French frigate Bellone (1778)
 Fight between Bellone and HMS Foudroyant at the Battle of Tory Island | |
| History | |
|---|---|
   France | |
| Name: | Bellone |
| Namesake: | Bellona |
| Builder: | Saint Malo |
| Laid down: | January 1778 |
| Launched: | 22 August 1778 |
| Commissioned: | February 1779 |
| Captured: | 12 October 1798 |
 United Kingdom | |
| Name: | Proserpine |
| Acquired: | 12 October 1798 |
| Fate: |
|
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Iphigénie-class frigate |
| Displacement: | 1,150 tons (French) |
| Length: | 44.2 m (145 ft) |
| Beam: | 11.2 m (37 ft) |
| Draught: | 4.9 m (16 ft) |
| Propulsion: | Sail |
| Armament: | |
Bellone was an Iphigénie-class 32-gun frigate of the French Navy. She was one of the French ships with a copper-covered hull.
French service
In 1782, she fought against HMS Coventry. In June she captured a British "both", in the roads of Negapatnam that the French took into service as Negapatnam. The next month Negapatnam was at Pondicherry with the French squadron under Admiral Suffren, but her subsequent disposition is unknown.[2]
Bellone took part in the Glorious First of June and in the Expédition d'Irlande.
Capture and fate
She was captured on 12 October 1798 at the Battle of Tory Island by HMS Melampus [3] and HMS Ethalion,[4] and was commissioned in the Royal Navy as HMS Proserpine. Although officially 'under repair' at Plymouth, she was never more than a hulk, and in 1806 she was broken up.[5]
Citations
- ↑ The number of guns was reported to be 36 or even 40. Study of the wreck confirms that the Bellone had 32.
- ↑ Demerliac (1996), p.127, #911.
- ↑ "Naval Database - HMS Melampus". Retrieved 2008-02-19.
- ↑ "Naval Database - HMS Ethalion". Retrieved 2008-02-19.
- ↑ "Age of Nelson Website - HMS Proserpine". Retrieved 2008-02-19.
References
- Demerliac, Alain (1996) La Marine De Louis XVI: Nomenclature Des Navires Français De 1774 À 1792. (Nice: Éditions OMEGA). ISBN 2-906381-23-3