.jpg) Engageante at theaction of 23 April 1794 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
.svg)   France | |
| Name | Engageante |
| Builder | Toulon dockyard (constructeur: Joseph Chapelle) |
| Laid down | October 1765 |
| Launched | 27 September 1766 |
| In service | April 1768 |
| Captured | 23 April 1794 |
 Great Britain | |
| Name | HMSEngageante |
| Acquired | 23 April 1794 |
| Fate | Broken up in May 1811 |
| General characteristics[1][2] | |
| Displacement | 1010tonneaux |
| Tons burthen |
|
| Length | 45.5 m (149 ft) |
| Beam | 11.5 m (38 ft) |
| Draught | 4.7 m (15 ft) |
| Propulsion | Sail |
| Complement |
|
| Armament | |
| Armour | Timber |
Engageante was a 32-gunfrigate of theFrench Navy. The only ship of her class, she was built to a design by the shipwrightJean-François Etienne and launched in 1766. The British captured her in theaction of 23 April 1794 and converted her to the hospital shipHMSEngageante. She was broken up in 1811.
Engageante was built in Toulon to a design by Jean-François Etienne. She was the sole ship of her class.[1]
From July 1778,Engageante was under the command of CaptainGras-Préville.[3][4] On 5 July 1778, asEngageante was scouting in front of D'Estaing's squadron, she detected the 26-gun British privateer frigateRose, under Captain James Duncan.[a]Engageante gave chase and caught up with her quarry around 2000hrs. The battle lasted until 0100hrs of 6 July, by which timeRose had been reduced to a wreck andstruck her colours.Engageante returned to her squadron to report on the event; deemingRose irretrievable, the French scuttled her.[6][7]
Engageante took part in theBattle of St. Lucia on 15 December 1778.
In February 1779,Engageante departed Toulon for America, where she arrived in late March, but had to be quarantined.[8] In April 1779, she escorted a convoy from Martinique to France, successfully fending off a British attack.[9][7]
From 1781, she took part in theAmerican Revolutionary War, including theHudson Bay Expedition in 1782, withAstrée and the 74-gunSceptre.[10][11] Thecopper sheathing of the ships made them especially vulnerable in arctic waters, andEngageante suffered the most,[12] damaging her bow so much that she had to call into Cadiz for repair.[13] The crew also suffered fromscurvy: by the timeEngageante arrived in Europe, all had been affected; around 100 were too sick to work, and 15 had died.[14]
Engageante was captured, along withPomone andBabet, off theÎle de Batz during theaction of 23 April 1794. Her captor wasHMS Concorde.[15] OnEngageante 30 to 40 men were killed or wounded. OnConcorde one man was killed and 12 were wounded. In the evening after the actionEngageante's masts fell overboard, andConcorde's masts were kept upright only with great difficulty.[16]
Engageante was subsequently recommissioned in theRoyal Navy and registered as the hospital ship HMSEngageante on 27 July 1794.[1]
She was commissioned atCork in February 1795 under Lieutenant William Fry. She served for a while as Vice-AdmiralRobert Kingsmill's flagship.[1]
In 1796 Lieutenant Henry Parker replaced Fry, but drowned in January 1797. In 1798 Fry returned to command, but he died in 1801. In 1801 Lieutenant Barrington Mansfield assumed command, only to die within the year.[1]
In June 1802Glenmore escortedEngageante, Lieutenant Donocliff, to Plymouth. ThereEngageante became a hospital ship; later she was a receiving ship at Cork.[17] Although it was expected thatEngageante would be broken up at Plymouth,[17] that did not take place for almost a decade.
Engageante was broken up at Plymouth in May 1811.[1]
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)