British Third Rate ship of the line 'Centaur' (1759)

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Centaur	306
Nominal Guns	74	BWAS-1714
Nationality	Great Britain
Operator	Royal Navy
Previously	French Third Rate ship of the line 'Le Centaure' (1757) (74)
Captured	18.8.1759	BWAS-1714
First Commissioned	8.4.1760	BWAS-1714
Shipyard	Toulon - Provence	BWAS-1714
Ship Class	Hector Class	BWAS-1714
Designed by	Joseph-Marie-Blaise Coulomb (1728-1803)	BWAS-1714
Constructor	Joseph-Marie-Blaise Coulomb (1728-1803)	NNF-1715
Category	Third Rate	BWAS-1714
Ship Type	Ship of the Line	BWAS-1714
Sailing Rig	Ship Rigged	BWAS-1714
Foundered	21.9.1782	BWAS-1714

Dimensions

DimensionMeasurementTypeMetric EquivalentBWAS-1714
Length of Gundeck175' 8"Imperial Feet53.3427
Length of Keel148' 3 ¼"Imperial Feet45.1168
Breadth47' 5"Imperial Feet14.3437
Depth in Hold20' 0"Imperial Feet6.096
Burthen1,77 ¹⁹⁄₉₄Tons BM

Armament

18.8.1759Broadside Weight = 781 Imperial Pound ( 354.1835 kg)BWAS-1714
Lower Gun Deck28 British 32-Pounder
Upper Gun Deck28 British 18-Pounder
Quarterdeck14 British 9-Pounder
Forecastle4 British 9-Pounder

Crew Complement

Date# of MenNotesSource
25.4.1760550Design Complement

10 Commanding Officers

DatesRankNameSource
8.4.1760 - 6.12.1763CaptainArthur Forrest (c.1716-1770) ADM 6/19/155BWAS-171428.3.1770 - 25.10.1770CaptainRobert Hughes (c.1716-1774) ADM 6/20/274ADM 6/2025.10.1770 - 26.10.1773CaptainJohn Albert Bentinck (1737-1775) ADM 6/20/304BWAS-171426.10.1773 - 26.10.1776CaptainWilliam Brereton (1728-1800) ADM 6/20/524BWAS-171426.10.1776 - 14.2.1778CaptainRichard Hughes (c.1724-1812) ADM 6/21/222BWAS-171414.2.1778 - 31.3.1779CaptainPhilips Cosby (1729-1808) ADM 6/21/367BWAS-171412.4.1779 - 30.4.1781CaptainJohn Neale Pleydell Nott (c.1732-1781)† ADM 6/21/540ADM 6/212.5.1781 - 31.1.1782CaptainEdward Tyrrel Smith ADM 6/22/307
Issued by George Brydges Rodney (Baronet ) (1719-1792), Barbados - Windward Islands - Barbados & the Leeward Islands
Commission confirmed 3.7.1781ADM 6/229.5.1781 - 21.3.1782CaptainCharles Fitzgerald (1756-1810) ADM 6/22/496
Issued by George Brydges Rodney (Baronet ) (1719-1792), Barbados - Windward Islands - Barbados & the Leeward Islands
Commission confirmed 16.7.1782ADM 6/2221.3.1782 - 24.9.1782CaptainJohn Nicholson Inglefield (1748-1828)BWAS-1714

3 Commissioned Officers

DatesRankNameSource
26.1.1774 - 25.8.1774Third LieutenantJohn Reynolds (d.1793) ADM 6/21/11ADM 6/2125.8.1774 - 6.11.1775Second LieutenantJohn Reynolds (d.1793) ADM 6/21/43ADM 6/216.11.1775 - 20.4.1778First LieutenantJohn Reynolds (d.1793) ADM 6/21/134ADM 6/21

1 Passenger

DatesRankNameSource
9.1782 - 21.9.1782CaptainGeorge Augustus Keppel (d.1782)†BWAS-1714

Service History

DateEventSource
6.11.1759Began fitting at UnknownBWAS-1714
7.1.1760Purchased at Unknown at a cost of £18625.17.11dBWAS-1714
30.5.1760Completed fitting at a cost of £14197.8.0dBWAS-1714
5.6.1761Took the Third Rate Ship of the Line Sainte Anne (64) on the Jamaica station
6.6.1762Operations against Havana
6.12.1763

Paid off

ADM 51
2.1769Began middling repair at Portsmouth Dockyard - Portsmouth BWAS-1714
3.1770Completed middling repair at Portsmouth Dockyard - Portsmouth at a cost of £24332.4.10dBWAS-1714
10.1770fitting at Portsmouth Dockyard - Portsmouth at a cost of £5797.3.9dBWAS-1714
7.1771Began fitting at Portsmouth Dockyard - Portsmouth BWAS-1714
9.1771Completed fitting at Portsmouth Dockyard - Portsmouth at a cost of £2080.2.7dBWAS-1714
27.7.17781st Battle of Ushant
31.12.1779Affair of Fielding and Bylandt
3.1780Began coppering and fitting at Portsmouth Dockyard - Portsmouth BWAS-1714
4.1780Completed coppering and fitting at Portsmouth Dockyard - Portsmouth at a cost of £6660.4.10dBWAS-1714
29.4.1781Battle of Fort Royal
5.9.1781Battle of the Chesapeake
25.1.1782Battle of Saint Kitts
12.4.1782Battle of the Saintes
21.9.1782Foundered in a Hurricane on the passage Home from Jamaica, only 12 saved including the captainBWAS-1714

Sources

IDDescriptionAuthorType

BWAS-1714Rif WinfieldBook

NNF-1715Alain DemerliacBook

ADM 6/20 Archive

ADM 6/21 Archive

ADM 6/22 Archive

ADM 51 Archive

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