| History | |
|---|---|
 France | |
| Name | Aurore |
| Namesake | Aurora |
| Ordered | 31 March 1766[1] |
| Builder | Rochefort[1] |
| Laid down | September 1766[1] |
| Launched | 23 November 1768[1] |
| In service | 1769 |
| Captured | Surrendered to the British by Royalist traitors in August 1793[1] |
 Great Britain | |
| Name | HMS Aurora |
| Acquired | August 1793 |
| Fate | Broken up 1803 |
| General characteristics | |
| Tons burthen | 600 tons[1] |
| Length | 44.2 metres |
| Beam | 11.2 metres |
| Draught | 5.7 metres |
| Sail plan | Full-rigged ship |
| Armament |
|
Aurore was a frigate of the French Navy
Aurore was ordered on 31 March 1766 as Envieuse, and renamed to Aurore in February 1767, while still under construction.[1]
Aurore took part in the 1772 edition of the Escadre d'évolution under Captain de La Tullaye.[1][2]
On 16 July 1778, she departed Toulon under Captain Bompar[3] for a mission in the Mediterranean, as part of a squadron under Louis de Fabry de Fabrègues.[1]
On 20 January 1779, Aurore recaptured the storeship Heureux Jérôme, that the British had taken as prize, and brought her to Toulon.[1]
In October 1779, Aurore departed Marseille under Joseph de Flotte, escorting a 26-ship convoy bound for Martinique, ferrying supplies for the French colonies of the Caribbeans and for the division under Chef d'Escadre Lamotte-Picquet.[4] Arriving in Saint Lucia channel, the body of water between the islands of Saint Lucia and Martinique,[5] the convoy met a 13-ship British squadron under Admiral Hyde Parker. The British gave chase, and Lamotte scrambled to cover the escape of the convoy, leading to the Battle of Martinique.[6]
In 1780, she sailed from the Caribbean to Cadiz to take part in the Great Siege of Gibraltar.[1]
In 1793, she was surrendered to the British by Royalist insurgents that had seized control of the city and harbour of Toulon.[1]
The British removed her when they evacuated Toulon and the ship was renamed Aurora. She was hulked as a prison ship in 1799 at Gibraltar and was broken up there in 1803.[7]