Name Impétueux Laid down 1786 Decommissioned 1 June 1794 Construction started 1786 Length 56 m Beam 15 m | Namesake Impetuous Commissioned 1788 Name Impétueux Launched 25 August 1787 Weight 1,966 tons Builder Rochefort | |
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Impétueux was a Téméraire class 74-gun ship of the line of the French Navy.
She took part in the Glorious First of June in 1794. During the battle, HMS Marlborough became tangled with Impétueux. Badly damaged and on the verge of surrender, Impétueux received a brief reprieve when Mucius appeared through the smoke and collided with both ships. The three entangled ships continued exchanging fire, all suffering heavy casualties with Marlborough and Impétueux losing all three of their masts. This combat continued for several hours. Captain Berkeley of Marlborough had to retire below with serious wounds, and command fell to Lieutenant John Monkton, who signalled for help from the frigates in reserve. Robert Stopford responded in HMS Aquilon, which had the assignment of repeating signals, and towed Marlborough out of the line as Mucius freed herself and made for the regrouped French fleet to the north. Impétueux was in too damaged a state to move at all and sailors from HMS Russell soon seized her.
The Royal Navy intended to take into service as HMS Impetueux, but she was destroyed in an accidental fire at Portsmouth on 24 August 1794 and so was never commissioned. During the battle of The Glorious First of June, the Royal Navy had also captured her sister ship America, which it renamed HMS Impetueux in 1795.