French frigate Atalante (1802)

The Atalante was a 40-gun Virginie class frigate of the French Navy, launched in 1802.

For other ships with the same name, see French ship Atalante.

Defence of the Centurion in Vizagapatam Road, Septr. 15th 1804, Engraving by Thomas Sutherland after a painting by Sir James Lind
History
France
Name:	Atalante
Builder:	Enterprise Ethéart, Saint-Malo (Constructeur: François Pestel)
Laid down:	September 1797
Launched:	29 June 1802
Commissioned:	1 July 1802
Fate:	Wrecked 3 November 1805 or 10 January 1806 (see text)
General characteristics
Class and type:	Virginie class frigate
Displacement:	1,400 tons (French)
Length:	47.75 m (156.7 ft)
Beam:	12.18 m (40.0 ft)
Draught:	5.85 m (19.2 ft) (laden)
Complement:	330-340
Armament:	Carried 44 cannons in British service(including carronades) UD:28 x 18-pounder guns Foc'sle and Quarterdeck:14 x 32-pounder carronades + 2 x 9-pounder guns
Armour:	Timber

In 1803 Atalante cruised in the Indian Ocean under capitaine de frégate Gaudin, in the squadron under the command of Rear Admiral Charles-Alexandre Léon Durand Linois, whose mission was to re-take the colonies of the Indian Ocean, given to English at the peace of Amiens. The fleet included the 74-gun ship of the line Marengo, the frigates Atalante, Belle Poule, and Sémillante, and troop ships and transports with food and ammunition.

At the beginning of November, the division set sail for Batavia to protect the Dutch colonies. En route, Linois destroyed the English counters in Bencoolen, capturing five ships, and sailed for the South China Sea, where the China Fleet of the British East India Company was expected. During the operation he despatched Atalante to Muscat.

Linois's squadron, without Atalante, met the British East India Company's China Fleet in the Battle of Pulo Aura. The greater numbers and aggressive action of the British East Indiamen, some of whom flew Royal Navy flags, drove the French away. Linois returned to Batavia.

In August Linois was cruising in the Indian Ocean in Marengo, together with Atalante and Sémillante. On the 18th, near Desnoeufs Island they encountered and captured two British merchant men, Charlotte and Upton Castle. They had been on their way to Bombay when Linois's squadron captured them.[1]

Linois described Charlotte as being copper-sheathed, of 650 tons and 16 guns. She was carrying a cargo of rice. Upton Castle he described as being copper-sheathed, of 627 tons, and 14 guns. She was carrying a cargo of wheat and other products from Bengal. He sent both his prizes into Isle de France (Mauritius).[1]

Linois next dispatched Atalante and Belle Poule to the Gulf of Bengal, where they captured a few ships before returning to Ile de France. Among their captures were Althea in April 1804, and Athias and Heroism.

Atalante was also engaged at the Battle of Vizagapatam in September 1804.

Fate

On 3 November 1805 she was under the command of Captain Gaudin-Beauchêne. As she was moored near the Cape of Good Hope, a gust of wind washed her ashore. Troude reports that by 7 November she had been refloated and repaired. Accounts of her subsequent fate differ. One account has it that she was found irreparable and was written off as a total loss. However, Commodore Sir Home Popham reported that the ”French Ship Atalante, of 40 Guns, and Batavian Ship Bato, of 68 Guns: Destroyed by the Enemy running them on Shore when the Cape was attacked, January 10, 1806.”[2]

Citations and references

Citations

1. Mercure de France (1804), Vol. 20, p.380.
2. "No. 15927". The London Gazette. 10 June 1806. p. 732.

References

• Roche, Jean-Michel (2005) Dictionnaire des Bâtiments de la Flotte de Guerre Française de Colbert à nos Jours. (Group Retozel-Maury Millau).
• Troude, Onésime-Joachim (1867). Batailles navales de la France. 3. Challamel ainé. pp. 420–421.
• Winfield, Rif & Stephen S Roberts (2015 Forthcoming) French Warships in the Age of Sail 1786 - 1862: Design Construction, Careers and Fates. (Seaforth Publishing). ISBN 9781848322042