French ship Algésiras (1804)
Scale model of Achille, sister ship of French ship Algésiras (1804), on display at the Musée national de la Marine in Paris.
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
| France | |
| Name | Algésiras |
| Namesake | Battle of Algeciras |
| Builder | Lorient |
| Laid down | 1804 |
| Launched | 8 July 1804 |
| Captured |
|
| Spain | |
| Name | Algeciras |
| Captured | 14 June 1808 |
| Fate | Broken up in 1826 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Téméraire-class ship of the line |
| Displacement | 3,069 tonneaux |
| Tons burthen | 1,537 port tonneaux |
| Length | 55.44 m (181 ft 11 in) |
| Beam | 14.45 m (47 ft 5 in) |
| Draught | 7.15 m (23.5 ft) |
| Depth of hold | 7.15 m (23 ft 5 in) |
| Sail plan | Full-rigged ship |
| Crew | 705 |
| Armament |
|
Algésiras was a 4th rank, 74-gun short Téméraire-class ship of the line built for the French Navy during the first decade of the 19th century. Completed in 1804, she played a minor role in the Napoleonic Wars.
Description
The short class of the Téméraires consisted two ship shortened by several inches while under construction to meet the requirements of the Minister of Marine, Pierre-Alexandre-Laurent Forfait. The ships had an length of 55.44 metres (181 ft 11 in), a beam of 14.45 metres (47 ft 5 in) and a depth of hold of 7.15 metres (23 ft 5 in). The ships displaced 3,069 tonneaux and had a mean draught of 7.15 metres (23 ft 5 in). They had a tonnage of 1,537 port tonneaux. Their crew numbered 705 officers and ratings during wartime. They were fitted with three masts and ship rigged.[1]
The muzzle-loading, smoothbore armament of the Téméraire class consisted of twenty-eight 36-pounder long guns on the lower gun deck and thirty 18-pounder long guns on the upper gun deck. Beginning with the ships completed after 1787, the armament of the Téméraires began to change with the addition of four 36-pounder obusiers on the poop deck (dunette). Some ships had instead twenty 8-pounders.[2]
Construction and career
Algésiras was ordered on 26 August 1799 and laid down on 20 July 1801. The ship was named on 14 November and launched on 8 July 1804. She was commissioned on 27 August and completed the following month.[3] Algésiras sailed to the West Indies in 1805 with her half-sister Aigle where they joined a French fleet under Vice-Admiral Villeneuve. She took part in the Battle of Trafalgar on 21 October, under Rear Admiral Charles Magon. She was engaged by HMS Tonnant at point-blank range, and Magon attempted a boarding, but the boarding party was annihilated by British fire which killed all but one of the party, including Magon. The fight went on for an hour with Tonnant's starboard guns duelling with the Algésiras, the port guns with Pluton, and the forward guns aimed at the San Juan Nepomuceno. Algésiras finally surrendered to Tonnant at around 14:30. During the storm after the battle, her crew rose up against the British prize crew, and recaptured the ship. She sailed to Cádiz flying French colours. On 14 June 1808 she was captured by the Spanish along with all the other French ships in Cadiz.[4]
Citations
References
- Roche, Jean-Michel (2005). Dictionnaire des bâtiments de la flotte de guerre française de Colbert à nos jours [Dictionary of French Warships from Colbert to Today]. Vol. 1: 1671-1870. Roche. ISBN 978-2-9525917-0-6. OCLC 165892922.
- Winfield, Rif and Roberts, Stephen S. (2015) French Warships in the Age of Sail 1786-1861: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-204-2