Couronne. Frontispiece of Hydrographie by Georges Fournier, 1643.
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History | |
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Kingdom of France | |
Builder: |
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Commissioned: | 1636 |
Decommissioned: | 1645 |
In service: | 1631 |
Out of service: | 1645 |
Fate: | scrapped |
General characteristics | |
Length: | 52 m (171 ft) hull, 10 metre-long bowsprit |
Beam: | 14.30 m (46.9 ft) |
Complement: | 643 men |
Armament: |
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Armour: | Timber |
Couronne (French for "crown") was an emblematic ship of the French Navy built by order of Richelieu.
Couronne was the first major warship to be built by the French themselves in accordance to Richelieu's plans to renew the French Navy, after a series of warships had been built by the Dutch. The construction was supervised by Isaac de Launay Razilly (died in Arcadia 1635), and overseen by the famous carpenter Charles Morieu, from Dieppe. She was being constructed at La Roche-Bernard and was one of the most advanced units of her time. After launch in 1632 or 1633, she was moved to Brouage in September 1634 where she was completed around 1635 by Mathieu Casteau. She carried 68 heavy guns, 8 firing to the bow and 8 to the aft, an unusual feature until Dupuy de Lôme redesigned naval artillery.
Couronne took part in the Battle of Guetaria in 1638, and another expedition to Spain in 1639 under Henri de Sourdis.
The ship was disarmed in 1641 and scrapped between 1643-1645.
Photograph of a model lost in 1943