A French Frigate named
L'Heureux
I currently have three accounts of a french frigate named L'Heureux.
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First, as a boat having been used to return Bonnie
Prince Charles to France after his unsuccessful attempt at the throne of
Scotland in 1746.
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Second, as a frigate having been used in 1777 to transport
Baron Von Steuben to America where he became famous by writing a book of
regulations for George Washington's army.
-
Thirdly, in connection with the Battle of the Nile
in 1798.
The L'Heureux is apparently described on page 176 of The
Search for Speed Under Sail, Howard I. Chapelle, 1700-1855. New
York: W.W. Norton & Co., 1967. For more research, see Maritime
History on the Internet by Peter
McCracken at the University of Washington. The L'Heureux is listed
in his Index
of Ships which contains 29,000 ships.
If you have others, please contact me.
 Bonnie
Prince Charles Connection
Email from Sandra Kasa (née L'Heureux) from UK
In a recent Email, Sandra says,
"Il y quelques années j'ai visité Culloden
Moor en Ecosse, lieu d'une bataille (1746) entre les Anglais et les Jacobites
pour remettre le "Bonny Prince Charles" (Charles Stuart) sur le trone de
l'Ecosse. Ce fut une bataille sanglante, le prince s'est echappé
et a vécu en cachette dans les iles de la côte ouest de l'Ecosse,
tandis que ses sympatisants en Europe, particulièrement en
France se chargèrent de le livrer de son sort. Deux ans plus tard
il se fuit en destination de la France dans un bateau breton nommé
le L'HEUREUX, probablement le nom de
capitaine du vaisseau. Voici donc que le nom L'Heureux se trouve en Ecosse."
(English translation)
Starting with with this initial email, I found the following accounts.
John O’Sullivan of Cappanacuss Castle by Anne McCabe
She says,
"On the 1st October 1746 O'Sullivan got on board a French cutter
that had to outrun a British ship that was searching for Charles, and head
for Norway. From thence he sailed to France to find a neutral ship that
would return to take the Prince to safety. The L'Heureux
was
at last dispatched and picked up Charles at Loch na nUamh where he had
landed about fourteen months previously. "
See Full
Text here and here
too.
The Battle at Culloden
In an article about Scottland in November 1997, CBC writes
"How Prince Charles escaped the wrath of the English Hanoverian
forces is the stuff of legends. With a price of £30 000 on his head,
Prince Charles was hunted across the Highlands and throughout the islands
of Scotland. He endured great hardships with considerable fortitude, and
it is to the credit of the people of the North that no one gave him away.
It was because of the ingenuity and courage of a young Highland woman named
Flora MacDonald that Prince Charles was able to escape. When the English
forces were closing in on him, Flora MacDonald helped Charles escape from
South Uist and eventually to France, where he sailed on the French
privateer L’Heureux on September 20, 1746. For decades afterward,
the wearing of Highland kilts in clan colours was banned by London."
Further readings:
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 Baron
von Steuben Connection
Thanks to Jacques-René L'heureux from NJ (cousin #31), I also found
out that a frigate named L'heureux was mentionned in the book "Baron von
Steuben and his Regulations" by Joseph R. Riling. On page 5, he says
"On September 10, 1777, the Baron and his staff left Paris
for the port of Marseilles, accompanied by M. de Francy, the nephew and
agent of Beamarchais, and the Baron's servant, a young German by the name
of Carl Vogel. Upon reaching Marseilles, the party embarked on the French
frigate L'Heureux of 300 tons and 28 guns which was under the command
of Captain Landais. Landais was experienced in the navigation of American
waters, having been a member of the expedition which circumnavigated the
globe under the leadership of Louis-Antoire de Bougainville in 1766-1769.
The Ship's name had been changed to Le Flamand, and she was
masquerading as a merchantman since her cargo consisted of munitions for
the American army. She was one of a fleet owned by Hortalez and Company.
The Baron shipped under the name of Monsieur de Frank, supposedly bearing
dispatches for the Governor of Martinique, for which port the ship had
been cleared. The Le Flamand sailed from Marseilles on September 26, 1777,
bound for Portsmouth, New Hampshire - its true destination."
Further readings:
Back to Top
The French Wars lasted from 1792 to 1806. In May 1798, Napoleon Bonaparte
was sent to capture Egypt. His fleet led by Vice-Admiral Brueys was attacked
by the British fleet led by Rear Admiral Horatio Nelson on August 1st,
1798 where the Battle of the Nile (or Aboukir Bay) took place. Here is
an excerpt of the action:
"As it grew dark Nelson's leading ship, the Goliath led the
way inside the French line, the Zealous, Orion, Theseus and Audacious following
suit., Nelson's flagship, Vanguard, now came up on the outside of the French
line, supported by the Minotaur and Defence. This was the situation that
Nelson had wanted, with five French ships overwhelmed by eight British
opponents. They were the oldest and weakest French ships. They had been
ready to engage with the seaward battery and were caught with their guns
not even run out. Several had opponents on either side. It was now dark
and the Bellerophon engaged the Orient. The Majestic went on to engage
L'Heureux
and ended up exchanging broadsides with Le Mercure. The three rear
French ships were left without opponents. At this time, with victory already
certain, Nelson was wounded. He was on deck again later and retained command."
The L'Heureux with 74 guns and 700 men surrendered to the British.
Further readings
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