HMS Neptune ( 1797 ) HMS " Neptune " was a 98 - gun second rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy . She served on a number of stations during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars and was present at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 . " Neptune " was built during the early years of the war with Revolutionary France and was launched in 1797 . She almost immediately became caught up in the events of the mutiny at the Nore , and was one of a few loyal ships tasked with attacking mutinous vessels if they could not be brought to order . The mutiny died out before this became necessary and " Neptune " joined the Channel Fleet . She moved to the Mediterranean in 1799 , spending the rest of the French Revolutionary Wars in operations with Vice - Admiral Lord Keith ' s fleet . After refitting , and spending time on blockades , she formed part of Lord Nelson ' s fleet at the Battle of Trafalgar , and was heavily involved in the fighting , sustaining casualties of 10 killed and 34 wounded . She was not fully repaired and returned to service until 1807 , when she went out to the Caribbean . In 1809 she participated in the successful invasion of Martinique , and the subsequent battle with Troude ' s squadron . Returning to Britain towards the end of the wars , she was laid up in ordinary , and in 1813 became a temporary prison ship . She was finally broken up in 1818 . Construction and commissioning . " Neptune " was ordered from Deptford Dockyard on 15 February 1790 , to a design developed by Surveyor of the Navy Sir John Henslow . She was one of three ships of the " Neptune " class , alongside her sisters and . " Neptune " was laid down at Deptford in April 1791 , receiving her name on 24 July 1790 . The initial stages of her construction were overseen by Master Shipwright Martin Ware , though he was succeeded by Thomas Pollard in June 1795 , and Pollard oversaw her completion . " Neptune " was launched on 28 January 1797 and sailed to Woolwich to be fitted for sea . Arriving at Woolwich on 12 February , she was immediately docked to have her copper sheathing fitted , a process that was completed by 1 March . Launched again , she finished fitting out , and received her masts and yards . Her final costs came to £77 , 053 , and included £61 , 172 spent on the hull , masts and yards , and a further £15 , 881 on rigging and stores . She was commissioned on 25 March 1797 under Captain Henry Stanhope , becoming the third ship of the Royal Navy to bear the name " Neptune " . Her predecessors had been two 90 - gun ships , the first launched in 1683 , renamed HMS " Torbay " in 1750 and sold in 1784 . The second had been launched in 1757 , was used as a sheer hulk from 1784 , and was broken up in 1816 . Stanhope sailed from Woolwich on 11 June 1797 , flying the broad pendant of Commodore Sir Erasmus Gower , and made for the Nore . Mutiny at the Nore . Shortly after her arrival at the Nore , " Neptune " became caught up in the mutiny that had broken out there . While lying at Gravesend , " Neptune " and the 64 - gun ships and , together with a fleet of gunboat s , were ordered to intercept and attack the mutinous ships at the Nore . Before they could proceed word came that the mutineers had entered negotiations with the Earl of Northesk , captain of the 64 - gun , and by 9 June the mutiny was on the verge of collapse . The attack was called off , and on 21 September Stanhope was superseded by Gower as captain of " Neptune " . The crisis over , " Neptune " joined the Channel Fleet . Mediterranean . Gower remained in command of " Neptune " until his promotion to rear - admiral of the white , at which point Herbert Sawyer became her acting - captain . Sawyer was in command until 22 January 1799 , and Gower left her on 28 February 1799 . Command of the ship formally passed to Captain James Vashon on 5 March 1799 . The first half of 1799 was spent with the Channel Fleet , and in June " Neptune " was one of 15 ships of the line assigned to join Vice - Admiral Lord Keith ' s fleet in the Mediterranean . The squadron , commanded by Rear - Admiral Sir Charles Cotton , rendezvoused with Keith ' s force at Minorca on 7 July , bringing the British fleet in the Mediterranean up to 31 ships . Keith intended to intercept a large Franco - Spanish force of 42 ships under Admirals Étienne Eustache Bruix and Jose Mazarredo , and set out to sea on 10 July . Bruix ' expedition evaded Keith , and reached the safety of Brest on 9 August . " Neptune " went on to spend the rest of the French Revolutionary Wars in the Mediterranean . Vashon was superseded on 26 March 1801 , and the following day Captain Edward Brace arrived to take command . " Neptune " became the flagship of Vice - Admiral James Gambier during this period . Brace ' s period of command was brief , he was superseded by Captain Francis Austen on 12 September . With the draw down in hostilities prior to the signing of the Treaty of Amiens in March 1802 , " Neptune " was one of the many ships of the Mediterranean fleet to be ordered home , arriving at Portsmouth on 24 February . Austen paid her off on 29 April , but recommissioned her the next day . " Neptune " then underwent a brief refit , during which £5 , 728 was expended , £2 , 895 of which was spent on her hull , masts and yards . Austen was superseded on 30 September 1802 and the following day Captain William O ' Bryen Drury took command . With " Neptune " fully refitted and stored , she sailed from the dockyard and joined the Channel Fleet at Spithead on 29 October . Blockade , and approach to Trafalgar . Drury commanded " Neptune " for the next two years , until his promotion to rear - admiral in 1804 . He departed the ship on 13 May 1804 , and the following day Captain Sir Thomas Williams took over . " Neptune " spent the rest of 1804 deployed with the Channel Fleet , blockading the French Atlantic ports . During this time Captain Williams ' health progressively worsened , and he was invalided back to Britain on 7 May 1805 . He was replaced by Captain Thomas Fremantle on 8 May , and was sent to join Robert Calder ' s force blockading Ferrol , after the Franco - Spanish fleet had arrived there after the Battle of Cape Finisterre . Calder decided that his eight ships were not sufficient to resist Villeneuve ' s fleet were it to come out of harbour , and instead went north to join Admiral William Cornwallis ' s fleet off Brest . Shortly afterwards Nelson ' s fleet returned from the West Indies , bringing 12 more ships , and Calder was given 18 ships , including " Neptune " , and sent back to Ferrol to search for Villeneuve . By now Villeneuve had put into Cadiz and Calder ' s force was ordered to join the hastily assembled British fleet under Vice - Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood , that was blockading the Franco - Spanish fleet at Cadiz . As the British fleet settled in for a long blockade Fremantle commented on " Neptune " s sailing qualities . She had the reputation of being slow , and Fremantle complained that he did not like being in ' a large ship that don ' t sail and must continually be late in action . ' During the battle however , Midshipman William Baddock commented that ' The old " Neptune " , which never was a good sailer , took it into her head that morning to sail better than I ever remember to have seen her do before . ' " Neptune " went into the battle 18 men short of her complement . Trafalgar . " Neptune " formed part of the weather column in the Battle of Trafalgar on 21 October , and was the third ship from the lead , situated between her sister HMS " Temeraire " , and the 74 - gun . Fremantle had been promised a position second to Nelson aboard , and by 10 o ' clock was sailing fast enough to threaten to overtake her . Fremantle hoped to pass her , and lead the line into battle , but Nelson ordered " Neptune " , take in your studding - sails and drop astern . I shall break the line myself . ' " Neptune " went into action with her band playing , and everyone except the officers and the band lying down on the deck to protect them from enemy fire . Ahead of her Fremantle saw Eliab Harvey ' s " Temeraire " turn to pass astern of the French " Redoutable " , but resolved to follow Nelson and HMS " Victory " to pass astern of the French flagship " Bucentaure " . As she passed under " Bucentaure " s stern , " Neptune " discharged a double - shotted broadside from her larboard ( port ) guns , with devastating consequences on Villeneuve ' s already disabled flagship . Fremantle then had the helm swung hard to starboard , bringing his ship abeam of the " Bucentaure " . He fired two more triple - shotted broadsides from nearly 50 guns at a range of less than 100 yards into the beleaguered French ship . Fremantle then spotted the towering mass of the Spanish four - decker " Santísima Trinidad " sailing away from him , and steered towards her starboard quarter in the hope of raking her stern . Opening fire with his larboard battery , he positioned " Neptune " off the Spanish vessel ' s starboard beam and the two exchanged heavy fire for the next hour as more British ships poured through the gap astern of " Neptune " . " Neptune " took fire from other ships of the combined fleet as they sailed past . " Santísima Trinidad " , heavily battered by " Neptune " s guns , as well as those from the 74 - gun ships and , became completely dismasted and covered in debris . She fought on until 5 . 30 pm , when she struck her colours , having sustained casualties of 205 dead and 103 wounded . " Neptune " left the 98 - gun to take possession and headed north to cut off the remains of the enemy fleet , briefly becoming engaged with the French 74 - gun " Intrépide " . During the battle " Neptune " suffered considerable damage to her masts , although they did not fall . Most of her rigging was cut to pieces and she sustained nine shot holes in her hull . She sustained casualties of ten killed and 34 wounded . A remarkably small proportion of her officers became casualties , with only the captain ' s clerk , Richard Hurrell , being wounded . After the battle Collingwood transferred his flag from the damaged to the frigate , and on 22 October " Neptune " took the " Royal Sovereign " in tow . On 23 October , as the Franco - Spanish forces that had escaped into Cadiz sortied under Commodore Julien Cosmao , " Neptune " cast off the tow , surrendering the duty to , and took on board Villeneuve and several captured flag captain s , who had originally been aboard " Mars " . As the weather continued to deteriorate " Neptune " sent her boats to assist in the evacuation of the " Santísima Trinidad " before she foundered . After riding out the storm she took the battered " Victory " , carrying Lord Nelson ' s body , in tow on 26 October and brought her into Gibraltar on 28 October . West Indies . After undergoing some repairs at Gibraltar " Neptune " sailed to Britain , arriving at Portsmouth on 6 December 1805 , where she was paid off . She was moved to Spithead in 1806 , but was back in Portsmouth on 23 November , and was moved into a dock on 24 March 1807 to undergo a refit . The refit lasted until November 1807 and involved having her copper sheathing removed and her hull refitted . She was then recoppered , having had a sum of £29 , 053 expended on her . She was recommissioned on 18 August 1807 under her old commander , Captain Sir Thomas Williams , and was relaunched three days later on 21 August to complete her refit . She was initially assigned to serve in the English Channel , but was moved to the West Indies in 1808 . On 9 November Williams was superseded by Captain Thomas Pinto , who only spent six weeks in command before being succeeded by Captain Charles Dilkes on 20 December . In January 1809 an attack on the French colony of Martinique , governed by Admiral Louis Thomas Villaret de Joyeuse , was planned . " Neptune " became the flagship of the expedition ' s commander , Rear - Admiral Alexander Cochrane , and the invasion force , consisting of 44 vessels and transports for 10 , 000 troops under Lieutenant - General George Beckwith , sailed on 28 January . The force arrived at Martinique on 30 January , and 3 , 000 troops were landed under Major - General Frederick Maitland without resistance . 600 troops were put ashore at Cape Solomon under Major Henderson , both landings supervised by Captain William Charles Fahie aboard the 74 - gun . An additional force of 6 , 500 men were landed in the north of the island under Major - General Sir George Prévost , and the French were driven into several fortified positions , the last of which surrendered on 24 February 1809 . Battle with Troude . Cochrane ' s squadron remained in the area blockading the island , and in March a French squadron consisting of three 74 - gun ships , " Hautpoult " , " Courageux " and " Polonais " , and two frigates , " Félicité " and " Furieuse " , under the overall command of Commodore Amable Troude , arrived in the Caribbean . Finding Martinique in British hands , Troude anchored near Îles des Saintes . Cochrane decided to remove this threat , landing troops on the islands and installing heavy guns on vantage points . Threatened , Troude put to sea , chased by Cochrane ' s squadron . After a running battle over several days the " Hautpoult " was brought to action and captured . " Neptune " s captain , Charles Dilkes , was given command of her , while Captain James Athol Wood succeeded him in command of " Neptune " on 2 August . Final years . Dilkes resumed command of " Neptune " on 2 March 1810 , while Wood was exchanged into . Dilkes had apparently been suffering poor health , and Captain N Ballard took command in an acting capacity on 22 July . " Neptune " returned to Plymouth on 26 October and entered the dock on 9 November to be fitted for the ordinary . The process cost £713 , and after undocking on 8 December she was laid up in the Hamoaze until late autumn 1813 . Her hull appears to have quickly deteriorated , and after a survey she was deemed unfit for further service at sea . The Navy Board proposed that she be converted into a prison ship , a recommendation the Admiralty accepted , and she was taken in hand for fitting out on 22 November . On the completion of the work in December she was commissioned under Lieutenant George Lawrence . " Neptune " spent three years in this role , and was finally taken to pieces in October 1818 .