17 March 1757. A 1755 Admiralty review of Plymouth Dockyard had found it inefficient, poorly staffed, and suffering from "notorious neglect," but work on Brilliant proceeded apace and she was completed by early October 1757. Crew Her designated complement was 240 men, comprising four commissioned officers a captain and three lieutenants overseeing 50 warrant and petty officers, 108 naval ratings, 44 Marines, and 34 servants and other ranks. Among these other ranks were five positions reserved for widow's men fictitious crew members whose pay was intended to be reallocated to the families of sailors who died at sea. Armament Brilliants principal armament consisted of 26 cast iron twelve-pound cannons, located along her upper deck. The guns were specifically constructed with short barrels, as traditional 12-pounder cannons were too long to fit within the frigate's narrow beam. Each cannon weighed with a gun barrel length of , compared with their equivalent in larger Royal Navy vessels. The 12-pounder guns were supported by ten 6-pounder guns, eight on the quarterdeck and two on the forecastle, each weighing with a barrel length of . Taken together, the 12-pounder and 6-pounder cannons provided a broadside weight of . She was also equipped with twelve ½-pounder swivel guns for anti-personnel use. These swivel guns were mounted in fixed positions on the quarterdeck and forecastle. Royal Navy service Privateer hunter Brilliant was commissioned in October 1757 under the command of post-captain Hyde Parker and entering Navy service during the early stages of the Seven Years' War against France. Her first engagement was on 19 December 1757 when, in company with the 28-gun , she encountered the French privateer Diamond. A contemporary report described the Quebec-built Diamond as "a very fine vessel" of 200 tons burthen, carrying 14 carriage guns and a cargo of furs. Diamond opened fire on Brilliant as she approached, but before the British could retaliate the French vessel exploded and sank. The detonation was assumed to have been caused by sparks flying back from the privateer's guns and igniting her powder magazine. Only 24 of Diamonds 70 crew survived the explosion. These men were hauled aboard Brilliant and Coventry as prisoners of war. On 24 December Brilliant and Coventry encountered their second privateer, the 24-gun Le Dragon. There was a brief exchange of fire in which four French sailors were killed and up to 12 wounded, against six wounded men aboard Coventry. After