“Thémis” - French frigate (1799)

[Anatol]

The stamp image is based on a painting by artist Antoine Roux: “Themis with Santa Ana in tow in the aftermath of the Battle of Trafalgar.” On the stamp, “Themis” is mistakenly called “Santa Ana”
Santa Ana was a 112-gun three-decker ship of the line of the Spanish Navy, built to plans drawn by engineer Miguel de la Puente, following a specification issued by José Romero Fernández de Landa.She was launched on 28 September 1784 at the Reales Astilleros de Esteiro, at Ferrol. She was tested at sea on 28 February 1785 under the captaincy of Félix de Tejada, who reported the test to his commanding officer that the ship "kept the battery in good use [even] in a fresh wind and heavy seas". The success of the trials led to a royal order that subsequent three-deckers would be built to the same plans.
French frigate "Themis" launched at Rochefort in 1799 and commissioned in 1801, she took part in the Battle of Cape Finisterre (22 July 1805) and in the Battle of Trafalgar (21 October 1805). During Trafalgar she was commanded by Captain Nicolas Joseph Pierre Jugan. After the battle she towed damaged the Spanish ships of the line Principe de Asturias and Santa Ana to safety in Cádiz.
The squadron's mission was to break out from Cadiz into the Atlantic and raid British merchant shipping. It included other French frigates that survived Trafalgar: “Hermione”, “Hortensia” (frigate Lamellerie), “Rin” and the brig “Furet”. Following the escape from Cádiz, the remaining four ships of the squadron sailed southwards, reaching the French African trading post of Senegal in March and then crossing the Atlantic to Cayenne, French Guiana arriving on 27 March. Taking on fresh supplies, the squadron sailed from Cayenne on 7 April and operated with limited success against British merchant shipping in the Caribbean Sea, including 15 days cruising off Barbados. Retiring to the Spanish colony of Puerto Rico, Lamellerie resupplied his ships again in preparation for the journey back to France. On 18 May the squadron sailed for home. During the six months expedition the squadron did not cause significant disruption to British trade. On 27 July, as they neared Rochefort, the squadron were spotted by a British ship of the line which chased the French squadron through the night and into the next morning, by which time the Rhin had fallen behind the others and was captured. The other ships became separated and Thémis was the only one to reach the intended destination of Rochefort (the other two frigates ended up in Bordeaux).
In January 1808 Thémis was sailing in the Atlantic before returning to the Mediterranean. After passing by Gibraltar on 17 March, she raided commerce with the French frigate Pénélope and sailed to Toulon. From there, she was tasked to ferry supplies to Corfu, along with the Pauline. She was trapped there and eventually seized by the British when they captured the island.
Barbuda 2019; 4$. Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_fr ... mis_(1799). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_s ... Ana_(1784).