HMS Decade (1798)
Encyclopedia
HMS Decade was an 36-gun fifth-rate
frigate of the Royal Navy
. She was formerly the French Décade, captured in 1798. She served with the British during the French Revolutionary
and Napoleonic Wars
, and was sold out of the service in 1811.
between March 1794 and January 1795, having been launched on 10 October 1794. She had been previously named Macreuse. After a short career with the French Navy she was captured on 24 August 1798.
On 24 August, was chasing a French frigate, which joined. After about three hours the two British ships had caught up with the French ship, which proceeded for the next hour to fire on them with her stern chasers. She then struck. The French ship was Décade, with a crew of 336 men under the command of Citoyen Villeneau. Décade was pierced for 44 guns, but she had landed ten in Cayenne, from where she had sailed. In all, Naiad had chased Décade for 36 hours. The British took Décade back to Plymouth
. She was registered there in October and fitted out there between April and December 1799.
in January the following year. She was paid off in October 1802. Decade was fitted out at Portsmouth
between May and July 1803 and recommissioned again in June 1803 under Captain William Rutherfurd
. Rutherfurd commanded Decade in the English Channel
, before sailing to join the Mediterranean Fleet in March 1805. She took part in the pursuit of the French fleet to the West Indies during the Trafalgar Campaign
, and in 1806 she came under the command of Captain John Stuart. Stuart was assigned to Sir Richard Strachan's
squadron, and took part in the pursuit of Jean-Baptiste Willaumez's
squadron during the Atlantic campaign of 1806
. Decade was assigned to the serve in the Channel in 1807, and by 1808 was on the Irish station.
Fifth-rate
In Britain's Royal Navy during the classic age of fighting sail, a fifth rate was the penultimate class of warships in a hierarchal system of six "ratings" based on size and firepower.-Rating:...
frigate 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 formerly the French Décade, captured in 1798. She served with the British during the French Revolutionary
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts, from 1792 until 1802, fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states...
and Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
, and was sold out of the service in 1811.
French service and capture
Décade was built at BordeauxBordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
between March 1794 and January 1795, having been launched on 10 October 1794. She had been previously named Macreuse. After a short career with the French Navy she was captured on 24 August 1798.
On 24 August, was chasing a French frigate, which joined. After about three hours the two British ships had caught up with the French ship, which proceeded for the next hour to fire on them with her stern chasers. She then struck. The French ship was Décade, with a crew of 336 men under the command of Citoyen Villeneau. Décade was pierced for 44 guns, but she had landed ten in Cayenne, from where she had sailed. In all, Naiad had chased Décade for 36 hours. The British took Décade back to 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...
. She was registered there in October and fitted out there between April and December 1799.
British service
She was commissioned in June 1799 under Captain James Wallis, and sent to JamaicaJamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
in January the following year. She was paid off in October 1802. Decade was fitted out at Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
between May and July 1803 and recommissioned again in June 1803 under Captain William Rutherfurd
William Gordon Rutherfurd
Captain William Gordon Rutherfurd RN, CB was an officer in the Royal Navy during the French Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic Wars whose career was almost entirely conducted in the West Indies except for a brief sojurn in European waters during which he commanded the ship of the line at the...
. Rutherfurd commanded Decade in the English 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...
, before sailing to join the Mediterranean Fleet in March 1805. She took part in the pursuit of the French fleet to the West Indies during the Trafalgar Campaign
Trafalgar Campaign
The Trafalgar Campaign was a long and complicated series of fleet manoeuvres carried out by the combined French and Spanish fleets; and the opposing moves of the Royal Navy during much of 1805. These were the culmination of French plans to force a passage through the English Channel, and so achieve...
, and in 1806 she came under the command of Captain John Stuart. Stuart was assigned to Sir Richard Strachan's
Sir Richard Strachan, 6th Baronet
Sir Richard John Strachan, 6th Baronet GCB was a British officer of the Royal Navy during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, eventually rising to the rank of Admiral.-Childhood:...
squadron, and took part in the pursuit of Jean-Baptiste Willaumez's
Jean-Baptiste Philibert Willaumez
Jean-Baptiste Philibert Willaumez was a French sailor and admiral of the First French Empire....
squadron during the Atlantic campaign of 1806
Atlantic campaign of 1806
The Atlantic campaign of 1806 was a complicated series of manoeuveres and counter-manoeuveres conducted by squadrons of the French Navy and the British Royal Navy across the Atlantic Ocean during the spring and summer of 1806, as part of the Napoleonic Wars...
. Decade was assigned to the serve in the Channel in 1807, and by 1808 was on the Irish station.