HMS Northumberland was a 70-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...

, built at Deptford Dockyard and launched in 1705.

She was rebuilt twice during her career, firstly at Woolwich Dockyard

Woolwich Dockyard

Woolwich Dockyard was an English naval dockyard founded by King Henry VIII in 1512 to build his flagship Henri Grâce à Dieu , the largest ship of its day....

, where she was reconstructed according to 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...

 and relaunched on 13 July 1721. Her second rebuild was also carried out at Woolwich Dockyard, where she was reconstructed as a 64-gun third rate according to the 1741 proposals of the 1719 Establishment, and relaunched on 17 October 1743.

Northumberland was captured during the action of 8 May 1744

Action of 8 May 1744

The Action of 8 May 1744 was a minor naval engagement of the War of the Austrian Succession in which two French ships of the line, the Content of 60 guns, and the Mars of 64, captured the British ship of the line HMS Northumberland, after a desperate action by the latter of 4 hours...

 by the French ship Content (commanded by Hubert de Brienne, Comte de Conflans

Hubert de Brienne, Comte de Conflans

Hubert de Brienne, Comte de Conflans was a French naval commander.-Early life:The son of Henri Jacob marquis de Conflans and Marie du Bouchet, at 15 he was made a knight of the Order of Saint Lazarus and the following year entered the Gardes de la Marine school at Brest...

). She was subsequently taken into the French navy and renamed Atlas.