USS Bonhomme Richard (1765)

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File:USS Bonhomme Richard (1765).jpg
USS Bonhomme Richard
Career (US) 100x35px
Name: Bonhomme Richard
Builder: Randall & Brent Shipyards
Launched: 1766[1]
Acquired: 4 February 1779
In service: 4 February 1779
Out of service: 25 September 1779[1]
Fate: Sank in battle
General characteristics
Tons burthen: 998 tons (1014 tonnes)[1]
Length: 152 ft (46 m)[1]
Beam: 40 ft (12 m)[1]
Draft: 19 ft (5.8 m)[1]
Propulsion: Sail
Complement: 380 officers and enlisted[1]
Armament: 28 x 12-pound smoothbore
6 x 18-pound smoothbore
8 x 9-pound smoothbore[1]

The first USS Bonhomme Richard, formerly Duc de Duras, was a frigate in the Continental Navy. She was originally an East Indiaman, a merchant ship built in France for the French East India Company in 1765, for service between France and the Orient. She was placed at the disposal of John Paul Jones on 4 February 1779, by King Louis XVI of France as a result of a loan to the United States by French shipping magnate, Jacques-Donatien Le Ray.

Origin

Little is known about the early career of Bonhomme Richard other than she was originally an East Indiaman named Duc de Duras; a merchant ship built in France for the French East India Company in 1765. In that capacity she sailed between France and the Orient until purchased by King Louis XVI of France in early 1779 and placed under the command John Paul Jones on 4 February.[2]

Jones renamed her Bon Homme Richard - usually rendered in more correct French as Bonhomme Richard, to honor Benjamin Franklin, the American Commissioner at Paris whose Poor Richard's Almanac had been published in France under the title Les Maximes du Bonhomme Richard.[1]

First patrols

On 19 June 1779, Bonhomme Richard sailed from Lorient accompanied by Alliance, Pallas, Vengeance, and Cerf with troop transports and merchant vessels under convoy to Bordeaux and to cruise against the British in the Bay of Biscay. Forced to return to port for repair, the squadron sailed again 14 August 1779. Going northwest around the west coast of the British Isles into the North Sea and then down the east coast. The squadron took 16 merchant vessels as prizes.

Battle of Flamborough Head

On 23 September 1779, they encountered the Baltic Fleet of 41 sail under convoy of HMS Serapis and Countess of Scarborough near Flamborough Head. After 18:00 Bonhomme Richard engaged Serapis and a bitter engagement, the Battle of Flamborough Head, ensued during the next four hours that cost the lives of nearly half the American and British crews. At first, a British victory seemed inevitable as the more heavily armed Serapis used its firepower to rake Bonhomme Richard with devastating effect, killing Americans by the score. The Commanding Officer of Serapis then called on Jones to surrender, who replied, "Sir, I have not yet begun to fight!" Jones eventually succeeded in lashing the two ships together, nullifying his opponent's greater maneuverability and attempting to take advantage of the larger size and considerably greater crew of Bonhomme Richard. An attempt by the Americans to board Serapis was repulsed, as was an attempt by the British to board Bonhomme Richard. Finally, after another of Jones's squadron joined in the fight (uncaringly causing serious collateral damage aboard the Richard) the British captain surrendered at about 10:30 p.m. Bonhomme Richard, shattered, on fire, and leaking badly defied all efforts to save her and sank about 36 hours later at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, 25 September 1779. John Paul Jones sailed the captured Serapis to the United Provinces for repairs.

Though Bonhomme Richard sank subsequent to the battle, the outcome of the battle convinced the French crown of the wisdom of backing the colonies in their fight to separate from British authority.

Search for the wreck

Bonhomme Richard's final resting location is the subject of much speculation. A number of efforts have been conducted to locate the wreck. As of 2005, these efforts have been unsuccessful. The location of the wreck is presumed to be in approximately 180 feet of water off Flamborough Head in Yorkshire, a headland near where her final battle took place. The number of other wrecks in the area and a century of fishing trawling operations have complicated all searches.

References

Bibliography

External links

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