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French frigate Harmonie (1796)

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For other ships with the same name, see French ship Harmonie.
History
French Navy Ensign French Navy EnsignFrance
NameHarmonie
BuilderBordeaux [1][2]
Laid downMay 1794 [1]
Launchedearly 1796 [1]
CompletedMay 1796 [1]
FateBeached and burnt 16 April 1797
General characteristics
Class and typeTemplate:Sclass-
Displacement1400 tons (French)
Length47.4 m (156 ft)
Beam11.9 m (39 ft)
Draught5.5 m (18 ft)
Armament44 guns
ArmourTimber

Harmonie was a 40-gun Template:Sclass- of the French Navy. Her crew scuttled her on 17 March 1797 to avoid having the Royal Navy capture her. She on being burned was reported as pierced for 44 guns[3]

Career

On 7 June 1796, Harmonie departed Rochefort to ferry weapons and ammunition to Cap-Français, under Captain Joshua Barney.[Note 1] She then cruised in the Caribbean between Havana and Chesapeake Bay, returning to Cap-Français on 17 October.[4][5] Lieutenant Simon Billiette took command of Harmonie on 19 August 1796; he was promoted to Commander on 22 September.[6][Note 2]

In April 1797, Harmonie was ordered to escort a convoy of merchantmen waiting in Jean-Rabel. She departed Cap Français but on 15 April the ships of the line HMS Thunderer and HMS Valiant intercepted her. In the ensuing Battle of Jean-Rabel, Harmonie sought refugee in the shallow waters off le Marigot, and the ships of the line departed after firing on her with little effect for several hours [7] or otherwise reported were struggling to keep station because of the wind.[3] On 16 April, however, the ships returned, and the crew of Harmonie, seeing her hopelessly cornered, scuttled her by burning.[8][9] Billiette sustained two wounds at the left leg.[6]

On 20 April, the British ships captured most of the convoy that Harmonie had been tasked to escort.[8] Billiette was court-martialled for the destruction of his frigate, and on 26 April 1798 found innocent of the loss of the ship.[6]

Notes, citations, and references

Notes

  1. ^ Barney was an American naval officer in both the American Revolutionary War and the War of 1812. Between 1796 and 1802 he served in the French Navy.
  2. ^ Billiette was also called "Billiet" (Quintin & Quintin 2003, p. 69)

Citations

  1. ^ a b c d Roche 2005, p. 237
  2. ^ (Demerliac 2004, p. 69, no. 373)
  3. ^ a b "Extract of a letter from Vice-Admiral Sir Hyde Parker". No. 14015. The London Gazette. 3 June 1797. p. 516.
  4. ^ Fonds Marine, p. 153
  5. ^ Fonds Marine, p. 178
  6. ^ a b c Quintin & Quintin 2003, p. 70
  7. ^ Troude 1867, p. 64
  8. ^ a b Troude 1867, p. 65
  9. ^ Fonds Marine, p. 192

References

  • Archives de France. Fonds marine campagnes : opérations, divisions et stations navales, missions diverses : inventaire de la sous-série Marine BB⁴. Centre historique des Archives nationales. ISBN 978-2860002653.
  • Demerliac, Alain (2004). La Marine de la Révolution: Nomenclature des Navires Français de 1792 A 1799 (in French). Éditions Ancre. ISBN 2-906381-24-1.
  • Quintin, Danielle; Quintin, Bernard (2003). Dictionnaire des capitaines de Vaisseau de Napoléon (in French). S.P.M. ISBN 2-901952-42-9.
  • Roche, Jean-Michel (2005). Dictionnaire des bâtiments de la flotte de guerre française de Colbert à nos jours. Vol. 1. Group Retozel-Maury Millau. ISBN 978-2-9525917-0-6. OCLC 165892922. (1671-1870)
  • Troude, Onésime-Joachim (1867). Batailles navales de la France (in French). Vol. 3. Challamel ainé.
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