The ''Willem de Eerste'' was a 74-gun

third rate In the rating system of the Royal Navy, a third rate was a ship of the line which from the 1720s mounted between 64 and 80 guns, typically built with two gun decks (thus the related term two-decker). Years of experience proved that the thir ...

ship of the line A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed during the Age of Sail from the 17th century to the mid-19th century. The ship of the line was designed for the naval tactic known as the line of battle, which depended on the two colu ...

of the navy of the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, also known as the (Seven) United Provinces, officially as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands ( Dutch: ''Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Nederlanden''), and commonly referred to in historiography ...

, the Batavian Republic, and the Royal Netherlands Navy. The order to construct the ship was given by the Admiralty of the Meuse. The ship was commissioned in 1785. In 1795, the ship was renamed ''Brutus'' and incorporated in the Batavian Navy. On 11 October 1797 the ''Brutus'' took part in the

Battle of Camperdown The Battle of Camperdown (known in Dutch as the ''Zeeslag bij Kamperduin'') was a major naval action fought on 11 October 1797, between the British North Sea Fleet under Admiral Adam Duncan and a Batavian Navy (Dutch) fleet under Vice-Admira ...

under

Rear-Admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star " admiral" rank. It is often regar ...

Johan Bloys van Treslong Johan Arnold Bloys van Treslong (Steenbergen, 8 November 1757 – Amsterdam, 26 January 1824) was a Dutch naval officer and Patriot. He started his naval career in 1772, serving as a midshipman with the Admiralty of the Maze. He served unde ...

. A cannonball hit the Rear-Admiral's right arm, which had to be amputated. ''Brutus'' soon left the battle, when she couldn't reach the

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the f ...

Vryheid Vryheid ( zu, IVryheid) is a coal mining and cattle ranching town in northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Vryheid is the Afrikaans word for "freedom". History After Boer farmers, who lived in the Vryheid area, had helped King Dinuzulu defeat ...

'' because the burning ship ''

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted th ...

'' blocked the way. After the battle, on 13 October, the ship was found by the frigate and was attacked. ''Brutus'' sailed deeper in the Dutch waters of the Goeree channel, where she was no longer pursued by the British vessel. In 1806, the ''Brutus'' was renamed ''Braband''. In the years 1811-1813, the ship formed part 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 th ...

, but she was returned to the

Kingdom of the Netherlands , national_anthem = ) , image_map = Kingdom of the Netherlands (orthographic projection).svg , map_width = 250px , image_map2 = File:KonDerNed-10-10-10.png , map_caption2 = Map of the four constituent countries shown to scale , capital = ...

in 1814. In 1815 she was fitted out to sail to the Dutch East Indies, but it soon became clear that her hull wasn't strong enough for the voyage, and she sailed no further than

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city status in the United Kingdom, city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is admi ...

. The ship was eventually broken up in 1820.

References

Ships of the line of the Dutch Republic Ships of the line of the Batavian Republic Ships of the line of the French Navy Ships built in the Netherlands 1785 ships {{Netherlands-hist-stub