The Battle of Cape Flamborough Head is the most famous naval battle in the United States during the American Revolutionary War . Commodore John Paul Jones defeated Captain Pearson ( HMS Serapis ) at Bonne Homme Richard . Subsequently, the battle was surrounded by many legends and became a symbol of the birth of the American Navy.
Cape Flamborough Head | |||
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Main Conflict: US War of Independence | |||
Cape Flamborough Head | |||
date | September 23, 1779 | ||
A place | North Sea | ||
Total | the victory of the Americans | ||
Opponents | |||
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Forces of the parties | |||
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Content
Background to the battle
In 1779, a small compound of American warships under the command of the "father of the American Navy," Captain John Paul Jones , operated off the coast of Great Britain and Ireland .
His squadron consisted of the frigate Alliance (36 cannons) built in the USA and four ships bought by the US ambassador Benjamin Franklin with funds received from private individuals in France: the flagship Bonn Richard (42 cannons), Palace frigate (32 cannons), Vanjons brigantines (12 cannons) and Le Cerf boats. In addition, two privates acted in conjunction with John Paul Jones, but they left the squadron after Jones captured the prize of one of the French privateers.
The task of the connection was to damage English shipping, including short sea shipping .
The crews of the ships consisted of both Americans and French volunteers, and even of the British, captured on captured ships and expressing their consent to take part in attacks on merchant ships. There were also Malays, Portuguese and Maltese at Bon Ricard .
The captains of all ships (except the Bon Bon Richard ) were the French.
At about six o’clock in the evening on September 23, 1779, the Americans noticed many sails: it was a convoy of 40 merchant ships of the Moscow company guarded by a 44-gun ship of the 4th rank Serapis and a private armed ship , County of Scarborough (20 guns).
Similar convoys transported wood and iron ore from Russia and Norway to the ports of southern England.
Battle Progress
Serapis captain Richard Pearson was warned of the presence of American privates off the coast of eastern England, but John Paul Jones's ships sailed under English flags, which allowed Bon Richard to approach the convoy.
Nevertheless, Pearson took a position between the approaching unknown ship and the convoy vessels, and also ordered the County of Scarborough to come closer.
The captain of the Alliance , Pierre Landet, being an experienced naval officer, began to bypass the Serapis , intending to approach the "merchants" from the leeward side. The County of Scarborough headed for his interception - so the Serapis was left alone to confront the rest of the ships of the Jones squadron.
When the ships approached the distance of the pistol shot, the English captain formally demanded to introduce himself, indicate the name and nationality of the ships. In response, at about 8 p.m. there was a Bonom Richard side air salvo, followed by the same Alliance barrage at the County of Scarborough .
The first minutes of the battle were unsuccessful for the captain "Bon Richard . " Two of his guns immediately burst, with the gunners also killing. A fire broke out on board.
In the course of the subsequent artillery duel, the superiority gradually passed to Pearson, but at about 8.30 pm the Alliance approached the help of Bon Bon Richard , who transferred the battle from the County of Scarborough to the captain of the Palace Cottinier and the captain of Vanjons Rico. However, Lande initially maneuvered, and when the Bonom Richard and Serapis mated, showed excessive activity, and his guns hit not only the Serapis , but also the Simpleton Richard, making many holes, including below the waterline .
A fire broke out at Bonn Richard , but Serapis also lost track, losing one mast.
In the end, around 22.30 , the Bon Bon Richard managed to get close to the Serapis and grapple with the sides, after which the crews met in hand-to-hand combat.
When it became clear that both ships under Lande’s fire lost control and are drowning, while Jones prefers to drown, but does not give up, the British capitulated themselves to save the lives of British captives aboard Richard the Simpleton, and Serapis , which was saved from flooding, became Jones's trophy.
The ships of the convoy managed to hide in the nearest ports.
After the battle
The Bonom Richard received a lot of damage, and at 11 am on September 25, despite the team’s struggle for the survivability of the ship, he went under water.
After this battle, the Jones squadron took refuge in Dutch waters , arriving on October 3 on Texel Island.
The Netherlands officially supported neutrality, but the British ambassador, Sir Joseph York, insisted on recognizing Jones as a pirate - with a corresponding attitude.
The Dutch did not want to take part in the brewing diplomatic conflict, and began to force the Americans to leave their territory - formally, port authorities could require confirmation of the nationality of the ship from official representatives of the state of its flag, but at that time the United Provinces did not yet maintain diplomatic relations with the United States .
As a result, Jones was forced to donate Serapis as a gift to the French crown, for which he was even awarded the audience of Louis XVI .
Captain Lande was accused of cowardice, as John Paul Jones informed Benjamin Franklin in a letter. Lande himself, after these accusations by Cottinier, challenged the latter to a duel and killed him.
Upon returning to England, Captain Pearson was greeted with honor: although he was captured, he was able to sink the enemy flagship in battle and, most importantly, did not allow the capture of convoy ships. In addition, Pearson was supported by the owners of trading companies, whose vessels were part of the attacked convoy.
Pearson even received a knighthood, and in 1782 the Royal Navy accepted the new 4th-class Serapis ship.
In honor of John Paul Johnson and his victory over Serapis, the US Congress issued a gold medal.
Interesting Facts
- The flag under which Jones brought Serapis to Holland, so as not to be recognized as a pirate, was created according to a written description, and as a result had a look that was different from that adopted by the US Congress . However, it was one of the first US flags seen in Europe.