''Alceste'' was a ''Magicienne'' class frigate 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 ...

, launched in 1780, that the British seized at the

Siege of Toulon The siege of Toulon (29 August – 19 December 1793) was a military engagement that took place during the Federalist revolts of the French Revolutionary Wars. It was undertaken by Republican forces against Royalist rebels supported by Anglo-S ...

. They transferred her to the

Kingdom of Sardinia The Kingdom of Sardinia,The name of the state was originally Latin: , or when the kingdom was still considered to include Corsica. In Italian it is , in French , in Sardinian , and in Piedmontese . also referred to as the Kingdom of Savoy-S ...

, but the French recaptured her a year later in the action of 8 June 1794. The British captured her again at the

action of 18 June 1799 The action of 18 June 1799 was a naval engagement of the French Revolutionary Wars fought off Toulon in the wake of the Mediterranean campaign of 1798. A frigate squadron under Rear-admiral Perrée, returning to Toulon from Syria, met a 30-s ...

and took her into service as HMS ''Alceste''. In 1801 she became a floating battery and she was sold the next year.

Career

At the outbreak of the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...

, ''Alceste'' served in the Mediterranean until she was put in the reserved and disarmed in Toulon. The royalist insurrection found her there; the British, who supported the royalists, seized her and transferred her to the

before the conclusion of the

. The 32-gun ''Boudeuse'' recaptured her in the action of 8 June 1794. The French then took her back into French service. On 4 August 1794 ''Alceste'' and ''Vestale'' were off

Cape Bon Cape Bon ("Good Cape") is a peninsula in far northeastern Tunisia, also known as Ras at-Taib ( ar, الرأس الطيب), Sharīk Peninsula, or Watan el Kibli; Cape Bon is also the name of the northernmost point on the peninsula, also known as Ra ...

when they encountered and captured the brig . The French took ''Scout'' into service under existing name, but she wrecked on 12 December 1795 off Cadiz. Under Captain

Louis-Jean-Nicolas Lejoille Louis-Jean-Nicolas Lejoille ( Saint-Valery-sur-Somme, 11 November 1759 – Brindisi, 9 April 1799 Hennequin, ''Biographie maritime'') was a French Navy officer and captain. Career Born to a family of sailors, Lejoille started sailing at seven ...

, ''Alceste'' was part of Admiral Martin's squadron, which captured in 1795.

Jean Joseph Hubert Jean-Joseph Hubert ( Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines, 17 December 1765 – off Cádiz, 25 October 1805Quintin, p.175) was a French Navy officer and captain. Career Hubert joined the French Royal Navy as a volunteer on 27 September 1780, and served on ...

took command of ''Alceste'' on 31 March 1795. She took part in the

Battle of Hyères Islands A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

, where she battled several British ships before rescuing ''Alcide''. In March 1796, ''Alceste'' ferried

Jean-Baptiste Annibal Aubert du Bayet Jean-Baptiste Annibal Aubert du Bayet (19 August 1759, Louisiana – 17 December 1797, Istanbul) was a French General and politician during the period of the French Revolution. Aubert du Bayet was born in Baton-Rouge in the French American colon ...

to his appointment as ambassador to Constantinople, along with military advisors. From November 1796 to January 1797, ''Alceste'' patrolled the coasts of Italy under Captain Jean-François-Timothée Trullet. She took part in the Expédition d'Égypte under Jean-Baptiste Barré, ferrying General

Jean Reynier Jean Louis Ebénézer Reynier (14 January 1771 – 27 February 1814) was a Swiss-French military officer who served in the French Army under the First Republic and the First Empire. He rose in rank to become a general during the French Revoluti ...

, and was later appointed to a squadron under Admiral

Jean-Baptiste Perrée Jean-Baptiste Perrée (19 December 1761Levot, p.394 in 1866 write 19 April 1761 – 18 February 1800Levot, p.395) was a French Navy officer and Rear-admiral. Career Born to a family of sailors in Saint-Valery-sur-Somme, Perrée started sailing in ...

, which also comprised the frigates ''Junon'' and ''Alceste'', and ''Courageuse'', and the brigs ''Salamine'' and ''Alerte''. In the

, captured ''Alceste''.

Fate

The Royal Navy commissioned ''Alceste'' under Commander Thomas Bayley, who shortly thereafter received promotion to

post captain Post-captain is an obsolete alternative form of the rank of captain in the Royal Navy. The term served to distinguish those who were captains by rank from: * Officers in command of a naval vessel, who were (and still are) addressed as captain ...

in March 1800. She arrived at Chatham on 4 April.Winfield (2008), p. 205. There she was registered as a sloop in July 1801 and fitted as a floating battery in August.Demerliac (1996), p. 64, #388. She was sold at Sheerness on 20 May 1802 for £1,445.

Citations

References

*Demerliac, Alain (1996) ''La Marine De Louis XVI: Nomenclature Des Navires Français De 1774 À 1792''. (Nice: Éditions OMEGA). *Roche, Jean-Michel (2005) ''Dictionnaire des Bâtiments de la Flotte de Guerre Française de Colbert à nos Jours.'' (Group Retozel-Maury Millau), Vol. 1, p. 30. * *Winfield, Rif & Stephen S Roberts (2015) ''French Warships in the Age of Sail 1786 - 1861: Design Construction, Careers and Fates''. (Seaforth Publishing). {{DEFAULTSORT:Alceste Frigates of the Royal Navy Age of Sail frigates of France Ships built in France Magicienne-class frigates 1780 ships Captured ships Floating batteries of the Royal Navy

Career

Fate

See also

Citations

References