HMS Didon (1805)
| Career (France) |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | Didon |
| Namesake: | Dido |
| Builder: | Enterprise Ethéart, Saint Malo (Construteurs: François Pestel and Pierre Ozanne) |
| Laid down: | September 1796 |
| Launched: | 1 August 1799 |
| Captured: | on 10 August 1805 |
| Career (UK) |  |
| Name: | HMS Didon |
| In service: | Captured on 10 August 1805 |
| Fate: | Broken up August 1811 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Virginie class frigate |
| Tons burthen: | 1,091 tons |
| Sail plan: | Full-rigged ship |
| Armament: | 38 guns of various weights of shot |
The Didon was a Virginie class 40-gun frigate of the French Navy. Captured by the British in 1805, she went on to have a career in the Royal Navy as the 38-gun fifth-rate HMS Didon.
Career
Laid down in 1796 as Fâcheuse, she was renamed to Didon in 1799, the year of her launch.
On 13th October 1803, she captured a British brig. She later took part in the Battle of Cape Finisterre in 1805.
While attempting to rejoin the French fleet of Allemand's expedition of 1805, she encountered HMS Phoenix on 10 August 1805, off Cape Finisterre, and struck at 43°16′N 12°14′W / 43.267°N 12.233°W.[1] The 4-hour fight cost Didon 26 men killed and 43 wounded. Phoenix too had heavy casualties, losing 12 men killed and 28 wounded.[2]
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The Didon was taken into British service as HMS Didon, the only ship of the Royal Navy to bear this name.
Fate
Didon was broken up in August 1811.
Citations and references
- Citations
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 15838. p. 1091. 27 August 1805.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 15840. p. 1115. 3 September 1805.
- References
- Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8. OCLC 67375475.
- Winfield, Rif (2008). British Warships in the Age of Sail 1793–1817: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. Seaforth. ISBN 1-86176-246-1.
- Winfield, Rif & Stephen S Roberts (2015 Forthcoming) French Warships in the Age of Sail 1786 - 1862: Design Construction, Careers and Fates. (Seaforth Publishing). ISBN 9781848322042