Don Des Vaisseaux

The ''don des vaisseaux'' (English: gift of the vessels) was a subscription programme launched by French statesman Étienne François de Choiseul, Duke of Choiseul in 1761 to rebuild the French Navy to make up for the losses it suffered in the Seven Years' War. Under the terms of the programme, the French public was encouraged to contribute funds for the construction of ships of the line. The programme raised 13 million ''livres'' from provinces, cities, institutions and private individuals, which were used to build 18 ships of the line for the French navy, including two first-rates, ''Ville de Paris'' and ''Bretagne''.

All ships built under the programme were named either after their donors or qualities the donors wished to be associated with. Some ship names fell out of political favour during the French Revolution and were renamed between 1792 and 1794 under the National Convention's direction; in turn, some of the new names became politically unacceptable after the Thermidorian Reaction and were again changed in 1795. The success of the programme encouraged the French state to renew it on several occasions, including from 1782 to 1790 and again during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.

Background

During the Seven Years' War, the French Navy suffered numerous defeats at the hands of the British Royal Navy. By 1761, the French navy had lost dozens of ships of the line in several engagements with the British, who as a result of their naval victories held command of the sea in both Europe and the Americas. As France was heavily in debt due to its war effort, it was impossible to fund the reconstruction of the French Navy through conventional means.

As such, the Secretary of State for the Navy, Étienne François de Choiseul, Duke of Choiseul, devised a subscription programme to raise the necessary funds. In 1761, Choiseul suggested to the Archbishop of Narbonne Charles Antoine de La Roche-Aymon, who presided over the Estates of Languedoc, to encourage the Estates' delegates to fund the construction of a 74-gun ship of the line via subscriptions. Choiseul hoped that this would set an example for other French organisations and private individuals to follow, which proved to be correct.

Fundraising

On 26 November 1761, de La Roche-Aymon gave a speech before the delegates of the Estates of Languedoc, encouraging them to

The delegates obliged, and the example was followed the next year by the estates of Brittany, Burgundy, Artois and Flanders, the cities of Paris, Bordeaux, Montpellier and Marseille along with several private institutions and individuals such as the '' six corps de marchands'' and ''ferme générale''.

Ships built through donations

Of the 30 ships of the line built for the French Navy between 1760 and 1769, 18 were funded by the ''don des vaisseaux'' programme, which raised 13 million ''livres''. Two first-rates were built from funds raised using the programme, ''Ville de Paris'' and ''Bretagne'', both of which participated in naval operations in the American Revolutionary War.

Renewal of the fundraising

After a costly French defeat at the Battle of the Saintes, a new fundraising drive was organised, yielding five new ships. Another ship was later built from such funding during the Empire.

Notes and references

*{{in lang, fr}
LA BRETAGNE, 1766. Le renouveau de la Marine Française après la guerre de Sept Ans

1761 in France
Don des vaisseaux