Antoine René Thévenard (1766 – 1 August 1798, on the Aquilon, in Aboukir[1]) was a French Navy officer. His name is written "Henri-Alexandre Thévenard" in some English sources.[2]
In early 1793, he captained the frigate Insurgente with the rank of Lieutenant, and escorted a convoy from Nantes to Brest.[3] He was promoted to Captain in the summer of the same year[3] and appointed to the frigate Révolutionnaire.[4] He took part in the action of 21 October 1794, where a squadron under Sir Edward Pellew captured Révolutionnaire.
In 1795, Thévenard was appointed to command of the 74-gun Wattignies, on which he sailed from Lorient to Île-d'Aix.[9]
In 1796, Thévenard led the naval division of Saint-Domingue, with his flag on Wattignies;[10] he was promoted to chef de division in the same year.[10] In December, he took part in the Expédition d'Irlande.
Thévenard commanded the 74-gun Aquilon at the battle of the Nile. Early in the battle he used the spring on his anchor cable to angle his broadside into a raking position across the bow of Nelson's flagship, HMS Vanguard, which consequently suffered over 100 casualties, including Nelson, wounded by a piece of shot in the forehead.
Thévenard was killed on the first day of the battle; HMS Minotaur captured Aquilon.[11][12]
Roche, Jean-Michel (2005). Dictionnaire des bâtiments de la flotte de guerre française de Colbert à nos jours 1 1671 - 1870. Roche. p. 84. ISBN978-2-9525917-0-6. OCLC165892922.
