Kriegmeister

Hello everyone, I recently purchased the 1/150 Le Glorieux. The kit features a representation of copper sheathing below the waterline, and I'm curious if this would have been accurate. I admit my knowledge of ship construction - and this particular ship - is somewhat limited when compared to other subjects, as I usually model aircraft and armour. However, I've learned from books about the age of sale that the French applied copper as a general practice some years after the Royal Navy. Was it not this fact that gave the RN an edge, notably in the warmer waters where Glorieux was taken as a prize during the Battle of the Saintes? Given her service record, and the date she was lost in a storm, I suspect she never saw copper, retaining the white paint below the water line. But like I said, I'm not that well versed in nautical construction from that period. I know Heller released Glorieux and Superbe, and that by and large these are the same kit. I've so far been able to determine that Glorieux never sailed in the post-Revolutionary Marine Française, but that Superbe did indeed. I've also gathered from my research online that the waterline at the stern does not reflect the way which the copper plates were applied (at least on Superbe), and that either way some detail will have to be removed and replaced to correct it. Did Heller mould Glorieux with copper sheathing for the sake of the Superbe kit? I look forward to your insights. Matt