''Couronne'' (
French for "
crown
A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...
") was an emblematic ship of the
French Navy
The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...
built by order of
Richelieu.
The ''Couronne'' was the first major warship to be designed and built by the French themselves in accordance with Richelieu's plans to renew the French Navy, after a series of warships had been built by the Dutch. The construction was supervised by
Isaac de Launay Razilly (died in Arcadia 1635),
[Instruction sheet for "La Couronne", Heller Model Company] and overseen by the famous carpenter
Charles Morieu, from
Dieppe
Dieppe (; Norman: ''Dgieppe'') is a coastal commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France.
Dieppe is a seaport on the English Channel at the mouth of the river Arques. A regular ferry service runs to N ...
. She was being constructed at
La Roche-Bernard and was one of the most advanced units of her time. After launch in 1632 or 1633, she was moved to
Brouage
Hiers-Brouage () is a former commune in the Charente-Maritime department, southwestern France. On 1 January 2019, it was merged into the new commune Marennes-Hiers-Brouage.
History
Brouage was founded in 1555 by Jacques de Pons on the Bay ...
in September 1634 where she was completed around 1635 by Mathieu Casteau. She carried up to heavy guns, most on her two-deck broadsaide but also 8 firing forwards from the bow and 8 firing aft, an unusual feature until
Dupuy de Lôme redesigned naval artillery.
''Couronne'' took part in the
Battle of Guetaria on 22 August 1638, and another expedition to Spain in 1639 under
Henri de Sourdis
Henri d'Escoubleau de Sourdis, 20 February 1593 to 18 June 1645, was a French naval commander and Archbishop of Bordeaux.
Like many churchmen of his day, de Sourdis was a military man as well as a prelate. He fought in the Thirty Years' War an ...
.
The ship was disarmed in 1641 and broken up between 1643–1645.
Image:La Couronne-Gaston Braun.jpg, Photograph of a model lost in 1943
Image:La Couronne mg 0349.jpg
Image:Couronne 1638.png
See also
*
Troupes de la marine
*
Troupes de Marine
The (TDM, ) is a corps of the French Army that includes several specialities: infantry, artillery, armoured, airborne, engineering, and transmissions (Signals).
Despite its name, it forms part of the Army, not the Navy. Intended for amphibi ...
References
*''Nomenclature des Vaisseaux de Louis XIII et de la régence d'Anne d'Autriche, 1610 a 1661''. Alain Demerliac (Editions Omega, Nice – 2004).
*''The Sun King's Vessels'' (2015) - Jean-Claude Lemineur; English translation by François Fougerat. Editions ANCRE.
*Winfield, Rif and Roberts, Stephen (2017) ''French Warships in the Age of Sail 1626-1786: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates.'' Seaforth Publishing. .
External links
Ships of the line of the French Navy
Ships built in France
1630s ships
{{France-line-ship-stub