Vengeur-class ship of the line

The Vengeur-class ships of the line were a class of forty 74-gun third rates, designed for the Royal Navy as a joint effort between the Surveyors of the Navy at the time. The Vengeur Class, sometimes referred to as the Surveyors' class of third rates, amongst other names, was the most numerous class of ships of the line ever built for the Royal Navy - forty ships being completed to this design. Due to some dubious practices, primarily in the commercial dockyards used for construction, this class of ships earned itself the nickname of 'Forty Thieves.'

Between 1826 and 1832, ten of these ships were cut down by one deck (raséed) to produce 50-gun "frigates". These were the Barham, Dublin, Alfred, Cornwall, America, Conquestador, Rodney (renamed Greenwich), Vindictive, Eagle and Gloucester. Planned similar conversions of the Clarence (renamed Centurion) and Cressy around this time were cancelled, but the Warspite was additionally converted along the same lines in 1837-1840.

Around 1845 four of these ships were converted into 'blockships', the current term for floating batteries, equipped with a steam/screw propulsion system and re-armed with 60 guns. In this guise some of them saw action during the Crimean War. The four were the Blenheim, Ajax, Hogue and Edinburgh. About ten years later, a further batch of five ships was similarly converted - this included the Russell, Cornwallis and Pembroke of this class (as well as the Hawke and Hastings of other designs).

Ships

 * HMS Vindictive (1813)
 * Builder: Portsmouth Dockyard
 * Ordered: 15 January 1806
 * Laid down: July 1808
 * Launched: 30 November 1813
 * Fate: Sold, 1871


 * HMS Cressy (1810)
 * Builder: Brindley, Frindsbury
 * Ordered: 1 October 1806
 * Laid down: March 1807
 * Launched: 7 March 1810
 * Fate: Broken up, 1832


 * HMS Poictiers (1809)
 * Builder: King, Upnor
 * Ordered: 1 October 1806
 * Laid down: August 1807
 * Launched: 9 December 1809
 * Fate: Broken up, 1857


 * HMS Hogue (1811)
 * Builder: Deptford Dockyard
 * Ordered: 1 October 1806
 * Laid down: April 1808
 * Launched: 3 October 1811
 * Fate: Broken up, 1865


 * HMS Vigo (1810)
 * Builder: Ross, Rochester
 * Ordered: 20 October 1806
 * Laid down: April 1807
 * Launched: 21 February 1810
 * Fate: Broken up, 1865


 * HMS Armada (1810)
 * Builder: Blackburn, Turnchapel
 * Ordered: 20 October 1806
 * Laid down: February 1807
 * Launched: 23 March 1810
 * Fate: Sold, 1863


 * HMS Vengeur (1810)
 * Builder: Graham, Harwich
 * Ordered: 20 October 1806
 * Laid down: July 1807
 * Launched: 19 June 1810
 * Fate: Broken up, 1843


 * HMS Conquestador (1810)
 * Builder: Guillam, Northam
 * Ordered: 20 October 1806
 * Laid down: August 1807
 * Launched: 1 August 1810
 * Fate: Sold, 1897


 * HMS Redoutable (1815)
 * Builder: Woolwich Dockyard
 * Ordered: 29 December 1806
 * Laid down: April 1809
 * Launched: 26 January 1815
 * Fate: Broken up, 1841


 * HMS Mulgrave (1812)
 * Builder: King, Upnor
 * Ordered: 23 June 1807
 * Laid down: February 1808
 * Launched: 1 January 1812
 * Fate: Broken up, 1854


 * HMS Ajax (1809)
 * Builder: Perry, Blackwall
 * Ordered: 1 July 1807
 * Laid down: August 1807
 * Launched: 2 May 1809
 * Fate: Broken up, 1864


 * HMS Berwick (1809)
 * Builder: Perry, Blackwall
 * Ordered: 1 July 1807
 * Laid down: October 1807
 * Launched: 11 September 1809
 * Fate: Broken up, 1821


 * HMS Egmont (1810)
 * Builder: Pitcher, Northfleet
 * Ordered: 13 July 1807
 * Laid down: October 1807
 * Launched: 7 March 1810
 * Fate: Sold, 1875


 * HMS Edinburgh (1811)
 * Builder: Brent, Rotherhithe
 * Ordered: 13 July 1807
 * Laid down: November 1807
 * Launched: 26 November 1811
 * Fate: Sold, 1866


 * HMS Clarence (1812)
 * Builder: Blackburn, Turnchapel, Plymouth
 * Ordered: 13 July 1807
 * Laid down: November 1807
 * Launched: 11 April 1812
 * Fate: Broken up, 1828


 * HMS Scarborough (1812)
 * Builder: Graham, Harwich
 * Ordered: 13 July 1807
 * Laid down: January 1808
 * Launched: 29 March 1812
 * Fate: Sold, 1836


 * HMS Asia (1811)
 * Builder: Brindley, Frindsbury
 * Ordered: 13 July 1807
 * Laid down: February 1808
 * Launched: 2 December 1811
 * Fate: Broken up, 1865


 * HMS Rodney (1809)
 * Builder: Barnard, Deptford Wharf
 * Ordered: 13 July 1808
 * Laid down: March 1808
 * Launched: 8 December 1809
 * Fate: Sold, 1836


 * HMS Duncan (1811)
 * Builder: Dudman, Deptford Wharf
 * Ordered: 13 July 1807
 * Laid down: August 1808
 * Launched: 2 December 1811
 * Fate: Broken up, 1863


 * HMS Indus (1812)
 * Builder: Dudman, Deptford Wharf
 * Ordered: 31 July 1807
 * Laid down: April 1809
 * Launched: 19 December 1812
 * Fate: Broken up, 1868


 * HMS Dublin (1812)
 * Builder: Brent, Rotherhithe
 * Ordered: 31 July 1807
 * Laid down: May 1809
 * Launched: 13 February 1812
 * Fate: Sold, 1885


 * HMS Stirling Castle (1811)
 * Builder: Ross, Rochester
 * Ordered: 12 August 1807
 * Laid down: July 1808
 * Launched: 31 December 1811
 * Fate: Broken up, 1861


 * HMS Medway (1812)
 * Builder: Pitcher, Northfleet
 * Ordered: 19 August 1807
 * Laid down: December 1808
 * Launched: 19 November 1812
 * Fate: Sold, 1865


 * HMS America (1810)
 * Builder: Perry, Blackwall
 * Ordered: 22 August 1807
 * Laid down: January 1808
 * Launched: 21 April 1810
 * Fate: Broken up, 1867


 * HMS Anson (1812)
 * Builder: Steemson, Hull
 * Ordered: 2 November 1807
 * Laid down: March 1808
 * Launched: 11 May 1812
 * Fate: Broken up, 1851


 * HMS Barham (1811)
 * Builder: Perry, Wells & Green, Blackwall
 * Ordered: 2 November 1807
 * Laid down: June 1808
 * Launched: 8 July 1811
 * Fate: Broken up, 1839


 * HMS Rippon (1812)
 * Builder: Blake & Scott, Bursledon
 * Ordered: 2 November 1807
 * Laid down: October 1808
 * Launched: 8 August 1812
 * Fate: Broken up, 1821


 * HMS Blenheim (1813)
 * Builder: Deptford Dockyard
 * Ordered: 4 January 1808
 * Laid down: August 1808
 * Launched: 31 May 1813
 * Fate: Broken up, 1865


 * HMS Pembroke (1812)
 * Builder: Wigram, Wells & Green, Blackwall
 * Ordered: 17 May 1808
 * Laid down: March 1809
 * Launched: 27 June 1812
 * Fate: Sold, 1905


 * HMS Cornwall (1812)
 * Builder: Barnard, Deptford Wharf
 * Ordered: 30 May 1808
 * Laid down: March 1809
 * Launched: 16 January 1812
 * Fate: Broken up, 1875


 * HMS Devonshire (1812)
 * Builder: Barnard, Deptford Wharf
 * Ordered: 30 May 1808
 * Laid down: February 1810
 * Launched: 23 September 1812
 * Fate: Broken up, 1869


 * HMS Gloucester (1812)
 * Builder: Pitcher, Northfleet
 * Ordered: 11 June 1808
 * Laid down: March 1808
 * Launched: 27 February 1812
 * Fate: Sold, 1884


 * HMS Benbow (1813)
 * Builder: Brent, Rotherhithe
 * Ordered: 11 June 1808
 * Laid down: July 1808
 * Launched: 3 February 1813
 * Fate: Sold, 1892


 * HMS Defence (1815)
 * Builder: Chatham Dockyard
 * Ordered: 23 March 1809
 * Laid down: May 1812 as HMS Marathon, but renamed 3 January 1815
 * Launched: 25 April 1815
 * Fate: Burnt, 1857


 * HMS Hercules (1815)
 * Builder: Chatham Dockyard
 * Ordered: 16 May 1809
 * Laid down: August 1812
 * Launched: 5 September 1815
 * Fate: Sold, 1865


 * HMS Pitt (1816)
 * Builder: Portsmouth Dockyard
 * Ordered: 17 April 1807
 * Laid down: May 1813
 * Launched: 13 April 1816
 * Fate: Broken up, 1877


 * HMS Cornwallis (1813)
 * Builder: Bombay Dockyard
 * Ordered: 25 July 1810
 * Laid down: 1811
 * Launched: 12 May 1813
 * Fate: Broken up, 1957


 * HMS Agincourt (1817)
 * Builder: Devonport Dockyard
 * Ordered: 6 January 1812
 * Laid down: May 1813
 * Launched: 19 March 1817
 * Fate: Sold, 1884


 * HMS Hero (1816)
 * Builder: Deptford Dockyard
 * Ordered: 6 January 1812
 * Laid down: July 1813
 * Launched: 21 September 1816
 * Fate: Renamed Wellington 4 December 1816. Sold, 1908


 * HMS Russell (1822)
 * Builder: Deptford Dockyard
 * Ordered: 6 January 1812
 * Laid down: August 1814
 * Launched: 22 May 1822
 * Fate: Broken up, 1865

Further ships were ordered to this design, including HMS Boscawen on 6 January 1812 and HMS Carnatic on 30 September 1814, but none of these were completed to this design.

In fiction
A fictitious member of this class of 74s, HMS Worcester, features largely in The Ionian Mission, one of the Aubrey-Maturin series of novels by Patrick O'Brian.