View source for HMS Blanche (1800)

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{{Short description|Royal Navy fifth-rate frigate}}
{{other ships|HMS Blanche}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2023}}
{{Use British English|date=October 2023}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
| Ship image=EURYALUS 1803 RMG J5673.jpg
| Ship image size=
|Ship caption=1803 plan of the [[Apollo-class frigate|''Apollo'' class]]
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
|Ship country=United Kingdom
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|Kingdom of Great Britain|naval}}
|Ship name=''Blanche''
|Ship namesake=
|Ship ordered=18 January 1799
|Ship awarded=
|Ship designer=
|Ship original cost=
|Ship laid down=February 1800
|Ship launched=2 October 1800
|Ship christened=
|Ship completed=17 January 1801
|Ship commissioned=19 November 1800
|Ship fate=Destroyed, 19 July 1805
|Ship builder=[[Deptford Dockyard]]
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption={{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=149}}
|Ship class= [[Fifth-rate]] [[Apollo-class frigate|''Apollo''-class]] [[frigate]]
|Ship tons burthen=950{{small|{{Fraction|86|94}}}} ([[Builder's Old Measurement|bm]])
|Ship length=*{{convert|145|ft|1|in|m|1|abbr=on}} ([[Deck (ship)#Upper deck|upper deck]])
* {{convert|121|ft|9+1/2|in|m|1|abbr=on}} ([[keel]])
|Ship beam= {{convert|38|ft|3+3/4|in|m|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship height=
|Ship draught=*{{convert|10|ft|5|in|m|1|abbr=on}} (forward)
* {{convert|14|ft|1|in|m|1|abbr=on}} (aft)
|Ship depth=
|Ship hold depth= {{convert|13|ft|3|in|m|0|abbr=on}}
|Ship decks=
|Ship deck clearance=
|Ship propulsion= Sails
|Ship sail plan=
|Ship complement=264
|Ship armament=
* [[Deck (ship)#Upper deck|UD]]: 26 × [[18-pounder long gun|18-pounder guns]]
* [[Quarterdeck|QD]]: 2 × 9-pounder guns + 10 × 32-pounder [[carronade]]s
* [[Forecastle|Fc]]: 2 × 9-pounder guns + 4 × 32-pounder carronades
|Ship notes=
}}
|}
'''HMS ''Blanche''''' was a 36-gun [[fifth-rate]] [[Apollo-class frigate|''Apollo''-class]] [[frigate]] of the [[Royal Navy]]. She was [[ship commissioning|commissioned]] in 1800 by [[Captain (Royal Navy)|Captain]] [[Sir Graham Hamond, 2nd Baronet|Graham Hamond]], under whom on 2 April 1801 ''Blanche'' fought as part of the frigate reserve at the [[Battle of Copenhagen (1801)|Battle of Copenhagen]]. She spent the remainder of the [[French Revolutionary Wars]] serving in the [[English Channel]]. When the [[Napoleonic Wars]] began in 1803 ''Blanche'' was sent to serve in the [[West Indies]] under the command of Captain [[Zachary Mudge]]. There the frigate participated in the [[Blockade of Saint-Domingue]] and an unsuccessful invasion of [[Curacao]], capturing upwards of twenty-four vessels.

''Blanche'' was sailing off [[Puerto Rico]] on 19 July 1805 when she was attacked by a French squadron of four ships, led by Captain [[François-André Baudin]] in the 40-gun frigate [[French frigate Topaze (1805)|''Le Topaze'']]. After a battle lasting forty-five minutes Mudge surrendered ''Blanche'', having had eight men killed. The frigate was beginning to sink, and later in the day the French set ''Blanche'' on fire before sinking her. Two of the four French warships were captured a month later, while Mudge was released after ''Topaze'' reached Portugal. ''Blanche''{{'}}s loss is controversial; while [[rear admiral (Royal Navy)|Rear-Admiral]] [[John Sutton (Royal Navy officer)|John Sutton]] praised Mudge and his crew for their defence of the outnumbered ship, historians such as [[William James (naval historian)|William James]] have criticised the British performance as lacklustre and undistinguished.

==Design==
''Blanche'' was a 36-gun, [[18-pounder long gun|18-pounder]] [[Apollo-class frigate|''Apollo''-class]] [[frigate]].{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|pp=159–160}} Designed by [[Surveyor of the Navy]] [[William Rule (Surveyor of the Navy)|Sir William Rule]], the ''Apollo'' class originated as three ships constructed between 1798 and 1803. The class formed part of the [[Royal Navy]]'s response to the [[French Revolutionary Wars]] and need for more warships to serve in it.{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=149}}{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=138}} The original ''Apollo'' design would be revived at the start of the [[Napoleonic Wars]] in 1803, with twenty-four ships ordered to it over the next nine years.{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=159}} This order came about as the threat from the French fleet against Britain began to dissipate, especially after the [[Battle of Trafalgar]] in 1805. The Royal Navy stopped ordering specifically large and offensively capable warships, and instead focused on standardised classes of ships that were usually more moderate in size, but through larger numbers would be able to effectively combat the expected increase in global [[economic warfare]].{{sfnp|Gardiner|1999|p=6}}

The ''Apollo'' class became the standard frigate design for this task, alongside the [[Vengeur-class ship of the line|''Vengeur''-class]] [[ship of the line]] and [[Cruizer-class brig-sloop|''Cruizer''-class]] [[brig-sloop]].{{sfnp|Gardiner|1999|p=6}} The ''Apollo'' class was chosen to fulfil the role of standardised frigate because of how well the lone surviving ship of the first batch, [[HMS Euryalus (1803)|HMS ''Euryalus'']], had performed, providing "all-round excellence" according to the naval historian Robert Gardiner.{{sfnp|Gardiner|2000|p=22}} Trials of ships of the class showed that they were all capable of reaching around {{convert|12|kn|km/h}} and were very well balanced, although prone to [[Ship motions|pitching]] deeply in heavy seas. They also had a high storage capacity, allowing for upwards of six months' provisions.{{sfnp|Gardiner|2000|p=142}}

==Construction==
''Blanche'' was the second of the three ships in the first ''Apollo'' batch, ordered on 18 January 1799. Alongside the name-ship of the class, [[HMS Apollo (1799)|HMS ''Apollo'']], her construction was contracted to John Dudman at [[Deptford Dockyard]]. ''Blanche'' was laid down in February 1800, and launched on 2 October with the following dimensions: {{convert|145|ft|1|in|m|1}} along the [[Deck (ship)#Upper deck|upper deck]], {{convert|121|ft|9+1/2|in|m|1}} at the [[keel#structural keels|keel]], with a [[beam (nautical)|beam]] of {{convert|38|ft|3+3/4|in|m|1}} and a [[depth of hold|depth in the hold]] of {{convert|13|ft|3|in|m|0}}. The ship had a [[draft (hull)|draught]] of {{convert|10|ft|5|in|m|1}} forward and {{convert|14|ft|1|in|m|1}} aft, and measured 950{{small|{{Fraction|86|94}}}} [[tons burthen]].{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=149}}{{sfnp|Gardiner|2000|p=22}} She was named after [[HMS Blanche (1779)|''Blanche'']], a French 36-gun frigate captured by the Royal Navy in 1779 and [[ship commissioning|commissioned]] as HMS ''Blanche'' before being lost in the [[Great Hurricane of 1780]].{{sfnp|Manning|Walker|1959|p=109}}{{sfnp|Winfield|2007|p=551}}

The [[fitting out]] process for ''Blanche'' was completed on 17 January 1801, also at Deptford.{{sfnp|Gardiner|2000|p=22}}{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=149}} With a crew complement of 264, the frigate held twenty-six 18-pounder [[long gun]]s on her upper deck. Complementing this armament were ten 32-pounder [[carronade]]s and two 9-pounder long guns on the [[quarterdeck]], with an additional two 9-pounder long guns and four 32-pounder carronades on the [[forecastle]].{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=149}} ''Blanche''{{'}}s armament stayed as originally established throughout her service.{{sfnp|Gardiner|1994|p=103}}

==Service==
===Copenhagen===
{{main|Battle of Copenhagen (1801)}}
''Blanche'' was commissioned under the command of [[Captain (Royal Navy)|Captain]] [[Sir Graham Hamond, 2nd Baronet|Graham Hamond]] on 19 November 1800.{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=149}}{{sfnp|Marshall|1824a|p=174}} After fitting out was completed in January the following year ''Blanche'' joined the [[Baltic Fleet (United Kingdom)|Baltic Fleet]] at [[Great Yarmouth|Yarmouth]] in preparation to sail to [[Copenhagen]] to harass Denmark, part of the Anti-British [[Second League of Armed Neutrality]].{{sfnp|Marshall|1824a|p=174}} On 19 March ''Blanche'' was sent ahead of the fleet to [[Elsinore]], landing the [[member of parliament]] [[Nicholas Vansittart, 1st Baron Bexley|Nicholas Vansittart]] for a meeting with the British Minister to Denmark, [[William Drummond of Logiealmond|William Drummond]], so that they could outline the [[Foreign Secretary]] [[Robert Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool|Lord Hawkesbury's]] ultimatum to the Danes.{{sfnp|Marshall|1824a|p=174}}{{sfnp|Feldbæk|2016|p=54}}{{sfnp|Clowes|1899|p=428}} After two days negotiations failed and ''Blanche'' took Drummond and his suite on board, returning to the fleet anchored in [[Øresund]] on 22 March.{{sfnp|O'Byrne|1849a|p=456}}{{sfnp|Marshall|1824a|p=174}}{{sfnp|Feldbæk|2016|p=54}} Drummond and Vansittart explained that rather than acceding to the British terms, the Danes were strengthening their defences and planning to rebuff the British fleet.{{sfnp|Clowes|1899|p=428}} In preparation to make an attack on Copenhagen, on 27 March ''Blanche'' escorted two of the fleet's [[bomb ship]]s to a position from which they would be able to bombard the fortress of [[Kronborg]].{{sfnp|Feldbæk|2016|p=61}}

[[File:The Battle of Copenhagen, 2 April 1801 RMG BHC0529.tiff|thumb|The [[Battle of Copenhagen (1801)|Battle of Copenhagen]]]]
During the night of 1 April the frigate grounded off [[Amager]]. The crew spent the night re-floating and rectifying the vessel, and received no sleep prior to the start of the [[Battle of Copenhagen (1801)|Battle of Copenhagen]] on 2 April.{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=149}}{{sfnp|Marshall|1824a|p=179}} In engaging the Danish [[line of battle]] ''Blanche'' was part of a flotilla of five frigates under the command of Captain [[Edward Riou]] that were to act as a manoeuvrable reserve force.{{sfnp|Feldbæk|2016|p=130}} After beginning the battle by firing opportunistically in the gaps between the British [[ships of the line]], at 11:30&nbsp;a.m. Riou took the flotilla to form an arc at the northern-most point of the British line.{{sfnp|Feldbæk|2016|p=174}} For this ''Blanche'' was stationed between the 38-gun [[HMS Amazon (1799)|HMS ''Amazon'']] and 32-gun [[HMS Alcmene (1794)|HMS ''Alcmene'']]. The frigates attacked the 64-gun ship of the line [[HDMS Holsteen|''Holsteen'']] and [[blockship]] [[HDMS Indfødsretten (1786)|''Indfødsretten'']], while receiving heavy fire from the nearby [[Trekroner Fort]] and 16-gun defence frigate [[HDMS Hielperen|''Hielperen'']].{{sfnp|Marshall|1824a|p=174}}{{sfnp|Feldbæk|2016|p=174}}

The frigates withdrew after two hours, having received heavy casualties in the victorious battle.{{sfnp|Feldbæk|2016|p=174}} In the engagement ''Blanche'' received seven men killed and a further nine badly wounded, with damage to her hull and [[rigging]].{{sfnp|Marshall|1824a|p=174}} In the wake of the battle the commander of the British fleet, [[Admiral (Royal Navy)|Admiral]] [[Hyde Parker (Royal Navy officer, born 1739)|Sir Hyde Parker]], agreed an armistice with the Danes that the [[First Lord of the Admiralty]], Admiral [[John Jervis, 1st Earl of St Vincent|Lord St Vincent]], believed was too lenient, and he recalled Parker. On 5 May Parker left his [[flagship]] and went on board ''Blanche'', reaching Yarmouth in the frigate on 13 May.{{sfnp|O'Byrne|1849a|p=456}}{{sfnp|Marshall|1824a|p=175}}{{sfnp|Feldbæk|2016|p=228}}

===Channel Fleet===
''Blanche'' spent the rest of the French Revolutionary Wars attached to Admiral [[William Cornwallis]]' [[Channel Fleet]] and patrolling the [[Bay of Biscay]].{{sfnp|Marshall|1824a|p=175}} Captain [[Barrington Dacres]] took command of the frigate at the [[Peace of Amiens]] in May 1802, serving as part of the Royal Escort to [[George III]] at [[Weymouth, Dorset|Weymouth]] for much of the year, and patrolling off [[Cornwall]] and [[Devon]] combatting smugglers.{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=149}}{{sfnp|O'Byrne|1849a|p=456}}{{sfnp|Marshall|1824a|p=175}} ''Blanche'' was [[paid off]] on 22 September as part of a [[refit]] that had begun at [[Sheerness Dockyard]] in August.{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=149}} The naval historian Rif Winfield records Dacres as commanding ''Blanche'' to this stage, but the biographer [[William Richard O'Byrne|William O'Byrne]] states that Hamond retained command until paying off.{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=149}}{{sfnp|O'Byrne|1849a|p=456}} As the refit was approaching completion Captain [[Zachary Mudge]] recommissioned the ship in October, having joined on 23 September, and ''Blanche'' left the dockyard in January 1803.{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=149}}{{sfnp|O'Byrne|1849b|p=796}}

===West Indies===
With the Peace of Amiens having ended with the start of the Napoleonic Wars, ''Blanche'' sailed to the [[West Indies]] where she joined the [[Blockade of Saint-Domingue]] towards the end of the year.{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=149}}{{sfnp|O'Byrne|1849b|p=796}} On 3 November she discovered the French 4-gun [[privateer]] [[cutter (boat)|cutter]] ''L'Albion'' sheltering under the gun batteries of [[Monte Cristi, Dominican Republic|Monte Christi]].{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=149}}{{sfnp|Clowes|1900|p=329}} Mudge sent four of ''Blanche''{{'}}s boats with sixty-three men to [[Naval boarding|cut out]] ''Albion'', but did so in broad daylight; before they could reach the French ship ''Blanche''{{'}}s boats turned back, believing the task too dangerous.{{sfnp|Clowes|1900|p=329}}

[[File:Fight of the Poursuivante -M5026-2003-DE-469-4.jpg|thumb|Scene from the [[Blockade of Saint-Domingue]]]]
Mudge decided to attack ''Albion'' again, this time during the night of 3–4 November. He sent the marine [[Lieutenant (British Army and Royal Marines)|Lieutenant]] [[Edward Nicolls]] out in a boat with thirteen men to make the attack, but soon realised this was not enough and sent Lieutenant [[Warwick Lake, 3rd Viscount Lake|Warwick Lake]] with twenty-two men to reinforce and supersede Nicolls. The two boats approached ''Albion'', but Lake believed the French vessel to be in a different location and took his boat off in the wrong direction, leaving Nicolls to make the attack alone. Nicolls boarded ''Albion'' and, despite being shot through the stomach, quickly captured the vessel, the British having killed five of the French crew.{{sfnp|Clowes|1900|pp=329–330}}

With the enemy gun batteries overlooking the scene of the battle, Nicolls had his men keep firing their muskets to make it seem as if the battle was still ongoing, so that the batteries would not fire on the newly taken ship. As Nicolls was just getting ''Albion'' away from the shore Lake appeared in his boat and ordered the men to stop firing. "As a reward of his stupidity", the naval historian [[William Laird Clowes]] says, the gun batteries then killed two of his men before ''Albion'' sailed out of range. Mudge reported Lake rather than Nicolls as the victor of the battle, leading the contemporary naval historian [[William James (naval historian)|William James]] to suggest Lake was a favourite of the captain's, despite Clowes describing him as "a thoroughly worthless officer".{{sfnp|Clowes|1900|p=330}} Mudge's operations were not always so confused, and in a one-month period off San Domingo he captured or destroyed twenty-four enemy vessels, halting much of the communication between the enemy islands.{{sfnp|O'Byrne|1849b|p=796}}{{sfnp|Marshall|1824b|p=308}}

In the morning after the capture of ''Albion'' one of ''Blanche''{{'}}s boats attacked and captured a 1-gun privateer [[schooner]]. About a day after this another of the frigate's boats, under the command of [[Midshipman]] [[Edward Henry à Court-Repington|Edward Henry à Court]], was on a mission to gather sand with only eight men and five muskets on board, when they encountered a French schooner with over thirty French soldiers. À Court chose to board the schooner despite his numerical disadvantage, and successfully captured the vessel when the soldiers were found to all be seasick.{{sfnp|Clowes|1900|p=331}}

Under the orders of Captain [[John Bligh (Royal Navy officer)|John Bligh]] the frigate then joined in an attempt to capture [[Curacao]].{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=149}} Bligh's force brought itself together off San Domingo on 15 January 1804, and reached [[Bonaire]] on 30 January.{{sfnp|Clowes|1900|pp=80–81}} They reached the capital of Curacao, [[Willemstad]], in the following day, and at 9:30&nbsp;a.m. Bligh's demand for capitulation was refused. The main port of St Anne was heavily fortified, so Bligh landed a force of [[Royal Marines]] elsewhere on the coast, leaving ''Blanche'' and the 36-gun frigate [[French frigate Pallas (1798)|HMS ''Pique'']] to guard St Anne.{{refn|[[Lieutenant (Royal Navy)|Lieutenant]] William Braithwaite of ''Blanche'' was meant to command part of the invasion force but he was replaced after being found "incapacitated by his habitual drunkenness".{{sfnp|Clowes|1900|p=81}}|group=Note}} After initial success Bligh's invasion was dogged by sickness and high casualties from skirmishes, and on 25 February they reembarked having failed to take the island.{{sfnp|Clowes|1900|p=81}}

Continuing off Curacao, ''Blanche'' captured the French 14-gun privateer [[HMS Gracieuse (1804)|''La Gracieuse'']] on 21 October and at some point in the year also took the Dutch 4-gun schooner ''Nimrod''.{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=149}}{{sfnp|O'Byrne|1849b|p=796}} The ship captured two more French privateers in 1805; the 6-gun ''Le Hansard'' on 5 April and the 14-gun schooner ''L'Amitie'' on 9 April.{{refn|O'Byrne describes ''Gracieuse'' and ''Amitie'' as naval ships rather than privateers.{{sfnp|O'Byrne|1849b|p=796}}|group=Note}}{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=149}}

==Loss==
[[File:Action off Sombrero-E6myAqKXMAASo6C.jpg|''Blanche'' battles the French squadron on 19 July 1805|thumb]]
''Blanche'' was sailing {{convert|100|mi|km}} north of [[Puerto Rico]] at {{Coord|20|N|66|W}} on 19 July 1805, on a journey from [[Jamaica]] to [[Barbados]] with despatches for [[Vice admiral (Royal Navy)|Vice-Admiral]] [[Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson|Lord Nelson]], when she was spotted by a French squadron.{{sfnp|Grocott|2002|p=197}}{{sfnp|Clowes|1900|p=364}} This force included the 40-gun frigate [[French frigate Topaze (1805)|''Le Topaze'']], 22-gun [[sloop]] [[French corvette Départment des Landes (1804)|''Départment des Landes'']], 18-gun [[corvette]] [[French corvette Torche (1795)|''Torche'']], and 16-gun [[brig]] [[French corvette Faune (1804)|''Faune'']].{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=149}}{{sfnp|O'Byrne|1849b|p=796}}{{sfnp|Grocott|2002|p=197}} It was commanded by Captain [[François-André Baudin]].{{sfnp|Sharpston|2001|p=52}}

Mudge initially took the French squadron to be British because they were flying British colours, and as such sailed towards them. When the French began closing with him and ignored ''Blanche''{{'}}s signals Mudge realised his mistake and attempted to run from the superior force. ''Blanche'' had lost almost all her [[copper sheathing]] in the previous nine months of service, and as such she sailed very poorly and the French were easily able to catch up with the frigate. The battle began at about 11 a.m. when ''Topaze'' reached ''Blanche'', firing at her from her [[larboard]] side, while ''Départment des Landes'' occupied her [[starboard]] quarter, and the other French warships attacked her from astern. After half an hour of battle ''Blanche'' attempted to get across ''Topaze''{{'}}s bow to [[raking fire|rake]] her, but as she manoeuvred, the French vessel luffed up behind ''Blanche'' and achieved a raking fire of her own through ''Blanche''{{'}}s stern. The battle continued for forty-five minutes, with the French destroying all of ''Blanche''{{'}}s sails and rigging, leaving her unable to manoeuvre and her fore and main masts disabled.{{sfnp|Marshall|1824b|p=309}}{{sfnp|Clowes|1900|p=364}}

At about 12 a.m. Mudge surrendered ''Blanche'' in a sinking state, having lost eight members of the crew killed and a further fifteen wounded.{{sfnp|Winfield|2008|p=149}}{{sfnp|O'Byrne|1849b|p=796}} French casualties were minimal, with ''Topaze'' having three men killed and nine wounded. The French took control of ''Blanche'', but at 6 p.m. found her to be sinking and unrecoverable. Her timbers were infected with [[dry rot]] and had broken easily under the French gunnery.{{sfnp|Clowes|1900|p=365}} The frigate was set on fire, and once she had burned to the [[waterline]], sunk.{{sfnp|Marshall|1824b|p=309}}

===Aftermath===
Twenty-two members of ''Blanche''{{'}}s crew were taken on board ''Faune'', which herself was captured to the west of [[Rochfort]] on 15 August by the 74-gun ship of the line [[HMS Goliath (1781)|HMS ''Goliath'']] and 20-gun [[post ship]] [[HMS Camilla (1776)|HMS ''Camilla'']].{{sfnp|Grocott|2002|p=197}} Later in the day ''Goliath'', now accompanied by the 64-gun ship of the line [[HMS Raisonnable (1768)|HMS ''Raisonnable'']], found the other three ships of the French squadron to the south.{{sfnp|Clowes|1900|p=365}} These vessels scattered to avoid the powerful British ships, with ''Goliath'' chasing and capturing ''Torche'' soon afterwards, recovering another fifty-two of ''Blanche''{{'}}s crew. ''Raisonnable'' instead focused on ''Topaze'', getting in range on 16 August, but was forced to give up the chase when ''Topaze''{{'}}s [[chase gun]]s did heavy damage to her rigging, leaving both ''Topaze'' and ''Départment des Landes'' to escape, the former to Lisbon with Mudge on board.{{sfnp|Clowes|1900|pp=365–366}}{{sfnp|James|1826|p=209}} Having reached Lisbon, Mudge and the crew remaining with him were released upon application from the British [[Consul (representative)|consul]] there.{{sfnp|James|1826|pp=209–210}}

Despite some suggestions that ''Blanche'' had not been fully prepared for the fight and had given up too easily, Mudge was honourably acquitted in a [[court martial]] at [[Plymouth]] on 14 October for losing his ship. [[rear admiral (Royal Navy)|Rear-Admiral]] [[John Sutton (Royal Navy officer)|John Sutton]] praised Mudge's {{blockquote|"very able and gallant conduct in the defence made by you of his Majesty’s late ship the ''Blanche'', against a very superior force of the enemy’s ships; and likewise of the spirited support afforded you by the officers of every description, as well as the seamen and royal marines, under your command, in the discharge of their duty; and which reflects upon you and them the highest degree of merit and approbation"{{sfnp|O'Byrne|1849b|p=796}}{{sfnp|Marshall|1824b|p=310}}}}

James has questioned how truthful Mudge was in his account of the loss of ''Blanche'', noting how he greatly overestimated the strength of his four opponents in his reports and made suggestions of much higher casualties than had actually occurred. The French officers involved also negated Mudge's account of an especially hard-fought battle, noting how only ''Topaze'' had truly engaged ''Blanche'', with the other vessels firing very few shots at the British ship, and those mostly at the rigging and masts. James ends his debate on the merits of the defence of ''Blanche'' by saying: {{blockquote|"We confess our inability to discover any thing calculated to distinguish this case of defence and surrender from others that have occurred; not, at least, on the score of superior merit"{{sfnp|James|1826|p=208}}}}

The historian E. V. E. Sharpston builds on James' argument, concluding that: {{blockquote|"It is difficult to escape the conclusion (reinforced by other episodes in his career) that Mudge was inept, his crew slack, and that neither measured up to Captain Baudin and his crew"{{sfnp|Sharpston|2001|p=52}}}}

Part of ''Blanche''{{'}}s wreck, including her mainmast, was found floating at {{Coord|22|N|63|W}} by the American schooner ''Sally'' on 27 July; the ship then found 
another mast a mile onward, with rigging and an anchor still attached. A still flying [[battle ensign]] could be seen underwater. Markings on the recovered material led the captain of ''Sally'' to initially announce that he had discovered the destruction of the 74-gun ship of the line [[HMS Blenheim (1761)|HMS ''Blenheim'']] rather than the remains of ''Blanche'', but this was rectified by a report in ''[[The Times]]'' on 16 October.{{sfnp|Grocott|2002|pp=197–198}}

==Notes and citations==
===Notes===
{{reflist|group=Note}}

===Citations===
{{reflist}}

==References==
*{{cite book|last=Clowes|first=William Laird|author-link=William Laird Clowes|year=1899|title=The Royal Navy: A History From the Earliest Times to the Present|volume=4|location=London|publisher=Sampson Low, Marston and Company|oclc=963739668}}
*{{cite book|last=Clowes|first=William Laird|author-link=William Laird Clowes|year=1900|title=The Royal Navy: A History From the Earliest Times to the Present|volume=5|location=London|publisher=Sampson Low, Marston and Company|oclc=963590335}}
*{{cite book|last=Feldbæk|first=Ole|author-link=Ole Feldbæk|year=2016|orig-year=1985|title=The Battle of Copenhagen 1801|location=Barnsley, South Yorkshire|publisher=Pen & Sword Maritime|isbn=978-1-47388-661-2}}
*{{cite book|last=Gardiner|first=Robert|title=The Heavy Frigate: Eighteen-Pounder Frigates|volume=1|year=1994|location=London|publisher=Conway Maritime Press|isbn=0-85177-627-2}}
*{{cite book|last=Gardiner|first=Robert|year=1999|title=Warships of the Napoleonic Era|location=London|publisher=Chatham|isbn=1-86176-117-1}}
*{{cite book|last=Gardiner|first=Robert|year=2000|title=Frigates of the Napoleonic Wars|location=London|publisher=Chatham|isbn=1-86176-135-X}}
*{{cite book|last=Grocott|first=Terence|year=2002|title=Shipwrecks of the Revolutionary & Napoleonic Eras|location=London|publisher=Caxton Editions|isbn=1-84067-164-5}}
*{{cite book|last=James|first=William|author-link=William James (naval historian)|year=1826|title=The Naval History of Great Britain|volume=4|location=London|publisher=Harding, Lepard, and Co|oclc=799983428}}
*{{cite book|last1=Manning|first1=T. D.|last2=Walker|first2=C. F.|year=1959|title=British Warship Names|location=London|publisher=Putnam|oclc=213798232}}
*{{cite RNB1823 |wstitle=Hamond, Graham Eden|volume=2 |part=1 |pages=170–179|year=1824a}}
*{{cite RNB1823 |wstitle=Mudge, Zachary|volume=2 |part=1 |pages=307–310|year=1824b}}
*{{cite NBD1849 |wstitle=Hamond, Graham Eden|pages=455–457|year=1849a}}
*{{cite NBD1849 |wstitle=Mudge, Zachary|pages=796–797|year=1849b}}
*{{cite book|last=Sharpston|first=E. V. E.|year=2001|title=The Campaign of Trafalgar 1803–1805|editor=Robert Gardiner|chapter=Frigate actions|location=London|publisher=Caxton Editions|isbn=1-84067-3583}}
*{{cite book |last=Winfield |first=Rif|title=British Warships in the Age of Sail 1714–1792: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates |location=London |publisher=Pen & Sword |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-84415-700-6}}
*{{cite book|last=Winfield|first=Rif|title=British Warships in the Age of Sail 1793–1817: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates |location=Barnsley, South Yorkshire|publisher=Seaforth|year=2008|isbn=978-1-78346-926-0}}

{{Apollo class frigate}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blanche (1800)}}
[[Category:1800 ships]]
[[Category:Fifth-rate frigates of the Royal Navy]]
[[Category:Apollo-class frigates]]
[[Category:Ships built in Deptford]]