French ship Soleil-Royal (1670)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Aft of the Soleil Royal |
|
| Career Kingdom of France |  |
|---|---|
| Laid down: | 1669 |
| Launched: | 1670 (?) |
| Commissioned: | 1671 (?) |
| Out of service: | night of the 2 and 3 June 1692 |
| Status: | Destroyed by fireships |
| General Characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 1,630 tonnes |
| Length: | 61 metres |
| Beam: | 15.64 metres |
| Draught: | 7.64 metres |
| Speed: | |
| Complement: | 836 |
| Armament: | 104 guns |
Soleil Royal (Royal Sun) was a French 104-gun ship of the line, flagship of Admiral Tourville.
She was built in Brest between 1669 and 1671 by engineer Laurent Hubac, and commissioned as the flagship of the escadre du Ponant (squadron of the Ponant).
She was said to be a good sailing ship and her decorations were amongst the most beautiful and elaborate of all baroque flagships. The emblem of the "sun" had been chosen by Louis XIV as his personal symbol.
Contents |
[edit] Battle of Bévezier
She led the French fleet to victory at the Battle of Beachy Head (know in french as "Bataille de Béveziers"), in 1690.
[edit] Battle of Barfleur
In 1692, on the 12 May, she left Brest, leading a 45-vessel fleet; on the 29th, the squadron met a 97-ship strong English and Dutch fleet in the Battle of Barfleur. In spite of their numerical inferiority, the French attacked, forcing enemy ships to flee with significant losses.
After the tactical victory, the Soleil Royal was too severely damaged to return to Brest, and was beached in Cherbourg for repairs, along with two other ships.
[edit] Battle of La Hougue and the end of the Soleil Royal
During the night of the 2nd and 3rd of June, at the Pointe du Hommet, she was attacked by 17 ships, which she managed to repel with artillery fire. However, a fireship set her stern on fire and the fire soon reached the powder rooms. Although the population of Cherbourg came to rescue, there was only one survivor among the 883 (or even 950)-strong crew.
The remains of the Soleil Royal now lie buried beneath a parking space next to the Arsenal.
[edit] See also
- French ship Soleil-Royal for other ships of the name.
[edit] External links
- (French) Navire de 1er Rang français
