The French ship Achille was a 74-gun Téméraire-class ship of the line constructed for the French Navy, completed in 1805. Designed by Jacques-Noël Sané, Achille measured approximately 55.87 meters (183 ft 4 in) in length, with a beam of 14.46 meters (47 ft 5 in), and a depth of hold of 7.15 meters (23 ft 5 in). She displaced around 3,069 tonneaux and had a tonnage of 1,537 port tonneaux. Her crew during wartime numbered about 705 officers and ratings. The vessel was rigged with three masts and was fully ship-rigged, typical of line-of-battle ships of her era. Armament on Achille consisted of a traditional 74-gun configuration, including twenty-eight 36-pounder long guns on the lower gun deck and thirty 18-pounder long guns on the upper deck. Additional armament included sixteen 8-pounder long guns on the quarterdeck and forecastle. Starting with ships completed after 1787, modifications included the addition of four 36-pounder obusiers on the poop deck. By the time of the Battle of Trafalgar in October 1805, Achille was equipped with eighteen 8-pounders and 4 or 6 obusiers. Achille was laid down in 1802 at the Arsenal de Rochefort by the Crucy Brothers, launched on 17 November 1804, and commissioned in early 1805 under Captain Louis Gabriel Deniéport. She sailed to the West Indies in May 1805, joining a French fleet under Vice-Admiral Pierre-Charles Villeneuve. During her service, Achille participated in the Trafalgar campaign, including the Battle of Cape Finisterre in July 1805, where she fought against British ships. At Trafalgar in October 1805, Achille was part of the combined fleet, which became disorganized during battle maneuvers. She engaged British ships, including attempting to rake HMS Revenge and later being heavily engaged by British fire. Achille sustained severe damage during the battle, with her masts and rigging shot away and her hull catching fire. Her crew attempted to abandon her as her water pumps failed and her magazine exploded around 1730, resulting in her destruction. At least 190 crew members survived the explosion, including Jeanne Caunant, the wife of a sailor, whose rescue inspired a famous engraving. Achille's destruction marked a significant event in the Trafalgar engagement, and her image is famously depicted in J. M. W. Turner’s painting, with a scale model displayed at the Musée de la Marine in Paris.

This description has been generated using GPT-4.1-NANO based on the Vessel's wikidata information and then modified by ShipIndex.org staff.