The HMS Leviathan was a 3rd class ship of the line that, as a two-decker, had 74 cannons of different calibers. Their concept was based on the French ship Courageux . This ship of the line was captured in 1761, incorporated into the Royal Navy and failed on the coast of North Africa in 1796. According to the Leviathan concept , another five ships were built by 1808. The last ship in the class was canceled in 1855. The Leviathan was appointed on December 9 in 1779 and on the Chatham Dockyard in May 1782 keel laid. The launch took place on October 9, 1790.
The ship was dispatched by the blockade squadron off Toulon in 1798 with another ship of the line, two frigates and smaller vehicles to conquer Minorca in the Balearic Islands. Thereafter, the Leviathan was one of the English warships in the Battle of Trafalgar . In the battle formation it was the fourth ship from the east in the northern line. In the battle the Leviathan lost 4 sailors and another 22 were wounded.
After the end of the Napoleonic Wars , the Leviathan was converted into a prison ship in 1816.
In 1848 the ship was finally sold and then dismantled.
literature
Brian Lavery: The Ship of the Line. Volume 1: The development of the battlefleet, 1650-1850. Conway Maritime Press, London 2003, ISBN 0-85177-252-8 .
Robert Gardiner (Ed.): Nelson against Napoleon. From the Nile to Copenhagen. 1798-1801. Chatham et al., London 1997, ISBN 1-86176-026-4 .
David Lyon: The Sailing Navy List. All the Ships of the Royal Navy. Built, purchased and captured, 1688-1860. Conway Maritime Press, London 1997, ISBN 0-85177-864-X .
