Claude Deschiens
Claude Louis Deschiens de Kerulvay (February 1745 in Lorient – 10 September 1796, "Modeste", Indian Ocean) was a French slave trader and privateer. His ships included the "Boufonne", "Philippine" and "Modeste". Career. Born Claude Louis Deschiens to Jean Deschiens and Marie Beauvoir, a merchant family, Deschiens appears in public records with his baptism at Lorient on 21 February 1745. From the age of 11, he began sailing as an apprentice, first on the cargo "Rouillé" from 1754, and then on "Fidèle". By 1774, Deschiens had achieved command in the merchant navy and the authorities of Île de France gave  him command of the schooner "Cheval-Marin" to reconnoitre the Chagos Archipelago. In 1776, he was commander of "Bouffonne", a 150-ton ship funded by his widowed mother; he departed Lorient on 28 May 1776 and arrived at Île de France on 25 November. At the outbreak of the War of American Independence, "Bouffonne" obtained a letter of marque and Deschiens set out on 5 June 1779, with 4 guns and 25 men, to engage in the slave trade and to purchase rice.