HMS Essex was a 70-gun third rate 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...

, launched at Blackwall Yard

Blackwall Yard

Blackwall Yard was a shipyard on the Thames at Blackwall, London, engaged in ship building and later ship repairs for over 350 years. The yard closed in 1987...

 in 1679.

She was rebuilt at Rotherhithe

Rotherhithe

Rotherhithe is a residential district in inner southeast London, England and part of the London Borough of Southwark. It is located on a peninsula on the south bank of the Thames, facing Wapping and the Isle of Dogs on the north bank, and is a part of the Docklands area...

 in 1700, retaining her 70-gun armament. She underwent a second rebuild in 1713, and on 20 May 1736 she was ordered to be taken to pieces and rebuilt at Woolwich

Woolwich

Woolwich is a district in south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.Woolwich formed part of Kent until 1889 when the County of London was created...

 as a 70-gun third rate to the 1733 proposals of the 1719 Establishment

1719 Establishment

The 1719 Establishment was the first formal 'Establishment' laid down to govern the construction of all ships built or rebuilt down to those of 20 carriage guns, whether in the Royal Dockyards or by commercial contractors...

. She was relaunched on 21 February 1740.

Essex was wrecked on the Four Shoal in 1759, eighty years after she was first launched, while chasing the French flagship Soleil Royale after the Battle of Quiberon Bay

Battle of Quiberon Bay

The naval Battle of Quiberon Bay took place on 20 November 1759 during the Seven Years' War in Quiberon Bay, off the coast of France near St. Nazaire...

.