Courageux-class ship of the line

The shipwreck of the Minotaur, depicted in The Wreck of a Transport Ship by J. M. W. Turner in 1810
Class overview
Name	Courageux
Operators	Royal Navy
Preceded by	Ganges class
Succeeded by	Mars class
In service	21 January 1783 – 1848
Completed	8
Lost	2
General characteristics
Type	Ship of the line
Length	Standard: 172 ft 3 in (52.5 m) (gundeck) 140 ft 5¼ in (42.8 m) (keel) Lengthened: 172 ft 3½ in (52.5 m) (gundeck) 140 ft 5¼ in (42.8 m) (keel) Modified: 180 ft (54.9 m) (gundeck) 147 ft 7 in (45 m) (keel)
Beam	Standard, Lengthened: 47 ft 9 in (14.6 m) Modified: 48 ft ¾ in (14.6 m)
Propulsion	Sails
Armament	74 guns: Gundeck: 28 × 32-pounders Upper gundeck: 28 × 18-pounders Quarterdeck: 14 × 9-pounders Forecastle: 4 × 9-pounders
Notes	Ships in class include: Carnatic, Colossus, Leviathan, Minotaur, Aboukir, Bombay, Blake, San Domingo

The Courageux-class ships of the line were a class of six 74-gun third rates of the Royal Navy. Their design was a direct copy of the French ship Courageux, captured in 1761 by HMS Bellona. This class of ship is sometimes referred to as the Leviathan class. A further two ships of the class were built to a slightly lengthened version of the Courageux draught. A final two ships were ordered to a third modification of the draught.

Ships

Standard group

• HMS Carnatic

Builder: Dudman, Deptford

Ordered: 14 July 1779

Launched: 21 January 1783

Fate: Broken up, 1825

• HMS Colossus

Builder: Clevely, Gravesend

Ordered: 13 December 1781

Launched: 4 April 1787

Fate: Wrecked, 1798

• HMS Leviathan

Builder: Chatham Dockyard

Ordered: 9 December 1779

Launched: 9 October 1790

Fate: Sold out of the service, 1848

• HMS Minotaur

Builder: Woolwich Dockyard

Ordered: 3 December 1782

Launched: 6 November 1793

Fate: Wrecked, 1810

Lengthened group

• HMS Aboukir

Builder: Brindley, Frindsbury

Ordered: 24 November 1802

Launched: 18 November 1807

Fate: Sold, 1838

• HMS Bombay

Builder: Deptford Dockyard

Ordered: 23 July 1805

Launched: 28 March 1808

Fate: Broken up, 1825

Modified group

• HMS Blake

Builder: Deptford Dockyard

Ordered: 30 October 1805

Launched: 23 August 1808

Fate: Sold, 1816

• HMS San Domingo

Builder: Woolwich Dockyard

Ordered: 30 October 1805

Launched: 3 March 1809

Fate: Sold, 1816

References

• Lavery, Brian (1984). The Ship of the Line. Vol. 1: The Development of the Battlefleet 1650-1850. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-85177-252-8.
• Winfield, Rif (2014). British Warships in the Age of Sail 1817–1863: Design, Construction, Careers and Fates. Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-169-4.