USS ''Syren'' (later ''Siren'') was a brig of 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 ...

built at

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

in 1803. She served during the

First Barbary War The First Barbary War (1801–1805), also known as the Tripolitan War and the Barbary Coast War, was a conflict during the Barbary Wars, in which the United States and Sweden fought against Tripolitania. Tripolitania had declared war against Sw ...

and the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...

until the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

captured her in 1814. The British never commissioned her but apparently used her for a year or so as a

lazaretto A lazaretto or lazaret (from it, lazzaretto a diminutive form of the Italian word for beggar cf. lazzaro) is a quarantine station for maritime travellers. Lazarets can be ships permanently at anchor, isolated islands, or mainland buildings ...

, or a prison vessel. She then disappears from records.

Description

''Syren'' was designed by Benjamin Hutton, Jr. of Philadelphia and built for the Navy in 1803 at Philadelphia by shipwright Nathaniel Hutton and launched on 6 August 1803. She was commissioned in September and Lieutenant Charles Stewart was appointed in command. She was sharper, but smaller than USS ''Argus'' (1803)'','' yet carried the same

armament A weapon, arm or armament is any implement or device that can be used to deter, threaten, inflict physical damage, harm, or kill. Weapons are used to increase the efficacy and efficiency of activities such as hunting, crime, law enforcement, s ...

. Both vessels were built the same year for the First Barbary War.

Service history in US Navy

First Barbary War

''Syren'' departed Philadelphia on 27 August 1803 and reached

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

on 1 October. A fortnight later she sailed via Livorno to Algiers carrying presents and money to the

Dey of Algiers Dey (Arabic: داي), from the Turkish honorific title ''dayı'', literally meaning uncle, was the title given to the rulers of the Regency of Algiers (Algeria), Tripoli,Bertarelli (1929), p. 203. and Tunis under the Ottoman Empire from 1671 o ...

. She then sailed to Syracuse, Sicily, where she arrived early in January 1804. The first action ''Syren'' was involved in was an attack aimed at destroying , a frigate that had run aground the previous autumn and that Tripolitan gunboats had then captured. To prevent ''Philadelphia'' from opposing his planned operations against Tripoli, the commander of the American squadron in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...

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 ...

Edward Preble Edward Preble (August 15, 1761 – August 25, 1807) was a United States naval officer who served with great distinction during the 1st Barbary War, leading American attacks on the city of Tripoli and forming the officer corps that would la ...

, decided to destroy her. To achieve this, ''Syren'' and

ketch A ketch is a two- masted sailboat whose mainmast is taller than the mizzen mast (or aft-mast), and whose mizzen mast is stepped forward of the rudder post. The mizzen mast stepped forward of the rudder post is what distinguishes the ketch fr ...

sailed from Syracuse on 3 February 1804 and proceeded to Tripoli, which they reached on 7 February. However, before the American ships could launch their attack, they were driven off by a violent gale and did not get back off Tripoli until 16 February. Before the attack ''Syren'' tied up alongside ''Intrepid'' to transfer some of her crew for the assault on ''Philadelphia''. Aboard ''Intrepid'', under the command of Stephen Decatur, sailors from both ''Intrepid'' and ''Syren'' succeeded in burning ''Philadelphia''. Also present during the assault was

Thomas Macdonough Thomas Macdonough, Jr. (December 31, 1783 – November 10, 1825) was an early-19th-century Irish-American naval officer noted for his roles in the first Barbary War and the War of 1812. He was the son of a revolutionary officer, Thomas Macdonou ...

of ''Syren''. NH 56747 (16512263904)

''Syren'' returned to Syracuse on the morning of 19 February. On 9 March, she and sailed for Tripoli. Soon after their arrival, on 21 March 1804, she captured the armed brig ''Transfer'' belonging to the

Pasha Pasha, Pacha or Paşa ( ota, پاشا; tr, paşa; sq, Pashë; ar, باشا), in older works sometimes anglicized as bashaw, was a higher rank in the Ottoman political and military system, typically granted to governors, generals, dignitar ...

. Stewart took ''Transfer'' into US service and renamed her . She then served in the American squadron. The very next day ''Syren'' captured a

polacca A polacca (or ''polacre'') is a type of seventeenth- to nineteenth-century sailing vessel, similar to the xebec. The name is the feminine of "Polish" in the Italian language. The polacca was frequently seen in the Mediterranean. It had two or th ...

named ''Madona Catapolcana'' and sent her to Malta. Operations in the Mediterranean during the spring and summer of 1804 and participated in the attacks on Tripoli in August and September 1804. The ship continued to support the squadron's operation against Tripoli which forced the Pasha to accede to American demands. After a peace treaty with Tripoli was signed on 10 June 1805, the brig remained in the Mediterranean commanded by Master Commandant John Smith for almost a year helping to establish and maintain satisfactory relations with other Barbary states. The ship returned to America in May 1806 and reached the

Washington Navy Yard The Washington Navy Yard (WNY) is the former shipyard and Weapon, ordnance plant of the United States Navy in Southeast, Washington, D.C., Southeast Washington, D.C. It is the oldest shore establishment of the U.S. Navy. The Yard currently serv ...

in August. She was laid up

in ordinary ''In ordinary'' is an English phrase with multiple meanings. In relation to the Royal Household, it indicates that a position is a permanent one. In naval matters, vessels "in ordinary" (from the 17th century) are those out of service for repair o ...

there until recommissioned in 1807 and subsequently carried dispatches to France in 1809. In 1809, her sailing master at the Norfolk Navy Yard was Captain John "Mad Jack" Percival. The following year, her name was changed to ''Siren''.

War of 1812

Little record has been found of the brig's service during the War of 1812, however small news items appeared in the Salem Gazette and the Boston Gazette. In May 1813 it was reported that within the space of two days a merchant vessel, ''Pilgrim'', was boarded, first by which was searching for ''Syren'', and then by ''Syren'', which was searching for ''Herald''. ''Syren'' was now commanded by

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

Joseph Bainbridge. The following month ''Syren'' left Belize and proceeded to Cuba where after three weeks searching for a Royal Navy sloop, probably ''Herald'', she sailed for the coast of Florida putting in at New Orleans before departing on 9 May 1813. No prizes were taken during this voyage and the ship needed repairs. By January 1814 ''Syren'' was in Massachusetts and was now commanded by Lieutenant Parker, In February she sailed along with a

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 ...

, ''Grand Turk''. Not long after sailing Parker died and command transferred to Lieutenant N.J. Nicholson. ''Syren'' captured at least three merchant ships off the coast of Africa. On 28 May she captured and burnt , Hassler, master, which had been sailing from Africa to Liverpool. Then on 1 June ''Syren'' captured ''Adventure'', which too was from Africa to Liverpool. She took-off their cargoes of ivory and sank them. Lastly, at some point ''Syren'' captured ''Catherine''. On 12 July 1814 ''Syren'' while cruising off the West African coast encountered the British ship a 74-gun

third rate In the rating system of the Royal Navy, a third rate was a ship of the line which from the 1720s mounted between 64 and 80 guns, typically built with two gun decks (thus the related term two-decker). Years of experience proved that the third ...

ship of the line under the command of Captain Augustus Brine. Heavily outgunned, ''Syren'' attempted to run. After an 11-hour chase ''Medway'' captured her despite ''Syren'' having lightened her load by throwing overboard her guns, anchors and boats. During her last voyage she had captured or sunk several British merchantmen. Among the prisoners was Samuel Leech, who later wrote an account of his experiences. According to Samuel Leech, after being captured the crew of ''Syren'' were taken to the Cape of Good Hope, and after landing at Simonstown, marched to a jail in Cape Town. Here they were held until transferred to England when the war was over. On arriving at Simonstown, other American prisoners were seen to be leaving the jail and being shipped off to Dartmoor. The ''Syren'' crew met these again in England while waiting for transfer to the United States. Some had been present at 'The Massacre'.

British service history

After her capture by the Royal Navy she had a figurehead of a mermaid installed. The Royal Navy used her as a

. She is no longer listed after 1815.

References

Bibliography

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External links

USS ''Syrens plans
{{DEFAULTSORT:Syren (1803) Brigs of the United States Navy Barbary Wars American ships War of 1812 ships of the United States Ships built in Philadelphia Vessels captured from the United States Navy 1803 ships Captured ships