Téméraire class ship of the line

The "Téméraire" class ships of the line was a class of 107 74-gun ships of the line built between 1782 and 1813 for the French navy. The type was and remains the most numerous class of capital ship ever built.

The class was designed by Jacques-Noël Sané as part of the fleet expansion programme instituted by Jean-Charles de Borda.

The design was appreciated in Britain, which eagerly commissioned captured ships and even copied the design with the "Pompée" class.

Ships in class

"Téméraire" (18 ships)

* "Téméraire":Builder: Brest shipyard:Ordered: :Laid down: May 1782:Launched: 17 December 1782:Completed: July 1783:Fate: Condemned in November 1801, broken up 1803.

* "Audacieux":Builder: Lorient shipyard:Ordered: :Laid down: July 1782:Launched: 28 October 1784:Completed: 1785:Fate: Condemned in November 1802

* "Fougueux":Builder: Lorient shipyard:Ordered: :Laid down: August 1782, but work stopped in February 1783 and she was demolished.:Re-laid down: November 1784:Launched: 19 September 1785:Completed: late 1785:Fate: Captured by the Royal Navy at Trafalgar on 21 October 1805, and subsequently wrecked.

* "Superbe":Builder: Brest shipyard:Ordered: :Laid down: July 1782:Launched: 11 November 1784:Completed: 1785:Fate: Wrecked on 30 January 1795 off Brest.

* "Borée" (renamed "Ça Ira" in April 1794 and then "Agricola" in June 1794):Builder: Lorient shipyard:Ordered: :Laid down: January 1783, but work stopped in February 1783 and she was demolished.:Re-laid down: November 1784:Launched: 17 November 1785:Completed: August 1787:Fate: Broken up in 1803 at Rochefort.

* "Commerce de Bordeaux" (renamed "Bonnet Rouge" in January 1794 and then "Timoléon" in February 1794):Builder: Toulon shipyard:Ordered: :Laid down: September 1784:Launched: 15 September 1785:Completed: 1786 or 1787:Fate: Destroyed in action at the Battle of the Nile in August 1798.

* "Commerce de Marseille" (renamed "Lys" in July 1786 and then "Tricolore" in October 1792):Builder: Toulon shipyard:Ordered: :Laid down: September 1784:Launched: 7 October 1785:Completed: September 1787:Fate: Captured by the Royal Navy at Toulon on August 1793, then destroyed during the Siege of Toulon in December 1793.

* "Ferme" (renamed "Phocion" in October 1792):Builder: Brest shipyard:Ordered: :Laid down: December 1784:Launched: 16 September 1785:Completed: 1786:Fate: Surrendered to Spain by her officers in January 1793 at Trinidad.

* "Généreux":Builder: Rochefort shipyard:Ordered: :Laid down: July 1782:Launched: 21 June 1785:Completed: October 1785:Fate: Captured by the Royal Navy at Toulon in August 1793 but retaken by the French in December 1793; captured again by the Royal Navy in February 1800.

* "Patriote":Builder: Brest shipyard:Ordered: :Laid down: September 1784:Launched: 3 October 1785:Completed: April 1786:Fate: Condemned in May 1820 and became "Pontoon No.4" in April 1821. Broken up at Rochefort in late 1832.

* "Entreprenant":Builder: Lorient shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: 1787:Fate: Broken up

* "Impétueux":Builder: Rochefort shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: 1787:Fate:

* "Léopard":Builder: Brest shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: 1787:Fate:

* "Orion" (renamed "Mucius" and "Mucius Scaevola"):Builder: Rochefort shipyard:Ordered::Laid down: :Launched: 1787:Fate:

* "América":Builder: Brest shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: 1788:Fate: Captured by the Royal Navy

* "Apollon" (renamed "Gasparin" and "Marceau"):Builder: Rochefort shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: 1788:Fate:

* "Duguay-Trouin":Builder: Brest shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: 1788:Fate: Destroyed during the Siege of Toulon in 1793

* "Aquilon":Builder: Rochefort shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: 1789:Fate: Captured by Britain during the Battle of the Nile in August 1798.

"Duquesne" (46 ships)

* "Duquesne" :Builder: Toulon shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Tourville":Builder: Lorient shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Éole":Builder: Lorient shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: 15 November 1789:Fate: Broken up in Baltimore in 1816

* "Jupiter" (Renamed "Montagnard", "Démocrate", "Batave"):Builder: Brest shipyard:Ordered: 19 August 1787:Launched: 4 November 1789:Fate: Broken up in Brest in 1807

* "Vengeur":Builder: Brest shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Jean Bart":Builder: Lorient shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: 7 November 1790:Fate: Wrecked at the Battle of the Basque Roads on 26 February 1809, hull burnt by the British in April.

* "Scipion":Builder: Toulon shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Thésée" (Renamed "Révolution", "Finisterre"):Builder: Rochefort shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Pyrrhus" (Renamed "Mont Blanc", "31 Mai", "Républicain", HMS "Mont Blanc"):Builder: Rochefort shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Suffren" (Renamed "Redoutable"):Builder: Brest shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate: Participated in the Battle of Trafalgar, taken by the British, foundered two days later.

* "Thémistocle":Builder: Lorient shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Trajan" (Renamed "Gaulois"):Builder: Lorient shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Nestor" (Renamed "Cisalpin", "Aquilon"):Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Pompée":Builder: Toulon shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Tigre":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Tyrannicide" (Renamed "Dessaix"):Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Barra" (renamed "Pégase", "Hoche" and HMS "Donegal"):Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:
* "Droits de l'Homme":Builder: Lorient shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: May 29 1794:Fate: Beached January 14 1797

* "Jemmapes":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Lion" (Renamed "Marat", "Formidable"):Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Wattignies":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Dix-août" (Renamed "Cassard", "Brave"):Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Jean-Jacques Rousseau"(Renamed "Marengo"):Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Viala" (renamed "Voltaire", "Constitution", "Jupiter" and HMS "Maida"):Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Hercule":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Spartiate":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Argonaute":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Quatorze Juillet":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Brutus" (Renamed "Impétueux"):Builder: Lorient:Ordered: 31 may 1798:Launched: 24 january 1803:Fate: beached and set ablaze by the British in Chesapeake on 14 September 1806

* "Union" (renamed "Diomède"):Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Aigle":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Duguay-Trouin":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Héros":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Pacificateur':Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Scipion":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Magnanime":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Suffren":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Achille":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Algésiras":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Lion" (renamed "Glorieux" and"Cassard"):Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Regulus":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Ajax":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Courageux":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Hautpoult":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Inflexible":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:
* "Triomphant":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

"Danube" (26 ships)

* "Danube":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Polonais":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Tonnerre":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Ulm":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Marengo":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Nestor":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Trajan":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Trident":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Agamemnon":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Gaulois":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Polyphème":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Romulus":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Ville de Marseille":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Colosse":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Duguay-Trouin":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Orion":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Scipion":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Superbe":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Hercule":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Duc de Berry":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:
* "Jean Bart":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Triton":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Couronne":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Généreux":Builder: :Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

"Pluton" (12 ships)

Starting with "Pluton" in 1803, a smaller version of the "Téméraire" class, officially named "petit modèle", was designed by Jacques-Noël Sané to be produced in shipyards having a lesser depth of water than the principal French shipyards, primarily those in neighbouring states under French control and in foreign ports which had been absorbed into the French Empire such as Antwerp.

* "Pluton":Builder: Toulon shipyard:Ordered: June 1803:Laid down: August 1803:Launched: 17 January 1805:Completed: March 1805.:Fate: Captured by the Spanish at Cadiz in June 1808.

* "Borée":Builder: Toulon shipyard:Ordered: June 1803:Laid down: August 1803:Launched: 27 June 1805:Completed: August 1805:Fate: Condemned at Toulon in 1827.

*Two more 74s to the "petit modèle" design were ordered in June 1803, one at Marseille and the other at Bordeaux, but these were not built.

* "Génois":Builder: Genoa shipyard:Ordered: :Laid down: July 1803:Launched: 17 August 1805:Completed: November 1805:Fate: Condemned at Rochefort in August 1821, ad broken up there by October 1821.

* "Royal Hollandais":Builder: Flushing shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Commerce de Lyon":Builder: Antwerp shipyard:Ordered: :Laid down: November 1803:Launched: 9 April 1807:Completed: March 1808:Fate: Condemned at Brest in February 1819, and broken up there in December 1819.

* "Charlemagne":Builder: Antwerp shipyard:Ordered: :Laid down: April 1804:Launched: 8 April 1807:Completed: March 1808 :Fate: Ceded to the new Dutch Navy 1 August 1814, renamed "Nassau".

* "Anversois" (renamed "Éole" in August 1814, then "Anversois" in March 1815 and back to "Éole" in July 1815):Builder: Antwerp shipyard:Ordered: :Laid down: June 1804:Launched: 7 June 1807:Completed: March 1808:Fate: Condemned at Brest in February 1819 and broken up there in December 1819.

* "Duguesclin":Builder: Antwerp shipyard:Ordered: :Laid down: July 1804:Launched: 20 June 1807:Completed: March 1808:Fate: Condemned at Lorient in June 1818, and broken up there in January 1820.

* "César":Builder: Antwerp shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Ville de Berlin":Builder: Antwerp shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Pultusk":Builder: Antwerp shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Dantzig":Builder: Antwerp shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

"Albanais" (13 ships)

* "Albanais":Builder: Antwerp shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Breslau":Builder: Genoa shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Dalmate":Builder: Antwerp shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Rivoli":Builder: Venice shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: 6 September 1810:Fate: captured in the Action of 22 February 1812.

* "Montebello":Builder: Venice shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: not launched:Fate:

* "Mont Saint-Bernard":Builder: Venice shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Régénérateur":Builder: Venice shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Audacieux":Builder: Amsterdam shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Castiglione":Builder: Venice shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Polyphème":Builder: Amsterdam shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Royal Italien":Builder: Venice shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Couronne":Builder: Amsterdam shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Piet Hein":Builder: Rotterdam shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: :Fate:

* "Montenotte":Builder: Venice shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: not launched:Fate:

* "Arcole":Builder: Venice shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: not launched:Fate:

* "Lombardo":Builder: Venice shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: not launched:Fate:

* "Semmering":Builder: Venice shipyard:Ordered: :Launched: not launched:Fate:

* "Citoyen":Builder: Trieste shipyard:Ordered: December 1811:Launched: not launched:Fate: Cancelled 1812.

See also

* French ship "Téméraire" for a list of ships so named in the French Navy

External links

* [http://users.skynet.be/tintinpassion/VOIRSAVOIR/Marin2/pages_Marin2/035_Marin2.html "Le Redoutable"]
* [http://users.skynet.be/tintinpassion/VOIRSAVOIR/Marin2/pages_Marin2/047_Marin2.html "La Ville de Marseille"]