include Felixstowe to the northeast, Ipswich to the northwest, Colchester to the southwest and Clacton-on-Sea to the south...

 on 27 November 1787. She was the captaincy of John Gell before he was appointed an Admiral.

Excellent took part in the Battle of Cape St Vincent in 1797.

On 9 October 1799, Excellent chased the 18-gun Aréthuse

French corvette Aréthuse (1799)

Aréthuse was a corvette of the French Navy, lead ship of her class, and launched in April 1798. captured her in 1799. The Royal Navy took her into service under the name HMS Raven. She was wrecked in 1804.-French service:...

. Aréthuse attempted to flee but part of her rigging broke during the night, and Excellent caught on during the night. After a brief fight, Aréthuse struck her colours. She was recommissioned in the Royal Navy as HMS Raven.

In 1820, she was reduced to a 58-gun ship, and from 1830 she was serving as a training ship. She was broken up in 1835.