HMS Ardent was a Royal Navy 64-gun third rate. This ship of the line was launched on 21 December 1782 at Bursledon, Hampshire.[1] She disappeared in 1794, believed lost to a fire and explosion.

Plan of Ardent
History
Royal Navy EnsignGreat Britain
NameHMS Ardent
Ordered9 September 1779
BuilderStaves & Parsons, Bursledon
Laid downOctober 1780
Launched21 December 1782
FateBlown up, 1794
General characteristics [1]
Class and typeCrown-class ship of the line
TypeThird rate
Tons burthen1387 (bm)
Length160 ft 5 in (48.9 m) (gundeck)
Beam44 ft 10 in (13.7 m)
Depth of hold19 ft 3+12 in (5.9 m)
PropulsionSails
Sail planFull-rigged ship
Armament
  • Gun deck: 26 × 24-pounder guns
  • Upper gun deck: 26 × 18-pounder guns
  • QD: 10 × 4-pounder guns
  • Fc: 2 × 9-pounder guns

Career

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In 1784 she was under the command of Captain Harry Harmood, serving as a guard ship at Portsmouth.

In 1793 she was under the command of Captain Robert Manners Sutton, sailing with Vice-Admiral Lord Hood at Toulon in August. She was part of a force detached under Robert Linzee to take part in the attack on Corsica in September.

Fate

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In April 1794 Ardent was stationed off the harbour of Villa Franca, to watch two French frigates.[2] It is presumed that she caught fire and blew up. Berwick encountered some wreckage while cruising in the Gulf of Genoa in the summer that suggested fire and an explosion.[3] A part of Ardent's quarterdeck with some gunlocks deeply embedded in it was found floating in the area, as was splinter netting driven into planking.[3] No trace was ever found of her crew of 500.[2]

 
Plan showing the quarterdeck and forecastle of Ardent

See also

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Citations

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  1. ^ a b Lavery, Ships of the Line, vol. 1, p. 181.
  2. ^ a b Gosset (1986), p. 4.
  3. ^ a b Hepper (1994), p. 76.

References

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  • Gosset, William Patrick (1986). The lost ships of the Royal Navy, 1793-1900. Mansell. ISBN 0-7201-1816-6.
  • Hepper, David J. (1994). British Warship Losses in the Age of Sail, 1650-1859. Rotherfield: Jean Boudriot. ISBN 0-948864-30-3.
  • Lavery, Brian (2003) The Ship of the Line – Volume 1: The development of the battlefleet 1650-1850. Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-252-8.
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