HMS Ardent was a 64-gun third-rate

Third-rate

In the British Royal Navy, a third rate was a ship of the line which from the 1720s mounted between 64 and 80 guns, typically built with two gun decks . Years of experience proved that the third rate ships embodied the best compromise between sailing ability , firepower, and cost...

 ship of the line

Ship of the line

A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed from the 17th through the mid-19th century to take part in the naval tactic known as the line of battle, in which two columns of opposing warships would manoeuvre to bring the greatest weight of broadside guns to bear...

 of the Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

. She was built by contract by Hugh Blaydes at Hull

Kingston upon Hull

Kingston upon Hull , usually referred to as Hull, is a city and unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It stands on the River Hull at its junction with the Humber estuary, 25 miles inland from the North Sea. Hull has a resident population of...

 according to the plans of Sir Thomas Slade

Thomas Slade

Sir Thomas Slade was an English naval architect, most famous for designing HMS Victory, Lord Nelson's flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805.-Career Outline:...

, and launched on 13 August 1764 as the first ship of the . She had a somewhat turbulent career, being captured by the French

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...

 in 1779, and then re-captured by Britain

Kingdom of Great Britain

The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...

 in 1782.

Career

The Ardent was first commissioned in October 1774 under Captain Sir George Douglas. In 1778, under the command of Captain George Keppel, she was with Admiral Lord Howe's

Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe

Admiral of the Fleet Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe KG was a British naval officer, notable in particular for his service during the American War of Independence and French Revolutionary Wars. He was the brother of William Howe and George Howe.Howe joined the navy at the age of thirteen and served...

 squadron off New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

, defending the town from the larger French fleet under the command of Admiral d'Estaing

Charles Hector, comte d'Estaing

Jean Baptiste Charles Henri Hector, comte d'Estaing was a French general, and admiral. He began his service as a soldier in the War of the Austrian Succession, briefly spending time as a prisoner of war of the British during the Seven Years' War...

. The two forces engaged in an action off Rhode Island

Rhode Island

The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...

 on 11 August, though both fleets were scattered by a storm over the following two days. She returned home to Portsmouth and was paid off in January 1779.

June 1779 saw Ardent recommissioned under the command of Captain Phillip Boteler, sailing from Plymouth

Plymouth

Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...

 in August to join Sir Charles Hardy

Charles Hardy

Admiral of the Fleet Sir Charles Hardy was a Royal Navy officer and colonial governor of New York.-Early career:Born at Portsmouth, the son of a vice admiral, Charles Hardy joined the Royal Navy as a volunteer in 1731....

 in the Channel

English Channel

The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...

. According to the ship's logs, as many as 4/5 of the crew were landmen

Landman (rank)

Landman was a military rank given to naval recruits.-United Kingdom:In the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom in the middle of the 18th century , the term Landman referred to a seaman with less than a year's experience at sea...

, and neither Boteler nor the captain of the Marlborough

HMS Marlborough (1767)

HMS Marlborough was a 74-gun third rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy, launched on 26 August 1767 at Deptford. She was one of the Ramillies class built to update the Navy and replace ships lost following the Seven Years' War. She was first commissioned in 1771 under Captain Richard Bickerton...

, in whose company Ardent was sailing, were aware that a French fleet had put to sea. Ardent encountered a fleet two days after sailing, and after receiving the correct replies to the private signal, ran down to meet them. The fleet however was a Franco-Spanish fleet, somehow in possession of the Royal Navy signal code book, thus permitting the correct response to Ardent's signals.

With Ardent within range, the French frigate

Frigate

A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...

 Junon

French frigate Junon (1778)

The Junon was a 32-gun Charmante class frigate of the French NavyShe took part in the Battle of Ushant under Admiral d'Orvilliers. She captured HMS Fox on 11 September 1778....

 fired two broadsides before raising her colours

French ensigns

A French ensign is the flag flown at sea to identify a vessel as French. Several such ensigns have existed over the years as well as terrestrial flags based on the ensign motif.-Current ensign:...

. Three further frigates, and the Spanish ship of the line Princesa

Spanish ship Princessa (1750)

Princesa was a 70-gun ship of the line of the Spanish Navy, launched in 1750.She fought at the Battle of Cape St Vincent in 1780, where she was captured by the Royal Navy and commissioned as the third rate HMS Princessa. From 1784 she was employed as a sheer hulk, and she was broken up in 1809....

 joined the action shortly afterward. In response, Ardent offered sporadic and inaccurate return fire before striking her colours

Striking the colors

Striking the colors is the universally recognized indication of surrender, particularly for ships at sea. Surrender is dated from the time the ensign is struck.-In international law:# "Colors. A national flag . The colors . ....

 to the vastly superior enemy force. At his subsequent court martial Captain Boteler blamed his failure to return fire on an inadequate supply of gunpowder

Gunpowder

Gunpowder, also known since in the late 19th century as black powder, was the first chemical explosive and the only one known until the mid 1800s. It is a mixture of sulfur, charcoal, and potassium nitrate - with the sulfur and charcoal acting as fuels, while the saltpeter works as an oxidizer...

 for Ardent′s cannons, a statement strongly denied by the ship's gunner Archibald Macintyre who presented evidence there was enough powder for fifty minutes of vigorous engagement. The court martial rejected Boteler's claims, finding instead that the inexperience of the crew was the principal cause of Ardent′s failure to respond to the attack. Boteler was dismissed from the Navy for his failure to adequately defend his ship.

Little is known of Ardent's career in the French Navy; however the British re-captured her on 14 April 1782 following 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...

, and recommissioned her that month under Captain Richard Lucas. On 28 August 1783 the ship was re-named Tiger. She was sold out of the service in June 1784.