Jean Bart Totally Explained

Everything about Jean Bart totally explained

ť For other Jeans Bart, see Jean Bart (disambiguation).

Jean Bart (October 21 1651 - April 27 1702) - was a French naval commander and privateer. His birth name was most probably Jan Baert.

Career

Born in Dunkirk as the son of a simple fisherman, Bart served when young in the Dutch navy under De Ruyter.
When war broke out between Louis XIV and the United Provinces in 1672 he entered the French service, as one of the Dunkirk Privateers. He gained great distinction in the Mediterranean, where he held an irregular sort of commission, unable due to his low birth to receive a command in the navy.
He had such success, however, that he became a lieutenant in 1679. He rose rapidly to the rank of captain and then to that of admiral.
He achieved his greatest successes during the War of the Grand Alliance (1688 - 1697).

In 1689, in the beginning of this war he was captured by the English, together with Claude de Forbin, and taken to Plymouth. But 3 days later, they succeeded in escaping to Brittany in a rowing boat, together with 20 other sailors.

In 1691 he slipped through the blockade of Dunkirk, terrorizing the allied merchant fleet and burning a Scottish castle and four villages.

In 1694 he achieved his greatest success in the Action of 29 June 1694, when he captured a huge convoy of Dutch grain ships, saving Paris from starvation.

In 1696 he struck another blow against the Dutch in the Battle of Dogger Bank (1696). The Peace of Ryswick (1697) put a close to his active service.

Marriage and children

On February 3 1676 he married the 16-year-old Nicole Gontier.
They had 4 children, until Nicole died 6 years later in 1682.
Their oldest son François-Cornil (June 17 1676- ?) became vice-admiral.
On October 13 1689 he remarried Jacoba Tugghe and they'd 10 children. He signed his marriage contract, which is still available in Dunkirk, with the name "Jan Baert".
Jean Bart died of pleurisy and is buried in the Eglise Saint-Eloi in Dunkirk.

Legacy

Many anecdotes tell of the courage and bluntness of the 2,04 m tall, uncultivated sailor, who became the popular hero of the French naval service. He captured in total 386 ships and also sank or burned a great number of enemy ships. The town of Dunkirk has honoured his memory by erecting a statue and by naming a public square after him.
In World War II 70% of Dunkirk was completely destroyed, but the statue survived.

Ships bearing the name Jean Bart

More than 27 ships of the French Navy, over a period of 200 years, have borne the name Jean Bart. These include:

Jean Bart (1788) - 74-gun ship of the line

Jean Bart (1811) - 74-gun ship of the line

Jean Bart (1886) - First class cruiser of 4800 tonnes

Jean Bart (1910) - 23,600 tonne battleship; the first French dreadnought

Jean Bart (1940) - 50,000 tonne battleship armed with 380mm guns. Although launched in 1940, the ship didn't get fitted out and completed until 1955, having spent much of the Second World War in dock at Casablanca; the last French battleship completed

Jean Bart (1988) - Anti-aircraft frigate, still in service with the French Navy

Commercial products branded Jean Bart

Jean Bart shoe polish

Jean Bart in popular culture

Jean Bart appears as a character in the Baroque Cycle by Neal StephensonFurther Information

Get more info on 'Jean Bart'.

External Link Exchanges

Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:

<a href="http://jean_bart.totallyexplained.com">Jean Bart Totally Explained</a>

Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned.