Osprey - Duel 019 - Constitution vs Guerriere. Frigates during the War 1812.pdf

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CONSTITUTION
GUERRIERE
Frigates during the War of 1812
MARK LARDAS
© Osprey Publishing • www.ospreypublishing.com
CONSTITUTION
GU
E
RRI
E
R
E
Frigates during the War of 1812
MARK LARDAS
© Osprey Publishing • www.ospreypublishing.com
CONTENTS
Introduction
Chronology
Design and Development
The Strategic Situation
Technical Specifications
The Combatants
Combat
Statistics and Analysis
Aftermath
Further Reading
Glossary
Index
4
8
10
23
28
37
48
66
73
75
78
80
© Osprey Publishing • www.ospreypublishing.com
INTRODUCTION
Command of a frigate was the goal of every dashing captain during the Age of
Fighting Sail, the period from 1650 through 1820. Not only could a frigate beat
anything that it could catch and escape from anything that could beat it, but the
captain of a frigate also commanded the most potent independent warship afloat.
A ship of the line, though larger and more powerful, usually operated in a squadron
under an admiral’s command, and fought under his directions in a rigid line of
battle. Sloops of war or corvettes were lighter than frigates, and were easy prey for
the big cruisers. The various smaller craft – such as cutters, luggers, and schooners
– were used either as dispatch ships or convoy escorts, and were commanded
by junior officers. For a captain hungry for distinction, a frigate command was
the pinnacle.
Attached to a fleet, a frigate operated as a scout, probing independently for the
enemy. Frigates also served individually or in small squadrons as cruisers, hunting out
the enemy’s merchant ships, lone warships and privateers. These commands were
made more desirable by the existence of prize money, by which the value of captured
enemy ships and cargoes was paid out to captains, officers and crew in fixed
proportions. With the riches of the world’s trade still carried by sea, a successful cruise
could make a ship’s company rich.
But a frigate command offered a captain something even harder to achieve than
wealth. In an age that revered its fighting men, particularly those who fought
according to a gentleman’s code of honor, a victorious frigate duel could make a
captain a figure of international renown. Even losing a single-ship action could make
a captain a national hero, if his conduct was admirable enough. Richard Pearson was
knighted following his spirited defense of HMS
Serapis,
despite his loss to the
Bonhomme Richard.
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© Osprey Publishing • www.ospreypublishing.com
Captains would occasionally go to extremes to arrange a duel with an opposite
number. More than once, captains sent written challenges to a rival, in the manner of
gentlemen fighting a personal duel rather than a battle between two national warships.
On occasion, other ships in a blockading squadron were sent away to ensure that two
ships could fight without interference.
Rituals of combat evolved. A ship indicated its willingness to fight by backing sail,
to allow an opponent upwind to reach it. Both ships cleared for action, removing
furniture, partitions, and unnecessary items to the holds. The gundecks were left bare
of everything except the guns and the men who served them. Once a commander saw
no choice but to surrender his ship, he ordered his colors to be lowered. The victor
Big, bluff Isaac Hull was one
of the US Navy’s more junior
captains in the War of 1812.
This painting shows him as
a young captain, as he would
have appeared at the time.
(USNHF)
5
© Osprey Publishing • www.ospreypublishing.com

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