Battle of the Delaware Capes

Last updated

Battle of the Delaware Capes
Part of the American Revolutionary War
Capture of the South Carolina.jpg
Capture of the American frigate South Carolina by the British frigates Diomede, Quebec and Astraea, c.1925, National Archives of Canada
Date20 - 21 December 1782
Location 38°57′54″N74°58′19″W / 38.965°N 74.972°W / 38.965; -74.972
Result British victory
Belligerents
Union flag 1606 (Kings Colors).svg  Great Britain

Flag of the United States (1777-1795).svg  United States

Commanders and leaders
Naval Ensign of Great Britain (1707-1800).svg Captain Thomas Frederick Flag of South Carolina.svg Captain John Joyner
Strength
3 fifth-rate frigates 1 frigate, 2 brigs, 1 schooner
Casualties and losses
Light 1 frigate & 2 brigs captured
14 killed or wounded, 530 captured

The Battle of the Delaware Capes or the 3rd Battle of Delaware Bay was a naval engagement that was fought off the Delaware River towards the end of the American Revolutionary War. The battle took place on 20 and 21 December 1782, some three weeks after the signing of the preliminary articles of peace between Great Britain and the former American colonies. It was an engagement between three British Royal Navy frigates HMS Diomede, Quebec and Astraea, that battled the South Carolina Navy 's 40-gun frigate South Carolina, the brigs Hope and Constance, and the schooner Seagrove on the other. The British were victorious, with only Seagrove escaping capture. [1]

Contents

Background

The inactivity of the British, American and French armies meant that the Royal Navy was free to concentrate on enemy trade. One group of British frigates, HMS Diomede under Captain Thomas Frederick and the sister 32-gun frigates — HMS Quebec under Captain Christopher Mason and HMS Astraea under Captain Matthew Squires — was blockading the Delaware Bay. [2] On 20 December 1782 they spotted a number of vessels coming out of the bay and chased after them. Frederick was told by the officer of watch that one of the vessels was a large frigate. This was the 40-gun South Carolina. [3]

South Carolina, under Captain John Joyner, was built at Amsterdam in 1780. She originally was named Indien and belonged to France, but the Americans hired her. [4] The ship was the most heavily armed warship to sail under American colors during the Revolutionary War. [1] Joyner was attempting to dash out of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, through the British blockade on 19 December with several vessels. [5] As well as the large South Carolina, the privateer 10-gun brig Hope, commanded by John Prole and carrying tobacco and flour; another privateer brig Constance, under Commander Jesse Harding; and the six-gun schooner Seagrove, under Captain Benjamin Bradhurst, had joined them for protection. [2] On 19 December Seagrove hailed a merchant vessel entering the river. Her master learned that three large sail had been seen patrolling off the Cape May Channel. With this information Joyner decided to proceed down the main channel and go straight out into the ocean. In the early evening of 20 December, the four vessels sailed down the channel and out into the Atlantic. [2]

Battle

Between 2200 and 2230hrs the Americans sighted three large British warships at about the same time the British sighted the Americans. Five hours out in the cruise, South Carolina and Hope turned south and two of the British frigates turned after them. Seagrove turned north, with Diomede in pursuit. She got close enough to fire a few shots, but the schooner sent out boats and towed into the wind. Eventually Diomede turned south to continue the main pursuit, letting Seagrove get away. Whilst Diomede was chasing Seagrove, Constance, having never strayed from her course, had continued east and surrendered to Quebec and Astraea without pointless resistance. The British pursuit of South Carolina then continued through the night. [2]

At sunrise the nearest British ship was about two and a half miles behind South Carolina. Hope passed South Carolina at least once during the pursuit, even though Hope was slower before the wind. Joyner suggested that Prole tow Hope around the British and make the pursuit into a rowing match, but Prole rejected the advice. By 1300hrs the British took Hope under fire and she surrendered after having nearly collided with one of the British frigates. This now left just South Carolina, which was only a mile in front of the British ships once Hope had surrendered. [2]

The pursuers skillfully took up position to limit South Carolina's options in trying to get away and the British windward ship attempted to mask the South Carolina's wind. For eighteen hours the British chased South Carolina. When she came in range, she fired her stern chasers at Diomede, which returned fire from her bow-guns. By 1500hrs the British ships were close enough to exchange shots and could each yaw, fire a broadside, and return to the chase while preventing South Carolina from doing the same. The first of the British broadsides did major damage to South Carolina, leading Joyner to call his officers together to discuss whether to fight or to continue the flight. The decision was to continue the latter. By 1700hrs Quebec and Diomede came up alongside South Carolina, with Astraea behind in support, together with Hope and Constance. [2] The British were soon in position to fire six broadsides, five from the Diomede and the other from the Quebec, all aimed at South Carolina's masts, sails and rigging, which within two hours were in tatters. [6]

Joyner, now seeing the hopelessness of South Carolina's situation, decided to fire her guns one last time, not wishing to surrender with his cannon loaded. He then struck, ending the battle. [2] The British took possession of South Carolina and transferred their prisoners over to the British ships. [3]

Aftermath

The British had suffered no casualties, and damage to their three frigates was light, most damage being to masts and rigging. South Carolina had a crew of about 466 men when captured, of whom she had lost six killed and eight wounded. [7] Hope had 42 crewmen. Constance, with another 30 men, brought the total number of American prisoners to nearly 530. Fifty German and eight British prisoners that the Americans had recruited out of captivity in Philadelphia were released, as they had once served as soldiers in General John Burgoyne's army. [7] Because of the number of men involved, the British treated their American prisoners strictly, locking them under hatches and not allowing more than two to come up on deck at the same time. [6]

Prize crews then took South Carolina, Hope, and Constance to New York where all three vessels were tried and condemned. [8] The Royal Navy did not purchase South Carolina; the war was ending and with it the need for a large navy, and South Carolina's design had flaws. Instead, she was sold for service as a merchantman. Prize money for the captured vessels was awarded in 1784. [9]

Order of battle

South Carolina Navy:

Royal Navy:

Related Research Articles

HMS <i>Astraea</i> (1781) British Royal Navy frigate

HMS Astraea was a 32-gun fifth rate Active-class frigate of the Royal Navy. Fabian at E. Cowes launched her in 1781, and she saw action in the American War of Independence as well as during the Napoleonic Wars. She is best known for her capture of the larger French frigate Gloire in a battle on 10 April 1795, while under the command of Captain Lord Henry Paulet. She was wrecked on 23 March 1808 off the coast of Anegada in the British Virgin Islands.

<i>Indien</i> (1778) Frigate for the U.S. Commissioners in France

Indien, often L'Indien, was a frigate built for the U.S. Commissioners in France – Benjamin Franklin, Silas Deane, and Arthur Lee – to a design by the French naval architect Jacques Boux. She was laid down early in 1777 by a private shipyard in Amsterdam and launched in February 1778. Apparently she was built with the scantlings and lines of a small 74-gun Third Rate ship of the line but was a frigate in construction. In 1780 the Duke of Luxembourg chartered her to the navy of South Carolina and she sailed as South Carolina.

USS <i>Randolph</i> (1776)

The first USS Randolph was a 32-gun frigate in the Continental Navy named for Founding Father Peyton Randolph, the president of the First Continental Congress. Attaining only moderate success in her career, Randolph was destroyed by an explosion of her gunpowder stores during a naval action on 8 March 1778.

USS Saratoga was a sloop in the Continental Navy. She was the first ship to honor the historic Battle of Saratoga. Having disappeared in 1781, her fate remains a mystery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexander Gillon</span> American politician

Alexander Gillon was an American merchant and seaman from Charleston, South Carolina. He represented South Carolina in the U.S. House in 1793 and 1794.

Capture of USS <i>President</i> 1812 US–British naval battle

The capture of USS President was one of many naval actions fought at the end of the War of 1812. The frigate USS President tried to break out of New York Harbor but was intercepted by a British squadron of four warships and forced to surrender.

French frigate <i>Étoile</i> (1813)

Étoile was a 44-gun frigate of the French Navy, launched in 1813. The British captured her in 1814 and the Royal Navy took her into service as HMS Topaze. She did not go to sea again until 1818, and was paid off in 1822. She served as a receiving ship until 1850 and was broken up in 1851.

HMS <i>Alceste</i> (1806) French Navy ship

HMS Alceste was built at Rochefort in 1804 for the French Navy as Minerve, an Armide-class frigate. In the spring of 1806, prior to her capture, she engaged HMS Pallas, then under Lord Cochrane. During the duel she ran aground but Cochrane had to abort his attack when French reinforcements appeared.

The Junon was a Gloire class 40-gun frigate of the French Navy. Launched in 1806, she saw service during the Napoleonic Wars, escorting merchant convoys to France's besieged Caribbean colonies. In February 1809 she was captured at sea after a fierce engagement with four Royal Navy vessels.

HMS <i>Astraea</i> (1810) Apollo-class frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Astraea was a Royal Navy 36-gun fifth rate Apollo-class frigate, launched- in 1810 at Northam. She participated in the Battle of Tamatave and in an inconclusive single-ship action with the French frigate Etoile. Astrea was broken up in 1851.

HMS <i>Lowestoffe</i> (1761) British fifth-rate frigate

HMS Lowestoffe was a 32-gun fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. Built during the latter part of the Seven Years' War, she went on to see action in the American War of Independence and the French Revolutionary War, and served often in the Caribbean. A young Horatio Nelson served aboard her shortly after passing his lieutenant's examination.

HMS <i>St Lawrence</i> (1813)

HMS St Lawrence was a 14-gun schooner of the Royal Navy. She had been built in 1808 in St. Michaels, Talbot County, Maryland for Thomas Tennant and sold to Philadelphians in 1810. During the War of 1812 she was the US privateer Atlas. The UK captured her in 1813 and renamed her St Lawrence. The US privateer Chasseur recaptured her in 1815, and then HMS Acasta re-recaptured her.

HMS <i>Diomede</i> (1781)

HMS Diomede was a 44-gun fifth rate built by James Martin Hillhouse and launched at Bristol on 18 October 1781. She belonged to the Roebuck class of vessels specially built during the American Revolutionary War for service in the shallow American coastal waters. As a two-decker, she had two complete batteries of guns, one on the upper deck and the other on the lower deck.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Delaware Bay</span>

The Battle of Delaware Bay, or the Battle of Cape May, was a naval engagement fought between the Kingdom of Great Britain and the United States during the American Revolutionary War. A British squadron of three vessels attacked three American privateers that were escorting a fleet of merchantmen. The ensuing combat in Delaware Bay near Cape May ended with an American victory over a superior British force.

HMS Quebec was a 32-gun fifth-rate frigate launched in 1781 and broken up in 1816. She sailed under various captains, participating in the American Revolutionary War, the French Revolutionary Wars, and the Napoleonic Wars. During these wars she captured many enemy merchantmen and smaller privateers. One action led to her men qualifying for clasp to the Naval General Service Medal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Action of 10 April 1795</span> Naval engagement during the French Revolutionary Wars

The action of 10 April 1795 was a minor naval engagement during the French Revolutionary Wars in which a squadron of French Navy frigates was intercepted by a British battle squadron under Rear-Admiral John Colpoys which formed part of the blockade of the French naval base of Brest in Brittany. The French squadron split up in the face of superior British numbers, the three vessels seeking to divide and outrun the British pursuit. One frigate, Gloire was followed by the British frigate HMS Astraea and was ultimately brought to battle in a closely fought engagement. Although the ships were roughly equal in size, the British ship was easily able to defeat the French in an engagement lasting just under an hour.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blockade of Saint-Domingue</span> 1803 naval campaign of the Haitian Revolution

The blockade of Saint-Domingue was a naval campaign fought during the first months of the Napoleonic Wars in which a series of British Royal Navy squadrons blockaded the French-held ports of Cap-Français and Môle-Saint-Nicolas on the northern coast of the French colony of Saint-Domingue, soon to become Haiti, after the conclusion of the Haitian Revolution on 1 January 1804. In the summer of 1803, when war broke out between the United Kingdom and the French Consulate, Saint-Domingue had been almost completely overrun by Haitian Armée Indigène troops led by Jean-Jacques Dessalines. In the north of the country, the French forces were isolated in the two large ports of Cap-Français and Môle-Saint-Nicolas and a few smaller settlements, all supplied by a French naval force based primarily at Cap-Français.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Jobourg</span>

The Battle of Jobourg was a minor naval engagement between British and French frigate squadrons during the last weeks of the War of the Sixth Coalition in the 22nd and penultimate year of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. In October 1813 the French Navy, unable to challenge the Royal Navy's dominance at sea, sent two small squadrons of frigates to harass British trade in the Atlantic Ocean. One was brought to battle in January 1814 and defeated near the Canary Islands but the second, from Nantes and consisting of the frigates Etoile and Sultane, fought an inconclusive engagement against British frigate HMS Severn on 4 January in the mid-Atlantic and a furious battle against HMS Astrea and HMS Creole on 23 January near Maio in the Cape Verde Islands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Île Ronde</span> Part of the French Revolutionary Wars

The Battle of Île Ronde was a minor naval engagement between small French Navy and British Royal Navy squadrons off Île de France, now named Mauritius, in the early stages of the French Revolutionary Wars. The battle was fought over control of the waters around Île de France, which was under blockade from the British squadron as French warships and privateers operating from the island posed a significant threat to vital British trade routes connected to British India and China.

HMS <i>Pearl</i> (1762) Royal Navy frigate, in service 1762–1832

HMS Pearl was a fifth-rate, 32-gun British Royal Navy frigate of the Niger-class. Launched at Chatham Dockyard in 1762, she served in British North America until January 1773, when she sailed to England for repairs. Returning to North America in March 1776, to fight in the American Revolutionary War, Pearl escorted the transports which landed troops in Kip's Bay that September. Much of the following year was spent on the Delaware River where she took part in the Battle of Red Bank in October. Towards the end of 1777, Pearl joined Vice-Admiral Richard Howe's fleet in Narragansett Bay and was still there when the French fleet arrived and began an attack on British positions. Both fleets were forced to retire due to bad weather and the action was inconclusive. Pearl was then despatched to keep an eye on the French fleet, which had been driven into Boston.

References

Citations

  1. 1 2 Volo, p. 55
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Lewis, pp. 92–94
  3. 1 2 Allen, p. 352
  4. Cooper, p. 135
  5. Schomberg, Isaac. (1802) Naval chronology: or, An historical summary of naval & maritime Vol 2. p. 88.
  6. 1 2 Westcott, p. 109
  7. 1 2 Moore, p. 375
  8. Lewis, pp. 96–98
  9. "No. 12556". The London Gazette . 29 June 1784. p. 6.

Bibliography