The Invincible was a sailing warship in the French Navy . With 110 cannons at last, she was one of the largest warships of her time. She ended her active service in 1806 and was scrapped in 1808.
In February 1779 the keel was laid in Rochefort , the designer was Francois Guillaume Cairin Deslauriers. Its construction was part of an armament program in view of the conflict in America ( American War of Independence ).
In 1781 she was stationed in the Antilles and was able to intercept a British convoy. In 1782 she was ordered to Gibraltar . There a British unit under Lord Howe had supplied the besieged garrison with supplies. On the way back there was the battle of Cap Spartel on October 20, 1782. The Invincible fought in the rear.
The Invincible was upgraded and converted several times (1781, 1784 and 1794). In addition to the equipment with heavier armament, it was z. B. 1794 shod with copper. In 1806 it was taken out of active use, in 1807 the armament was removed. In 1808 the Invincible was scrapped.
Armament
Originally equipped with 92 cannons, their armament was later repeatedly reinforced:
June 1780
deck
48 lbs
36 lbs
24 lbs
12 lbs
8 lbs
Cannons!
Under deck
30th
30th
Middle deck
32
32
Upper deck
32
32
Foredeck
6th
6th
Aft deck
6th
6th
total
116 at 657 kg
December 1782
deck
48 lbs
36 lbs
24 lbs
12 lbs
8 lbs
Cannons!
Under deck
30th
30th
Middle deck
32
32
Upper deck
32
32
Foredeck
6th
6th
Aft deck
6th
6th
total
116 with 570 kg
1784
deck
48 lbs
36 lbs
24 lbs
12 lbs
8 lbs
Cannons!
Under deck
30th
30th
Middle deck
32
32
Upper deck
32
32
Foredeck
8th
8th
Aft deck
8th
8th
total
120 with 578 kg
1794
deck
48 lbs
36 lbs
24 lbs
12 lbs
8 lbs
36pfd carrots
Cannons!
Under deck
30th
30th
Middle deck
32
32
Upper deck
32
32
Foredeck
6th
6th
Aft deck
6th
4th
10
total
120 with 605 kg
literature
Rif Winfield & Stephen S. Roberts: French Warships in the Age of Sail 1786-1861 . Seaforth Publishing, 2017, ISBN 978-1-4738-9351-1 .
Roche, Jean Michel: Dictionnaire des batiments de la flotte de guerre francaise de Colbert a nos jours 1 1671-1870 p.223 . ISBN 978-2-9525917-0-6 .