page_title: French ship Redoutable (1791)
section_title: Battle of Trafalgar
hierarchical_section_title: French ship Redoutable (1791) / Career / Battle of Trafalgar
caption_attribution_description: English: Named vessels at the Battle of Trafalgar 1805
context_page_description: The Redoutable was a Téméraire class 74-gun ship of the line of the French Navy. She took part in the battles of the French Revolutionary Wars in the Brest squadron, served in the Caribbean in 1803, and duelled with HMS Victory during the Battle of Trafalgar, killing Vice Admiral Horatio Nelson during the action. She sank in the storm that followed the battle.
  Built as Suffren, the ship was commissioned in the Brest squadron of the French fleet. After her crew took part in the Quibéron mutinies, she was renamed to Redoutable. She took part in the Croisière du Grand Hiver, the Battle of Groix, and the Expédition d'Irlande. At the Peace of Amiens, Redoutable was sent to the Caribbean for the Saint-Domingue expedition, ferrying troops to Guadeloupe and Haiti.
  Later, she served in the fleet under Vice-admiral Villeneuve, and took part in the Trafalgar Campaign. At the Battle of Trafalgar, Redoutable rushed to cover the flagship Bucentaure when the ship following her failed to maintain the line.
context_section_description: At the Battle of Trafalgar, on 21 October 1805, Redoutable was commanded by Captain Lucas, with Lieutenant Dupotet as first officer. Redoutable was the third ship behind the flagship Bucentaure in the French line, coming behind Maistral's Neptune and José Quevedo's San Leandro. When Neptune and San Leandro dropped behind Bucentaure, exposing her stern, Redoutable rushed to cover her and prevent Nelson's Victory from cutting the Franco-Spanish line of battle.
  With her bowsprit almost touching Bucentaure's stern, Redoutable fired on Victory's rigging for ten minutes, trying to disable her to prevent the crossing of the French line, but did not manage to stop her advance, despite cutting off her foremast tops, her mizzen and her main topgallant, and ended up running afoul of her. A furious, fifteen-minute musket duel erupted between the two ships; the crew of Redoutable had been especially trained by Lucas for such an occasion, and soon the heavy hand-grenade and small-arms fire on Victory's quarterdeck mortally wounded Vice Admiral Horatio Nelson. Lucas later reported:
  a violent small-arms exchange ensued (...); our fire became so superior that within fifteen minutes, we had silenced that of Victory; (...) her castles were covered with dead and wounded, and admiral Nelson was killed by our gunfire. Almost at once, the castles of the enemy ship were evacuated and Victory completely ceased fighting us; but boarding her proved difficult because (...) of her elevated third battery. I ordered the rigging of the great yard be cut and that it be carried to serve as a bridge.
  The French crew were about to board Victory when Temeraire managed to come to the rescue of the stricken flagship, firing on the exposed French crew at point blank range, killing or wounding 200 men, including Lucas and Dupotet, struck by a bullet to the knee, who nevertheless remained at their stations. The crew of Redoutable rushed to man her artillery and engage Temeraire with her starboard battery, Soon, Tonnant took a position at stern of Redoutable, which thus found herself fired upon from three larger ships. In the ensuing cannonade, Redoutable lost most of her artillery, including two guns that burst, killing several gunners. Temeraire hailed for Redoutable to surrender, but Lucas had volley of musketry fired for replies.
  At 1.55 pm, Redoutable, with Lucas severely wounded, and only 99 men still fit out of 643 (300 dead and 222 severely wounded), was essentially defenceless. The Fougueux attempted to come to her aid but came afoul of Temeraire. After ascertaining that Redoutable was too damaged to survive the aftermath of the battle, and  worried that she would sink before his wounded could be evacuated,  Lucas struck his colours at 2:30. Redoutable's aft featured a large opening and was in danger of collapsing, her rudder was shot off, and the hull was pierced in many spots.
  Being much damaged and weakened by the fight themselves, the British ships took some time to take possession of Redoutable, and Lucas had to request urgent assistance to pump water, as four of Redoutable's pumps were destroyed and few of her crewmen could man them.
  Redoutable was freed from the rigging of Temeraire around 7 in the evening and was taken in tow by Swiftsure. The next day, Redoutable made distress signals, and Swiftsure launched boats to evacuate her passengers; she foundered around 7, taking 196 men with her. Lucas reported:
  On the 30th, at 5pm, she was forced to ask for assistance; there was only time to save the captain and the men who were not wounded, as at 7pm, her stern collapsed and she foundered. 50 wounded were saved as they clung to floating debris from the ship.
  Victory had sustained 160 casualties, and Temeraire 120.  Of Redoutable's crew, 169 were taken on board Swiftsure; the wounded were sent to Cadiz on a cartel, and 35 men were taken prisoner to England.
  Lucas was received in England with great courtesy. After his release from capture, he was personally awarded the rank of Commandeur of the Legion of Honour by Napoleon for his role during the battl
caption: Redoutable (second from left) overtakes Neptune (far left), rushing to cover the aft of Bucentaure (far right) from Nelson's Victory (centre).
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