The Sceptre was a 74-gun ship of the line of the French Navy

French Navy

The French Navy, officially the Marine nationale and often called La Royale is the maritime arm of the French military. It includes a full range of fighting vessels, from patrol boats to a nuclear powered aircraft carrier and 10 nuclear-powered submarines, four of which are capable of launching...

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In 1781 and 1782, she took part in the Naval operations in the American Revolutionary War

Naval operations in the American Revolutionary War

The naval operations of the American Revolutionary War , divide themselves naturally into two periods...

, under Admiral de Grasse

François Joseph Paul de Grasse

Lieutenant Général des Armées Navales François-Joseph Paul, marquis de Grasse Tilly, comte de Grasse was a French admiral. He is best known for his command of the French fleet at the Battle of the Chesapeake, which led directly to the British surrender at Yorktown...

. She fought at the Battle of the Chesapeake

Battle of the Chesapeake

The Battle of the Chesapeake, also known as the Battle of the Virginia Capes or simply the Battle of the Capes, was a crucial naval battle in the American War of Independence that took place near the mouth of Chesapeake Bay on 5 September 1781, between a British fleet led by Rear Admiral Sir Thomas...

 and at the Battle of the Saintes

Battle of the Saintes

The Battle of the Saintes took place over 4 days, 9 April 1782 – 12 April 1782, during the American War of Independence, and was a victory of a British fleet under Admiral Sir George Rodney over a French fleet under the Comte de Grasse forcing the French and Spanish to abandon a planned...

. In August, Sceptre, Astrée, and Engageante

French frigate Engageante (1766)

Engageante was a 26-gun frigate of the French Navy, lead ship of her class. The British captured her in 1794 and converted her to a hospital ship. She served as a hospital ship until she was broken up in 1811.-French service:...

, under Lapérouse

Jean-François de Galaup, comte de La Pérouse

Jean François de Galaup, comte de Lapérouse was a French Navy officer and explorer whose expedition vanished in Oceania.-Early career:...

, raided several English fur trading

Fur trade

The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of world market for in the early modern period furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the most valued...

 posts during the Hudson Bay Expedition

Hudson Bay Expedition

The Hudson Bay expedition of Jean-François de Galaup, comte de La Pérouse was a series of military raids on the lucrative fur trading posts and fortifications of the Hudson's Bay Company on the shores of Hudson Bay by a squadron of the French Royal Navy...

, including Fort Prince of Wales

Prince of Wales Fort

The Prince of Wales Fort is a historic fort on Hudson Bay across the Churchill River from Churchill, Manitoba, Canada.-History:The European history of this area starts with the discovery of Hudson Bay in 1610. The area was recognized as important in the fur trade and of potential importance for...

. In 1783, she was decommissioned in Brest.

On 29 September 1792, she was renamed Convention. She took part in the Bataille du 13 prairial an 2, engaging HMS Caesar

HMS Caesar (1793)

HMS Caesar, also Cæsar, was an 80-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 16 November 1793 at Plymouth. She was designed by Sir Edward Hunt, and was the only ship built to her draught.-Battle of Algeciras Bay:...

 and HMS Bellerophon

HMS Bellerophon (1786)

The first HMS Bellerophon of the Royal Navy was a 74-gun third-rate ship of the line launched on 6 October 1786 at Frindsbury on the River Medway, near Chatham. She was built at the shipyard of Edward Greaves to the specifications of the Arrogant, designed by Sir Thomas Slade in 1758, the lead ship...

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She later took part in the Croisière du Grand Hiver

Croisière du Grand Hiver

The Croisière du Grand Hiver was a French attempt to organise a winter naval campaign in the wake of the Glorious First of June.-Context:...

 of Winter 1794-1795, in the Expédition d'Irlande

Expédition d'Irlande

The Expédition d'Irlande was an unsuccessful attempt by the First French Republic during the French Revolutionary Wars to assist the outlawed Society of United Irishmen, a popular rebel Irish republican group, in their planned rebellion against British rule...

, and in the Cruise of Bruix

Cruise of Bruix

Bruix' expedition of 1799, often called Croisière de Bruix in French sources, was a French naval operation of the French Revolutionary Wars, carried out in May 1799 by admiral Étienne Eustache Bruix. It aimed at sending the naval squadron of Brest to the Mediterranean, gathering Spanish ships on...

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In August 1800, she was renamed Marengo, and was condemned in 1802. She was used as a prison hulk in Brest before being broken up in 1811.

External links

• Ships of the line