HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

USS ''Constellation'' vs ''La Vengeance'', or the action of 1 February 1800, was a single-ship action fought between frigates of the
French Navy The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...
and the
United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
during the
Quasi-War The Quasi-War (french: Quasi-guerre) was an undeclared naval war fought from 1798 to 1800 between the United States and the French First Republic, primarily in the Caribbean and off the East Coast of the United States. The ability of Congress ...
. In the battle the American frigate tried to take the French frigate ''La Vengeance'' as a
prize A prize is an award to be given to a person or a group of people (such as sporting teams and organizations) to recognize and reward their actions and achievements.
. Both ships were heavily damaged. Although the French frigate struck her colors (surrendered) twice, she managed to flee only after the main mast of her opponent had fallen. In 1798, an
undeclared war An undeclared war is a military conflict between two or more nations without either side issuing a formal declaration of war. The term is sometimes used to include any disagreement or conflict fought about without an official declaration. Since ...
had begun between the United States and France due to French seizures of American
merchantmen A merchant ship, merchant vessel, trading vessel, or merchantman is a watercraft that transports cargo or carries passengers for hire. This is in contrast to pleasure craft, which are used for personal recreation, and naval ships, which are us ...
. As part of an American effort to deter French attacks, Commodore
Thomas Truxton Thomas Truxtun (or Truxton) (February 17, 1755 – May 5, 1822) was an American naval officer after the Revolutionary War, when he served as a privateer, who rose to the rank of commodore in the late eighteenth century and later served in the Quas ...
led an American
naval squadron A squadron, or naval squadron, is a significant group of warships which is nonetheless considered too small to be designated a fleet. A squadron is typically a part of a fleet. Between different navies there are no clear defining parameters t ...
that was dispatched to the
Lesser Antilles The Lesser Antilles ( es, link=no, Antillas Menores; french: link=no, Petites Antilles; pap, Antias Menor; nl, Kleine Antillen) are a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. Most of them are part of a long, partially volcanic island arc bet ...
. Learning that regular French naval forces were in the region, Truxton set out in his flagship ''Constellation'' and sailed to Guadeloupe to engage them. On 1 February 1800, while nearing the French colony, ''Constellation'' met François Marie Pitot's frigate ''La Vengeance'' of the French Navy. Despite Pitot's attempts to flee, his frigate was drawn into a heavy engagement with ''Constellation''. Although the French frigate struck her colors twice, ''Constellation'' was unable to take ''La Vengeance'' as a prize. Eventually Pitot was able to escape with his frigate to Curaçao, though only after sustaining severe casualties and damage to his vessel. Truxton's ship sustained serious damage and sailed to
Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...
for repairs before returning home to a hero's welcome.


Background

In 1800, the
Quasi-War The Quasi-War (french: Quasi-guerre) was an undeclared naval war fought from 1798 to 1800 between the United States and the French First Republic, primarily in the Caribbean and off the East Coast of the United States. The ability of Congress ...
between the United States and France was in full force. In order to prevent French attacks against American
merchantmen A merchant ship, merchant vessel, trading vessel, or merchantman is a watercraft that transports cargo or carries passengers for hire. This is in contrast to pleasure craft, which are used for personal recreation, and naval ships, which are us ...
in the Caribbean, the
United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
maintained four squadrons of vessels in the region. One such squadron was commanded by
Commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ''Kommodore'' * Air commodore ...
Thomas Truxton Thomas Truxtun (or Truxton) (February 17, 1755 – May 5, 1822) was an American naval officer after the Revolutionary War, when he served as a privateer, who rose to the rank of commodore in the late eighteenth century and later served in the Quas ...
, and tasked with patrolling the
Lesser Antilles The Lesser Antilles ( es, link=no, Antillas Menores; french: link=no, Petites Antilles; pap, Antias Menor; nl, Kleine Antillen) are a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. Most of them are part of a long, partially volcanic island arc bet ...
. Taking command on 19 January 1800 after arriving at
Saint Kitts Saint Kitts, officially the Saint Christopher Island, 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. Saint Kitts and the neighbouring island of Nevis cons ...
in his flagship , Truxton's squadron consisted of four frigates, three schooners, and a
ship-rigged A full-rigged ship or fully rigged ship is a sailing vessel's sail plan with three or more masts, all of them square-rigged. A full-rigged ship is said to have a ship rig or be ship-rigged. Such vessels also have each mast stepped in three s ...
man of war. Besides the numerous
privateer A privateer is a private person or ship that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or deleg ...
s operating in the area, the only regular French naval forces in Truxton's area of operations were the frigate ''La Vengeance'' under François Marie Pitot and the corvette ''La Berceau'' under Louis Senes. Both vessels had arrived at Guadeloupe on 10 December 1799 escorting the new administrators of the French colony. Once at Saint Kitts Truxton dispersed his squadron, giving each ship orders to cruise independently. He then set sail for Guadeloupe on 30 January 1800 with his flagship ''Constellation'', intending to challenge the French frigate and corvette there. The same day, Pitot in ''La Vengeance'' left Guadaloupe's capital of
Basse-Terre Basse-Terre (, ; ; gcf, label=Guadeloupean Creole, Bastè, ) is a commune in the French overseas department of Guadeloupe, in the Lesser Antilles. It is also the ''prefecture'' (capital city) of Guadeloupe. The city of Basse-Terre is located o ...
for France. By this point in the Quasi-War, the 1,265-ton ''Constellation'' carried 38 cannon despite officially being classified by the United States Navy as a 36-gun frigate. Previously her armament had consisted of 24-pounder guns, but these had proven inefficient during Truxton's action with ''L'Insurgente'' and as a result were removed and replaced with twenty-eight 18-pounder cannon and ten 24-pounder carronades. Truxton and his crew were hardened veterans and were well prepared for a fight. Their French counterparts were not as ready for an engagement. Pitot's frigate was carrying a large quantity of
specie Specie may refer to: * Coins or other metal money in mass circulation * Bullion coins * Hard money (policy) * Commodity money Commodity money is money whose value comes from a commodity of which it is made. Commodity money consists of objects ...
as well as 36 American prisoners of war and 80 passengers, two of whom were generals. Under such circumstances Pitot intended to avoid an engagement if possible, even though ''La Vengeance'' was a more heavily armed vessel carrying eight 42-pounder carronades, twenty-eight 18-pounders, and sixteen 12-pounder cannon. The French also had a distinct advantage in the event of a boarding action, as ''Constellation'' had only 310 men to ''La Vengeance's'' complement of 380 crew.


Engagement

On 1 February 1800 at 07:00, Truxton's crew spotted what appeared to be a 54-gun frigate flying British colors two leagues off the Basse-Terre roadstead. In an effort to communicate with the mysterious frigate, ''Constellation'' flew British colors. Pitot had sighted the American ship by 07:45. Thinking the vessel chasing him was a superior 55-gun warship, he sought to avoid conflict, and continued to sail with the wind rather than head north as he had originally intended. In an effort to increase her speed, the French frigate's crew put out studding sails to catch more wind. The behavior of Pitot's frigate signaled to Truxton that she was really a French warship, so he ordered ''Constellation'' cleared for action and gave chase. By 08:00 he struck the British colors and raised the American flag. As he closed with ''La Vengeance'' he shouted through a speaking trumpet for the French vessel to surrender. At this point the action began, with Pitot's stern chasers opening fire upon ''Constellation''. In an effort to cut the American frigate's advantage in speed, ''La Vengeance'' changed course to the south-east where the wind would give her an advantage. As he maneuvered his vessel, Pitot was able to unleash a broadside aimed at ''Constellation''s rigging. The American frigate waited to return fire until she'd gained the
weather gage The weather gage (sometimes spelled weather gauge) is the advantageous position of a fighting sailing vessel relative to another. It is also known as "nautical gauge" as it is related to the sea shore. The concept is from the Age of Sail and is no ...
. Now having the advantage of the wind, Truxton's opening double-shotted broadside slammed into the port side of ''La Vengeance''s hull. Sailing side by side, the two frigates continued to engage each other for two and a half hours while Truxton attempted unsuccessfully to move his ship into a
raking fire In naval warfare during the Age of Sail, raking fire was cannon fire directed parallel to the long axis of an enemy ship from ahead (in front of the ship) or astern (behind the ship). Although each shot was directed against a smaller profile ...
position. As the French tended to aim for the rigging, at one point ''Constellation''s foresails were shot away and the frigate lost her maneuverability until they could be replaced. ''La Vengeance'' prepared for a boarding action when the two frigates drew closer together at 22:45, but this attempt was foiled when ''Constellation'' fired broadsides of
grapeshot Grapeshot is a type of artillery round invented by a British Officer during the Napoleonic Wars. It was used mainly as an anti infantry round, but had other uses in naval combat. In artillery, a grapeshot is a type of ammunition that consists of ...
at Pitot's ship while American marines fired their muskets and hurled grenades down from the rigging. With the French ship drawing off, the two vessels began a longer range
round shot A round shot (also called solid shot or simply ball) is a solid spherical projectile without explosive charge, launched from a gun. Its diameter is slightly less than the bore of the barrel from which it is shot. A round shot fired from a lar ...
duel that lasted until 02:00 on 2 February 1800, when ''La Vengeance'' struck her colors for the second time. At some point earlier in the action, Pitot had struck his flag but the Americans did not notice because of darkness. Truxton moved ''Constellation'' to within of his vanquished opponent aiming to take her as a prize. The American commodore's ambitions were spoiled when at 03:00 ''Constellation's'' mainmast fell overboard, killing several
topmen Royal Navy ranks, rates, and uniforms of the 18th and 19th centuries were the original effort of the Royal Navy to create standardized rank and insignia system for use both at shore and at sea. History Prior to the 1740s, Royal Navy office ...
who went down with it. With the Americans unable to come alongside his vessel, Pitot took advantage of the situation and simply slipped away into the darkness.


Aftermath

Casualties were heavy on both sides, and both vessels were in such poor condition that each commander thought he had sunk his opponent. Most of ''La Vengeance'' rigging had been blown away; only the lower
foremast The mast of a sailing vessel is a tall spar, or arrangement of spars, erected more or less vertically on the centre-line of a ship or boat. Its purposes include carrying sails, spars, and derricks, and giving necessary height to a navigation ...
, lower
mizzenmast The mast of a sailing vessel is a tall spar, or arrangement of spars, erected more or less vertically on the centre-line of a ship or boat. Its purposes include carrying sails, spars, and derricks, and giving necessary height to a navigation lig ...
, and
bowsprit The bowsprit of a sailing vessel is a spar extending forward from the vessel's prow. The bowsprit is typically held down by a bobstay A bobstay is a part of the rigging of a sailing boat or ship. Its purpose is to counteract the upward tensio ...
were operational. Pitot set course for Curaçao and was forced to ground his vessel there to prevent her from sinking. The number of French casualties is somewhat unclear: official French accounts report 28 dead and 40 wounded, while accounts from Curaçao state that the French frigate had lost 160 men. Once Pitot reached Curaçao he was beset with further problems. ''La Vengeance'' remained out of action for months due to difficulties in acquiring support needed to repair the frigate from the Dutch officials there. A French expedition to seize Curaçao brought the
materiel Materiel (; ) refers to supplies, equipment, and weapons in military supply-chain management, and typically supplies and equipment in a commercial supply chain context. In a military context, the term ''materiel'' refers either to the specif ...
needed to repair the frigate, but when asked to help attack the island Pitot refused and slipped away to Guadaloupe. ''Constellation'' had suffered heavy damage with 15 of her crew slain and a further 25 wounded, of whom 11 later died. The ship sailed to
Port Royal, Jamaica Port Royal is a village located at the end of the Palisadoes, at the mouth of Kingston Harbour, in southeastern Jamaica. Founded in 1494 by the Spanish, it was once the largest city in the Caribbean, functioning as the centre of shipping and c ...
, for a refit, but Truxton could not complete the necessary repairs because of a shortage of
naval stores Naval stores are all liquid products derived from conifers. These materials include rosin, tall oil, pine oil, and terpentine. The term ''naval stores'' originally applied to the organic compounds used in building and maintaining wooden sail ...
. The ship left Jamaica a week after she arrived, with only her mainmast replaced. After escorting a convoy of 14 merchantmen back to the United States, Truxton sailed his battered frigate to Hampton Roads for a proper refit. Only after he returned to the United States did the American commodore finally learn that the ''La Vengeance'' had not been sunk. Truxton was considered a hero and received considerable praise for his actions. In response to his battle with Pitot's frigate, the American government commended Truxton with a
Congressional Gold Medal The Congressional Gold Medal is an award bestowed by the United States Congress. It is Congress's highest expression of national appreciation for distinguished achievements and contributions by individuals or institutions. The congressional pract ...
depicting the battle. James C. Jarvis, a 13-year-old Midshipman who was killed when the mainmast collapsed, became famous for his bravery during the battle.


References


Sources

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:USS Constellation vs La Vengeance Conflicts in 1800 1800 in the United States 1800 in France Naval battles of the Quasi-War Naval battles involving the United States Naval battles involving France