HMS Resolution fought aggressively enough to capture the French 80-gun Formidable before Resolution herself was lost on a shoal. The prize therefore replaced the wrecked 74-gun ship with a larger vessel in Royal Navy service. Formidable also became an enduring British warship name, later carried by other ships including an aircraft carrier. The episode shows how capture and incorporation of enemy ships could partly offset a victor’s own material losses.
Notable Point · 3:39:38-3:40:30
Resolution captures her larger replacement before wrecking
The 74-gun HMS Resolution captured the French 80-gun Formidable before wrecking, leaving the Royal Navy with a larger prize and an enduring ship name.