Calypso was a 40-gun Gloire-class frigate of the French Navy, built after plans designed by Sané revised by Forfait. Under Captain Louis-Léon Jacob, she took part in the Battle of Les Sables-d'Olonne, where she sustained very severe damage.[1]
| History | |
|---|---|
 France | |
| Name | Calypso |
| Namesake | Calypso |
| Ordered | 6 April 1803 [1] |
| Builder | Mathurin, Louis and Antoine Crucy, Lorient[2] |
| Launched | 8 January 1807 [1] |
| Commissioned | 5 December 1806 [1] |
| Out of service | 1810[1] |
| Fate | Sold 1814 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Gloire-class 40-gun frigate |
| Displacement | 750 tonnes |
| Propulsion | Sail |
| Armament |
|
| Armour | Timber |
Career
editThe frigate was ordered on 6 April 1803 in Nantes from the Crucy brothers, but on 14 October, it was ordered that her construction take place in Lorient instead.[1] On 16 September, she took her name of Calypso.[1] On 5 December 1806, she was commissioned under Captain Louis-Léon Jacob.[1]
In 1809, she was attached to a three-frigate squadron under Commodore Jurien de La Gravière, on Italienne, along with Cybèle. Trying to make junction with Willaumez' fleet in Brest, the squadron was intercepted by a British blockade squadron under Rear-Admiral Robert Stopford, comprising the ships of the line HMS Caesar, HMS Defiance. and HMS Donegal, the frigate HMS Amelia, and the brig-sloop HMS Doterel. In the ensuing Battle of Les Sables-d'Olonne, Calypso sustained extensive damage and was driven ashore,[3] but managed to take shelter in Les Sables-d'Olonne harbour.[1]
Unable to effect heavy repairs, Calypso remained stranded in Les Sables-d'Olonne harbour in her battered state,[1] until she was struck from the navy list in January 1813.[2] She was eventually sold for use as a merchantman circa 1814.[2]
Citations
editReferences
edit- Demerliac, Alain (2004). La Marine du Consulat et du Premier Empire: Nomenclature des Navires Français de 1800 à 1815 (in French). Éditions Ancre. ISBN 2-903179-30-1.
- Roche, Jean-Michel (2005). Dictionnaire des bâtiments de la flotte de guerre française de Colbert à nos jours 1 1671 - 1870. p. 91. ISBN 978-2-9525917-0-6. OCLC 165892922.
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