Dutch ship Vrijheid

Vrijheid (left) at the Battle of Camperdown
History
Dutch Republic
Name	Vrijheid
Launched	1782
Commissioned	1782
Decommissioned	1795
Batavian Republic
Name	Vrijheid
Commissioned	1795
In service	1795
Captured	11 October 1797
Great Britain
Name	HMS Vryheid
Acquired	1797
Commissioned	1797
Decommissioned	1811
Reclassified	Prison ship in 1798 Powder hulk from 1802
Fate	Disposed in 1811
General characteristics
Class & type	74-gun ship of the line
Propulsion	Sails
Sail plan	Full-rigged ship
Armament	74 Guns

Vrijheid was a 74-gun ship of the line of the Dutch States Navy. The order to construct the ship was given by the Admiralty of Amsterdam. The ship was commissioned in 1782. In 1783, a squadron consisting of the ships Vrijheid, Noordholland, Hercules, Drenthe, Prins Willem and Harlingen was dispatched to the Mediterranean to deal with differences that had arisen with Venice. On 2 February 1784, the squadron docked at the coast near the island of Menorca. In the night between 3 and 4 February, a storm struck which lasted for 48 hours. Vrijheid was almost smashed on the rocks and only just managed to stay afloat, while Drenthe keeled over and sank.

Model of Vrijheid

In 1795, the ship was commissioned in the Batavian Navy. On 11 October 1797, Vrijheid took part in the Battle of Camperdown as the flagship of Admiral Jan Willem de Winter. At a certain point, Vrijheid was engaged by four British ships, and after heavy fighting the ship surrendered. The ship was renamed HMS Vryheid, and from 1798 she served as a prison ship. In 1802, she became a powder hulk until she was sold in 1811.