HMS Achille (1798)

For other ships with the same name, see HMS Achille.

HMS Achille^{[Note 1]} was a 74-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy. She was built by Cleverley Bros., a private shipyard at Gravesend, and launched on 16 April 1798. Her design was based on the lines of the captured French ship Pompée.^[1] She was the fourth Royal Navy ship to be named after the Greek hero Achilles in the French style.

History
Great Britain
Name	HMS Achille
Ordered	10 June 1795
Builder	Cleverley, Gravesend
Laid down	October 1795
Launched	16 April 1798
Honours & awards	Participated in: Battle of Trafalgar
Fate	Sold, 1865
General characteristics [1]
Class & type	Pompée-class ship of the line
Tons burthen	1,981
Length	182 ft 2 in (55.52 m) (gundeck)
Beam	49 ft (15 m)
Depth of hold	21 ft (6.4 m)
Sail plan	Full-rigged ship
Armament	74 guns: Gundeck: 28 × 32-pounders Upper gundeck: 30 × 18-pounders Quarterdeck: 12 × 9-pounders Forecastle: 4 × 9-pounders

Achille at Trafalgar

On 21 October 1805, under the command of Captain Richard King, Achille was in Admiral Collingwood's column at the Battle of Trafalgar, seventh in the line, between Colossus and Revenge.^[2] Achille opened fire on the rear of the French and Spanish fleet at 12.15, engaging the 74-gun Montanes, for fifteen minutes, before sailing on to meet Argonauta of 80 guns, which had already been battling with other British ships. After hours of fierce fighting, Argonauta fell silent and closed her gunports, but before Achille could accept her surrender, her French namesake Achille of 74 guns, moved in to engage the British ship. After exchanging broadsides, the French ship sailed on and was replaced on the starboard side by the 74-gun French ship Berwick, and for the next hour and a quarter she lay close alongside Achille, receiving a pounding that eventually forced Berwick to surrender with over 250 casualties – almost half her crew. Achille took possession, and transferred some of her crew back on board as prisoners. Achille suffered 13 killed and 59 wounded in the battle, in stark comparison to the heavy losses she inflicted on her French and Spanish adversaries.^{[Note 2]}

On 17 July 1812, boats from Achille and Cerberus captured or destroyed 12 enemy trabaccolos off Venice.^[4]

Fate

Achille continued in active service until 1815, when she was decommissioned at Chatham, and laid up at Sheerness. She survived in this state until 1865, when she was sold for £3,600 to be broken up.

Notes

1. Lavery lists her as Achilles.^[1]
2. Montanes lost 20 killed and 29 wounded, Argonauta lost 103 killed and 202 wounded, Berwick lost an estimated 75 killed and 125 wounded.^[3]