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Book contract signed and got a nice advance from the publisher. Yay ! Good for a week in the Keys with the Argentine sweetie.

Outstanding! Getting published is a helluva achievement!

I'd ask for an autographed copy, but I fear it will read along the line of random quark physics to my sad old brain.

LOL, Lecivius. But nope, no quantum Fiziks. [:D]

It’s a complete set of building draughts for the 1794 French frigate Virginie, designed by Jacques-Noël Sané, constructed from period records in the archives at Le Service Historique de la Défense at Vincennes. Besides the construction plans, it also has a comparison of design and construction techniques with a contemporary 1796 British frigate, for which the construction plans were published a few years ago.

It’s a project I’ve been working on for two years. Another forum member, Francois Charton (fcharton) provided invaluable assistance by his personal interaction with the people at SHD. When you need something from France, there’s simply no substitute for a charming Frenchman. [8D]

Seems bizarre, but there’s whole libraries of this stuff for British ships, and the American frigates, but almost nothing on the standard French frigate of the Napoleonic period. Not to mention that I think they were the most graceful and elegant expression of the ship designer’s art that ever sailed. I got Ed Tosti’s book on Naiad, and just had to do the same for Virginie.

Ciao. JWE

I for one am interested. Please let me know when it comes out. I can't find much (yet) on this class. I'm curious if this was the first of the French 44 designs that came out in response to the U.S. frigates that were causing such a stir in this time frame. Anywho, off to the internet!

You won't find it there. Everyone's frigates were rated differently, at the time. USS Chesapeake was "rated" 36; HMS Shannon was "rated" 38; FS Virginie was "rated" 40. They were all within 4 feet of one another in length. They all had an identical main battery of 28 x 18 pounders. They differed somewhat in the number of "long" guns they wre "rated" to carry on the quarter and forecastle decks (thus the "rate"), but their actual armament consisted of damn near an identical number of 24# or 32# carronades and a couple long 8#, 9# or 12# chase guns on the f'castle (42 to 46 actual tubes, total). "Rate" was predicated on long guns. Once ships started replacing long guns with carronades, the whole "rate" thing went to poop.[8D]

JWE

Congratulations and good luck with the book.

Ray

Congratulations!

Francois

Congratulations.

ORIGINAL: Symon

Book contract signed and got a nice advance from the publisher. Yay !

That's awesome, John!!! Super!!!

Just got back a few days ago from P'cola (Flounders, Hemmingway's),
Gulf Shores (Orig Oyster House, Pink Pony and other unmentionables),
Causeway (Orig Oyster House, Blue Gill),
Mobile (Battle House Hotel, quick trip to BB60 machinery deck),
Biloxi (fishing, fishing, fishing),
New Orleans(National WW2 Museum for the 71st anniversary of D-Day - AWESOME!!!!!).

Great trip and awesome museum!!!!

Will be heading down again to Mobile soon. Hope to get to see ya next time!!!


TOMLABEL

Congratulations !

Not exactly Napoleonic period but you may know that the 1778 rebuilt french frigate L'Hermione (La Fayette's ship) is now at Annapolis.

http://www.hermione.com/en/home/

ORIGINAL: Skyland
Congratulations !
Not exactly Napoleonic period but you may know that the 1778 rebuilt french frigate L'Hermione (La Fayette's ship) is now at Annapolis.
http://www.hermione.com/en/home/

Thanks Skyland. Oh yeah, been following her since the keel was laid. Bunch of us boat modellers are going to hook up in Castine for her July visit. Wouldn't miss an opportunity to go aboard for all the world. And Castine is just the perfect place.

Bienvenue encore une fois L'Hermione, vive Lafayette
Ciao. John

Congrats John....I suspect I played "Wooden Ships and Iron Men" as long as anybody..both on the board and the 'puter....

Those were the days when men really had to know what they were doing just to "get around"...and actually seeing the projectile coming to take your life was a combat reality..

Just saw where one of the ship model community went aboard in Yorktown. He said the crew was all French and had very limited English. You couldn't go below, but he's a rigging freak, so that didn't matter too much. He did get to climb halfway up the mizzen shrouds. Guess we're going to have to polish up our schoolboy parlez-vous and start talking about galliards, fourcats, lisse d'hourdi, and maitre couple, and somehow maybe conn our way onto the gundeck or even, gasp, choke, le creux!! [:D]

Cool! Congratulations! [:)]

Am I the only one that can just look at that ship and feel...I dunno, is "cool" a good term?

ORIGINAL: Symon

Book contract signed and got a nice advance from the publisher. Yay ! Good for a week in the Keys with the Argentine sweetie.

That is AWESOME John! Just great!

Congrats on the book.

ORIGINAL: Lecivius
Am I the only one that can just look at that ship and feel...I dunno, is "cool" a good term?

Yes, 'cool' is a good term. But you look at her and a few other terms tend to insert themselves. Can you say elegance of line? Can you say artistry of construction? These were the most beautiful ships that ever sailed the seas. Thanks for your comments.

[ed] It's ok to get wierd on these wonderful ships. I too get a stiffy when I see her floating.

Ciao. JWE

John, you obviously love sailing ships like I do - so this is for you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KCHxVq ... EK&index=9

ORIGINAL: Big B
John, you obviously love sailing ships like I do - so this is for you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KCHxVq ... EK&index=9

Thank you very much Brian. Hadn't heard Swansea Town for ages and ages. Says what all sailors know/wish very well. Except her name wasn't Nancy.[8D]

Ciao. John