History of the USS Bonhomme Richard History The Frigate BonHomme Richard In 1765, a 900-ton merchant vessel, DUC DE DURAS, was built in France for the East India Company. The ship was used for trading between France and the Orient. Ten years later, the ship would play a historic role in America's fight for independence. As the Revolutionary War raged on in the Colonies, the newly founded Continental Congress began gathering a small navy. By cutting down the English war efforts in North America this became immediate success. Those successes prompted the Continental Congress to send Benjamin Franklin, as an Ambassador in 1777, to advise the French Court and garner more European support efforts for the American war. In 1779, the King of France donated to the American cause the DUC DE DURAS, On February 4, 1779, the Continental Congress placed this fleet under the command of the Captain John Paul Jones. Swiftly, Jones refitted the DUC DE DURAS increasing her firepower to 20 guns a side, and renamed her BONHOMME RICHARD; in honor of both America and France.

Captain John Paul Jones chose the Pen Name of Benjamin Franklin, the Ambassador to France, and author of "Poor Richard's Almanac." This early 18th century journal urged men to seek out roles in the public sphere and shape their own destinies. Clearly, his journal helped forge the will that resulted in the American Revolution. The Battle against HMS Serapis On June 19, 1779, Jones sailed BONHOMME RICHARD from L' Orient, France accompanied by ALLIANCE, PALLAS, VEGEANCE, and CERF. Their mission was to escort troop transports and merchant vessels under the convoy to Bordeaux, France, and cruise against the British in the Bay of Biscay. Forced to return to port for repairs, Jones' squadron sailed again on August 14, 1779. Going northwest around the British Isles into the Northern Sea and down the eastern seaboard of Great Britain, the squadron swiftly took 16 merchant vessels as prizes. On the evening of September 23, 1779, they encountered the Baltic Fleet of 41 near the English shore of Flamborough Head.

Sailing for England, the Fleet was under the fleet of the newly built frigate, HMS SERAPIS (50 guns) and the small sloop of COUNTESS OF SCARBOROUGH (20 GUNS). Before the British fleet could respond, BON HOMME RICHARD lashed out at SERAPIS igniting a bitter struggle that would last the entire night. Early in the battle, the guns of Jones' main battery exploded, temporarily disabling his ship. To offset the SERAPIS' speed, Jones lashed his flagship alongside and continued the fight long after his subordinates regarded the situation as hopeless. Burning, sinking, and scattered with the dead and wounded, BONHOMME RICHARD lit up the darkness with a constant barrage. Jones struggled to keep his vessel afloat and, in one instance, an overwhelming number of prisoners in hold threatened to rush the deck to save from drowning. Jones defied all odds and continued the fight against Captain Pearson's SERAPIS. In the final hour, BONHOMME RICHARD'S mast was hit above the top-sail. Along with her Colors, a large section of the mast came crashing to the deck near Jones’s feet.

In response to the downfallen colors, SERAPIS called out, "Have you struck your Colors?" Resoundingly, John Paul Jones exclaimed, "Struck Sir? I have not yet begun to fight!" With newfound will, his crew delivered decisive blows from all sides and aloft. Jones' sent 40 Marines and Sailors into the rigging with grenades and muskets. Decimated, SERAPIS could not avoid defeat and at 2230 she struck her Colors. Victorious, John Paul Jones commandeered SERAPIS and sailed her to Holland for repairs. Sadly, on September 24, 1779 at 1100, BONHOMME RICHARD sank never to rise from her watery grave. This epic battle was the American Navy's first-ever defeat of an English ship in English waters! Rallying colonial hope for freedom, Jones' victory established him to many as "The Father of the American Navy." CV/CVA-31 Bon Homme Richard (CV 31), the second ship to bear the name after John Paul Jones’s Revolutionary War Frigate was launched on April 29, 1944 by the New York Navy Yard.

She was sponsored by Mrs. J. S. McCain, wife of Vice Adm. McCain. On November 26, 1944, USS Bon Homme Richard (CV 31) was commissioned with Captain A. O. Rule, Jr., in command. Bon Homme Richard departed Norfolk 19 March 1945 to join the Pacific Fleet and arrived at Pearl Harbor on April 5, 1945. Following additional training in Hawaiian waters, the carrier joined TF 38 off Okinawa on June 6, 1945. From June 7-10, she joined in the attacks on Okino Daito Jima and then served with the 3rd Fleet during the air strikes against Japan (July 2 - August 15). She remained off Japan until September 16 and after a short training period off Guam. On October 20th, 1945 she arrived in San Francisco, California. Nine days later she left San Francisco and headed to Pearl Harbor to undergo conversion for troop transport duty.

From November 8, 1945 to January 16, 1946 she made trans-Pacific voyages, returning servicemen to the United States. Bon Homme Richard then reported to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard for inactivation and was placed out of commission in reserve on January 9, 1947. On January 15, 1951, Bon Homme Richard was recommissioned and on May 10, she departed to San Diego for the Far East. On May 29, she joined TF 77 off Korea and launched her first air strikes on May 31st. Bon Homme Richard continued operations with TF 77 until November 20, 1951. The carrier reached San Diego in mid-December and on May 20, 1952 was off-again to the Far East. She joined TF 77 once more on June 23, 1952 and took part in the heavy strikes against a North Korean power complex from June 24 -25 and the amphibious feint at Kojo from October 12 - 16.

She continued operations against North Korean targets until December 18, 1952. On January 8, 1953 she arrived to San Francisco. Her classification was changed from CV-31 to CVA 31 on October 1, 1952. Bon Homme Richard went out of commission on May 15, 1953 due to modernization. On September 6, 1955 she was recommissioned as CV/CVA 31. She had an angled, strengthened flight deck with an enclosed bow, enlarged elevators, and steam catapults. She completed her conversion period on October 31, 1955 and commenced to sea trials in the Alameda-San Diego area. On September 1955, she was recommissioned to start her first of a long series of Seventh Fleet deployments. The initial west coast deployment of a squadron equipped with the new Sidewinder missile was with Fighter Squadron 211, equipped with FJ-3s, aboard Bon Homme Richard in September 1956.

On June 6, 1957, two F8U Crusaders and two A3D Skywarriors flew non-stop from Bon Homme Richard off the California coast to USS Saratoga (CVA 60) of the east coast of Florida. This was the first carrier-to-carrier transcontinental flight that was completed by the F8Us in 3 hours 28 minutes and by the A3Ds in 4 hours 1 minute. Bon Homme Richard made additional western Pacific cruises in 1957, 1958-1959, 1959-60, 1961, 1962-63, and 1964, with the last including a voyage into the Indian Ocean. The ship entered the Indian Ocean on April 4, 1964 with the "Concord Squadron," composed of Bon Homme Richard, USS Shelton (DD 790), USS Blue (DD 744), USS Frank Knox (DD 742), and the fleet oiler USS Hassayampa (AO 145).

The cruise lasted six weeks and went near Iran, the Arabian Peninsula, then down the African coast and into many ports along the way for goodwill visits. The Vietnam War escalation in early 1965 brought Bon Homme Richard into a third armed conflict, and she deployed on five Southeast Asia combat tours over the next six years. Her aircraft battled North Vietnamese MiGs on many occasions, downing several, as well as striking transportation and infrastructure targets. Occasional excursions to other Asian areas provided some variety to her operations. Bon Homme Richard was ordered inactivated at the end of her 1970 deployment. She decommissioned in July 1971, becoming part of the Reserve Fleet at Bremerton, Washington. The ship was stricken from the Navy List in 1989 and was sold for scrapping on February 4, 1992. Bon Homme Richard received one battle star for her World War II service and five battle stars for participating in the Korean conflict.

Other BonHomme Richards In 1864, Congress authorized the 3,700-ton AMMONOOSUC class screw frigate to take the renowned name BONHOMME RICHARD, but the vessel was never built. On September 26, 1942, while still under construction, the name of CV 10 was changed from BONHOMME RICHARD to YORKTOWN (the previous YORKTOWN was lost three months earlier at the Battle of Midway). Sealift -- Where is Bonhomme Richard? Where is Bonhomme Richard? USNS Henson leads the charge to find John Paul Jones' iconic ship By Kim Dixon, SEALOGEUR Public Affairs John Paul Jones bids goodbye to his victorious ship, USS Bonhomme Richard. Painting by Percy Moran "They did not abandon her 'til after nine o'clock; the water was then up to the lower deck, and a little after ten I saw, with inexpressible grief, the last glimpse of the Bon Homme [sic] Richard." So wrote the determined godfather of the U.S. Navy, John Paul Jones, on Sept.

25, 1779, two days after his historic victory against the British Royal navy's HMS Serapis, when his Continental Navy ship Bonhomme Richard sank into the depths of the North Sea off England. For more than two centuries Jones' famous phrase, "I have not yet begun to fight," has continued to inspire members of the U.S. Navy, as well as U.S. merchant mariners who have supported the United States' defense around the world. Today Bonhomme Richard and the legendary leader whose memory it invokes are at the forefront again as Military Sealift Command oceanographic survey ship USNS Henson undertakes a new search for the celebrated ship. For 10 days beginning Sept. 10, Henson, which is operated by MSC for the Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command, was tasked from a routine deployment to the European theater of operations - under U.S. 6th Fleet - to serve as the primary platform for a survey team hoping to narrow the 100 square miles of seabed in the North Sea off the coast of Flamborough Head, England, where Bonhomme Richard is thought to have sunk to its watery grave.

"Throughout their years of active service, the Navy's MSC oceanographic ships have sailed hundreds of thousands of nautical miles collecting critical oceanographic and hydrographic data," said Rear Adm. Jonathan W. White, commander, Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command. "I consider it an honor that our cutting-edge naval ocean survey technology now will be used to forge a connection with this historic ship and its commander, U.S. Navy hero, John Paul Jones." Henson is a platform for the Ocean Technology Foundation's search for John Paul Jones' historic ship, USS Bonhomme Richard, which sank in 1779. U.S. Navy photo The crew of Henson, U.S. merchant mariners who work for a private company under contract to MSC, expressed their enthusiasm for the opportunity to participate in the search. "Finding the wreck could provide insight into the lives of Capt. Jones, his crew, and their battle with the Serapis, and perhaps even some new discoveries about the events of the time," said Henson's Third Officer Barnaby Bosanquet.

"I watch television shows about this type of mission when I'm home, so I'm feeling quite lucky to have been involved." A ship commits to a watery grave From all accounts, the battle on Sept. 23, 1779, was a ferocious one, almost impossible to comprehend in the modern age of naval warfare. "'and I made both ships fast together in that situation, which, by the action of the wind on the enemy's sails, forced her stern close to the Bon Homme Richard's [sic] bow, so that the ships lay square alongside of each other, the yards being all entangled, and the cannon of each ship touching the opponent's," wrote Jones. Serapis was struck by gunfire in more than 10 different locations, but as dismal as its situation was, Bonhomme Richard fared much worse on that day.

"With respect to the situation of the Bon Homme Richard [sic], the rudder was cut entirely off, the stern frame, and transoms were almost entirely cut away, and the timbers by the lower deck, especially from the mainmast towards the stern, being greatly decayed with age, were mangled beyond my power of description, and a person must have been an eye witness to form a just idea of the tremendous scene of carnage, wreck, and ruin, which every where appeared," wrote Jones. "Humanity cannot but recoil from the prospect of such finished horror, and lament that war should be capable of producing such fatal consequences'" Despite the dire state of Bonhomme Richard, Jones' counterpart, Royal navy Capt. Richard Pearson, surrendered before he realized the condition of his opponent. Jones and his crew transferred to his newly-won prize Serapis, as Bonhomme Richard, a victor in the battle considered a turning point in the American Revolutionary War, was broken and rudderless. "Being retired Navy, the historical significance and achievement in finding Bonhomme Richard is beyond words," said Henson's civilian Medical Department Representative Mark Pearson.

"It is a part of our past and set the course for the Navy as we know it today." The search begins Five years ago, the Ocean Technology Foundation, a non-profit undersea research and education service organization, also called OTF, spearheaded an annual project to search for the remains of Bonhomme Richard with support from various commands within the U.S. Navy. The first question was where to start looking. The location of the Battle of Flamborough Head was well-documented. Indications are that both ships were badly damaged and drifting, with Bonhomme Richard sinking more than a day after the battle. However, information on the crew's actions during this history-making battle does not paint a complete picture. To fill in gaps, OTF Bonhomme Richard Project historian, Peter Reaveley, spent more than 35 years collecting and analyzing historical data about the battle, using eyewitness accounts, weather and tidal information from that time, and crew actions and ships' logs. With the available information in hand, U.S. Naval Academy faculty members created a computer program that integrated the weather and tidal information with crew actions and last-known ship positions to try to determine where the ship ultimately sank.

"We believe the ship to be in an area where the water is less than 200 feet deep," said Dr. Peter Guth, an oceanography professor at the U.S. Naval Academy who led a group of four midshipmen on this year's expedition. "While being in water that shallow can make the search easier because more assets are available to conduct the search, it does also increase the likelihood that the remains have been scattered across the ocean floor by commercial fishing nets operating in the area [during] the past 200 years." Civilian mariners aboard Military Sealift Command oceanographic survey ship USNS Henson recover and secure the ship's Klein 5000, a device towed to collect side-scan sonar imagery. U.S. Navy photo by Rebecca Burke When OTF was created in 2006, 550 square miles fit the criteria. Each subsequent expedition has narrowed the search, with 450 square miles surveyed and 100 square miles - roughly the size of Washington, D.C., - remaining before Henson assisted in surveying 63 more square miles. This year's collaboration included the most extensive support from the U.S.

Navy to date, including the use of a variety of high-technology undersea search tools such as Henson's Klein 5000 towed side-scan sonar; the Naval Oceanographic Office's unmanned underwater vehicle REMUS 600 with side-scan and multi-beam sonar; and the Office of Naval Research's unmanned underwater vehicle REMUS 600 equipped with buried mine identification technology used for locating mines buried in the ocean bottom. Henson's crew joined forces with various members of the project's survey team - including oceanographers from the Naval Oceanographic Office, faculty and midshipmen from the U.S. Naval Academy, representatives from the Office of Naval Research and the Naval History and Heritage Command, members of the Bonhomme Richard Search project team from OTF and personnel from the British Royal navy and the French navy. This diverse team assembled in Portsmouth, England, with its related equipment, to meet Henson during its port visit there. "The normal routine was to launch the REMUS off the stern early in the day," said civilian mariner Capt. Greg Gillotte, master of Henson. "The survey team would have us go to a certain point where they wanted to launch the REMUS.

We would put the ship into position to launch. Then after the run, we'd have to maneuver the ship alongside close enough to fire a grappling hook with a line that would catch the float line that was released on REMUS. We'd grapple the line, and then pull it onto the ship." The REMUS 600 is a fully independent underwater vehicle that is not connected to the ship. Operators program the desired underwater-survey pattern into the vehicle's computer before putting the vehicle into the water, where it can operate in depths of up to 1,968 feet for 18 to 20 hours on batteries. When that time has elapsed, the vehicle brings itself to the surface, and the survey team on the ship recovers it. The recorded computer imagery is then played back and analyzed. Oceanographer Kevin Dial of the Naval Oceanographic Office rinses an autonomous underwater vehicle after recovering it from the North Sea onto Henson. U.S. Navy photo by Rebecca Burke Henson's towed side-scan sonar, the Klein 5000, which is capable of working to depths of 656 feet with the ship operating at speeds of two to 10 knots, operated with the REMUS.

The Klein provided a live picture of near-photographic quality back to Henson. Keeping both systems in the water simultaneously doubled the area that the survey team was able to cover during the search. That increased the workload for Henson and its crew. "We were often working around the clock," said Gillotte. "We might have to retrieve the fish [REMUS] at two a.m., and then turn around at six a.m. and put the Klein in to tow. Plus, if the Klein was in the water, and it was time to bring in the REMUS, we had to recover the Klein first. While the NAVOCEANO team launches and retrieves the REMUS, my crew does all the operations on deck when we're using the Klein." Mission challenges aside, Henson found itself at the mercy of what has been the bane of many mariners' existence: the North Sea in late summer. Operating during days that saw 25- to 30-knot winds with gusts more than 40 knots, and 10- to 12-foot seas, Henson's 328-foot length and 58-foot beam became valuable commodities to the experts on board.

"It was a luxury to have Henson as our working platform," said Melissa Ryan, Bonhomme Richard search-project manager for OTF. "[The ship] was extremely stable and allowed us to work continuously, even in high seas. We have had expeditions in the past using much smaller vessels where we have lost half of our time at sea due to the weather. As an oceanographic survey ship, the Henson was perfectly suited to the mission of searching for the Bonhomme Richard. Its [Henson's] crew gave 100 percent to ensure that the mission was a success." And the findings are ... Three interested countries. Ten days at sea. More than 63 square miles searched. Twenty-four Henson civilian mariners. Twenty-nine oceanographers, historians, underwater archeologists, researchers and midshipmen. Just what mysteries did these virtual denizens of the deep uncover? "This year's search was very successful in that we [have now] surveyed 90 percent of our [total] survey area," said Ryan. In addition, the survey team identified several hundred targets under the sea within the 63 square miles searched.

However, more than 200 years spent at the bottom of the North Sea is not likely to have been kind to a wooden ship that entered the battle already a bit long in the tooth at 14 years of age. From Jones' own description, the ship was in pieces long before she slowly settled in her final resting spot. Is it realistic to assume there is something left to find? "There's not a shipwreck out there that can't be found," said Dr. Robert Neyland, director of underwater archaeology at the Naval History and Heritage Command. "Researchers have studied every known book, drawing and model of Bonhomme Richard. When the ship was built in 1765 as a French merchant ship, there was a scarcity of wooden knees - right-angled timbers used to connect parts of a wooden ship together - so boat builders used iron knees to support the deck." "Another unique element of Bonhomme Richard is that she was carrying 250 tons of iron ballast, during a time when most ships used rock ballast," said Neyland. The ship's 40 iron guns and large one-ton bower anchors could also stand out from other sea-bed debris.

The intersection of an experienced survey team, high-technology equipment, a crew of seasoned mariners on Henson, and knowledge of what historic artifacts they are looking for provided more positive results for this year's survey team than ever. "We located more than 30 sites we deemed worthy of further investigation," said Ryan. "One site in particular looks very promising, and we will be excited to get a close-up look at it with a remotely operated vehicle on a future expedition." The search participants are coordinating to determine what the next step will be. "To be part of a mission that could bring history back to life - to be able to see how time has preserved, or deteriorated, the Bonhomme Richard - to see what secrets, if any, might be waiting to be discovered - that's what was significant to me about this expedition," said Copeland.

Pages Battle of Flamborough Head in the American Revolution Bonhomme Richard (42 guns), Alliance (36), Pallas (32), Vengeance (12) Royal Navy HMS Serapis (44), HMS Countess of Scarborough (22) Battle of Flamborough Head - Background: On August 14, 1779, Commodore John Paul Jones departed Lorient, France with a small squadron of American and French warships. Flying his commodore's pennant from the 42-gun Bonhomme Richard, a converted East Indiaman named in honor of American Minister to France Benjamin Franklin , Jones intended to circle the British Isles in a clockwise fashion with the goal of attacking British commerce and diverting attention from French operations in the Channel. During the early days of the cruise, the squadron captured several merchantmen, but issues arose with Captain Pierre Landais, commander of Jones' second largest ship, the 36-gun frigate Alliance. A Frenchman, Landais had traveled to America hoping to be a naval version of the Marquis de Lafayette . He was rewarded with a captain's commission in the Continental Navy, but now resented serving under Jones.

Following an argument on August 24, Landais announced he would no longer follow orders. As a result, Alliance frequently departed and returned to the squadron at its commander's whim. After an absence of two weeks, Landais rejoined Jones near Flamborough Head at dawn on September 23. The return of Alliance raised Jones' strength to four ships as he also had the frigate Pallas (32) and the small brigantine Vengeance (12). Battle of Flamborough Head - The Squadrons Approach: Around 3:00 PM, lookouts reported sighting a large group of ships to the north. Based on intelligence reports, Jones correctly believed this to be a 41-ship convoy returning from the Baltic guarded by the frigate HMS Serapis (44) and the sloop-of-war HMS Countess of Scarborough (22). Piling on sail, Jones' ships turned to chase. Spotting the threat to the south, Captain Richard Pearson of Serapis, ordered the convoy to make for the safety of Scarborough and placed his vessel in a position to block the approaching Americans. After Countess of Scarborough had successfully guided the convoy some distance away, Pearson recalled his consort and maintained his position.

Due to light winds, Jones' squadron did not near the enemy until after 6:00 PM. Though Jones had ordered his ships to form a line of battle, Landais veered Alliance from the formation and pulled Countess of Scarborough away from Serapis. Around 7:00 PM, Bonhomme Richard rounded Serapis' port quarter and after an exchange of questions with Pearson, Jones opened fire with his starboard guns. This was followed by Landais attacking Countess of Scarborough. This engagement proved brief as the French captain quickly disengaged from the smaller ship. This allowed Countess of Scarborough's commander, Captain Thomas Piercy, to move to Serapis' aid. Battle of Flamborough Head - The Ships Clash: Alert to this danger, Captain Denis Cottineau of Pallas intercepted Piercy allowing Bonhomme Richard to continue engaging Serapis.. Alliance did not enter the fray and remained apart from the action. Aboard Bonhomme Richard, the situation quickly deteriorated when two of the ship's heavy 18-pdr guns burst in the opening salvo. In addition to damaging the ship, this led to the other 18-pdrs being taken out of service for fear that they were unsafe.

Using its greater maneuverability and heavier guns, Serapis raked and pounded Jones' ship. Realizing his only hope was to board Serapis, Jones turned his ship, ramming the enemy and laying along side. Quickly the crew of Bonhomme Richard bound the two ships together with grappling hooks. The ships continued firing into each other as both side's marines sniped at opposing crew and officers. An American attempt to board Serapis was repulsed, as was a British attempt to take Bonhomme Richard. After two hours of fighting, Alliance appeared on the scene. Believing the frigate's arrival would turn the tide, Jones was shocked when Landais began indiscriminately firing into both ships. Aloft, Midshipman Nathaniel Fanning and his party in the main fighting top succeeded in eliminating their counterparts on Serapis. Moving along the two ships' yardarms, Fanning and his men were able to cross over to Serapis. From their new position aboard the British ship, they were able to drive Serapis' crew from their stations using hand grenades and musket fire. With his men falling back, Pearson was forced to finally surrender his ship to Jones.

Across the water, Pallas succeeded in taking Countess of Scarborough after a prolonged fight. During the battle, Jones was famously reputed to have exclaimed "I have not yet begun to fight!" in response to Pearson's demand that he surrender his ship. Battle of Flamborough Head - Aftermath & Impact: Following the battle, Jones re-concentrated his squadron and began efforts to save the badly damaged Bonhomme Richard. By September 25, it was clear that the flagship could not be saved and Jones transferred to Serapis. After several days of repairs, the newly taken prize was able to get underway and Jones sailed for Texel Roads in the Netherlands. Evading the British, his squadron arrived on October 3. Landais was relieved of his command shortly thereafter. One of the greatest prizes taken by the Continental Navy, Serapis was soon transferred to the French for political reasons. The battle proved a major embarrassment for the Royal Navy and cemented Jones' place in American naval history.

Selected Sources Bonhomme Richard – aboutbridlington.co.uk Length: 152 ft (46 m) Beam: 40 ft (12 m) Draft: 19 ft (5.8 m) Propulsion: Sail Complement: 380 officers and enlisted Armament: 28 × 12-pound smoothbore 6 × 18-pound smoothbore 8 × 9-pound smoothbore Bonhomme Richard, formerly Duc de Duras, was a warship 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 4th 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.

She sailed in that service between France and eastern Asia until she was purchased by King Louis XVI of France in early 1779 and placed under the command of John Paul Jones on 4 February. The size and armament of Duc de Duras made her roughly equivalent to half of a 64-gun ship of the line Jones renamed her Bon Homme Richard (usually rendered in more correct French as Bonhomme Richard) in honor of Benjamin Franklin, the American Commissioner at Paris whose Poor Richard’s Almanac was published in France under the title Les Maximes du Bonhomme Richard. First patrols On 19th June 1779, Bonhomme Richard sailed from Lorient accompanied by USS 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 14th August 1779. It went 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 Further information: Battle of Flamborough Head On 23th September 1779, the squadron encountered the Baltic Fleet of 41 sail under convoy of the HMS Serapis and HM hired armed vessel Countess of Scarborough near Flamborough Head. The Bonhomme Richard and Serapis entered a bitter engagement at about 6:00 p.m. The battle continued for the next four hours, costing the lives of nearly half of the American and British crews. British victory seemed inevitable, as the more heavily armed Serapis used its firepower to rake Bonhomme Richard with devastating effect. The commander of the Serapis finally called on Jones to surrender. He replied, “Sir, I have not yet begun to fight!” Jones eventually managed to lash the ships together, nullifying his opponent’s greater maneuverability and allowing him to take advantage of the larger size and considerably more numerous 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 ships joined the fight, the British captain was forced to surrender at about 10:30 p.m.

The Bonhomme Richard – shattered, on fire, leaking badly – defied all efforts to save her and sank about 36 hours later at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, 25th September 1779. Jones sailed the captured Serapis to the Dutch United Provinces for repairs. Though the Bonhomme Richard sank after the battle, the battle’s outcome convinced the French crown to back the colonies in their fight to become independent of British authority. Search for the wreck Bonhomme Richard’s final resting location is the subject of much speculation. A number of unsuccessful efforts have been conducted to locate the wreck. The location is presumed to be in approximately 180 feet (55 m) of water off Flamborough Head, Yorkshire, a headland near where her final battle took place. The quantity of other wrecks in the area and a century of fishing trawler operations have complicated all searches. One season’s attempts to locate and retrieve the ship, or some artifacts from her, using USNS Grasp were filmed for the Discovery Channel’s Mighty Ships series. The U.S. Navy’s mission was unsuccessful.

THE BATTLE OF FLAMBROUGH HEAD September 23, 1779 The most remarkable single ship duel of the American Revolution was between the Bonne Homme Richard commanded by John Paul Jones and the HMS Serapis. The duel took place on September 23, 1779. The Serapis was a 50 gun ship of the line, that outgunned the Bonne Homme Richard which was barely sea worthy. When the captain of the Serapis hailed the Bonne Homme Richard and demanded surrender, John Paul Jones answered:" Surrender be dammed, I have not yet begun to fight." The Bon Homme Richard went on the vanquish the Serapis. John Paul Jones "Father of the American Navy". He was born in Kirkbean, Kirkcudbright county, Scotland, on July 6, 1747. As the strains of "The Star Spangles Banner" died, Secretary of the Navy Charles J. Bonaparte rose, walked to the lecturn, and began to speak.

"We have met to honor the memory of that man who gave our Navy its earliest traditions of heroism and victory." With these words, the Secretary began his introduction of the President of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt, at commemorative ceremonies and entombment exercises held in honor of John Paul Jones at the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland. Before the podium stood a star-draped casket containing the body of Jones, recently returned to the United States after lying for over a century in an unmarked grave in France. Upon the casket lay a wreath of laurel, a spray of palm, and the sword presented to Jones by Louis the XVI of France in honor of his victory over the Serapis. The ceremony's date had been selected by President Roosevelt -- 24 April 1906, the 128th anniversary of Jones' capture capture of the Drake -- and the observance in Annapolis capped a series of activities that included a White House reception and an official visit by a French naval squadron.

~ John Paul Jones Commemoration - United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland - April 24, 1906 ~ Named John Paul, he inherited from his parents, John Paul, Sr., and Jean McDuff, the independence of the Scottish Lowlander and the fighting instincts of the Highlander. When only 12 years old, he sailed as a shipboy on a merchantman to Virginia, where his older brother William was in business. America, he was to declare, has been my favorite country from the age of thirteen when I first saw it. He served at an early age in merchant vessels, armed ships, perhaps ships of war, and slavers. In practice of his own maxim, A warrior is always ready, his resourcefulness and skill won him the position as master of a merchantman, the John, at the age of 21. In command of this vessel in Tobago in the West Indies in 1770, he punished with the cat-o'-nine-tails a negligent carpenter, Mungo Maxwell, who later died from malaria aboard another ship. Jones proved his innocence of the death of Maxwell, but suffered widespread criticism.

Several years later, on a different ship, when a mutineer swung a bludgeon at him, Jones killed him. As an admiralty court was not in session at the time in Tobago, he left the island at the close of 1773, intending to return for trial. He took, temporarily, an assumed name. Jones passed 20 months in obscurity in America, chiefly in Fredericksburg, Va. A tradition assumes he changed his name during this period from John Paul to Paul Jones and John Paul Jones in gratitude to two brothers, Willie and Allen Jones of North Carolina. There is no authentic record proving that he ever met either of them or that they served him in any way. What is known with certainty is that Joseph Hewes, shipowner and signer of the Declaration of Independence, was his greatest early benefactor. Jones was among the foremost in service at the founding of the Continental Navy. He was commissioned in December 1775 as the first lieutenant on the frigate Alfred, on which he hoisted the Continental flag, the old Grand Union.

As captain of the sloop of war Providence and as commander of both the Alfred and the Providence, he captured valuable British merchantmen and destroyed important fisheries and many vessels. His skill in harrying the enemy was widely noted, and in February 1777, the Marine Committee directed its secretary, Robert Morris, to place the Continental fleet in his hands. But the jealousy of others thwarted these orders. Superseded by many officers, he became, unfairly, the 18th captain in naval rank. But John Hancock, president of Congress, as well as Robert Morris recognized his abilities. Accordingly, on June 14, 1777, he received the command of the new sloop of war Ranger, one of the first naval vessels to fly the Stars and Stripes, and sailed to France. Jones sailed the Ranger to the very shores of England, and tried to burn the shipping at Whitehaven. At Saint Mary's Isle he attempted, unsuccessfully, to take the earl of Selkirk as a hostage for the exchange of prisoners. On April 24, 1778, he captured the Drake, the first victory of a Continental vessel over a British warship.

Upon his return to the French port of Brest, Jones was eager to undertake more ambitious enterprises in larger ships. At every turn, however, he found political and naval intrigues, both French and American. The ship he eventually received (a merchantman renamed the Bonhomme Richard in honor of Benjamin Franklin), was old and slow, armed with 42 guns, and ill suited to fight or escape. Off Flamborough Head, however, the Richard pursued and challenged to battle two British ships of warthe Serapis, carrying 50 guns, and the Countess of Scarborough, with 22 guns. In the grim struggle on Sept. 23, 1779, Jones had to fight not only against the superior crew, armament, speed, and maneuvering ability of the Serapis, as well as the Countess of Scarborough, but also against a grave and almost fatal accident. Two of the six old 18-pounders of the Richard burst at their first broadside and killed or wounded many men. It became imperative for Jones to outwit Capt. Richard Pearson RN, the captain of the Serapis. An initial attempt to board the British frigate and win by sheer desperate fighting failed.

In a second effort he managed to lock the two ships together. The Serapis was beating in one of the Richard's sides and blowing out the other. Most of the guns of the American ship were broken and silenced. The Richard with its dry old timbers was afire again and again, and the water in the hold rose ominously. A gunner, crediting a report that Jones had been killed, called to offer surrender of the Richard, and Pearson loudly responded, Do you ask for quarter? Jones then made his memorable reply, emphasizing it by hurling his two pistols at the head of the gunner: I have not yet begun to fight! A grenade thrown from the Richard caused a disastrous explosion of ammunition on board the Serapis. After three and one-half hours of heroic battle in full moonlight, the Serapis struck its flag. Then Jones and his crew boarded the British ship and saw the Bonhomme Richard sink, stern uppermost and with its colors flying. "I have not yet begun to fight." John Paul Jones Jones escaped in the Serapis to Holland, accompanied by the captured Countess of Scarborough.

He later went to Paris, where he was acclaimed by the populace, honored by the king, and feted and lionized by society. His dalliance in the French capital, his verse writing, and several romantic attachments made an unusual interlude in Jones's career. Jones returned to America in February 1781 in the Ariel. Congress passed resolutions in his honor, recommended the award of a gold medal, and gave him command of the ship of the line America, which, in essence, conferred the rank of rear admiral. The war ending soon, he urged, In time of peace prepare for war. The prospect of service in the Russian Navy as a rear admiral now arose. Jones asserted that he would never renounce the glorious title of citizen of the United States. But men no less astute than Thomas Jefferson and George Washington seemed to think that employment in Russia, in the absence of any at home, would qualify him, in case of need, for still higher professional duties. Arriving in Russia in April 1788, Jones was given command of a squadron in the Black Sea for a campaign against the Turks.

Jones's grim dedication to his professional duties resulted in victories scarcely less daring and strategic than those in the American Revolution. It was primarily his operations that saved Kherson and the Crimea and decided the successful outcome of the war. While he won the battles, however, his colleagues usurped the honors. The first duty of a gentleman is to respect his own character, he wrote in explanation of his aloofness from the deceit that surrounded him. I saw that I must conquer or die, he stated on his early recognition of the ineptitude as well as the villainy to which he was exposed. The intrigue against him grew, both professional and personal, including a baseless charge of moral turpitude, and Jones left Russia for France. Becoming progressively ill in Paris, Jones died there on July 18, 1792. Moral courage inspired by reverence for his country, physical boldness derived from a nature inured from youth to hardship and danger, and zeal for perfection in his profession were the qualities that combined to raise Jones from obscurity to international eminence. He was outstanding among his fellow officers for never losing a ship.

He was unequaled by any of them for vision and resourcefulness, and his urgent recommendations for an unmatched American Navy showed remarkable foresight and devotion. After lying for a hundred years in an unmarked Paris grave, his remains were moved in 1906 to the chapel of the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md. Jones' life paralleled that of the Continental Navy. Both rose from humble origins, appeared briefly on the world scene, and then passed with few mourners. Jones gave to it some of its brightest moments, including the capture of the two largest Royal Navy ships to strike their flags to Americans during the Revolution. He always made the most of the limited resources available to him. In the battle against Serapis, he left a legacy of dauntless courage and unconquerable persistence in the most desperate of circumstances. Every fighting service needs a tradition of refusal to surrender in the face of seemingly overwhelming odds. "It was [John Paul Jones] who... created the spirit of my country's infant Navy." wrote a mid-nineteenth-century naval officer. This was the dominant image of Jones during a century when naval officers, in particular, shared his great sense of personal honor.

The era of Jacksonian Democracy found much to admire in the rise of a Scot's gardener's son to glory in the Continental Navy and to flag rank in the Imperial Russian Navy. At the start of the twentieth century when the U.S. Navy took its place among leaders of the world, the image of Jones held by the general public and by naval officers began to change. The Navy's rising professionalism led it to value Jones not simply as a courageous leader in time of battle but as a complete naval officer. Jones understood the basics of his vocation. His grasp of naval architecture was demonstrated by his supervision of the construction of the Ranger and the America, the virtual reconstruction of the Bonhomme Richard, and alterations to the masts and rigging of almost every ship he commanded. His victories were not won by courage and superior tactics alone, but were the result of careful preparation. His letters and actions show the respect he had for his subordinates, though he often failed to give enough credit to the officers who served under him. His desire to establish boards to evaluate officers for promotion were visionary for his time. His proposals for a fleet of evolution and naval academies predated the establishment of such institutions in the United States by over a half a century.

Consequently, quotations from his writings, sometimes imaginary, appeared on the fitness report forms of the Navy's Bureau of Personnel and on examination books at the U.S. Naval Academy in the early twentieth century. Jones' strategic ideals were equally sound. As clearly as anyone, he understood the limitation of the Continental Navy and advocated operations congruent with its capabilities. The need for French assistance in ejecting the British army from America was apparent to Jones. It is not sjurprising that Admiral DeGrasse's biographer credits Jones with suggesting the strategy that ultimately brought victory at Yorktown. That he was a man of talent cannot be denied, nor can his patriotism. His disappointments in terms of recognition and command rivaled those of Benedict Arnold, but their reactions differed sharply. Jones' reputation rests on his exploits of 1778 and 1779, when he took the war to the British people and stengthened American morale at times when it was sinking. Sadly, he was never destined to test his talents on a broad scale. With the end of the war, America thought it no longer needed a navy and thus had no use for Jones as a naval officer. But Jones never fully adapted to peace.

His success as a diplomat was no compensation for his disappointment when his plans for an American navy were rejected. Throughout the Revolution, he had remained optimistic, convinced that the Continental Navy, no matter how low its fortunes, could win respect from Europe for the new United States. That he sought personal fame at the same time is not surprising. His pursuit of glory as a reward for self-sacrifice and service to the nation was fully in keeping with the spirit of the time. John Paul Jones' Crypt Beneath The Chapel At The U.S.Naval Academy In the end, John Paul Jones's legacy rests not so much on what he accomplished as on how he did it. As the inscription on his tomb reads: "He Gave to Our Navy Its Earliest Traditions of Heroism and Victory." His remains are entombed beneath the United States Naval Academy Chapel's Rotunda, Annapolis, Maryland, where United States Marines guard his crypt 24 hours a day. Gardener's Cottage-1905 Birthplace of John Paul Jones - Gardener's Cottage Arbigland House, Kirkbean, Kirkcudbright, Scotland - 1998 Photo - Ronald W. McGranahan, VAdm.

USN Retired North Sea « Shipwreckology September 23, 2012 — Leave a comment Battle of Flamborough Head Photo: US Navy, Painting by Thomas Mitchell One of the most famous battles in the US Navy’s history occurred 233 years ago today on September 23, 1779. Captain John Paul Jones and his converted East Indiaman USS Bonhomme Richard along with USS Alliance attacked a British convoy protected by HMS Serapis and Countess of Scarborough. In what became known as the Battle of Flamborough Head, Jones and his crew engaged the Serapis in a ship-to-ship duel. Captain Pearson of the Serapis demanded Jones’ surrender and in reply he uttered the now famous words, “I have not yet begun to fight.” Though outgunned, Jones’ superior fighting skills carried the day and the Serapis eventually struck its colors. Despite having defeated the British forces (Countess of Scarborough struck her colors as well), the Bonhomme Richard sank the next morning and Jones transferred his flag to the Serapis. Jones’ victory was not the last in which an American naval force engaged British forces while penning a famous phrase .

The wreck of the Bonhomme Richard is considered one of the crown jewels of shipwrecks and has been the subject of several discovery expeditions . Unfortunately none have been able to locate the wreck and its final resting place off Flamborough Head remains a mystery. John Paul Jones is considered the father of the American Navy and his words “I wish to have no connection with any ship that does not sail fast for I intend to go in harm’s way ” are just as famous in naval circles as “I have not yet begun to fight.” Sadly, Jones never held a significant sea command in the US Navy after the Battle of Flamborough Head and died an Admiral in the Russian Navy . USS Bonhomme Richard (1765) | Military Wiki | Fandom powered by Wikia USS Bonhomme Richard (1765) Share Ad blocker interference detected! Wikia is a free-to-use site that makes money from advertising. We have a modified experience for viewers using ad blockers Wikia is not accessible if you’ve made further modifications. Remove the custom ad blocker rule(s) and the page will load as expected. For other ships of the same name, see USS Bonhomme Richard .

USS Bonhomme Richard (1765) 998 long ton (1014 tonnes) [1] Length: 152 ft (46 m) [1] Beam: 40 ft (12 m) [1] Draft: 19 ft (5.8 m) [1] Propulsion: 380 officers and enlisted [1] Armament: 8 x 9-pound smoothbore [1] </td></tr> Bonhomme Richard, formerly Duc de Duras, was a warship 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 .

Contents Edit 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] The size and armament of Duc de Duras made her a rough equivalent of half of a 64-gun ship of the line [3] 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 was published in France under the title of Les Maximes du Bonhomme Richard. [1] First patrols Edit On 19 June 1779, Bonhomme Richard sailed from Lorient accompanied by USS 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.

It went 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 Further information: Battle of Flamborough Head On 23 September 1779, they encountered the Baltic Fleet of 41 sail under convoy of HMS Serapis and HM hired armed vessel Countess of Scarborough near Flamborough Head. Bonhomme Richard and Serapis entered a bitter engagement at approximately 6:00 p.m. The battle ensued over the next four hours, costing the lives of nearly half the American and British crews. British victory seemed inevitable as the more heavily armed Serapis used its firepower to rake Bonhomme Richard with devastating effect. 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 allowing Jones 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, the British captain surrendered at about 10:30 p.m. Bonhomme Richard – shattered, on fire, leaking badly – defied all efforts to save her and sank about 36 hours later at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, 25 September 1779. Jones sailed the captured Serapis to the Dutch 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 Edit Bonhomme Richard's final resting location is the subject of much speculation. A number of unsuccessful efforts have been conducted to locate the wreck. The location of the wreck is presumed to be in approximately 180 feet (55 m) of water off Flamborough Head, 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.

One season's attempts to locate and retrieve the ship, or some artifacts from her, using USNS Grasp were filmed for Discovery Channel's Mighty Ships series. The mission was not a success. See also The Fight between the Bon Homme Richard and the Serapis The Fight between the Bon Homme Richard and the Serapis . By John Paul Jones [Excerpted from American History Told by Contemporaries , Vol. II: Building of the Republic, Albert Bushnell Hart, ed. (New York, MacMillan, 1899), pp. 587-590] The capture of the Serapis was the most Striking naval victory of the war. Jones was born in Scotland, but had served as a brilliant officer in the American navy from its organization in 1775. On the morning of that day, the 23d [September, 1779], the brig from Holland not being in sight, we chased a brigantine that appeared laying to, to windward.

About noon, we saw and chased a large ship that appeared coming round Flamborough Head, from the northward, and at the same time I manned and armed one of the pilot boats to send in pursuit of the brigantine, which now appeared to be the vessel that I had forced ashore. Soon after this, a fleet of forty-one sail appeared off Flamborough Head, bearing N. N. E. This induced me to abandon the single ship which had then anchored in Burlington Bay; I also called back the pilot boat, and hoisted a signal for a general chase. When the fleet discovered us bearing down, all the merchant ships crowded sail towards the shore. The two ships of war that protected the fleet at the same time steered from the land, and made the disposition for battle. In approaching the enemy, I crowded every possible sail, and made the signal for the line of battle, to which the dalliance showed no attention. Earnest as I was for the action, I could not reach the commodore's ship until seven in the evening, being then within pistol shot, when he hailed the Bon Homme Richard. We answered him by firing a whole broadside. The battle being thus begun, was continued with unremitting fury.

Every method was practised on both sides to gain an advantage, and rake each other; and I must confess that the enemy's ship, being much more manageable than the Bon Homme Richard, gained thereby several times an advantageous situation, in spite of my best endeavours to prevent it. As I had to deal with an enemy of greatly superior force, I was under the necessity of closing with him, to prevent the advantage which he had over me in point of manoeuvre. It was my intention to lay the Bon Homme Richard athwart the enemy's bow; but as that operation required great dexterity in the management of both sails and helm, and some of our braces being shot away, it did not exactly succeed to my wish. The enemy's bowsprit, however, came over the Bon Homme Richard's poop by the mizen-mast, and I made both ships fast together in that situation, which, by the action of the wind on the enemy's sails, forced her stern close to the Bon Homme Richard's bow, so that the ships lay square alongside of each other, the yards being all entangled, and the cannon of each ship touching the opponent's.

When this position took place, it was eight o'clock, previous to which the Bon Homme Richard had received sundry eighteen-pound shots below the water, and leaked very much. My battery of twelve-pounders, on which I had placed my chief dependence, being commanded by Lieutenant Dale and Colonel Weibert, and manned principally with American seamen and French volunteers, was entirely silenced and abandoned. As to the six old eighteen-pounders that formed the battery of the lower gun-deck, they did no service whatever, except firing eight shot in all. Two out of three of them burst at the first fire, and killed almost all the men who were stationed to manage them. Before this time, too, Colonel de Chamillard, who commanded a party of twenty soldiers on the poop, had abandoned that station after having lost some of his men. I had now only two pieces of cannon, (nine-pounders,) on the quarter-deck, that were not silenced, and not one of the heavier cannon was tired during the rest of the action. The purser, M.

Mease, who commanded the guns on the quarter-deck, being dangerously wounded in the head, I was obliged to fill his place, and with great difficulty rallied a few men, and shifted over one of the lee quarter-deck guns, so that we afterwards played three pieces of nine-pounders upon the enemy. The tops alone seconded the fire of this little battery, and held out bravely during the whole of the action, especially the main-top, where Lieutenant Stack commanded. I directed the fire of one of the three cannon against the main-mast, with double-headed shot, while the other two were exceedingly well served with grape and canister shot, to silence the enemy's musketry and clear her decks, which was at last effected. The enemy were, as I have since understood, on the instant of calling for quarter, when the cowardice or treachery of three of my under-officers induced them to call to the enemy. The English commodore asked me if r demanded quarter, and I having answered him in the most determined negative, they renewed the battle with double fury.

They were unable to stand the deck; but the fire of their cannon, especially the lower battery, which was entirely formed of ten-pounders, was incessant; both ships were set on fire in various places, and the scene was dreadful beyond the reach of language. To account for the timidity of my three under-officers, I mean, the gunner, the carpenter, and the master-at-arms, I must observe, that the two first were slightly wounded, and, as the ship had received various shot under water, and ode of the pumps being shot away, the carpenter expressed his fears that she would sink, and the other two concluded that she was sinking, which occasioned the gunner to run aft on the poop, without my knowledge, to strike the colours. Fortunately for me, a cannon ball had done that before, by carrying away the ensign-staff; he was therefore reduced to the necessity of sinking, as he supposed, or of calling for quarter, and he preferred the latter.

All this time the Bon Homme Richard had sustained the action alone, and the enemy, though much superior in force, would have been very glad to have got clear, as appears by their own acknowledgments, and by their having let go an anchor the instant that I laid them on board, by which means they would have escaped, had I not made them well fast to the Bon Homme Richard.... . . . My situation was really deplorable; the Bon Homme Richard received various shot under water from the Alliance; the leak gained on the pumps, and the fire increased much on board both ships. Some officers persuaded me to strike, of whose courage and good sense I entertain a high opinion. My treacherous master-at-arms let loose all my prisoners without my knowledge, and my prospects became gloomy indeed. I would not, however, give up the point. The enemy's mainmast began to shake, their firing decreased fast, ours rather increased, and the British colours were struck at half an hour past ten o'clock.

This prize proved to be the British ship of war the Serapis, a new ship of forty-four guns, built on the most approved construction, with two complete batteries, one of them of eighteen-pounders, and commanded by the brave Commodore Richard Pearson. I had yet two enemies to encounter, far more formidable than the Britons, I mean, fire and water. The Serapis was attacked only by the first, but the Bon Homme Richard was assailed by both; there was five feet water in the hold, and though it was moderate from the explosion of so much gunpowder, yet the three pumps that remained could with difficulty only keep the water from gaining. The fire broke out in various parts of the ship, in spite of all the water that could be thrown in to quench it, and at length broke out as low as the powder magazine, and within a few inches of the powder. In that dilemma, I took out the powder upon deck, ready to be thrown overboard at the last extremity, and it was ten o'clock the next day, the 24th, before the fire was entirely extinguished.

With respect to the situation of the Bon Homme Richard, the rudder was cut entirely off, the stern frame and transoms were almost entirely cut away, and the timbers by the lower deck, especially from the mainmast towards the stern, being greatly decayed with age, were mangled beyond my power of description, and a person must have been an eye witness to form a just idea of the tremendous scene of carnage, wreck, and ruin, which every where appeared. Humanity cannot but recoil from the prospect of such finished horror, and lament that war should be capable of producing such fatal consequences.... . . . The wind augmented in the night, and the next day, the 25th, so that it was impossible to prevent the good old ship from sinking. They did not abandon her till after nine o'clock; the water was then up to the lower deck, and a little after ten I saw, with inexpressible grief, the last glimpse of the Bon Homme Richard. No lives were lost with the ship, but it was impossible to save the stores of any sort whatever. I lost even the best part of my clothes, books, and papers; and several of my officers lost all their clothes and effects.

[Robert Charles Sands. ed., Life and Correspondence of John Paul Jones (New York, 1830), 180-188 passim.]

Question: Who commanded the 'USS Bonhomme Richard' which sank after the 'Battle of Flamborough Head' in 1779?
Answer: JOHN PAUL JONES