Lutine was a frigate which served in both the French Navy and the Royal Navy. She was launched by the French in 1779. The ship passed to British control in 1793 and was taken into service as HMS Lutine. She sank among the West Frisian Islands during a storm in 1799.
She was built as a French Magicienne-class frigate with 32 guns, and was launched at Toulon in 1779. During the French Revolution, Lutine came under French Royalist control. On 18 December 1793, she was one of sixteen ships handed over to a British fleet at the end of the Siege of Toulon, to prevent her being captured by the French Republicans. In 1795, she was rebuilt by the British as a fifth-rate frigate with 38 guns. She served thereafter in the North Sea, where she was part of the blockade of Amsterdam.
Lutine sank during a storm at Vlieland in the West Frisian Islands on 9 October 1799, whilst carrying a large shipment of gold. Shifting sandbanks disrupted salvage attempts, and the majority of the cargo has never been recovered. Lloyd's of London has preserved her salvaged bell – the Lutine Bell – which is now used for ceremonial purposes at their headquarters in London.
1799Oct, 9
Sinking of HMS Lutine with the loss of 240 men and a cargo worth £1,200,000.
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Events on 1799
- 9Jan
William Pitt the Younger
British Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger introduces an income tax of two shillings to the pound to raise funds for Great Britain's war effort in the Napoleonic Wars. - 4May
Battle of Seringapatam
Fourth Anglo-Mysore War: The Battle of Seringapatam: The siege of Seringapatam ends when the city is invaded and Tipu Sultan killed by the besieging British army, under the command of General George Harris. - 27May
Battle of Winterthur (1799)
War of the Second Coalition: Austrian forces defeat the French at Winterthur, Switzerland. - 25Jul
Battle of Abukir (1799)
At Abu Qir in Egypt, Napoleon I of France defeats 10,000 Ottomans under Mustafa Pasha. - 19Sep
Battle of Bergen (1799)
French Revolutionary Wars: French-Dutch victory against the Russians and British in the Battle of Bergen.