Ardent-class ship of the line

The Ardent-class ships of the line were a class of seven 64-gun third rates, designed for the Royal Navy by Sir Thomas Slade.

A silhouette of an Ardent-class ship of the line
Class overview
Name	Ardent
Operators	Royal Navy  French Navy
Preceded by	Exeter class
Succeeded by	Intrepid class
In service	13 August 1764 – 1816
Completed	7
Lost	2
General characteristics
Type	Ship of the line
Length	160 ft (49 m) (gundeck) 131 ft 8 in (40.13 m) (keel)
Beam	44 ft 4 in (13.51 m)
Propulsion	Sails
Armament	64 guns: Gundeck: 26 × 24-pounders Upper gundeck: 26 × 18-pounders Quarterdeck: 10 × 4-pounders Forecastle: 2 × 9-pounders
Notes	Ships in class include: Ardent, Raisonnable, Agamemnon, Belliqueux, Stately, Indefatigable, Nassau

Design

Slade based the design of the Ardent class on the captured French ship Fougueux.

Ships

• HMS Ardent

Builder: Blades, Hull

Ordered: 16 December 1761

Launched: 13 August 1764

Fate: Sold out of the service, 1784

• HMS Raisonnable

Builder: Chatham Dockyard

Ordered: 11 January 1763

Launched: 10 December 1768

Fate: Broken up, 1815

• HMS Agamemnon

Builder: Adams, Bucklers Hard

Ordered: 8 April 1777

Launched: 10 April 1781

Fate: Wrecked, 1809

• HMS Belliqueux

Builder: Perry, Blackwall Yard

Ordered: 19 February 1778

Launched: 5 June 1780

Fate: Broken up, 1816

• HMS Stately

Builder: Raymond, Northam

Ordered: 10 December 1778

Launched: 27 December 1784

Fate: Broken up, 1814

• HMS Indefatigable

Builder: Adams, Bucklers Hard

Ordered: 3 August 1780

Launched: July 1784

Fate: Broken up, 1816

• HMS Nassau

Builder: Hilhouse, Bristol

Ordered: 14 November 1782

Launched: 28 September 1785

Fate: Wrecked, 1799

References

• Lavery, Brian (1983) The Ship of the Line – Volume 1: The development of the battlefleet 1650–1850. Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-252-8.