Océan-class ship of the line

[Comte de Brueys]

French Océan-class ships



From Wiki:

The Océan-class ships of the line were a series of 16 first-rate 118-gun ships of the line of the French navy, designed by engineer Jacques-Noël Sané. Fifteen were completed from 1788 on, with the last one entering service in 1854. The first of the series was the Commerce de Marseille.

The 5,100 ton 118-gun type was the largest type of ship built up to then, besting the Spanish ship Santísima Trinidad. Up to 1790 Great Britain, the largest of the battle fleet nations, had not built especially large battleships because the need for large numbers of ships had influenced its battleship policy. The French initiated a new phase in battleship competition when they laid down a large number of three-deckers of around 5,000 tons.

Along with the 74-gun of the Téméraire type and the 80-gun of the Tonnant type, the Océan 120-gun type was to become one of the three French standard types of battleships during the war period 1793 to 1815.

These were the most powerful ships of the Napoleonic Wars and a total of ten served during that time. These ships, however, were quite expensive in terms of building materials, artillery and manpower and so were reserved for admirals as their fleet flagships.

Some of the ships spent 40 years on the stocks and were still in service in 1860, three of them having been equipped with auxiliary steam engines in the 1850s.

Woodden model in a French museum:

Bow:



Stern:



The first Océan-class ship of the line was designed by the engineer Jacques-Noël Sané, marking a leap in the evolution of ship of the line design. The hull was simple with straight horizontal lines, minimal ornaments, and tumblehome. The poop deck was almost integral the gunwale, and the forecastle was minimal.

They were highly successful as gun platforms and sailors, a fact which indicates that great improvements had been made in warship design since the late 17th century when battleships of less than half their size were regarded as unwieldy giants which ought to be brought into harbour before the September gales began. However, at least the first two of this class appear to have had less strength than necessary - one (Commerce de Marseille) which was taken by the British in 1793, was never used by them, and the other (Ocean) had to be extensively rebuilt after a decade. This indicates that the growth in size of wooden warships caused structural problems which only gradually were solved.[1]

It is interesting to note that though these ships were costly, their design changed to become even larger in terms of overall tonnage with the introduction of the Impérial in 1803. Mounting 18 pound cannon on her third gun deck (unheard of in French three-decked ships of the period), she would set the example for all of the French 118 gun ships to follow.

Océan-class first-rate in battle: