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COURAGEUX (74) A French vessel taken by BELLONA on 13 August 1761.
Wrecked in 1796.

  • On the last day of 1779 she was with a squadron under Capt. Charles FEILDING which requested permission to search a Dutch convoy for contraband.
    The Dutch Admiral refused and fired on boats from the British ships.
    The fire was returned and the Dutch then struck.
    FEILDING refused the surrender and took nine ships as prizes.
  • 1781.
    Capt. Lord MULGRAVE.
    On 4 January captured the French MINERVE (32) in Channel, reducing her to a wreck after a action of an hour at pistol-shot range before she surrendered.
    COURAGEUX lost 17 killed and wounded.
  • 1793 Capt. Hon. William WALDEGRAVE.
    With the fleet under Rear Ad. Lord HOOD when the Royalist Rear Admiral COMTE DE TROGOFF surrendered the port and ships of Toulon in August.
    Capt. WALDEGRAVE was sent to England with despatches and Capt. John MATTHEWS was appointed to act in his place.
    About the end of September COURAGEUX sailed from Toulon for Corsica to join the squadron under the orders of Commodore LINZEE, the other frigates being ALCIDE, ARDENT and LOWESTOFFE.
    On 1 October the three ships commenced an unsuccessful attack on the town and forts of St. Fiorenzo.
    They were obliged to retreat after cannonading for nearly four hours, leaving their anchors behind, and were towed into Martello Bay.
    COURAGEUX was set on fire four times by red-hot shot; her first lieutenant, Ludlow SHIELLS was killed in the act of cutting one of the shot from among the gangway hammocks.
    Her masts and rigging were badly damaged and she was ordered to Toulon for repairs.
    As they hauled round Cape Corso Capt. MATTHEWS discovered several small, enemy vessels under the protection of a tower.
    As they anchored to attack it was discovered that COURAGEUX had run on a reef and was making water at the rate of 6 feet an hour.
    After they extricated themselves a party was landed which destroyed the tower and captured the vessels.
  • When they arrived at Toulon it was found necessary to have her down in the basin to repair the hull.
    When Toulon was evacuated on 19 December the repairs had been completed but she had no rudder, scarcely any stores and no powder. She was warped out of the basin and the rudder brought out alongside the ship's boats and shipped.
  • 1795 Capt. Augustus MONTGOMERY.
    Under Admiral Lord Hotham she was in action with the French fleet on 14 March 1795, when the enemy lost CA IRA (80) and the CENSEUR (75).
    COURAGEUX lost her mizzen and main masts and had 15 killed and 33 wounded.
    In appearance little more than a wreck, she was towed to Leghorn (Livorno) by INCONSTANT for repairs.
  • In December 1796 Capt. Benjamin HALLOWELL was on duty ashore at Gibraltar and Lieut. John BURROWS was acting, when a gale, which prevented a Franco/Spanish fleet from being intercepted as it passed through the Straits on the 10th., drove COURAGEUX from her anchors and she was wrecked on the rocks below Ape's Hill on the African side on 19 December 1796.
    Out of 593 people on board only 129 escaped.


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