Luc Urbain du Bouëxic, comte de Guichen | |
|---|---|
 1832 portrait of Guichen byJean-Baptiste Paulin Guérin | |
| Born | 21 June 1712 |
| Died | 13 January 1790(1790-01-13) (aged 77) Morlaix, France |
| Allegiance | France |
| Branch | French Navy |
| Service years | 1730–1783 |
| Rank | Lieutenant général des armées navales |
| Conflicts | |
| Awards |  Order of Saint Louis Order of the Holy Spirit |
Luc Urbain du Bouëxic, comte de Guichen (June 21, 1712 – January 13, 1790) was aFrench Navy officer who commanded the fleets that fought theRoyal Navy at theBattle of Ushant andBattle of Martinique during theAmerican Revolutionary War.[1]
Guichen joined the Navy in 1730 as aGarde-Marine. He was promoted tolieutenant de vaisseau in 1746.[1]
In 1748, Guichen fought five battles against superior British forces, while a convoy escorting from theCaribbean back to France. He was made a Knight in theOrder of Saint Louis that same year.
In 1755, he participated in the abortive relief expedition toLouisbourg underEmmanuel-Auguste de Cahideuc, comte Dubois de la Motte on the 70-gunHéros. In 1775 he was appointed to the frigateTerpsichore, attached to theEscadre d'évolution. He was promoted to Captain in May 1756.[1]
The year after, he was promoted toChef d'Escadre.[1]
After France entered theWar of American Independence, Guichen was appointed to the command of the Channel fleet, which he led in theBattle of Ushant on 27 July 1778. His flagship, the 104-gunVille de Paris, was next in line to the fleet flagshipBretagne. In March 1779, he was promotedLieutenant Général des Armées navales, As such he commanded the French van in the Combined fleet of Orvillers and Córdoba from June to September.[1]
In January 1780, Guichen was sent to theWest Indies with a strong squadron. On 17 April to the leeward ofMartinique, Guichen's fleet met a force underRodney, leading to theBattle of Martinique.[1] During the engagement, both Rodney'sSandwich and Guichen'sCouronne were temporarily cut off from their respective fleets and had to bear the brunt of the battle.[1]
Two inconclusive actions followed on15 May and19 May 1780.[1]
With thehurricane season approaching in July, Guichen left the West Indies and returned home, reachingCadiz in September with a convoy of 95 merchantmen. Guichen's second-in-command,Sade de Vaudronne, died at sea as the fleet arrived.[1]
In December 1781, Guichen was tasked to carry stores and reinforcements to the West Indies. On 12 December, British AdmiralKempenfelt intercepted Guichen's squadron in theBay of Biscay through a temporary clearance in a fog, at a moment when Guichen's warships were to leeward of the convoy, and attacked the transports at once, yielding theSecond Battle of Ushant. Kempenfelt captured twenty of the transports and forced the others to retreat to port. Having failed his mission, Guichen then also returned to port. He had no opportunity to gain any counterbalancing success during the short remainder of the war, but he was present at the final relief ofGibraltar byLord Howe.[1]
Guichen Bay inSouth Australia and the French shipGuichen of the First World War were named after him.[2]
In 1785, Guichen was elected an international member of theAmerican Philosophical Society in Philadelphia.[3]
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Hannay, David (1911). "Guichen, Luc Urbain de Bouëxic, Comte de". InChisholm, Hugh (ed.).Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 12 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 686, 687. Endnotes:| International | |
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