French brig Entreprenant (1808)
| History | |
|---|---|
 France
|
|
| Name: | Entreprenant |
| Namesake: | "Entreprising" |
| Builder: | Grisard, Port-Napoléon (Port-Louis), Île de France |
| Laid down: | May 1808 |
| Launched: | August 1808 |
| Acquired: | 1808 by capture |
| Captured: | 2 December 1810 |
| Fate: | Broken up |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 300 tons (French) |
| Length: |
|
| Beam: | 8.12 m (26.6 ft) (overall) |
| Complement: | 88-110 |
| Armament: | 12 x 12-pounder guns |
| Armour: | Timber |
Entreprenant was the third of a sequence of vessels under the same name and with the same captain. (The data in the shipbox refers to the third Entreprenant.) She served in the East Indies until the British captured her in 1810 and then had her broken up as unfit for further service.
In 1806, Lieutenant de vaisseau Pierre Bouvet was a prisoner in Bombay, where he observed the indigenous ships of the patamar type. Back in Isle de France (now Mauritius), Bouvet suggested the use of armed patamars to General Decaen, Governor General of the French possessions in the East Indies, to conduct reconnaissance and raids on the British. At this point, the defence of Isle de France had already led the authorities to purchased civilian ships into service, such as Robert Surcouf's 18-gun privateer Revenant.
Decaen agreed to construct a ship to test Bouvet's ideas. In October 1807, after a six-week construction period, the patamar or felucca was ready. This vessel had two masts sharply raked forward at an angle of 23 degrees from the vertical, and 15 pairs of oars. She was armed with an 8-pounder gun and had a crew of 40 men. She was named and commissioned on 30 November 1807.
She served at Île de Bourbon and cruised the north-west coast of India from 7 December 1807. During these cruises Entreprenant took a number of prizes. One of these was the English merchant brig Marguerite, which he captured on 8 February 1808. Marguerite, under the command of Captain Wilson, was of 270 tons burthen, and carried ten 12-pounder carronades. When he switched his vessels, Bouvet transferred the name Entreprenant as well.
Later that year the French constructed a "brig gourable", This vessel received the name Entreprenant, and was commissioned under Bouvet's command.
Bouvet sailed Entreprenant on 4 October 1808 for Ormuz with despatches. She then cruised off the Malabar coast, taking 19 prizes, with Bouvet having to suppress a mutiny. He returned to Île de France on 16 March 1809.
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