Name Bouvet Class and type Bouvet class aviso Construction started 2 October 1863 Length 56 m Builder Rochefort | Laid down 2 October 1863 Displacement 760 tonnes Launched 24 May 1865 Weight 760 tons | |
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Namesake François Joseph Bouvet. Fate Wrecked on 17 September 1871 off Île-à-Vache | ||
Bouvet was a sail and steam aviso of the French Navy, lead ship of her class. She is rememered as the opponent of the German gunboat SMS Meteor during the Battle of Havana in 1870, at the oubreak of the Franco-Prussian War.
Career
Commissioned on 18 June 1866, Bouvet served in Mexico, in the Caribbean and off Terre-Neuve.
At the oubreak of the Franco-Prussian War, she was sent to the Caribbean, where she intervened to rescue the liner SS Nouveau Monde. Under Commander Franquet, she fought against SMS Meteor during the Battle of Havana, managing to ram her opponent and knocking out two of her masts, but suffering herself a shot in a steam pipe which forced her to return into Cuban waters and avoid capture.
Bouvet was wrecked on 17 September 1871 off Île-à-Vache, when a gust of wind sent her on a reef. The crew managed to safely abandon ship.