Naval operations in the American Revolutionary War
Encyclopedia
The naval operations of the American Revolutionary War
(also, mostly in British usage, American War of Independence), divide themselves naturally into two periods. The first ranges from 1775 until the summer of 1778, as the Royal Navy
was engaged in cooperating with the troops employed against the American revolutionaries
, on the coasts, rivers and lakes of North America
, or in endeavouring to protect British commerce against the enterprise of American privateer
s. During the second period, the successive interventions of France
, Spain
, and the Netherlands
extended the naval war until it ranged from the West Indies to the Bay of Bengal
. This second period lasted from the summer of 1778 to the middle of 1783, and it included operations already been in progress in America or for the protection of commerce, and naval campaigns on a great scale carried out by the fleets of the maritime powers.
had 131 ships of the line
, but the Royal Navy was in neglect from rapid and poor quality ship construction during the Seven Years' War
. It was estimated that only 39 ships of the line could be battle ready in the first year of a conflict. The administration of Lord Sandwich
, the First Lord of the Admiralty, had ambitious plans to upgrade the fleet, but this had not been completed when the war began. The naval force at the disposal of the British admirals commanding on the North American station was insufficient to patrol the long coastline. During the first three years of the war, therefore, the Royal Navy was primarily used in support of operations on land, aiding General Thomas Gage
and General Sir William Howe
during the siege of Boston
by seeking stores for the army and in supplying naval brigades. In one of these operations, the first naval engagement of the war, colonists in Machias, then part of Massachusetts (now in eastern Maine
), seized a British schooner in the Battle of Machias
on June 12, 1775.
At other points on the coast, the British navy was employed in punitive expeditions against coastal towns—such as the burning of Falmouth
(now Portland, Maine
) in October 1775—which served to exasperate rather than to weaken the enemy, or the unsuccessful attack
on Charleston, South Carolina
, in June 1776. It was wholly unequal to the task of blockading the many towns from which privateers could operate. British commerce and the movement of military supplies therefore suffered severely, even as far off as the Irish
coasts, where it was necessary to supply convoys to protect the Belfast linen trade.
mage:Admiral howe.gif|thumb|left|Admiral Lord Howe
was the British naval commander in America in 1776. He resigned in 1778, declining further service while Lord Sandwich
was First Lord of the Admiralty. He returned in 1782 and relieved the siege of Gibraltar
.
In June 1776 the largest expeditionary force ever launched to date began to arrive in New York Harbor
under Britain's Admiral Richard Howe. Eyewitnesses reported that it appeared "all of London was afloat" and the masts of so many ships appeared as a "forest." The fleet carried approximately 12,000 British soldiers and 9,000 German auxiliaries, which engaged the Continental Army
in the largest battle of the war, the Battle of Long Island
that August. Howe failed to secure the East River
at the Continental Army's rear
, which Washington exploited after his defeat to perform a tactical retreat to Manhattan
over the course of a single night, with all of his remaining troops and supplies intact."
In contrast to the British, the American colonists had no navy whatsoever. The lack of armed vessels to dispute British naval activities in coastal waters and to facilitate the seizure of commercial and military prize
s prompted individual colonies to commission armed vessels, and eventually led the Continental Congress
to authorize the creation of a small Continental Navy
on October 13, 1775. The Continental Navy never launched any ships of the line, so the small vessels were primarily used for commerce raiding
. On December 22, 1775, Esek Hopkins
was appointed the naval commander-in-chief
. With his small fleet, Hopkins led the first major naval action
of the Continental Navy, in early March 1776, against Nassau
, Bahamas, where stores of much-needed gunpowder were seized for the use of the Continental Army. On April 6, 1776, the squadron unsuccessfully encountered
the 20-gun HMS Glasgow
in the first major sea battle of the Continental Navy.
The Americans also relied heavily on privateering to harass British shipping, with some colonial assemblies taking the lead in authorizing such activity. On March 23, 1776, several months before the Declaration of American Independence, Congress authorized the issuance of letters of marque and reprisal
. American privateers took about 600 British vessels during the war. These privateers were not always working directly for the American cause, since prizes were often sold to the highest bidder, and the British sometimes bought back their own captured cargoes. On the other hand, although the British did not recognize the legality of American letters of marque they could not make good on threats to execute captured privateers for piracy
without inviting reprisals against British prisoners of war.
Captain John Paul Jones
soon emerged as the first well-known American naval hero, capturing the HMS Drake
on April 24, 1778, the first victory for any American military vessel in British waters. He also captured
the HMS Serapis
on September 23, 1779, while in command of the USS Bonhomme Richard
. In 1778, an American naval squadron led by Jones raided the Cumbria
n port of Whitehaven
. The landing was a surprise attack, taken as an action of revenge by Jones, and was never intended as an invasion. Nevertheless, it caused hysteria in England
, with the attack showing a weakness that could be exploited by more powerful states such as France or Spain. One consequence of the raid was an intense period of fortification in British ports.
In America, the British navy covered the retreat of the British Army from Boston
to Halifax
in March 1776, and then conveyed it to New York City
in June. It assisted in the expedition to Philadelphia
in July 1777. On the St Lawrence
and the Great Lakes
, it was able to play a more aggressive part. The relief of Quebec
by British Captain Charles Douglas in May 1776 forced the Continental Army to retreat. The destruction of Benedict Arnold
's squadron on Lake Champlain
in the October Battle of Valcour Island
secured the frontier of Quebec and supplied a basis for the advance of British General John Burgoyne
in 1777, which ended, however, in his surrender at Saratoga
.
Benjamin Franklin
had been in France for over a year before France decided to join the war. The surrender at Saratoga prompted the French, who had already given much covert help to the Americans, to openly enter the war as an American ally
. The rupture came in March when British ambassador Lord Stormont was recalled from Paris
, but since neither fleet was ready for service, actual hostilities did not begin until July.
The French government was somewhat more ready than the British. On April 13, it dispatched a squadron of twelve sail of the line and four frigates from Toulon
to America under the command of the Comte d'Estaing. No attempt was made to stop him in the Straits of Gibraltar, he passed them on May 16, and, though the rawness of his crews and his own error in wasting time in pursuit of prizes delayed his passage, he reached the mouth of the Delaware River
on July 8 without opposition.
The French government had three goals in view: to help the Americans win their independence; to expel the British from the West Indies; and to compel the British to concentrate the majority of their naval strength in the English Channel
. To convince the British of they were seriously planning an invasion of England, the French fitted out a second and more powerful fleet at Brest
under the command of Louis Guillouet, comte d'Orvilliers
.
The British government, having neglected to occupy the Straits of Gibraltar in time, despatched Admiral John Byron
from Plymouth
on June 9 with thirteen sail of the line to join Admiral Lord Howe, Sir William's brother, in America. He collected a strong force at home, called the Western Squadron, under Augustus Keppel
.
Keppel, after a preliminary cruise in June, brought d'Orvilliers to action off Brest on July 27, 1778, in the Battle of Ushant
. The fleets were equal and the action was indecisive, as the two forces merely passed one another, cannonading. A violent quarrel exacerbated by political differences broke out among the British commands, which led to two courts-martial and to the resignation of Keppel, and did great injury to the discipline of the navy. No further event of note occurred in European waters.
On the coast of America, the news of the approach of d'Estaing compelled the British commanders to evacuate Philadelphia
on June 18, 1778. Howe then concentrated his force of nine small line-of-battle ships at Sandy Hook on June 29, and on July 11, he learned that d'Estaing was approaching. The French admiral did not venture to make an attack, and on July 22, he sailed to cooperate with the Americans in an effort to expel
the British garrison from Rhode Island
. Howe, who had received a small reinforcement, followed. The French admiral, who had anchored above Newport
, came to sea to meet him, but both fleets were scattered by storms, suffering some damage. D'Estaing sailed to Boston on August 21 to effect repairs.
Howe received no help from Byron, whose badly equipped fleet was damaged and scattered by a gale on July 3 in the mid-Atlantic. His ships slowly arrived during September. Howe resigned on July 25 and was succeeded by Byron.
On November 4, 1778, d'Estaing sailed for the West Indies, to the surprise and consternation of the Americans, who hoped to launch operations against Halifax and Newfoundland. On the same day, Commodore William Hotham
was dispatched from New York to reinforce the British fleet in the West Indies. On September 7, the French governor of Martinique
, the Marquis de Bouille
, had surprised the British island of Dominica
. Admiral Samuel Barrington
, the British admiral in the Leeward Islands
, had retaliated by seizing Saint Lucia
on December 13-14, after the arrival of Hotham from North America. D'Estaing, who followed Hotham closely, was beaten off in two feeble attacks on Barrington at the Cul-de-Sac of Santa Lucia on December 15.
On January 6, 1779, Admiral Byron reached the West Indies. During the early part of this year the naval forces in the West Indies were mainly employed in watching one another. But in June, while Byron had gone to Antigua
to guard the trade convoy on its way home, d'Estaing first captured St Vincent
, and then Grenada
. Admiral Byron, who had returned, sailed in hopes of saving the island but arrived too late. An indecisive action
was fought off Grenada on July 6, 1779. The war died down in the West Indies. Byron returned home in August. D'Estaing, after co-operating unsuccessfully with the Americans in an attack
on Savannah, Georgia
in September, also returned to Europe.
by a combined French and Spanish fleet of 66 sail of the line, Spain having now joined the coalition against Britain. Only 35 sail of the line could be collected against them under the command of Sir Charles Hardy
. But they sailed late, had difficulties with disease and contrary winds, and ultimately withdrew. The allies retired early in September and were not even able to do significant harm to the British trade convoys. In the meantime, the Spaniards had also begun to besiege Gibraltar
.
The operations of 1780 continued without decisive battles. The British government, not feeling strong enough to blockade Brest and the Spanish ports, was compelled to regulate its movements by those of its opponents. In the Channel, it was saved from disaster by the ineptitude of the French and Spanish fleets. The only real success achieved by this numerically imposing French-Spanish force was the capture on August 9
of a large British convoy of ships bound for the East and West Indies carrying troops.
Early in 1780, Admiral Mariot Arbuthnot was sent to take command in North America. On the French side, the Comte de Guichen
was sent with reinforcements to the West Indies to take command of the ships left in the previous year by d'Estaing. He arrived in March and was able to confine the small British force under Admiral Sir Hyde Parker, 5th Baronet
at Gros Islet Bay in Santa Lucia.
After Spain entered the war, Major General John Dalling, the British governor
and commander-in-chief of Jamaica
, proposed in 1780 an expedition to the Spanish province of Nicaragua
. The goal was to sail up the San Juan River
to Lake Nicaragua
and capture the town of Granada
, which would effectively cut Spanish America in half as well as provide potential access to the Pacific Ocean
. Because of disease and logistical
problems, the expedition
proved to be a costly debacle.
In May 1780, d'Arzac de Ternay was sent from Brest with seven line-of-battle ships and a convoy carrying 6,000 French troops to act with the Americans. He had a brush with a small British force under William Cornwallis
near Bermuda
on June 20 and reached Rhode Island on July 11.
During the rest of the year and part of the next, the British and French naval forces in North American waters remained at their respective headquarters of New York and Newport, watching one another. The West Indies was again the scene of the most important operations of the year. In February and March, a Spanish force from New Orleans, under Bernardo de Gálvez, invaded West Florida
with success, and eventually captured Pensacola in a combined Franco-Spanish siege effort. In 1782, de Galvez's forces captured the British naval base at New Providence in the Bahamas.
At the close of 1779, Sir George Rodney
had been appointed to command a large naval force which was to relieve Gibraltar and send stores to Minorca
. Rodney was to go on to the West Indies with part of the fleet. He sailed on December 29, 1779, with the trade for the West Indies under his protection. He captured a Spanish convoy on his way off Finisterre on January 8
, defeated a smaller Spanish force at Cape St Vincent
on January 16, relieved Gibraltar on January 19, and left for the West Indies on February 13.
On March 27, he joined Sir Hyde Parker at Santa Lucia, and Guichen retired to Fort Royal in Martinique. Until July, the fleets of Rodney and Guichen, of equal strength, were engaged in operations around the island of Martinique. The British admiral endeavoured to force on a close engagement. But in the first encounter on April 17
to leeward of the island, Rodney's orders were not executed by his captains, and the action was indecisive. He wished to concentrate on the rear of the enemy's line, but his captains scattered themselves along the French formation. In two subsequent actions, on May 15 and May 19, to windward of Martinique, the French admiral could not be brought to close action.
The arrival of a Spanish squadron of twelve ships of the line in June gave a great numerical superiority to the allies, and Rodney retired to Gros Islet Bay in Santa Lucia. But nothing decisive occurred. The Spanish fleet was in poor shape, and the French were in need of rest. The Spanish went on to Havana
and the French to San Domingo. In July, on the approach of the 1780 hurricane season
, Rodney sailed for North America, reaching New York on September 14. Guichen returned home with the most worn-out of his ships. On December 6, Rodney was back at Barbados
from the North American station, where he was not able to effect anything against the French in Narragansett Bay
.
and Gibraltar; Britain resorted to defensive movements. The Dutch Republic
was formally brought into the war, and the British government was compelled to withdraw part of its fleet from other purposes to protect the North Sea
trade. A desperate battle
was fought on the Dogger Bank on August 5 between Admiral Parker and Dutch Admiral Johan Zoutman
, both being engaged in protecting trade; but the poor state of the Dutch military meant it did not affect the general course of the war. The allies again failed to make a vigorous attack on the British forces in the Channel. They could not prevent Admiral George Darby
from relieving Gibraltar and Minorca in April. Minorca was closely invested
later and was compelled to surrender on February 5, 1782.
In the West Indies, Rodney, having received news of the breach with the Netherlands early in the year, took the island of Sint Eustatius, which had been a great depot of contraband of war, on February 3, 1781. He also authorized privateering against other Dutch targets, which resulted in the capture of three Dutch colonial outposts in South America
. Rodney was accused of applying himself so entirely to seizing and selling the booty taken at Sint Eustatius that he would not allow his second in command, Sir Samuel Hood
, who had recently joined him, to take proper measures to impede the arrival of French forces known to be on their way to Martinique. The French admiral, the count de Grasse
, reached the island with reinforcements in April, driving Hood away
in the process. De Grasse then embarked on a diversionary attack on St. Lucia that masked the detachment of some of his fleet to capture Tobago
. De Grasse and Rodney then engaged in a series of skilful but ultimately fruitless operations in which the former sought advantage to attack British holdings and otherwise avoid battle.
In one of the most significant miscalculations of the war, Admiral Rodney, in ill health, decided to return half his fleet to Europe at the start of 1781 hurricane season, leaving Admiral Hood with the other half to follow de Grasse. De Grasse, however, decided to undertake the risky proposition of taking almost all of his fleet to North America, leaving the French merchant fleet with only minimal Spanish protection. When de Grasse sailed north in August, this resulted in a significant imbalance of naval power in favor of the French in North American waters.
On the coast of North America, the war came to its climax. In the earlier part of the year the British at New York and the French at Newport continued to watch one another, but the British fleet suffered damage during a storm in February. Despite this, British Admiral Arbuthnot did indeed succeed in stopping an attempt by French Admiral Destouches
to carry reinforcements to the American cause in Virginia
, where Benedict Arnold
was engaged in raids against poorly-defended military and economic targets. The action
he fought off the capes of Virginia on March 16 was poorly fought, but the French were unable to land any troops.
When Hood arrived off Chesapeake Bay
in late August, de Grasse had not yet arrived, since he had deliberately taken a longer route to avoid notice. Hood proceeded on to New York, bringing news of de Grasse's approach (although ignorant of his strength) to Arbuthnot's successor, Admiral Thomas Graves
. Word that de Barras
had sailed from Newport with the entire French fleet led Graves to lead the combined fleet south to the Chesapeake, where de Grasse had in the meantime arrived. In the pivotal Battle of the Chesapeake
on September 5, de Grasse got the better of the British, who ended up retreating back to New York while de Barras slipped into the Chesapeake carrying the French siege train. The naval blockade completed the encirclement of the British army of Charles Cornwallis
at Yorktown, Virginia
, where he was compelled to surrender
on October 19. Cornwallis' surrender spelled the end of significant military operations in North America, and led to the start of peace negotiations. While they went on, the war continued in other theaters.
De Grasse returned to the West Indies in November 1781, where he was followed by Hood, and resumed attacks on the British islands. In January and February 1782, he conquered
St. Christopher
, while a smaller French fleet under Kersaint retook the Dutch South American colonies, and de Barras took Sint Eustatius from Britain. De Grasse's action at St. Christopher was vigorously opposed by Hood, who with a much inferior force first drove de Grasse from his anchorage at Basseterre
and then repulsed his repeated attacks. The next objective of the French was to join with a Spanish fleet for an attack on Jamaica
. Admiral Rodney, having returned to his command with reinforcements, baffled this plan with a series of operations which culminated in the Battle of the Saintes
on April 12, 1782, in which de Grasse's flagship was captured. No further operations of note occurred in the West Indies. In August, La Pérouse's
squadron raided the Hudson Bay
, capturing and sacking a number of British posts. At home, Howe relieved Gibraltar for the last time in September and October 1782.
formed a separate series of episodes. In 1778, the British used combined land and naval forces to capture the French port of Pondicherry
after two months of siege, and to later capture French holdings on the west coast of India, including the key port of Mahé. A naval engagement of a very feeble kind took place on August 10 of that year in the Bay of Bengal
, between Admirals Edward Vernon and M. de Tronjoly. But the French were too weak in these seas for offensive movements and remained quiescent at Bourbon
and Île de France
until the beginning of 1782. The port of Mahé had been the principal port through which Hyder Ali
the ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore
did significant trade, and the British capture sparked him to begin a war
with the British East India Company
.
In the spring of 1781, French Admiral Pierre André de Suffren de Saint Tropez
, also known as the Bailli de Suffren, was sent to the East with a small squadron. On his way, he fell upon
the British fleet of Admiral George Johnstone which had been sent to take the Cape of Good Hope
from the Dutch, and which he found in the Portuguese anchorage of Porto Praya, on April 16. The attack, while inconclusive in its outcome, enabled Suffren to reach the Cape before Johnstone, preventing the British attack. Having provided for the security of the Cape, Suffren went on to Île de France, where he picked up additional ships and troops. Johnstone, on seeing the Cape strongly defended, contented himself with capturing some merchant ships in a nearby bay, and returned to Europe.
Suffren sailed from Île de France for India early in 1782, where he and British Admiral Sir Edward Hughes
fought a series of five actions between February 17, 1782 and June 20, 1783. These battles were noted for the balance in the opposing forces and the largely inconclusive outcomes, and Suffren's ability to maintain his fleet without any reliably safe port facilities. Though he had no port in which to refit and no ally save Hyder Ali, Suffren kept to the sea and did not even return to Île de France during the north-easterly monsoon, instead going to the Dutch port of Aceh
to refit. Suffren captured Trincomalee from the British
in July 1782, in spite of Hughes, and in what was apparently the last military engagement of the entire war, battled Hughes
off Cuddalore
, where the British were besieging the French and Mysoreans
. While Hughes had a superior fleet, Suffren was able to prevent him from landing reinforcements. News of a preliminary peace agreement ended the siege and the ongoing battles between Hughes and Suffren.
Category:Campaigns of the American Revolutionary War
Category:History of the Caribbean
Category:Military history of the Caribbean
Category:History of Central America
es:Operaciones navales en la Guerra de Independencia de los Estados Unidos
ja:アメリカ独立戦争の海軍作戦行動
no:Marineoperasjoner i den amerikanske uavhengighetskrigen
ru:Война за независимость США на море
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
(also, mostly in British usage, American War of Independence), divide themselves naturally into two periods. The first ranges from 1775 until the summer of 1778, as the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
was engaged in cooperating with the troops employed against the American revolutionaries
Patriot (American Revolution)
Patriots is a name often used to describe the colonists of the British Thirteen United Colonies who rebelled against British control during the American Revolution. It was their leading figures who, in July 1776, declared the United States of America an independent nation...
, on the coasts, rivers and lakes of North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, or in endeavouring to protect British commerce against the enterprise of American privateer
Privateer
A privateer is a private person or ship authorized by a government by letters of marque to attack foreign shipping during wartime. Privateering was a way of mobilizing armed ships and sailors without having to spend public money or commit naval officers...
s. During the second period, the successive interventions of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, and the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
extended the naval war until it ranged from the West Indies to the Bay of Bengal
Bay of Bengal
The Bay of Bengal , the largest bay in the world, forms the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. It resembles a triangle in shape, and is bordered mostly by the Eastern Coast of India, southern coast of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to the west and Burma and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to the...
. This second period lasted from the summer of 1778 to the middle of 1783, and it included operations already been in progress in America or for the protection of commerce, and naval campaigns on a great scale carried out by the fleets of the maritime powers.
American war, 1775–1778
When the war began, the BritishKingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
had 131 ships of the line
Ship of the line
A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed from the 17th through the mid-19th century to take part in the naval tactic known as the line of battle, in which two columns of opposing warships would manoeuvre to bring the greatest weight of broadside guns to bear...
, but the Royal Navy was in neglect from rapid and poor quality ship construction during the Seven Years' War
Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War was a global military war between 1756 and 1763, involving most of the great powers of the time and affecting Europe, North America, Central America, the West African coast, India, and the Philippines...
. It was estimated that only 39 ships of the line could be battle ready in the first year of a conflict. The administration of Lord Sandwich
John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich
John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, PC, FRS was a British statesman who succeeded his grandfather, Edward Montagu, 3rd Earl of Sandwich, as the Earl of Sandwich in 1729, at the age of ten...
, the First Lord of the Admiralty, had ambitious plans to upgrade the fleet, but this had not been completed when the war began. The naval force at the disposal of the British admirals commanding on the North American station was insufficient to patrol the long coastline. During the first three years of the war, therefore, the Royal Navy was primarily used in support of operations on land, aiding General Thomas Gage
Thomas Gage
Thomas Gage was a British general, best known for his many years of service in North America, including his role as military commander in the early days of the American War of Independence....
and General Sir William Howe
William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe
William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe, KB, PC was a British army officer who rose to become Commander-in-Chief of British forces during the American War of Independence...
during the siege of Boston
Siege of Boston
The Siege of Boston was the opening phase of the American Revolutionary War, in which New England militiamen—who later became part of the Continental Army—surrounded the town of Boston, Massachusetts, to prevent movement by the British Army garrisoned within...
by seeking stores for the army and in supplying naval brigades. In one of these operations, the first naval engagement of the war, colonists in Machias, then part of Massachusetts (now in eastern Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
), seized a British schooner in the Battle of Machias
Battle of Machias
The Battle of Machias was the first naval engagement of the American Revolutionary War...
on June 12, 1775.
At other points on the coast, the British navy was employed in punitive expeditions against coastal towns—such as the burning of Falmouth
Burning of Falmouth
The Burning of Falmouth was an attack by a fleet of Royal Navy vessels on the town of Falmouth, Massachusetts . The fleet was commanded by Captain Henry Mowat...
(now Portland, Maine
Portland, Maine
Portland is the largest city in Maine and is the county seat of Cumberland County. The 2010 city population was 66,194, growing 3 percent since the census of 2000...
) in October 1775—which served to exasperate rather than to weaken the enemy, or the unsuccessful attack
Battle of Sullivan's Island
The Battle of Sullivan's Island or the Battle of Fort Sullivan was fought on June 28, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War, also known as the American War of Independence. It took place near Charleston, South Carolina, during the first British attempt to capture the city from American rebels...
on Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
, in June 1776. It was wholly unequal to the task of blockading the many towns from which privateers could operate. British commerce and the movement of military supplies therefore suffered severely, even as far off as the Irish
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
coasts, where it was necessary to supply convoys to protect the Belfast linen trade.
mage:Admiral howe.gif|thumb|left|Admiral Lord Howe
Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe
Admiral of the Fleet Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe KG was a British naval officer, notable in particular for his service during the American War of Independence and French Revolutionary Wars. He was the brother of William Howe and George Howe.Howe joined the navy at the age of thirteen and served...
was the British naval commander in America in 1776. He resigned in 1778, declining further service while Lord Sandwich
John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich
John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, PC, FRS was a British statesman who succeeded his grandfather, Edward Montagu, 3rd Earl of Sandwich, as the Earl of Sandwich in 1729, at the age of ten...
was First Lord of the Admiralty. He returned in 1782 and relieved the siege of Gibraltar
Great Siege of Gibraltar
The Great Siege of Gibraltar was an unsuccessful attempt by Spain and France to capture Gibraltar from the British during the American War of Independence. This was the largest action fought during the war in terms of numbers, particularly the Grand Assault of 18 September 1782...
.
In June 1776 the largest expeditionary force ever launched to date began to arrive in New York Harbor
New York Harbor
New York Harbor refers to the waterways of the estuary near the mouth of the Hudson River that empty into New York Bay. It is one of the largest natural harbors in the world. Although the U.S. Board of Geographic Names does not use the term, New York Harbor has important historical, governmental,...
under Britain's Admiral Richard Howe. Eyewitnesses reported that it appeared "all of London was afloat" and the masts of so many ships appeared as a "forest." The fleet carried approximately 12,000 British soldiers and 9,000 German auxiliaries, which engaged the Continental Army
Continental Army
The Continental Army was formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America. Established by a resolution of the Continental Congress on June 14, 1775, it was created to coordinate the military efforts of the Thirteen Colonies in...
in the largest battle of the war, the Battle of Long Island
Battle of Long Island
The Battle of Long Island, also known as the Battle of Brooklyn or the Battle of Brooklyn Heights, fought on August 27, 1776, was the first major battle in the American Revolutionary War following the United States Declaration of Independence, the largest battle of the entire conflict, and the...
that August. Howe failed to secure the East River
East River
The East River is a tidal strait in New York City. It connects Upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end. It separates Long Island from the island of Manhattan and the Bronx on the North American mainland...
at the Continental Army's rear
Rear (military)
In military parlance, the rear is the part of concentration of military forces that is farthest from the enemy . The rear typically contains all elements of the force necessary to support combat forces - food, medical supplies and substantial shelters, planners and command headquarters....
, which Washington exploited after his defeat to perform a tactical retreat to Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
over the course of a single night, with all of his remaining troops and supplies intact."
In contrast to the British, the American colonists had no navy whatsoever. The lack of armed vessels to dispute British naval activities in coastal waters and to facilitate the seizure of commercial and military prize
Prize (law)
Prize is a term used in admiralty law to refer to equipment, vehicles, vessels, and cargo captured during armed conflict. The most common use of prize in this sense is the capture of an enemy ship and its cargo as a prize of war. In the past, it was common that the capturing force would be allotted...
s prompted individual colonies to commission armed vessels, and eventually led the Continental Congress
Continental Congress
The Continental Congress was a convention of delegates called together from the Thirteen Colonies that became the governing body of the United States during the American Revolution....
to authorize the creation of a small Continental Navy
Continental Navy
The Continental Navy was the navy of the United States during the American Revolutionary War, and was formed in 1775. Through the efforts of the Continental Navy's patron, John Adams and vigorous Congressional support in the face of stiff opposition, the fleet cumulatively became relatively...
on October 13, 1775. The Continental Navy never launched any ships of the line, so the small vessels were primarily used for commerce raiding
Commerce raiding
Commerce raiding or guerre de course is a form of naval warfare used to destroy or disrupt the logistics of an enemy on the open sea by attacking its merchant shipping, rather than engaging the combatants themselves or enforcing a blockade against them.Commerce raiding was heavily criticised by...
. On December 22, 1775, Esek Hopkins
Esek Hopkins
Commodore Esek Hopkins was the first and only Commander in Chief of the Continental Navy during the American Revolutionary War. He was also an accomplished merchant captain and privateer.-Early life and career:...
was appointed the naval commander-in-chief
Commander-in-Chief
A commander-in-chief is the commander of a nation's military forces or significant element of those forces. In the latter case, the force element may be defined as those forces within a particular region or those forces which are associated by function. As a practical term it refers to the military...
. With his small fleet, Hopkins led the first major naval action
Battle of Nassau
The Battle of Nassau was a naval action and amphibious assault by American forces against the British port of Nassau, Bahamas during the American Revolutionary War...
of the Continental Navy, in early March 1776, against Nassau
Nassau, Bahamas
Nassau is the capital, largest city, and commercial centre of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. The city has a population of 248,948 , 70 percent of the entire population of The Bahamas...
, Bahamas, where stores of much-needed gunpowder were seized for the use of the Continental Army. On April 6, 1776, the squadron unsuccessfully encountered
Action of 6 April 1776
The Battle of Block Island was a nighttime naval encounter between the Continental Navy, returning from a successful raid on Nassau in The Bahamas on its maiden voyage, and , a Royal Navy dispatch boat...
the 20-gun HMS Glasgow
HMS Glasgow (1757)
HMS Glasgow was a 20-gun sixth-rate post ship of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1757 and took part in the American Revolutionary War. She is most famous for her encounter with the maiden voyage of the Continental Navy off Block Island on 6 April 1776...
in the first major sea battle of the Continental Navy.
The Americans also relied heavily on privateering to harass British shipping, with some colonial assemblies taking the lead in authorizing such activity. On March 23, 1776, several months before the Declaration of American Independence, Congress authorized the issuance of letters of marque and reprisal
Letter of marque
In the days of fighting sail, a Letter of Marque and Reprisal was a government licence authorizing a person to attack and capture enemy vessels, and bring them before admiralty courts for condemnation and sale...
. American privateers took about 600 British vessels during the war. These privateers were not always working directly for the American cause, since prizes were often sold to the highest bidder, and the British sometimes bought back their own captured cargoes. On the other hand, although the British did not recognize the legality of American letters of marque they could not make good on threats to execute captured privateers for piracy
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...
without inviting reprisals against British prisoners of war.
John Paul Jones
John Paul Jones was a Scottish sailor and the United States' first well-known naval fighter in the American Revolutionary War. Although he made enemies among America's political elites, his actions in British waters during the Revolution earned him an international reputation which persists to...
soon emerged as the first well-known American naval hero, capturing the HMS Drake
HMS Drake (1777)
HMS Drake was a twenty-gun sloop-of-war of the Royal Navy. Originally named Resolution, she was purchased in 1777. She served in the American Revolutionary War, and on 24 April 1778, off Carrickfergus, Ireland, she fought the North Channel naval duel with the 18-gun sloop Ranger of the Continental...
on April 24, 1778, the first victory for any American military vessel in British waters. He also captured
Battle of Flamborough Head
The Battle of Flamborough Head was a naval battle that took place on 23 September 1779, in the North Sea off the coast of Yorkshire between an American Continental Navy squadron led by John Paul Jones and the two British escort vessels protecting a large merchant convoy...
the HMS Serapis
HMS Serapis (1779)
HMS Serapis was a Royal Navy two-decked, Roebuck-class fifth rate. Daniel Brent built her at Greenland South Dockyard, Rotherhithe and launched her in 1779. She was armed with 44 guns . Serapis was named after the god Serapis in Greek and Egyptian mythology...
on September 23, 1779, while in command of the USS Bonhomme Richard
USS Bonhomme Richard (1765)
|-External links:** Clive Cussler recounts his elusive search for the Bonhomme Richard....
. In 1778, an American naval squadron led by Jones raided the Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
n port of Whitehaven
Whitehaven
Whitehaven is a small town and port on the coast of Cumbria, England, which lies equidistant between the county's two largest settlements, Carlisle and Barrow-in-Furness, and is served by the Cumbrian Coast Line and the A595 road...
. The landing was a surprise attack, taken as an action of revenge by Jones, and was never intended as an invasion. Nevertheless, it caused hysteria in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, with the attack showing a weakness that could be exploited by more powerful states such as France or Spain. One consequence of the raid was an intense period of fortification in British ports.
In America, the British navy covered the retreat of the British Army from Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
to Halifax
City of Halifax
Halifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...
in March 1776, and then conveyed it to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in June. It assisted in the expedition to Philadelphia
Philadelphia campaign
The Philadelphia campaign was a British initiative in the American Revolutionary War to gain control of Philadelphia, which was then the seat of the Second Continental Congress...
in July 1777. On the St Lawrence
Saint Lawrence River
The Saint Lawrence is a large river flowing approximately from southwest to northeast in the middle latitudes of North America, connecting the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean. It is the primary drainage conveyor of the Great Lakes Basin...
and the Great Lakes
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...
, it was able to play a more aggressive part. The relief of Quebec
Province of Quebec (1763-1791)
The Province of Quebec was a colony in North America created by Great Britain after the Seven Years' War. Great Britain acquired Canada by the Treaty of Paris when King Louis XV of France and his advisors chose to keep the territory of Guadeloupe for its valuable sugar crops instead of New France...
by British Captain Charles Douglas in May 1776 forced the Continental Army to retreat. The destruction of Benedict Arnold
Benedict Arnold
Benedict Arnold V was a general during the American Revolutionary War. He began the war in the Continental Army but later defected to the British Army. While a general on the American side, he obtained command of the fort at West Point, New York, and plotted to surrender it to the British forces...
's squadron on Lake Champlain
Lake Champlain
Lake Champlain is a natural, freshwater lake in North America, located mainly within the borders of the United States but partially situated across the Canada—United States border in the Canadian province of Quebec.The New York portion of the Champlain Valley includes the eastern portions of...
in the October Battle of Valcour Island
Battle of Valcour Island
The naval Battle of Valcour Island, also known as the Battle of Valcour Bay, took place on October 11, 1776, on Lake Champlain. The main action took place in Valcour Bay, a narrow strait between the New York mainland and Valcour Island...
secured the frontier of Quebec and supplied a basis for the advance of British General John Burgoyne
John Burgoyne
General John Burgoyne was a British army officer, politician and dramatist. He first saw action during the Seven Years' War when he participated in several battles, mostly notably during the Portugal Campaign of 1762....
in 1777, which ended, however, in his surrender at Saratoga
Battle of Saratoga
The Battles of Saratoga conclusively decided the fate of British General John Burgoyne's army in the American War of Independence and are generally regarded as a turning point in the war. The battles were fought eighteen days apart on the same ground, south of Saratoga, New York...
.
France enters the war, 1778
| Year | French | Spanish | Dutch | American | Total Allied | British |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1778 | 52 | — | — | 0 | 52 | 66 |
| 1779 | 63 | 58 | — | 0 | 121 | 90 |
| 1780 | 69 | 48 | — | 0 | 117 | 95 |
| 1781 | 70 | 54 | 13 | 0 | 137 | 94 |
| 1782 | 73 | 54 | 19 | 0 | 146 | 94 |
Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
had been in France for over a year before France decided to join the war. The surrender at Saratoga prompted the French, who had already given much covert help to the Americans, to openly enter the war as an American ally
Franco-American alliance
The Franco-American alliance refers to the 1778 alliance between Louis XVI's France and the United States, during the American Revolutionary War. Formalized in the 1778 Treaty of Alliance, it was a military pact in which France provided arms and money, and engaged in full-scale war with Britain. ...
. The rupture came in March when British ambassador Lord Stormont was recalled from Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, but since neither fleet was ready for service, actual hostilities did not begin until July.
The French government was somewhat more ready than the British. On April 13, it dispatched a squadron of twelve sail of the line and four frigates from Toulon
Toulon
Toulon is a town in southern France and a large military harbor on the Mediterranean coast, with a major French naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region, Toulon is the capital of the Var department in the former province of Provence....
to America under the command of the Comte d'Estaing. No attempt was made to stop him in the Straits of Gibraltar, he passed them on May 16, and, though the rawness of his crews and his own error in wasting time in pursuit of prizes delayed his passage, he reached the mouth of the Delaware River
Delaware River
The Delaware River is a major river on the Atlantic coast of the United States.A Dutch expedition led by Henry Hudson in 1609 first mapped the river. The river was christened the South River in the New Netherland colony that followed, in contrast to the North River, as the Hudson River was then...
on July 8 without opposition.
The French government had three goals in view: to help the Americans win their independence; to expel the British from the West Indies; and to compel the British to concentrate the majority of their naval strength in the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
. To convince the British of they were seriously planning an invasion of England, the French fitted out a second and more powerful fleet at Brest
Brest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
under the command of Louis Guillouet, comte d'Orvilliers
Louis Guillouet, comte d'Orvilliers
Louis Guillouet, comte d'Orvilliers was a French admiral.D'Orvilliers was born in Moulins, Allier, but spent most of his childhood in Cayenne, capital of the French colony French Guiana, where his father was governor. In 1723, aged fifteen, he joined the colony's infantry regiment and quickly rose...
.
The British government, having neglected to occupy the Straits of Gibraltar in time, despatched Admiral John Byron
John Byron
Vice Admiral The Hon. John Byron, RN was a Royal Navy officer. He was known as Foul-weather Jack because of his frequent bad luck with weather.-Early career:...
from Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
on June 9 with thirteen sail of the line to join Admiral Lord Howe, Sir William's brother, in America. He collected a strong force at home, called the Western Squadron, under Augustus Keppel
Augustus Keppel, 1st Viscount Keppel
Admiral Augustus Keppel, 1st Viscount Keppel PC was an officer of the Royal Navy during the Seven Years' War and the War of American Independence...
.
Keppel, after a preliminary cruise in June, brought d'Orvilliers to action off Brest on July 27, 1778, in the Battle of Ushant
Battle of Ushant (1778)
The Battle of Ushant took place on 27 July 1778, during the American War of Independence, fought between French and British fleets 100 miles west of Ushant, a French island at the mouth of the English Channel off the north-westernmost point of France...
. The fleets were equal and the action was indecisive, as the two forces merely passed one another, cannonading. A violent quarrel exacerbated by political differences broke out among the British commands, which led to two courts-martial and to the resignation of Keppel, and did great injury to the discipline of the navy. No further event of note occurred in European waters.
On the coast of America, the news of the approach of d'Estaing compelled the British commanders to evacuate Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
on June 18, 1778. Howe then concentrated his force of nine small line-of-battle ships at Sandy Hook on June 29, and on July 11, he learned that d'Estaing was approaching. The French admiral did not venture to make an attack, and on July 22, he sailed to cooperate with the Americans in an effort to expel
Battle of Rhode Island
The Battle of Rhode Island, also known as the Battle of Quaker Hill and the Siege of Newport, took place on August 29, 1778. Continental Army and militia forces under the command of General John Sullivan were withdrawing to the northern part of Aquidneck Island after abandoning their siege of...
the British garrison from Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
. Howe, who had received a small reinforcement, followed. The French admiral, who had anchored above Newport
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...
, came to sea to meet him, but both fleets were scattered by storms, suffering some damage. D'Estaing sailed to Boston on August 21 to effect repairs.
Howe received no help from Byron, whose badly equipped fleet was damaged and scattered by a gale on July 3 in the mid-Atlantic. His ships slowly arrived during September. Howe resigned on July 25 and was succeeded by Byron.
West Indies, 1778–1779
The approach of winter made a naval campaign on the coast of North America dangerous. June to October are the hurricane months in the West Indies, while October to June includes the stormy winter of the northern coast. This largely dictated the movements and actions of naval forces during the war.On November 4, 1778, d'Estaing sailed for the West Indies, to the surprise and consternation of the Americans, who hoped to launch operations against Halifax and Newfoundland. On the same day, Commodore William Hotham
William Hotham, 1st Baron Hotham
Admiral William Hotham, 1st Baron Hotham was an officer in the Royal Navy. He was the son of Sir Beaumont Hotham , a lineal descendant of Sir John Hotham....
was dispatched from New York to reinforce the British fleet in the West Indies. On September 7, the French governor of Martinique
Martinique
Martinique is an island in the eastern Caribbean Sea, with a land area of . Like Guadeloupe, it is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. To the northwest lies Dominica, to the south St Lucia, and to the southeast Barbados...
, the Marquis de Bouille
François Claude Amour, marquis de Bouillé
François Claude Amour, marquis de Bouillé was a French general. After distinguishing himself in the Seven Years' War, he was appointed governor of Guadeloupe in 1768...
, had surprised the British island of Dominica
Dominica
Dominica , officially the Commonwealth of Dominica, is an island nation in the Lesser Antilles region of the Caribbean Sea, south-southeast of Guadeloupe and northwest of Martinique. Its size is and the highest point in the country is Morne Diablotins, which has an elevation of . The Commonwealth...
. Admiral Samuel Barrington
Samuel Barrington
Rear Admiral Samuel Barrington RN was a British admiral.Samuel was the fourth son of John Shute Barrington, 1st Viscount Barrington of Beckett Hall at Shrivenham in Berkshire...
, the British admiral in the Leeward Islands
Leeward Islands
The Leeward Islands are a group of islands in the West Indies. They are the northern islands of the Lesser Antilles chain. As a group they start east of Puerto Rico and reach southward to Dominica. They are situated where the northeastern Caribbean Sea meets the western Atlantic Ocean...
, had retaliated by seizing Saint Lucia
Saint Lucia
Saint Lucia is an island country in the eastern Caribbean Sea on the boundary with the Atlantic Ocean. Part of the Lesser Antilles, it is located north/northeast of the island of Saint Vincent, northwest of Barbados and south of Martinique. It covers a land area of 620 km2 and has an...
on December 13-14, after the arrival of Hotham from North America. D'Estaing, who followed Hotham closely, was beaten off in two feeble attacks on Barrington at the Cul-de-Sac of Santa Lucia on December 15.
On January 6, 1779, Admiral Byron reached the West Indies. During the early part of this year the naval forces in the West Indies were mainly employed in watching one another. But in June, while Byron had gone to Antigua
Antigua
Antigua , also known as Waladli, is an island in the West Indies, in the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region, the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua means "ancient" in Spanish and was named by Christopher Columbus after an icon in Seville Cathedral, Santa Maria de la...
to guard the trade convoy on its way home, d'Estaing first captured St Vincent
Saint Vincent (island)
Saint Vincent is a volcanic island in the Caribbean. It is the largest island of the chain called Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. It is located in the Caribbean Sea, between Saint Lucia and Grenada. It is composed of partially submerged volcanic mountains...
, and then Grenada
Grenada
Grenada is an island country and Commonwealth Realm consisting of the island of Grenada and six smaller islands at the southern end of the Grenadines in the southeastern Caribbean Sea...
. Admiral Byron, who had returned, sailed in hopes of saving the island but arrived too late. An indecisive action
Battle of Grenada
The Battle of Grenada took place on 6 July 1779 during the American War of Independence in the West Indies between the British Royal Navy and the French Navy.-Origins:...
was fought off Grenada on July 6, 1779. The war died down in the West Indies. Byron returned home in August. D'Estaing, after co-operating unsuccessfully with the Americans in an attack
Siege of Savannah
The Siege of Savannah or the Second Battle of Savannah was an encounter of the American Revolutionary War in 1779. The year before, the city of Savannah, Georgia, had been captured by a British expeditionary corps under Lieutenant-Colonel Archibald Campbell. The siege itself consisted of a joint...
on Savannah, Georgia
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah is the largest city and the county seat of Chatham County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important...
in September, also returned to Europe.
Spain enters the war, 1779–1780
In European waters, the English Channel had been invadedArmada of 1779
The Armada of 1779 was an exceptionally large joint French and Spanish fleet intended, with the aid of a feint by the American Continental Navy, to facilitate an invasion of Britain, as part of the wider American War of Independence, and in application of the Franco-American alliance...
by a combined French and Spanish fleet of 66 sail of the line, Spain having now joined the coalition against Britain. Only 35 sail of the line could be collected against them under the command of Sir Charles Hardy
Charles Hardy
Admiral of the Fleet Sir Charles Hardy was a Royal Navy officer and colonial governor of New York.-Early career:Born at Portsmouth, the son of a vice admiral, Charles Hardy joined the Royal Navy as a volunteer in 1731....
. But they sailed late, had difficulties with disease and contrary winds, and ultimately withdrew. The allies retired early in September and were not even able to do significant harm to the British trade convoys. In the meantime, the Spaniards had also begun to besiege Gibraltar
Great Siege of Gibraltar
The Great Siege of Gibraltar was an unsuccessful attempt by Spain and France to capture Gibraltar from the British during the American War of Independence. This was the largest action fought during the war in terms of numbers, particularly the Grand Assault of 18 September 1782...
.
The operations of 1780 continued without decisive battles. The British government, not feeling strong enough to blockade Brest and the Spanish ports, was compelled to regulate its movements by those of its opponents. In the Channel, it was saved from disaster by the ineptitude of the French and Spanish fleets. The only real success achieved by this numerically imposing French-Spanish force was the capture on August 9
Action of 9 August 1780
The Action of 9 August 1780 was a naval engagement of the American Revolutionary War in which the main Spanish fleet led by Admiral Luis de Córdova y Córdova, together with a squadron of French ships, captured a heavy British convoy of sixty-three vessels causing a severe blow to the commerce of...
of a large British convoy of ships bound for the East and West Indies carrying troops.
Early in 1780, Admiral Mariot Arbuthnot was sent to take command in North America. On the French side, the Comte de Guichen
Luc Urbain de Bouexic, comte de Guichen
Luc Urbain de Bouëxic, comte de Guichen - French admiral; entered the navy in 1730 as "garde de la Marine," the first rank in the corps of royal officers.His promotion was not rapid...
was sent with reinforcements to the West Indies to take command of the ships left in the previous year by d'Estaing. He arrived in March and was able to confine the small British force under Admiral Sir Hyde Parker, 5th Baronet
Sir Hyde Parker, 5th Baronet
Vice-Admiral Sir Hyde Parker, 5th Baronet was a British naval commander.Parker was born at Tredington, Gloucestershire. His father, a clergyman, was a son of Sir Henry Parker. His paternal grandfather had married a daughter of Alexander Hyde, Bishop of Salisbury. He began his career at sea in the...
at Gros Islet Bay in Santa Lucia.
After Spain entered the war, Major General John Dalling, the British governor
Governors of Jamaica
This is a list of viceroys in Jamaica from its initial occupation by Spain in 1509, to its independence from the United Kingdom in 1962. For a list of viceroys in Jamaica after independence, see Governor-General of Jamaica....
and commander-in-chief of Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
, proposed in 1780 an expedition to the Spanish province of Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
. The goal was to sail up the San Juan River
San Juan River (Nicaragua)
The San Juan River , also known as El Desaguadero , is a 192.06 km river that flows east out of Lake Nicaragua into the Caribbean Sea. A large section of the border between Nicaragua and Costa Rica runs on the right bank of the river...
to Lake Nicaragua
Lake Nicaragua
Lake Nicaragua or Cocibolca or Granada or is a vast freshwater lake in Nicaragua of tectonic origin. With an area of , it is the largest lake in Central America, the 19th largest lake in the world and the 9th largest in the Americas. It is slightly smaller than Lake Titicaca. With an elevation...
and capture the town of Granada
Granada, Nicaragua
Granada is a city in western Nicaragua and the capital of the Granada Department. With an estimated population of 110,326 , it is Nicaragua's fourth most populous city. Granada is historically one of Nicaragua's most important cities, economically and politically...
, which would effectively cut Spanish America in half as well as provide potential access to the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
. Because of disease and logistical
Military logistics
Military logistics is the discipline of planning and carrying out the movement and maintenance of military forces. In its most comprehensive sense, it is those aspects or military operations that deal with:...
problems, the expedition
San Juan Expedition (1780)
The San Juan Expedition took place between March and November 1780 during the American War of Independence when a British force under the command of John Polson and Captain Horatio Nelson landed on the coast of the present-day Nicaragua, with the aim of sailing up the San Juan River to capture the...
proved to be a costly debacle.
In May 1780, d'Arzac de Ternay was sent from Brest with seven line-of-battle ships and a convoy carrying 6,000 French troops to act with the Americans. He had a brush with a small British force under William Cornwallis
William Cornwallis
Admiral the Honourable Sir William Cornwallis GCB was a Royal Navy officer who fought in the Napoleonic Wars. He was the brother of Charles Cornwallis, the 1st Marquess Cornwallis, governor-general of India...
near Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
on June 20 and reached Rhode Island on July 11.
During the rest of the year and part of the next, the British and French naval forces in North American waters remained at their respective headquarters of New York and Newport, watching one another. The West Indies was again the scene of the most important operations of the year. In February and March, a Spanish force from New Orleans, under Bernardo de Gálvez, invaded West Florida
West Florida
West Florida was a region on the north shore of the Gulf of Mexico, which underwent several boundary and sovereignty changes during its history. West Florida was first established in 1763 by the British government; as its name suggests it largely consisted of the western portion of the region...
with success, and eventually captured Pensacola in a combined Franco-Spanish siege effort. In 1782, de Galvez's forces captured the British naval base at New Providence in the Bahamas.
George Brydges Rodney, 1st Baron Rodney
George Brydges Rodney, 1st Baron Rodney, KB was a British naval officer. He is best known for his commands in the American War of Independence, particularly his victory over the French at the Battle of the Saintes in 1782...
had been appointed to command a large naval force which was to relieve Gibraltar and send stores to Minorca
Minorca
Min Orca or Menorca is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. It takes its name from being smaller than the nearby island of Majorca....
. Rodney was to go on to the West Indies with part of the fleet. He sailed on December 29, 1779, with the trade for the West Indies under his protection. He captured a Spanish convoy on his way off Finisterre on January 8
Action of 8 January 1780
The Action of 8 January 1780 was a naval encounter off Cape Finisterre between a British Royal Naval fleet under Admiral Sir George Rodney, and a fleet of Spanish merchants sailing in convoy with seven warships of the Caracas Company, under the command of Commodore Don Juan Augustin de Yardi....
, defeated a smaller Spanish force at Cape St Vincent
Battle of Cape St. Vincent (1780)
The naval Battle of Cape St Vincent, took place off the coast of Portugal on 16 January 1780 during the American War of Independence. A British fleet under Admiral Sir George Rodney defeated a Spanish squadron under Don Juan de Lángara. The battle is sometimes referred to as the Moonlight Battle,...
on January 16, relieved Gibraltar on January 19, and left for the West Indies on February 13.
On March 27, he joined Sir Hyde Parker at Santa Lucia, and Guichen retired to Fort Royal in Martinique. Until July, the fleets of Rodney and Guichen, of equal strength, were engaged in operations around the island of Martinique. The British admiral endeavoured to force on a close engagement. But in the first encounter on April 17
Battle of Martinique (1780)
The Battle of Martinique, also Combat de la Dominique, took place on April 17, 1780 during the American War of Independence in the West Indies between the British Royal Navy and the French Navy.-Origins:...
to leeward of the island, Rodney's orders were not executed by his captains, and the action was indecisive. He wished to concentrate on the rear of the enemy's line, but his captains scattered themselves along the French formation. In two subsequent actions, on May 15 and May 19, to windward of Martinique, the French admiral could not be brought to close action.
The arrival of a Spanish squadron of twelve ships of the line in June gave a great numerical superiority to the allies, and Rodney retired to Gros Islet Bay in Santa Lucia. But nothing decisive occurred. The Spanish fleet was in poor shape, and the French were in need of rest. The Spanish went on to Havana
Havana
Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...
and the French to San Domingo. In July, on the approach of the 1780 hurricane season
1780 Atlantic hurricane season
The 1780 Atlantic hurricane season ran through the summer and fall in 1780. The 1780 season was extraordinarily destructive, and was the deadliest Atlantic hurricane season in recorded history with over 25,000 deaths...
, Rodney sailed for North America, reaching New York on September 14. Guichen returned home with the most worn-out of his ships. On December 6, Rodney was back at Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
from the North American station, where he was not able to effect anything against the French in Narragansett Bay
Narragansett Bay
Narragansett Bay is a bay and estuary on the north side of Rhode Island Sound. Covering 147 mi2 , the Bay forms New England's largest estuary, which functions as an expansive natural harbor, and includes a small archipelago...
.
Final New World operations, 1781–1782
The rambling operations of the naval war until the close of 1780 began to assume a degree of coherence in 1781. The allies directed forces to such objectives as the capture of West Indian islands and of MinorcaMinorca
Min Orca or Menorca is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. It takes its name from being smaller than the nearby island of Majorca....
and Gibraltar; Britain resorted to defensive movements. The Dutch Republic
Dutch Republic
The Dutch Republic — officially known as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands , the Republic of the United Netherlands, or the Republic of the Seven United Provinces — was a republic in Europe existing from 1581 to 1795, preceding the Batavian Republic and ultimately...
was formally brought into the war, and the British government was compelled to withdraw part of its fleet from other purposes to protect the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
trade. A desperate battle
Battle of Dogger Bank (1781)
The naval Battle of the Dogger Bank took place on 5 August 1781 during the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War, part of the American War of Independence, in the North Sea...
was fought on the Dogger Bank on August 5 between Admiral Parker and Dutch Admiral Johan Zoutman
Johan Zoutman
Johan Arnold Zoutman was a Dutch naval figure and Rear Admiral who fought at the Battle of Dogger Bank in the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War.Zoutman also fought in the American Revolutionary War.-Legacy:...
, both being engaged in protecting trade; but the poor state of the Dutch military meant it did not affect the general course of the war. The allies again failed to make a vigorous attack on the British forces in the Channel. They could not prevent Admiral George Darby
George Darby
Vice Admiral George Darby was an officer in the Royal Navy. He was the second son of Jonathan Darby III Esq. , of Leap Castle, in King's County, Ireland.-Early career:Darby joined the Royal Navy as a volunteer...
from relieving Gibraltar and Minorca in April. Minorca was closely invested
Invasion of Minorca, 1781
The Franco-Spanish conquest of Minorca from its British defenders in February 1782, after the Siege of Fort St. Philip lasting over five months, was an important step in the achievement of Spain's aims in its alliance with France against Britain during the American War of Independence...
later and was compelled to surrender on February 5, 1782.
In the West Indies, Rodney, having received news of the breach with the Netherlands early in the year, took the island of Sint Eustatius, which had been a great depot of contraband of war, on February 3, 1781. He also authorized privateering against other Dutch targets, which resulted in the capture of three Dutch colonial outposts in South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
. Rodney was accused of applying himself so entirely to seizing and selling the booty taken at Sint Eustatius that he would not allow his second in command, Sir Samuel Hood
Samuel Hood, 1st Viscount Hood
Samuel Hood, 1st Viscount Hood was a British Admiral known particularly for his service in the American War of Independence and French Revolutionary Wars...
, who had recently joined him, to take proper measures to impede the arrival of French forces known to be on their way to Martinique. The French admiral, the count de Grasse
François Joseph Paul de Grasse
Lieutenant Général des Armées Navales François-Joseph Paul, marquis de Grasse Tilly, comte de Grasse was a French admiral. He is best known for his command of the French fleet at the Battle of the Chesapeake, which led directly to the British surrender at Yorktown...
, reached the island with reinforcements in April, driving Hood away
Battle of Fort Royal
The Battle of Fort Royal was a naval battle fought off Fort Royal, Martinique in the West Indies during the American War of Independence on 29 April 1781 between fleets of the British Royal Navy and the French Navy. After an engagement lasting four hours, the British squadron under Sir Samuel Hood...
in the process. De Grasse then embarked on a diversionary attack on St. Lucia that masked the detachment of some of his fleet to capture Tobago
Invasion of Tobago
The Invasion of Tobago was a French expedition in May 1781 against the British-held island of Tobago during the American War of Independence. The fleet of the Comte de Grasse on 24 May landed troops under the command of the Marquis de Bouillé, which successfully gained control of the island on 2...
. De Grasse and Rodney then engaged in a series of skilful but ultimately fruitless operations in which the former sought advantage to attack British holdings and otherwise avoid battle.
In one of the most significant miscalculations of the war, Admiral Rodney, in ill health, decided to return half his fleet to Europe at the start of 1781 hurricane season, leaving Admiral Hood with the other half to follow de Grasse. De Grasse, however, decided to undertake the risky proposition of taking almost all of his fleet to North America, leaving the French merchant fleet with only minimal Spanish protection. When de Grasse sailed north in August, this resulted in a significant imbalance of naval power in favor of the French in North American waters.
Charles René Dominique Sochet, Chevalier Destouches
Charles René Dominique Sochet, Chevalier Destouches, also sometimes spelled Des Touches, was a rear admiral in the French Navy...
to carry reinforcements to the American cause in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, where Benedict Arnold
Benedict Arnold
Benedict Arnold V was a general during the American Revolutionary War. He began the war in the Continental Army but later defected to the British Army. While a general on the American side, he obtained command of the fort at West Point, New York, and plotted to surrender it to the British forces...
was engaged in raids against poorly-defended military and economic targets. The action
Battle of Cape Henry
The Battle of Cape Henry was a naval battle in the American War of Independence which took place near the mouth of Chesapeake Bay on 16 March 1781 between a British squadron led by Vice Admiral Mariot Arbuthnot and a French fleet under Admiral Charles René Dominique Sochet, Chevalier Destouches...
he fought off the capes of Virginia on March 16 was poorly fought, but the French were unable to land any troops.
When Hood arrived off Chesapeake Bay
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
in late August, de Grasse had not yet arrived, since he had deliberately taken a longer route to avoid notice. Hood proceeded on to New York, bringing news of de Grasse's approach (although ignorant of his strength) to Arbuthnot's successor, Admiral Thomas Graves
Thomas Graves, 1st Baron Graves
|-|-...
. Word that de Barras
Jacques-Melchior Saint-Laurent, Comte de Barras
Jacques-Melchior Saint-Laurent, Comte de Barras was a French Admiral of the eighteenth century. He is best known for his service during the American War of Independence and especially during the Yorktown Campaign.-Yorktown:...
had sailed from Newport with the entire French fleet led Graves to lead the combined fleet south to the Chesapeake, where de Grasse had in the meantime arrived. In the pivotal Battle of the Chesapeake
Battle of the Chesapeake
The Battle of the Chesapeake, also known as the Battle of the Virginia Capes or simply the Battle of the Capes, was a crucial naval battle in the American War of Independence that took place near the mouth of Chesapeake Bay on 5 September 1781, between a British fleet led by Rear Admiral Sir Thomas...
on September 5, de Grasse got the better of the British, who ended up retreating back to New York while de Barras slipped into the Chesapeake carrying the French siege train. The naval blockade completed the encirclement of the British army of Charles Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis KG , styled Viscount Brome between 1753 and 1762 and known as The Earl Cornwallis between 1762 and 1792, was a British Army officer and colonial administrator...
at Yorktown, Virginia
Yorktown, Virginia
Yorktown is a census-designated place in York County, Virginia, United States. The population was 220 in the 2000 census. It is the county seat of York County, one of the eight original shires formed in colonial Virginia in 1634....
, where he was compelled to surrender
Siege of Yorktown
The Siege of Yorktown, Battle of Yorktown, or Surrender of Yorktown in 1781 was a decisive victory by a combined assault of American forces led by General George Washington and French forces led by the Comte de Rochambeau over a British Army commanded by Lieutenant General Lord Cornwallis...
on October 19. Cornwallis' surrender spelled the end of significant military operations in North America, and led to the start of peace negotiations. While they went on, the war continued in other theaters.
De Grasse returned to the West Indies in November 1781, where he was followed by Hood, and resumed attacks on the British islands. In January and February 1782, he conquered
Battle of St. Kitts
The Battle of Saint Kitts, also known as the Battle of Frigate Bay, was a naval battle that took place on 25 and 26 January 1782 during the American Revolutionary War between a British fleet under Rear-Admiral Sir Samuel Hood and a larger French fleet under the Comte de Grasse.-Background:When Hood...
St. Christopher
Saint Kitts
Saint Kitts Saint Kitts Saint Kitts (also known more formally as Saint Christopher Island (Saint-Christophe in French) is an island in the West Indies. The west side of the island borders the Caribbean Sea, and the eastern coast faces the Atlantic Ocean...
, while a smaller French fleet under Kersaint retook the Dutch South American colonies, and de Barras took Sint Eustatius from Britain. De Grasse's action at St. Christopher was vigorously opposed by Hood, who with a much inferior force first drove de Grasse from his anchorage at Basseterre
Basseterre
Basseterre , estimated population 15,500 in 2000, is the capital of the Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis in the West Indies. Geographically, the Basseterre port is located at , on the south western coast of Saint Kitts Island, and it is one of the chief commercial depots of the Leeward Islands...
and then repulsed his repeated attacks. The next objective of the French was to join with a Spanish fleet for an attack on Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
. Admiral Rodney, having returned to his command with reinforcements, baffled this plan with a series of operations which culminated in the Battle of the Saintes
Battle of the Saintes
The Battle of the Saintes took place over 4 days, 9 April 1782 – 12 April 1782, during the American War of Independence, and was a victory of a British fleet under Admiral Sir George Rodney over a French fleet under the Comte de Grasse forcing the French and Spanish to abandon a planned...
on April 12, 1782, in which de Grasse's flagship was captured. No further operations of note occurred in the West Indies. In August, La Pérouse's
Jean-François de Galaup, comte de La Pérouse
Jean François de Galaup, comte de Lapérouse was a French Navy officer and explorer whose expedition vanished in Oceania.-Early career:...
squadron raided the Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay Expedition
The Hudson Bay expedition of Jean-François de Galaup, comte de La Pérouse was a series of military raids on the lucrative fur trading posts and fortifications of the Hudson's Bay Company on the shores of Hudson Bay by a squadron of the French Royal Navy...
, capturing and sacking a number of British posts. At home, Howe relieved Gibraltar for the last time in September and October 1782.
East Indies campaign, 1778–1783
The war in the East IndiesEast Indies
East Indies is a term used by Europeans from the 16th century onwards to identify what is now known as Indian subcontinent or South Asia, Southeastern Asia, and the islands of Oceania, including the Malay Archipelago and the Philippines...
formed a separate series of episodes. In 1778, the British used combined land and naval forces to capture the French port of Pondicherry
Siege of Pondicherry (1778)
The 1778 Siege of Pondicherry was the first military action on the Indian subcontinent following the declaration of war between Great Britain and France in the American War of Independence...
after two months of siege, and to later capture French holdings on the west coast of India, including the key port of Mahé. A naval engagement of a very feeble kind took place on August 10 of that year in the Bay of Bengal
Bay of Bengal
The Bay of Bengal , the largest bay in the world, forms the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. It resembles a triangle in shape, and is bordered mostly by the Eastern Coast of India, southern coast of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to the west and Burma and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to the...
, between Admirals Edward Vernon and M. de Tronjoly. But the French were too weak in these seas for offensive movements and remained quiescent at Bourbon
Réunion
Réunion is a French island with a population of about 800,000 located in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar, about south west of Mauritius, the nearest island.Administratively, Réunion is one of the overseas departments of France...
and Île de France
Mauritius
Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...
until the beginning of 1782. The port of Mahé had been the principal port through which Hyder Ali
Hyder Ali
Hyder Ali was the de facto ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore in southern India. Born Hyder Naik, he distinguished himself militarily, eventually drawing the attention of Mysore's rulers...
the ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore
Kingdom of Mysore
The Kingdom of Mysore was a kingdom of southern India, traditionally believed to have been founded in 1399 in the vicinity of the modern city of Mysore. The kingdom, which was ruled by the Wodeyar family, initially served as a vassal state of the Vijayanagara Empire...
did significant trade, and the British capture sparked him to begin a war
Second Anglo-Mysore War
The Second Anglo-Mysore War was a conflict in Mughal India between the Sultanate of Mysore and the British East India Company. At the time, Mysore was a key French ally in India, and the Franco-British conflict raging on account of the American Revolutionary War helped spark Anglo-Mysorean...
with the British East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
.
In the spring of 1781, French Admiral Pierre André de Suffren de Saint Tropez
Pierre André de Suffren de Saint Tropez
Admiral comte Pierre André de Suffren de Saint Tropez, bailli de Suffren , French admiral, was the third son of the marquis de Saint Tropez, head of a family of nobles of Provence which claimed to have emigrated from Lucca in the 14th century...
, also known as the Bailli de Suffren, was sent to the East with a small squadron. On his way, he fell upon
Battle of Porto Praya
The Battle of Porto Praya was a naval battle which took place during the American Revolutionary War on 16 April 1781 between a British squadron under Commodore George Johnstone and a French squadron under the Bailli de Suffren....
the British fleet of Admiral George Johnstone which had been sent to take the Cape of Good Hope
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...
from the Dutch, and which he found in the Portuguese anchorage of Porto Praya, on April 16. The attack, while inconclusive in its outcome, enabled Suffren to reach the Cape before Johnstone, preventing the British attack. Having provided for the security of the Cape, Suffren went on to Île de France, where he picked up additional ships and troops. Johnstone, on seeing the Cape strongly defended, contented himself with capturing some merchant ships in a nearby bay, and returned to Europe.
Suffren sailed from Île de France for India early in 1782, where he and British Admiral Sir Edward Hughes
Edward Hughes (admiral)
Sir Edward Hughes RN was an admiral of the British Royal Navy.Hughes joined the Royal Navy in 1735, and four years later, was present at the capture of Portobelo, Panama. In 1740, he was promoted to lieutenant and served in the Cartagena expedition of 1741, and at the indecisive Battle of Toulon...
fought a series of five actions between February 17, 1782 and June 20, 1783. These battles were noted for the balance in the opposing forces and the largely inconclusive outcomes, and Suffren's ability to maintain his fleet without any reliably safe port facilities. Though he had no port in which to refit and no ally save Hyder Ali, Suffren kept to the sea and did not even return to Île de France during the north-easterly monsoon, instead going to the Dutch port of Aceh
Aceh
Aceh is a special region of Indonesia, located on the northern tip of the island of Sumatra. Its full name is Daerah Istimewa Aceh , Nanggroë Aceh Darussalam and Aceh . Past spellings of its name include Acheh, Atjeh and Achin...
to refit. Suffren captured Trincomalee from the British
Battle of Trincomalee
The Battle of Trincomalee was the fourth in the series of battles fought between a British fleet under Vice-Admiral Sir Edward Hughes and a French fleet under the Bailli de Suffren off the coast of India during the American Revolutionary War...
in July 1782, in spite of Hughes, and in what was apparently the last military engagement of the entire war, battled Hughes
Battle of Cuddalore (1783)
The Battle of Cuddalore was a battle between a British fleet under Admiral Sir Edward Hughes and a slightly smaller French fleet under the Bailli de Suffren off the coast of India near Cuddalore during the American Revolutionary War, which in 1780 had sparked the Second Mysore War in India...
off Cuddalore
Cuddalore
Cuddalore is a fast growing industrial city and headquarter of Cuddalore district in the Tamil Nadu state of southern India. Located south of Pondicherry on the coast of Bay of Bengal, Cuddalore has a large number of industries which employ a great deal of the city's population.Cuddalore is known...
, where the British were besieging the French and Mysoreans
Siege of Cuddalore
The Siege of Cuddalore was a siege attempt by British troops against a combined French and Mysorean garrison in the fortress of Cuddalore late in the War of American Independence and the Second Anglo-Mysore War...
. While Hughes had a superior fleet, Suffren was able to prevent him from landing reinforcements. News of a preliminary peace agreement ended the siege and the ongoing battles between Hughes and Suffren.
Further reading
- Allen, Gardner W. A Naval History of the American Revolution. 2 volumes. Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1913. (available online)
- Augur, HelenHelen AugurHelen Augur was an American journalist and historical writer. She was a cousin of Edmund Wilson.Augur was born in Albert Lea, Minnesota and educated at Barnard College. She became a journalist in Chicago, leaving for a while after the war to become a correspondent for the Chicago Tribune in...
. The Secret War of Independence. New York: Duell, 1955. - Chevalier, Louis E. Histoire de la marine francaise pendant la Guerre de l'Independence americaine. Paris, 1877.
- Dull, Jonathan R. The French Navy and American Independence: A Study of Arms and Diplomacy, 1774–1787. New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1975.
- James, William Milbourne. The British Navy in Adversity: A Study of the War of American Independence. London: Longmans, 1926.
- Knox, Dudley Wright. The Naval Genius of George Washington. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1932.
- Lewis, Charles Lee. Admiral de Grasse and American Independence. Annapolis: United States Naval Institute, 1945.
- Mahan, Alfred T. The Influence of Sea Power upon History. 1890.
- Mahan, Alfred T. The Major Operations of the Navies in the War of American Independence. Boston: Little, Brown, and company: 1913.
- Middlebrook, Louis F. History of Maritime Connecticut during the American Revolution, 1775-1783. 2 volumes. Salem, Mass.: Essex, 1925.
- Paullin, Charles Oscar. The Navy of the American Revolution: Its Administration, its Policy, and its Achievements. Cleveland: Burrows, 1906.
- Tuchman, BarbaraBarbara TuchmanBarbara Wertheim Tuchman was an American historian and author. She became known for her best-selling book The Guns of August, a history of the prelude to and first month of World War I, which won the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction in 1963....
. The First Salute: A View of the American Revolution. New York: Knopf, 1988. ISBN 0-394-55333-0.
External links
- "West Indies Score Card during the American War for Independence", details the changes in possession of various islands during the war; includes maps.
Category:Campaigns of the American Revolutionary War
Category:History of the Caribbean
Category:Military history of the Caribbean
Category:History of Central America
es:Operaciones navales en la Guerra de Independencia de los Estados Unidos
ja:アメリカ独立戦争の海軍作戦行動
no:Marineoperasjoner i den amerikanske uavhengighetskrigen
ru:Война за независимость США на море