HMS Theseus (1786)
HMS Theseus in the 1804 Antigua–Charleston hurricane.
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| History | |
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 UK
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| Name: | HMS Theseus |
| Namesake: | Theseus |
| Ordered: | 11 July 1780 |
| Builder: | Perry, Blackwall Yard |
| Laid down: | 3 September 1783 |
| Launched: | 25 September 1786 |
| Fate: | Broken up, 1814 |
| Notes: | |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Culloden-class ship of the line |
| Tons burthen: | 1660 (bm) |
| Length: | 170 ft (52 m) (gundeck) |
| Beam: | 47 ft 2 in (14.38 m) |
| Depth of hold: | 19 ft 11 in (6.07 m) |
| Propulsion: | Sails |
| Sail plan: | Full rigged ship |
| Armament: | |
HMS Theseus was a 74-gun third-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy.
One of the eight Culloden class ships designed by Thomas Slade, she was built at Perry, Blackwall Yard, London and launched on 25 September 1786.
Theseus was the flagship of Rear Admiral Horatio Nelson's fleet for the 1797 Battle of Santa Cruz de Tenerife. Day to day command was vested in her flag captain Ralph Willett Miller. The British were soundly defeated and Nelson was wounded by a musket ball while aboard the Theseus, precipitating the amputation of his right arm.
Despite the defeat, morale and good order were retained aboard the ship. In August 1797 ship's surgeon Robert Tainsh reported a mere nine cases of illness aboard, with little incidence of scurvy and a ready supply of antiscorbutics. An outbreak of ulcers was attributed to the overuse of salted provisions and addressed by Miller's insistence on ensuring a supply of onions and lemons as part of daily rations. Also with Miller's approval, the lower deck ports were periodically washed with nitrous acid to reduce the risk of mould, windsails were installed to encourage a flow of fresh air below decks and the crew's hammocks were ordered to be aired three times a week.
In 1798, Theseus took part in the decisive Battle of the Nile, under the command of Captain Ralph Willett Miller. The Royal Navy fleet was outnumbered, at least in firepower, by the French fleet, which boasted the 118-gun ship-of-the-line L'Orient, three 80-gun warships and nine of the popular 74-gun ships. The Royal Navy fleet in comparison had just thirteen 74-gun ships and one 50-gun fourth-rate.
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