the Royal Navy took into service as Admiral Rainier. Battle of Vizagapatam By September 1804, Admiral Peter Rainier, the commander of the fleet Centurion was attached to, had become concerned about the presence of a French squadron in the area under Contre-Admiral Charles-Alexandre Durand Linois which was raiding British shipping. He therefore substituted the small frigate HMS Wilhelmina with the Centurion as a convoy escort for a small convoy of two East Indiamen, the Barnaby and the Princess Charlotte. The convoy was anchored at Vizagapatam early on 15 September when Linois's squadron approached the harbour. The Centurions acting commander, James Lind was ashore, leaving Lieutenant James Robert Phillips in command. Phillips sighted the approaching ships and, suspecting them to be French, opened fire. Linois continued to approach, causing one of the East Indiamen to run ashore, where she was wrecked, while Lind hurried to return to his ship. The three main French ships, the 74-gun Marengo and the frigates Sémillante and Atalante, continued to approach under fire from Centurion and the shore batteries protecting the harbour. When the French frigates came within , Phillips opened fire on Atalante as Sémillante attempted to reach the other side of the British ship and surround her. Linois did not want to risk the Marengo when there might be uncharted shoals about, and so he fired from a longer range. After several hours of fighting Centurion had suffered severe damage. She had been severely holed, with her rigging wrecked and her anchor cable shot through, which caused her to slowly drift away from the shore, out of control. The French took the opportunity to capture the remaining East Indiaman and withdraw from the harbour. The Centurion lost one man killed and nine wounded. The French suffered slightly heavier losses, Marengo losing two men killed and an officer wounded and Atalante three killed and five wounded. Sémillante, which had not been closely engaged in the battle, suffered no casualties. Damage to the French ships was severe, and Linois was forced to abandon further operations. Both nations claimed the encounter as a victory, the French for the capture of the East Indiaman and the British for the survival of Centurion in the face of overwhelming French numerical superiority. Retirement from active service Centurion did not remain much longer in the East Indies, being sent home in November as needing an extensive repairs, due at least in