HMS Belleisle (1795)

For other ships with the same name, see HMS Belleisle, French ship Formidable, and French ship Lion.

HMS Belleisle after the Battle of Trafalgar
History
France
NameLion, Marat, Formidable
NamesakeJean-Paul Marat
BuilderRochefort shipyard
Laid downAugust 1791 as Lion
Launched29 April 1794
CommissionedJune 1794
Renamed
  • Marat on 28 September 1793
  • Formidable on 25 May 1795
Captured23 June 1795, by Royal Navy at the Battle of Groix
Great Britain
NameHMS Belleisle
Acquiredby capture, 23 June 1795
FateBroken up, 1814
General characteristics [1]
Class and typeTéméraire-class ship of the line
Displacement
  • 2,966 tonnes
  • 5,260 tonnes fully loaded
Length55.87 metres (183.3 ft) (172 pied)
Beam14.90 metres (48 ft 11 in)
Draught7.26 metres (23.8 ft) (22 pied)
PropulsionUp to 2,485 m2 (26,750 sq ft) of sails
Armament
ArmourTimber

Lion was a Téméraire class 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the French Navy, which later served in the Royal Navy. She was named Lion on 23 April 1790 and built at Rochefort from August 1791 until June 1794. She was renamed Marat on 28 September 1793 (7 months before being launched) and then Formidable on 25 May 1795, with the changing fortunes of the French Revolution.

She took part in the action of 6 November 1794, managing to rake HMS Alexander.

  1. ^ Clouet, Alain (2007). "La marine de Napoléon III : classe Téméraire - caractéristiques". dossiersmarine.free.fr (in French). Archived from the original on 23 March 2013. Retrieved 4 April 2013.