HMS Barracouta (1782)

For other ships with the same name, see HMS Barracouta, Thought (ship), French brig Vedette, and HMS Vidette.

History
Great Britain
NameHMS Barracouta
AcquiredJune 1782 by purchase
FateSold 1792
Great Britain
NameThought
BuilderJoshua Stewart, Sandgate[1]
Acquired1792 by purchase
Captured3 September 1793
French Navy EnsignFrance
NamePensée
AcquiredSeptember 1793 by capture
RenamedMontagne, then Pensée, then Vedette
Captured10 January 1800
Great Britain
NameVidette
Acquired10 January 1800 by capture
FateSold 1802
General characteristics [1]
Tons burthen190,[3] or 197,[4] or 19714⁄94, or 20210⁄94[2] (bm)
Length
  • Overall:75 ft 2 in (22.9 m), or 76 ft 11+3⁄4 in (23.5 m)[2]
  • Keel:54 ft 11 in (16.7 m)
Beam25 ft 11+3⁄4 in (7.9 m), or 26 ft 0 in (7.9 m)[2]
Depth of hold10 ft 6 in (3.2 m), or 10 ft 7+1⁄2 in (3.2 m)[2]
Complement
  • Royal Navy:90 (60 peacetime)
  • Privateer:100[3]
  • French Navy:60–100
Armament
  • Royal Navy:
    • Initially:14 × 6-pounder guns + 12 × ½-pounder swivel guns
  • 1783:14 × 4-pounder guns + 12 × ½-pounder swivel guns
  • Privateer:16 × 6-pounder guns[3]
  • French Navy:
NotesClincher-built and coppered[2]

The Royal Navy purchased HMS Barracouta on the stocks in 1782. After she had served for almost ten years patrolling against smugglers, the Navy sold her in 1792. She became the privateer Thought, which had a successful cruize, capturing several prizes including a French privateer, but then was herself captured in September 1793. She served the French Navy under the names Pensée, Montagne, Pensée, and Vedette, until the British recaptured her in 1800 and renamed her HMS Vidette. The Royal Navy sold her in 1802.

  1. ^ a b Winfield (2007), p. 333.
  2. ^ a b c d e Cite error: The named reference Star was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b c "Letter of Marque, p.89 - accessed 25 July 2017" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 October 2016. Retrieved 27 October 2018.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference LG13376 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).