French ship Royal Louis (1743)

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Decorations of Royal Louis
History
French Navy EnsignFrance
NamesakeLouis of France
BuilderBrest Dockyard
Laid down13 March 1740
Launched(not launched)
FateBurnt on slip
General characteristics
Class and typeFirst Rank ship of the line
Tonnage3,000
Displacement4,834
Length185 French feet
Beam50 French feet 8 inches
Draught23¼ - 24¾ French feet (estimated)[a]
Depth of hold22 French feet 2 inches
Decks3 gun decks
Complement1,200 (intended, wartime) + 18 officers
Armament
  • 118 guns (intended)
  • 32 x 36-pounder guns on lower deck
  • 34 x 24-pounder guns on middle deck
  • 34 x 12-pounder guns on upper deck
  • 18 x 8-pounder guns on quarterdeck and forecastle
Armourtimber

Royal Louis was a First Rank ship of the line of the French Royal Navy, but was never completed. Launch was scheduled to be in 1743, but on 25 December 1742 she was set alight while still on the stocks, and burnt. It was claimed that this was an act of sabotage by a Señor Pontleau, who was tried and executed for the offence.[1]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ The French pre-metric foot was 6.575% longer than the equivalent English foot.

Citations[edit]

  1. ^ Old Ship Figure-Heads and Sterns, L. G. Carr Laughton, 2001, p121.

References[edit]

  • Roche, Jean-Michel (2005). Dictionnaire des bâtiments de la flotte de guerre française de Colbert à nos jours 1 1671 - 1870. p. 223. ISBN 978-2-9525917-0-6. OCLC 165892922.
  • Nomenclature des navires français de 1715 á 1774. Alain Demerliac (Editions Omega, Nice – 1995). ISBN 2-906381-19-5.
  • Winfield, Rif and Roberts, Stephen (2017) French Warships in the Age of Sail 1626-1786: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4738-9351-1.