HMS Auguste (1705)
Introduction '''HMS ''Auguste''''' was the French 54-gun ''Auguste'' built in Brest in 1704 that the British captured in 1705.In her brief French service she captured two British men-of-war. She was wrecked in 1716.
French service Étienne Hubac designed ''Auguste'' as a privateer for René Duguay-Trouin. in whose service she was employed as part of a naval squadron of four vessels. Together with the 54-gun ''Jason'' (1704), she captured  in September 1704.Then, on 12 November,  30 miles south of the Isles of Scilly, together with ''Jason'' and the 26-gun frigate ''Valeur'' (1704), she captured the third rate . In February 1705 ''Auguste'' and the 44-gun fourth-rate ''Thétis'' were escorting ''Gloutonne'', ''Élephant'', and ''Jean et Jacques'' (which were armed ''en flute''), when the convoy ran into a squadron under Admiral George Byng off Cape Finisterre. Only ''Auguste'' escaped., together with  and , captured ''Auguste'' on 8 August 1705 (Old Style Calendar) - 19 August (New Calendar).
British service ''Auguste'' was registered for Royal Navy service from 28 August 1705 and fitted out for service in the English Channel. Commissioned for active service by Captain Robert Bokenham, she proved her worth by capturing the French privateers ''La Marie-Madeleine'' on 13 September 1706, and ''LHirondelle'' on 30 September 1706.Bokenham died in 1707 and Captain Thomas Scott replaced him. The next year, ''Auguste'' joined the fleet of Admiral George Byng, which was in need of reinforcement after the Scilly naval disaster of 1707.The fleet patrolled the Channel and the North Sea throughout 1708.In 1709, Lord Duffus replaced Scott. From 1710 to 1713, she was under the command of Captain Robert Thompson in the Dunkirk squadron (1710), the Mediterranean (1711), and the West Indies (1712).
Loss In 1716, while under the command of Captain Robert Johnson, ''Auguste'' was in the Baltic. She had sailed from Nore on 18 May with a squadron under Sir John Norris to join a combined English-Dutch-Danish-Russian fleet in a demonstration to Sweden that Britain and her allies would resist Swedish interference with trade.In November she was returning to England from Copenhagen with a convoy. As the weather worsened, the convoy took shelter on the evening of 9 November at Læsø island. During the night ''Auguste''s cables broke and she sailed out to sea to avoid being driven on shore. On the night of 10 November a gale drove her ashore on the nearby island of Anholt. Captain Johnson, his officers, and at least 250 of his men were saved. Another 40 may have landed in Sweden. In all, most of her people were saved.
See also *List of ships captured in the 18th century*Bibliography of 18th-19th century Royal Naval history*List of early warships of the English navy
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