USS Constitution vs HMS Guerriere
Encyclopedia
The USS Constitution vs HMS Guerriere, was a single ship action between the two ships during the War of 1812
. It took place shortly after war had broken out, and would prove to be an important victory for American
morale.
declared war on Britain on 18 June 1812, the Royal Navy
had eighty-five vessels in American waters. By contrast, the United States Navy
, which was not yet twenty years old, was a frigate navy
that had only twenty-two commissioned vessels. The chief fighting strength of the U.S. Navy was a squadron
of three frigates and two sloops of war under Commodore John Rodgers
, based in New York
. A week after Congress
declared war, United States Secretary of the Navy
Paul Hamilton
had sent orders to Rodgers to cruise off New York, and to Captain Isaac Hull
, commanding the at Annapolis
on Chesapeake Bay
, to join Rodgers.
However, Rodgers set out to sea immediately when he heard of the declaration of war, before he could receive Hamilton's instructions. He feared that if he delayed he might be blockaded by a superior British fleet, but by sailing immediately he might catch isolated British ships before they could concentrate. He did indeed encounter the frigate , but the Belvidera escaped, aided by a bursting cannon aboard which injured Rodgers and caused much damage and confusion. Rodgers then crossed the Atlantic hoping to catch a valuable British convoy from the West Indies. The weather was foul throughout the voyage and Rodgers missed the convoy, capturing only seven small merchant vessels.
On hearing of the Belvidera encounter, Vice Admiral Herbert Sawyer
, the commander of the Royal Navy's North American Station based at Halifax, Nova Scotia, despatched a squadron under Captain Philip Bowes Vere Broke to catch Rodgers' squadron. Broke's squadron consisted of the 64-gun ship of the line
and the frigates Shannon
, Aeolus
, Belvidera and Guerriere
. By forcing the British to concentrate their force in one place, Rodgers had made it possible for large numbers of American merchant ships to reach other ports without being intercepted.
On the outbreak of war, the Constitution was at Annapolis, collecting a fresh crew, and was unable to sail for three weeks. When her captain, Isaac Hull, was able to put to sea, he headed for New York in accordance with Secretary Hamilton's orders. Near New York, in the late afternoon of 17 July 1812, Hull saw four ships sailing west, and another one heading straight towards the Constitution. He thought the ships could be Rodgers' squadron, but was cautious. He ordered signal lights to be shown, and when the approaching ship did not identify herself, ordered the Constitution to keep her distance and wait for daylight to assess the situation. The approaching ship was the Guerriere, rejoining Broke's squadron after having become separated. Aboard her, Captain James Richard Dacres soon determined that the Constitution was a hostile ship, but at dawn on 18 July, he sighted the other four British ships. His signals to them were not answered. Fearing that he was about to be trapped by Rodgers' entire squadron, Dacres also put as much distance between the Guerriere and the other ships as he could, thus missing a chance to trap Constitution.
In light and fitful winds which occasionally died away altogether, the Constitution led the British squadron in a stern chase. The Constitution lowered her boats to tow the ships, while Broke ordered the boats from the entire British squadron to tow the Shannon. In an attempt to pull away, Hull ordered ten tons of drinking water to be pumped overboard. Despite this, the British squadron continued to gain on the Constitution. The Constitution First Lieutenant, Charles Morris
, then suggested kedging to haul the ship along. This allowed Constitution to draw away from the Shannon. Fire from four heavy guns which Hull had shifted to point right aft prevented the British trying the same tactic. Late in the afternoon, the wind sprang up again, and the Constitution increased her lead. The British ships gained slightly during the night, but the next day, Constitution drew away again, although the chase lasted another day and a night until the British ships were out of sight.
Following his escape, Hull sailed for Boston to replenish his drinking water supply, before setting out on 2 August to raid British merchant ships off Halifax and the mouth of the St. Lawrence River, before sailing south again towards Bermuda
. The Constitution soon chased down the American privateer Decatur, and her captain told Hull that he had escaped a British frigate the day before.
Broke had meanwhile sailed after the valuable West India convoy, assuming correctly that Rodgers was also searching for it. Three weeks after losing sight of the Constitution and having seen the convoy safely into British waters, Broke prepared to return to New York. The Guerriere was detached and ordered to proceed to Halifax for a much-needed refit.
At 2.00 p.m. on August 19, the Constitution sighted a large ship to leeward, and bore down to investigate. The weather was cloudy, and the wind was brisk. The strange ship proved to be the Guerriere, whose crew recognised Constitution at about the same moment. Both ships prepared for action, and shortened sail to "fighting sail", i.e. topsails and jibs only. As the Constitution closed, Dacres first hove to
to fire a broadside, which fell short, and then ran before the wind for three quarters of an hour with the Constitution on her quarter. Dacres yawed several times to fire broadsides at the Constitution, but the Guerriere broadsides were generally inaccurate, while the few shots fired from Constitution foremost guns had little effect. After one cannon-ball bounced "harmlessly" off the side of the Constitution, a crew member is said to have yelled "Huzzah! Her sides are made of iron!"
Once the range had closed to within a few hundred yards, Captain Hull ordered extra sail (the foresail and main topgallant sail) to be set, to close the distance quickly. Dacres did not match this manoeuvre, and the two ships began exchanging broadsides at "half pistol-shot", with the Constitution to starboard and Guerriere to port. After fifteen minutes of this exchange, during which Guerriere suffered far more damage than the Constitution due to the latter's larger guns and thicker hull, Guerriere mizzenmast fell overboard to starboard, acting like a rudder and dragging her around. This allowed Constitution to cross ahead of Guerriere, firing a raking broadside which brought down the main yard. Hull then wore ship
to cross Guerriere bow again, firing another raking broadside, but the manoeuvre was cut too close and the Guerriere bowsprit
became entangled in the rigging of the Constitution mizzenmast.
On both ships, boarding parties were summoned, while musket fire broke out from each ship. Lieutenant Charles Morris and Captain Dacres were both wounded by musket shots. Only the narrow bowsprit provided a way between the ships, and in the heavy sea, neither side could venture across it. Some of the gunners aboard Guerriere fired at point-blank range into Hull's stern cabin, setting the American ship on fire briefly. The two locked ships slowly rotated clockwise until they broke free. The Guerriere foremast and mainmast both then fell "by the board" i.e. snapped off at deck level, leaving her helpless and rolling heavily. Dacres attempted to set sail on the bowsprit to bring his ship before the wind, but it too had been damaged and broke. The Constitution meanwhile ran downwind for several minutes, repairing damage to the rigging, before once again wearing and beating upwind to return to battle.
As Constitution prepared to renew the action, the Guerriere fired a shot in the opposite direction to the Constitution. Sensing that this was an attempt to signal surrender, Hull ordered a boat to take a Lieutenant over to the British ship. When the Lieutenant walked onto the Guerriere and asked if Guerriere was prepared to surrender, Captain Dacres responded "Well, Sir, I don't know. Our mizzen mast is gone, our fore and main masts are gone-I think on the whole you might say we have struck our flag."
Captain Dacres was escorted aboard the Constitution. Hull refused to accept Dacres' sword of surrender, saying he could not accept the sword from a man who had fought so gallantly. He also ordered that Dacres' mother's Bible be returned to him. The Guerriere was clearly sinking, and the wounded were transferred to the Constitution. Hull found that ten impressed Americans had been serving aboard Guerriere but Dacres had permitted them to stay below decks instead of fighting their countrymen.
Hull wanted the Guerriere towed in as a prize ship. The Constitution lay by the Guerriere during the night but at daybreak it was obvious that the Guerriere could not be salvaged. The prisoners and the American salvage parties were brought aboard Constitution and at three o'clock in the afternoon, the Guerriere was set on fire, and soon blew up.
Although Constitution was capable of continuing its cruise (it was substantially undamaged and still had two thirds of its ammunition), Hull wanted the American public to have news of the victory. He reached Boston ten days later, and his news (with the obvious proof of more than two hundred prisoners of war) caused rejoicing. The Guerriere had been one of the most active ships of the Royal Navy in stopping and searching American merchant vessels, and the news of its defeat was particularly satisfying to the American seafaring community. Ironically, Hull was never to hold another fighting command.
Once released by exchange of prisoners and returned to Halifax, Dacres was tried by court martial, as was customary in the case of a Royal Navy ship lost from any cause. He put forward as his defence the facts that the Guerriere was originally French-built, captured by the Royal Navy in 1806, and therefore not as sturdy as British-built ships, and more importantly, that the Guerriere was badly decayed and in fact on its way to refit in Halifax at the time, and the fall of the mizzen mast which crippled the Guerriere early in the fight had been due as much to rot as battle damage. There was no suggestion that Dacres and his men had not done their utmost, or that Dacres had been unwise to engage the Constitution. (Early in the War of 1812, it was accepted in the Royal Navy that a British 38-gun frigate could successfully engage a 44-gun frigate of any other nation.) Dacres was therefore acquitted.
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
. It took place shortly after war had broken out, and would prove to be an important victory for American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
morale.
Background
When the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
declared war on Britain on 18 June 1812, 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...
had eighty-five vessels in American waters. By contrast, the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
, which was not yet twenty years old, was a frigate navy
Frigate navy
Frigate navy is a term describing a nation state's navy that is made of mostly frigates or destroyers as a major combat force. This navy would thus be lacking large vessels such as cruisers, a significant number of effective submarines, or aircraft carriers, but it would also be more effective and...
that had only twenty-two commissioned vessels. The chief fighting strength of the U.S. Navy was a squadron
Squadron (naval)
A squadron, or naval squadron, is a unit of 3-4 major warships, transport ships, submarines, or sometimes small craft that may be part of a larger task force or a fleet...
of three frigates and two sloops of war under Commodore John Rodgers
John Rodgers (naval officer, War of 1812)
John Rodgers was a senior naval officer in the United States Navy who served under six Presidents for nearly four decades during its formative years in the 1790s through the late 1830s, committing the greater bulk of his adult life to his country...
, based in New York
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...
. A week after Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
declared war, United States Secretary of the Navy
United States Secretary of the Navy
The Secretary of the Navy of the United States of America is the head of the Department of the Navy, a component organization of the Department of Defense...
Paul Hamilton
Paul Hamilton
Paul Hamilton was the 3rd United States Secretary of the Navy, from 1809 to 1813.Paul Hamilton was born in Saint Paul's Parish, South Carolina, on October 16, 1762. He left school at the age of sixteen due to financial problems...
had sent orders to Rodgers to cruise off New York, and to Captain Isaac Hull
Isaac Hull
-External links:* *...
, commanding the at Annapolis
Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland, as well as the county seat of Anne Arundel County. It had a population of 38,394 at the 2010 census and is situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east of Washington, D.C. Annapolis is...
on 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...
, to join Rodgers.
However, Rodgers set out to sea immediately when he heard of the declaration of war, before he could receive Hamilton's instructions. He feared that if he delayed he might be blockaded by a superior British fleet, but by sailing immediately he might catch isolated British ships before they could concentrate. He did indeed encounter the frigate , but the Belvidera escaped, aided by a bursting cannon aboard which injured Rodgers and caused much damage and confusion. Rodgers then crossed the Atlantic hoping to catch a valuable British convoy from the West Indies. The weather was foul throughout the voyage and Rodgers missed the convoy, capturing only seven small merchant vessels.
On hearing of the Belvidera encounter, Vice Admiral Herbert Sawyer
Herbert Sawyer
Admiral Sir Herbert Sawyer KCB was an officer of the Royal Navy who saw service during the American Revolution, the French Revolutionary War, the War of 1812 and the Napoleonic Wars. He eventually rose to the rank of Admiral....
, the commander of the Royal Navy's North American Station based at Halifax, Nova Scotia, despatched a squadron under Captain Philip Bowes Vere Broke to catch Rodgers' squadron. Broke's squadron consisted of the 64-gun ship 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...
and the frigates Shannon
HMS Shannon (1806)
HMS Shannon was a 38-gun Leda-class frigate of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1806 and served in the Napoleonic Wars and the War of 1812...
, Aeolus
HMS Aeolus (1801)
HMS Aeolus was a 32-gun Amphion-class fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1801 and served in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, and the War of 1812....
, Belvidera and Guerriere
HMS Guerriere (1806)
HMS Guerriere was a 38-gun fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy, which had previously sailed with the French Navy as the Guerrière. She became famous for her fight against ....
. By forcing the British to concentrate their force in one place, Rodgers had made it possible for large numbers of American merchant ships to reach other ports without being intercepted.
Pursuit of the Constitution
In light and fitful winds which occasionally died away altogether, the Constitution led the British squadron in a stern chase. The Constitution lowered her boats to tow the ships, while Broke ordered the boats from the entire British squadron to tow the Shannon. In an attempt to pull away, Hull ordered ten tons of drinking water to be pumped overboard. Despite this, the British squadron continued to gain on the Constitution. The Constitution First Lieutenant, Charles Morris
Charles Morris (naval officer)
Commodore Charles Morris, USN was a United States naval officer and administrator whose service extended through the first half of the 19th century.-Biography:...
, then suggested kedging to haul the ship along. This allowed Constitution to draw away from the Shannon. Fire from four heavy guns which Hull had shifted to point right aft prevented the British trying the same tactic. Late in the afternoon, the wind sprang up again, and the Constitution increased her lead. The British ships gained slightly during the night, but the next day, Constitution drew away again, although the chase lasted another day and a night until the British ships were out of sight.
Following his escape, Hull sailed for Boston to replenish his drinking water supply, before setting out on 2 August to raid British merchant ships off Halifax and the mouth of the St. Lawrence River, before sailing south again towards 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...
. The Constitution soon chased down the American privateer Decatur, and her captain told Hull that he had escaped a British frigate the day before.
Broke had meanwhile sailed after the valuable West India convoy, assuming correctly that Rodgers was also searching for it. Three weeks after losing sight of the Constitution and having seen the convoy safely into British waters, Broke prepared to return to New York. The Guerriere was detached and ordered to proceed to Halifax for a much-needed refit.
Battle
Heaving to
In sailing, heaving to is a way of slowing a sail boat's forward progress, as well as fixing the helm and sail positions so that the boat does not actively have to be steered. It is commonly used for a "break"; this may be to wait for the tide before proceeding, to wait out a strong or contrary...
to fire a broadside, which fell short, and then ran before the wind for three quarters of an hour with the Constitution on her quarter. Dacres yawed several times to fire broadsides at the Constitution, but the Guerriere broadsides were generally inaccurate, while the few shots fired from Constitution foremost guns had little effect. After one cannon-ball bounced "harmlessly" off the side of the Constitution, a crew member is said to have yelled "Huzzah! Her sides are made of iron!"
Once the range had closed to within a few hundred yards, Captain Hull ordered extra sail (the foresail and main topgallant sail) to be set, to close the distance quickly. Dacres did not match this manoeuvre, and the two ships began exchanging broadsides at "half pistol-shot", with the Constitution to starboard and Guerriere to port. After fifteen minutes of this exchange, during which Guerriere suffered far more damage than the Constitution due to the latter's larger guns and thicker hull, Guerriere mizzenmast fell overboard to starboard, acting like a rudder and dragging her around. This allowed Constitution to cross ahead of Guerriere, firing a raking broadside which brought down the main yard. Hull then wore ship
Jibe
A jibe or gybe is a sailing maneuver where a sailing vessel turns its stern through the wind, such that the wind direction changes from one side of the boat to the other...
to cross Guerriere bow again, firing another raking broadside, but the manoeuvre was cut too close and the Guerriere bowsprit
Bowsprit
The bowsprit of a sailing vessel is a pole extending forward from the vessel's prow. It provides an anchor point for the forestay, allowing the fore-mast to be stepped farther forward on the hull.-Origin:...
became entangled in the rigging of the Constitution mizzenmast.
On both ships, boarding parties were summoned, while musket fire broke out from each ship. Lieutenant Charles Morris and Captain Dacres were both wounded by musket shots. Only the narrow bowsprit provided a way between the ships, and in the heavy sea, neither side could venture across it. Some of the gunners aboard Guerriere fired at point-blank range into Hull's stern cabin, setting the American ship on fire briefly. The two locked ships slowly rotated clockwise until they broke free. The Guerriere foremast and mainmast both then fell "by the board" i.e. snapped off at deck level, leaving her helpless and rolling heavily. Dacres attempted to set sail on the bowsprit to bring his ship before the wind, but it too had been damaged and broke. The Constitution meanwhile ran downwind for several minutes, repairing damage to the rigging, before once again wearing and beating upwind to return to battle.
As Constitution prepared to renew the action, the Guerriere fired a shot in the opposite direction to the Constitution. Sensing that this was an attempt to signal surrender, Hull ordered a boat to take a Lieutenant over to the British ship. When the Lieutenant walked onto the Guerriere and asked if Guerriere was prepared to surrender, Captain Dacres responded "Well, Sir, I don't know. Our mizzen mast is gone, our fore and main masts are gone-I think on the whole you might say we have struck our flag."
Aftermath
Hull wanted the Guerriere towed in as a prize ship. The Constitution lay by the Guerriere during the night but at daybreak it was obvious that the Guerriere could not be salvaged. The prisoners and the American salvage parties were brought aboard Constitution and at three o'clock in the afternoon, the Guerriere was set on fire, and soon blew up.
Although Constitution was capable of continuing its cruise (it was substantially undamaged and still had two thirds of its ammunition), Hull wanted the American public to have news of the victory. He reached Boston ten days later, and his news (with the obvious proof of more than two hundred prisoners of war) caused rejoicing. The Guerriere had been one of the most active ships of the Royal Navy in stopping and searching American merchant vessels, and the news of its defeat was particularly satisfying to the American seafaring community. Ironically, Hull was never to hold another fighting command.
Once released by exchange of prisoners and returned to Halifax, Dacres was tried by court martial, as was customary in the case of a Royal Navy ship lost from any cause. He put forward as his defence the facts that the Guerriere was originally French-built, captured by the Royal Navy in 1806, and therefore not as sturdy as British-built ships, and more importantly, that the Guerriere was badly decayed and in fact on its way to refit in Halifax at the time, and the fall of the mizzen mast which crippled the Guerriere early in the fight had been due as much to rot as battle damage. There was no suggestion that Dacres and his men had not done their utmost, or that Dacres had been unwise to engage the Constitution. (Early in the War of 1812, it was accepted in the Royal Navy that a British 38-gun frigate could successfully engage a 44-gun frigate of any other nation.) Dacres was therefore acquitted.