On 11 October 1797 the Staaten Generaal took part in the Battle of Camperdown as the flagship of Vice-Admiral Samuel Story.

The ship was engaged by HMS Venerable, Admiral Adam Duncan's flagship, and caught fire twice.

The fire was extinguished both times, but the Staaten Generaal drifted away from the battle and was unable to continue the fight in a favourable position.

Upon her return to the Cape, she underwent inspection and was found to be in poor condition, and was turned into a hulked gun platform.

British Commodore Sir Home Popham, in a letter published in the London Gazette, reported ”French Ship Atalante, of 40 Guns, and Batavian Ship Bato, of 68 Guns: Destroyed by the Enemy running them on Shore when the Cape was attacked, January 10, 1806.”[4] The wreck of the Bato was recently discovered.