Capture of HMS Dominica

Last updated

Capture of HMS Dominica
Part of the War of 1812
Date5 August 1813
Location
Result United States victory
Belligerents
Flag of the United States (1795-1818).svg  United States Flag of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom
Commanders and leaders
US Naval Jack 15 stars.svg Dominique Diron Naval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svg George Wilmot Barette  
Strength
Schooner Decatur Schooner Dominica
Casualties and losses
5 killed
15 wounded
Decatur damaged
18 killed
70 captured (inc. 42 wounded
Dominica captured
  • Dominica was escorting a merchant ship at the beginning of the battle.

The Capture of HMS Dominica was a notable single-ship action that occurred on 5 August 1813 off the Bermudas during the War of 1812. American privateer Decatur and the Royal Navy warship Dominica engaged in a fierce contest that ended with the capture of the British ship after a long battle. [1]

Contents

Background

HMS Dominica was a schooner under the command of the young Lieutenant George Wilmot Barette. She had a crew of 88 men and was armed with twelve 12-pounder guns, two long 6-pounders, one brass 4-pounder and one 32-pounder. The British vessel was escorting the packet ship Princess Charlotte. [2]

At about 10:30 am on 5 August 1813 the schooner Decatur appeared on the horizon. Captain Dominique Diron commanded the privateer, which was armed with one 18-pounder Long Tom and six 12-pounder guns. She had a complement of 103 officers and crew.[ citation needed ]

Diron approached cautiously but none of the vessels were flying colours. For over an hour the three vessels sailed side by side almost at gunshot distance as Diron attempted to ascertain the identity of the other vessels and to position his ship off Dominica's starboard bow. At 12:30 pm the Americans learned that their prey was a schooner-of-war when Lieutenant Barette raised the British flag and attempted to flee with the merchantman. [3]

Capture

Battle between the schooners, Dominica and the Decatur on 5 August 1813 Decatur vs Dominica.jpg
Battle between the schooners, Dominica and the Decatur on 5 August 1813

At about 1:30 pm Dominica fired when it maneuvered in for an attack, but the shot fell short. Although Dominica was more heavily armed than Decatur, Diron chose to engage her. The Americans then raised their colors and beat to quarters. To ensure that none of his men fled below, Captain Diron ordered all the hatches closed after all the ammunition, water and grappling hooks were brought on deck. Diron planned to get as close as possible to Dominica without firing a shot so as to release a broadside and a discharge of musketry before boarding under cover of the smoke. It was around 2:00 pm when Decatur maneuvered for this but the Americans were answered with a broadside and a deadly duel ensued. The two schooners exchanged fire while the merchantman continued her escape. [4]

The combatants fought at such a short distance from each other that Diron could hear Barette shouting to his men, telling them to take better aim and to fire into Decatur's hull. Their next salvos smashed two shot-holes through Decatur's hull, killing two men and also damaging the ship's sails and rigging. This, the most damaging British broadside of the battle, stopped an attempt at boarding and temporarily disabled Decatur, whose crew had to quickly repair the rigging. After repairs the Americans responded with fire from the Long Tom and began scoring more hits on Dominica. Many of the cannonballs landed on deck so the British tried to flee but Decatur was a fast ship and remained in Dominica's wake. [5]

A seven gun American privateer schooner during the War of 1812. Clipper Built Privateer Schooner.gif
A seven gun American privateer schooner during the War of 1812.

The battle was a chase at this point, neither side could accurately fire on each other and when Diron moved in for a second attempt at boarding, he was repulsed in the same manner as the first. Barrete's last maneuver prevented the Americans from boarding but he ultimately steered his ship out of the wind so Decatur was able to overhaul Dominica and carry out a third attempt at boarding. It was about 3:30 pm when Captain Diron ordered his boarders to prepare for going over the side. At the last moment, Diron moved his ship so that the bow sprit of Decatur was heading directly for Dominica's stern. The two ships collided and Diron's jib boom pieced Barette's mainsail. The Americans were then able to board and gain control of Dominica's deck, forcing her colors down and ending the fight. [6]

Aftermath

The Americans had five dead and fifteen wounded. Lieutenant Barette was mortally wounded but continued fighting with sword in hand until he died. In all, thirteen Royal Navy sailors were killed in action, forty-seven others were wounded, five mortally. Dominica and Decatur were both heavily damaged but Decatur managed to bring Dominica into Charleston, South Carolina a few days later. Captain Diron was made a hero for being one of the few privateer commanders to make a prize out of a Royal Navy warship during the war. Diron was already well known before the battle and Dominica's demise added to his notoriety. Barette was also reported by the Americans as having defended his ship until death in a most gallant fashion and when the survivors were released after the war, they said that they were treated well by Diron and his crewmen. The British never surrendered in the battle and were defeated by force alone. [7]

Post script

On 22 May 1814, HMS Majestic recaptured Dominica. [8]

On 5 June 1814 HMS Rhin sighted and gave chase to an American privateer schooner. After an eleven-hour chase Rhin captured Decatur in the Mona Passage about four leagues from Cape Engaño. Dominique Diron had sailed Decatur from Charleston on 30 March but had made no captures. [9]

Citations

  1. Maclay, pg. 311–319.
  2. Hepper (1994), p146,
  3. Maclay, p.311–312.
  4. Maclay, p.312–313.
  5. Maclay, pg. 313–314
  6. Maclay, pg. 314–315
  7. Maclay, pg. 314–319.
  8. "No. 16924". The London Gazette . 9 August 1814. p. 1610.
  9. "No. 16922". The London Gazette . 2 August 1814. p. 1562.

Related Research Articles

USS <i>President</i> (1800) United States Navy frigate

USS President was a wooden-hulled, three-masted heavy frigate of the United States Navy, nominally rated at 44 guns; she was launched in April 1800 from a shipyard in New York City. President was one of the original six frigates whose construction the Naval Act of 1794 had authorized, and she was the last to be completed. The name "President" was among ten names submitted to President George Washington by Secretary of War Timothy Pickering in March of 1795 for the frigates that were to be constructed. Joshua Humphreys designed these frigates to be the young Navy's capital ships, and so President and her sisters were larger and more heavily armed and built than standard frigates of the period. Forman Cheeseman, and later Christian Bergh were in charge of her construction. Her first duties with the newly formed United States Navy were to provide protection for American merchant shipping during the Quasi War with France and to engage in a punitive expedition against the Barbary pirates in the First Barbary War.

USS <i>United States</i> vs HMS <i>Macedonian</i> Naval battle in the War of 1812

The capture of HMS Macedonian was a naval action fought near Madeira on 25 October 1812 between the heavy frigate USS United States, commanded by Stephen Decatur, and the frigate HMS Macedonian, under the command of John Surman Carden. The American vessel won the long bloody battle, capturing and bringing Macedonian back to the United States. It was the first British warship to ever be brought into an American harbor.

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.

Capture of HMS <i>Penguin</i> 1815 naval action

On 23 March 1815 USS Hornet captured HMS Penguin in a short battle off Tristan da Cunha. It was one of several engagements that took place after the War of 1812 had ended, and was the final action between British and American forces. The American gunnery was far more effective than the British, despite the two vessels being virtually identical in strength. After exchanges of broadsides and musket fire, the British commander was killed. The British brig rammed the American ship in an attempt to board, but the two were separated and Penguin was disabled shortly afterwards when the foremast fell, forcing the British to surrender. The British brig was too badly damaged to be salvaged and was set ablaze by the victors after its stores and surviving crew were removed.

HMS <i>Endymion</i> (1797) Frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Endymion was a 40-gun fifth rate that served in the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars, the War of 1812 and during the First Opium War. She was built to the lines of the French prize Pomone captured in 1794. Due to her exceptional handling and sailing properties, the Severn-class frigates were built to her lines, although the gunports were rearranged to mount an extra pair of guns per side, the ships were made of softwood and were not built until nearly the end of the Napoleonic Wars.

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

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>Epervier</i> (1812) Brig-sloop of the Royal Navy

HMS Epervier was an 18-gun Cruizer-class brig-sloop of the Royal Navy, built by Ross at Rochester, England, and launched on 2 December 1812. USS Peacock captured her in 1814 and took her into service. USS Epervier disappeared in 1815 while carrying dispatches reporting the signing of a treaty with the Dey of Algiers.

French frigate <i>Rhin</i> (1802)

Rhin was a 40-gun Virginie-class frigate of the French Navy launched in 1802. She was present at two major battles while in French service. The Royal Navy captured her in 1806. Thereafter Rhin served until 1815 capturing numerous vessels. After the end of the Napoleonic Wars she was laid up and then served as a hospital for many years. She was finally broken up in 1884.

HMS Landrail was a Cuckoo-class schooner built by Thomas Sutton at Ringmore, Teignmouth. Like all her class she carried four 12-pounder carronades and had a crew of 20. She had a relatively uneventful career during the Napoleonic Wars and the War of 1812 until 1814 when she was taken in a notable action, and then retaken. She was sold in approximately 1818.

HMS Ballahoo was the first of the Royal Navy's Ballahoo-class schooners, vessels of four 12-pounder carronades and a crew of 20. The prime contractor for the vessel was Goodrich & Co., in Bermuda, and she was launched in 1804. She patrolled primarily in the Leeward Islands, taking several small prizes, before an American privateer captured her in 1814 during the War of 1812.

HMS Shelburne was the American letter of marque schooner Racer, built in Baltimore in 1811 and captured by the British in 1813. She served on the American coast, capturing the American brig Frolic. She also captured some merchantmen and was sold in Britain in 1817.

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

The Battle of Rappahannock River was fought in 1813 during the War of 1812. A British force blockading the Rappahannock River of Virginia sent several hundred men in boats to attack four American privateers. Ultimately the British were victorious and the American ships were captured.

<i>Decatur</i> (1813 ship) South Carolinian schooner

Decatur was an American schooner built in Charleston, South Carolina, in 1813 for privateering during the Atlantic Ocean theater of the War of 1812. She was named for the United States Navy Commodore Stephen Decatur, who served with distinction in many of America's earliest conflicts. She was the largest privateer out of Charleston. The Royal Navy captured Decatur in 1814.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle off Barbados</span>

The Battle of Barbados was fought in March 1778 during the American Revolutionary War. While escorting a fleet of American ships in the West Indies, the frigate USS Randolph was attacked by the British ship-of-the-line HMS Yarmouth. The following action resulted in America's most costly naval defeat, in terms of human lives, until the sinking of USS Arizona in 1941.

Capture of HMS <i>Savage</i>

The Capture of HMS Savage was a naval battle of the American Revolutionary War involving the American privateer Congress and the British sloop-of-war HMS Savage. It occurred in September 1781 off South Carolina and is considered one of the hardest-fought single ship actions of the war.

HMS Dominica was the French privateer schooner J(T?)opo L'Oeil that the British captured in 1807 in the Leeward Islands. She took part in one inconclusive single-ship action before she foundered in 1809.

HMS <i>Dominica</i> (1810) French schooner

HMS Dominica was the French letter of marque schooner Duc de Wagram, which the British captured in 1809 in the Leeward Islands and took into the Royal Navy in 1810. The American privateer Decatur captured her in 1813 in a notable single-ship action. However, Majestic recaptured her in 1814. She was wrecked in 1815

HMS Alphea was built of Bermudan pencil cedar as a cutter and launched in 1804. Later she was converted to a schooner. She captured a number of small prizes before September 1813 when she blew up in a single-ship action with the loss of her entire crew.

HMS Decouverte was the French schooner Eclipse, launched in 1804, that was captured in 1806. The Royal Navy took her into service as HMS Decouverte. She served in the Caribbean, where she captured two privateers, one French and one American. She was sold in 1816.

<i>Comet</i> (1810 schooner) American schooner

Comet, an American schooner, was built in 1810 at Baltimore, Maryland. She was owned by "a group of wealthy Baltimore investors." Under Captain Thomas Boyle, who was a part owner of the schooner, Comet sailed from July 1812 to March 1814 as a privateer, which was a type of ships licensed by the United States during the War of 1812 to harass the British merchant vessels and divest their cargoes.

References