British Fourth Rate ship of the line 'Experiment' (1774)

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Experiment	4169
Nominal Guns	50	BWAS-1714
Nationality	Great Britain
Operator	Royal Navy
Ordered	9.11.1772	BWAS-1714
Keel Laid Down	12.1772	BWAS-1714
Launched	23.8.1774	BWAS-1714
First Commissioned	14.7.1775	BWAS-1714
How acquired	Purpose built	BWAS-1714
Shipyard	Deptford - London	BWAS-1714
Ship Class	Experiment Class	BWAS-1714
Designed by	John Williams (1700-?)	BWAS-1714
Constructor	John Barnard (1705-1784)	BWAS-1714
Category	Fourth Rate	BWAS-1714
Ship Type	Ship of the Line	BWAS-1714
Sailing Rig	Ship Rigged	BWAS-1714
Captured	24.9.1779	BWAS-1714
Becomes	French Fourth Rate ship of the line 'L'Experiment' (1779) (50)

Dimensions

DimensionMeasurementTypeMetric EquivalentBWAS-1714
Length of Gundeck140' 9"Imperial Feet42.6777
Length of Keel115' 6"Imperial Feet35.0622
Breadth38' 9"Imperial Feet11.611
Depth in Hold16' 7"Imperial Feet4.9064
Burthen922 ⁴⁷⁄₉₄Tons BM

Armament

23.8.1774Broadside Weight = 276 Imperial Pound ( 125.166 kg)BWAS-1714
Lower Gun Deck20 British 12-Pounder
Upper Gun Deck22 British 12-Pounder
Quarterdeck6 British 6-Pounder
Forecastle2 British 6-Pounder

Crew Complement

Date# of MenNotesSource
9.11.1772300Design Complement

2 Commanding Officers

DatesRankNameSource
14.7.1775 - 25.4.1776Captain Robert Keeler (c.1735-c.1811) ADM 6/21/104BWAS-171425.4.1776 - 24.9.1779Captain James Wallace (c.1732-1803) ADM 6/21/182BWAS-1714

Service History

DateEventSource
23.8.1774building at Deptford - London at a cost of £14185.6.1dBWAS-1714
23.8.1774Began fitting at Deptford Dockyard - Deptford BWAS-1714
26.8.1775Completed fitting at Deptford Dockyard - Deptford at a cost of £5250.6.11dBWAS-1714
4.1776Sailed to North AmericaBWAS-1714
28.6.1776Attack on Fort SullivanBWAS-1714
6.12.1776Occupation of Rhode Island
10.5.1778Took the Ship Portsmouth (20) on St. George’s Bank
27.9.1778Capture of the Raleigh
28.9.1778Took the Frigate Raleigh (32) off Boston
13.5.1779Action in Cancale Bay
13.5.1779Took the Frigate Danae (32) off St Malo

Sources

IDNameAuthorType

BWAS-1714Rif Winfield, Book

Previous comments on this page

Posted by Cy on Saturday 22nd of August 2015 07:55

Dimensions corrected :)

Posted by Paul Fields on Sunday 16th of August 2015 20:16

I expect the lengths of the Keel and the gundeck have been reversed.

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