Battle of Doro Passage
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Doro Passage was a naval engagement during the United States
Navy's operation against Greek
pirates
in the Aegean Sea
. On October 16 of 1827 a British
merchantship was attacked by pirates in Doro Passage
off the islands of Andros
and Negroponte
but was retaken by American sailors.
changed the balance of sea power in the Mediterranean Sea
to shift against the Ottoman Empire
. This led to a rise in piracy particularly among the Greek islands in the Aegean. In 1825 after several American merchant ships had been attacked the American navy sent a squadron of warships to protect American interests and hunt pirates. Lieutenant
Benjamin Cooper commanded the twelve gun schooner
USS Porpoise
in October 1827 and was in the process of escorting a convoy of five American ships and six others from Syrma to Malta
. At dusk on October 16 the convoy was sailing through Doro Passage when suddenly the wind came to a calm. The British brig
Comet had fallen behind and now that the wind was gone she drifted away from the rest of the convoy and was attacked by 200 to 300 Greek pirates in five boats called mistikos. In general the mistikos were small but fast three masted galleys armed with one bow gun.
The pirates quickly took control of Comet and put most of the crew in chains before attempting to flee back to the islands from which they came. The British captain
and some crewmen managed to lower a boat and paddle to the Porpoise which was heading back to find the Comet after the Americans heard shooting. Lieutenant Conner gave the order to open fire and give chase to the Greeks who were trying to tow the Comet away but because of the calm, the sailors had to propel their ship by oars. When this failed to close the range, Lieutenant Cooper dispatched four boats with thirty-five men under the command of Lieutenant Louis M. Goldsborough
. With boats the Americans felt they could close the range faster and cut out the captured brig. It was now a dark night so when the Greeks opened fire on the approaching boats they had trouble hitting their targets and throughout the action no Americans were hurt.
During the boarding a wardroom
steward
killed eleven of the pirates singlehandedly, Lieutenant John A. Carr killed the pirate leader and several others with his pistol. Ultimately eighty to ninety pirates became casualties and the remaining escaped to shore in their boats. Lieutenant Goldsborough received recognition for winning the largest battle of the American campaign in the Aegean and a message of thanks from the British government.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Navy's operation against Greek
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
pirates
Piracy
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence at sea. The term can include acts committed on land, in the air, or in other major bodies of water or on a shore. It does not normally include crimes committed against persons traveling on the same vessel as the perpetrator...
in the Aegean Sea
Aegean Sea
The Aegean Sea[p] is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea located between the southern Balkan and Anatolian peninsulas, i.e., between the mainlands of Greece and Turkey. In the north, it is connected to the Marmara Sea and Black Sea by the Dardanelles and Bosporus...
. On October 16 of 1827 a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
merchantship was attacked by pirates in Doro Passage
Cape Kafireas
Cape Kafireas , also known as Cavo D'Oro is a promontory on the southeastern tip of the island of Euboea in the Aegean Sea. With the nearby island of Andros, it forms the Kafireas Straits, which in earlier times was one of the most dangerous areas for shipping in the entire Aegean....
off the islands of Andros
Andros
Andros, or Andro is the northernmost island of the Greek Cyclades archipelago, approximately south east of Euboea, and about north of Tinos. It is nearly long, and its greatest breadth is . Its surface is for the most part mountainous, with many fruitful and well-watered valleys. The area is...
and Negroponte
Negroponte
Negroponte can refer to:*the Greek island of Euboea, called Negroponte in Italian**Chalkis, the island's capital, named Negroponte during the Middle Ages...
but was retaken by American sailors.
Battle
The Greek War of IndependenceGreek War of Independence
The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution was a successful war of independence waged by the Greek revolutionaries between...
changed the balance of sea power in the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
to shift against the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
. This led to a rise in piracy particularly among the Greek islands in the Aegean. In 1825 after several American merchant ships had been attacked the American navy sent a squadron of warships to protect American interests and hunt pirates. Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
Benjamin Cooper commanded the twelve gun schooner
Schooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
USS Porpoise
USS Porpoise (1820)
The first USS Porpoise was a topsail schooner in the United States Navy.Porpoise was built in 1820 at the Portsmouth Navy Yard, Kittery, Maine...
in October 1827 and was in the process of escorting a convoy of five American ships and six others from Syrma to Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
. At dusk on October 16 the convoy was sailing through Doro Passage when suddenly the wind came to a calm. The British brig
Brig
A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
Comet had fallen behind and now that the wind was gone she drifted away from the rest of the convoy and was attacked by 200 to 300 Greek pirates in five boats called mistikos. In general the mistikos were small but fast three masted galleys armed with one bow gun.
The pirates quickly took control of Comet and put most of the crew in chains before attempting to flee back to the islands from which they came. The British captain
Captain (naval)
Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The NATO rank code is OF-5, equivalent to an army full colonel....
and some crewmen managed to lower a boat and paddle to the Porpoise which was heading back to find the Comet after the Americans heard shooting. Lieutenant Conner gave the order to open fire and give chase to the Greeks who were trying to tow the Comet away but because of the calm, the sailors had to propel their ship by oars. When this failed to close the range, Lieutenant Cooper dispatched four boats with thirty-five men under the command of Lieutenant Louis M. Goldsborough
Louis M. Goldsborough
Louis Malesherbes Goldsborough was a rear admiral in the United States Navy during the Civil War. He held several sea commands during the Civil War, including the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron...
. With boats the Americans felt they could close the range faster and cut out the captured brig. It was now a dark night so when the Greeks opened fire on the approaching boats they had trouble hitting their targets and throughout the action no Americans were hurt.
During the boarding a wardroom
Wardroom
The wardroom is the mess-cabin of naval commissioned officers above the rank of Midshipman. The term the wardroom is also used to refer to those individuals with the right to occupy that wardroom, meaning "the officers of the wardroom"....
steward
Steward's Assistant
A steward's assistant is an unlicensed, entry-level crewmember in the Steward's department of a merchant ship. This position can also be referred to as steward , galley utilityman, messman, supply or waiter.The role of the SA consists mainly of stocking, cleaning and assisting with the...
killed eleven of the pirates singlehandedly, Lieutenant John A. Carr killed the pirate leader and several others with his pistol. Ultimately eighty to ninety pirates became casualties and the remaining escaped to shore in their boats. Lieutenant Goldsborough received recognition for winning the largest battle of the American campaign in the Aegean and a message of thanks from the British government.